by R. G. Angel
Caleb gave one final thrust and came deep inside of me with a roar of pleasure. I was too happy and satisfied to even care.
Caleb pulled out and rolled over, pulling me against him.
“We need to be careful next time,” I sighed, kissing his neck. I’d just finished my period so we were safe, but we couldn’t have a baby yet.
“Yeah, I got a little carried away.” He kissed the top of my head. “I’m just glad to know you want a next time.”
Lord, I hope so! I thought. If sex was always like this, I wondered how people even managed to make it out of bed
He pulled me tighter against him. His eyes were heavy, but I could see he was fighting it.
“Why don't you sleep a bit?” I suggested, tracing his chest tattoo.
“Because last time I did, you disappeared.”
My heart squeezed in my chest as a wave of guilt engulfed me once again. “I won't. I promise.”
“My mother saw you leave with a suitcase this morning.”
“I see. Was she gloating?”
He shrugged one shoulder. “Well, she was morning drinking, which is something she does to celebrate days ending in ‘Y’.”
“I only took a small suitcase. Things hadn’t ended well last night, and I wanted to spend a couple of days at Taylor’s just to figure it out.”
“Figure what out?” he asked. I could feel his muscles tense with apprehension.
“How to tell you everything.”
“I see. Did you figure it out?” he asked, his thumb tracing idle patterns on my bare back.
“My mother was murdered,” I let out.
He froze. “Sorry?”
“My mother,” I sighed. It felt good to finally come clean. “She was murdered,” I repeated. Then I unleashed everything on him, from the moment I’d found the note in the journal, every single detail up to my trip to Port Harbor. I got through the whole story without even a single word from Caleb.
“Are you still alive?” I asked him, trying to lighten the mood.
He nudged me. I reluctantly moved from my spot on his chest. Standing up, he pulled on his pants.
He started to pace up and down at the foot of the bed. “So, you are telling me that you were investigating a murder and that someone tried to kill you, here, in my house?” His tone was calm, but his overall demeanor was angry.
“I told you I didn’t try to kill myself.”
He threw me an exasperated look. “But you’d left out a crucial element there, Esmeralda. Don’t do that.”
“I’m sorry.”
He shook his head, glancing my way, his eyes darkening again. “And you’d called Ben just so you’d be caught in Carmel, not because of a lover’s lament.”
I tried my best to stop my smile from spreading. Jealous Caleb did have his appeal. I shook my head. “No, it had nothing to do with love, but he was the only person I thought would be believable.”
“And Port Harbor?”
I shook my head again. “I told you. I needed someone to bug David Phang. It was not – how did you call it? A sanctioned lovers’ tryst?”
He rolled his eyes and sighed, letting go of his tension. “You should have told me.”
“I know.”
“I would have protected you.”
“I know.”
He sat beside me on the bed, gently brushing away the hair on my forehead. “I want in. Please let me be there for you.”
I gripped his hand and kissed the back of it. “Of course.”
“All in?”
“All in.”
He smiled, letting his knuckles trail down my bare chest before circling my nipple. “Maybe we can seal the deal by–”
But he was stopped by my phone blaring out Archie’s ringtone. “It’s Archie.” I pointed at my blazer on the floor.
“Fine, later.” He gave me my phone.
“Brother!” I smiled as I answered.
“I’m in front of the gates. I’ve got news.” His voice was cold, preoccupied...and it suddenly burst my loving bubble and sexual satisfaction. Someone had died, someone that should have been me.
“Archie is here.”
Caleb sighed with a nod. “Yeah, it was too good to last.” He jerked his head toward the door. “I’ll keep him occupied. Go take a shower.”
I looked down and blushed furiously at the proof of our lovemaking on my skin. I jumped up off the bed and wrapped my shirt around me. “See you in a bit.”
“Wait,” he called as I reached the door.
I turned around with a questioning look. He walked to me like a man on a mission, caught my face between his hands, and kissed me passionately.
“Don’t be too long,” he growled against my lips after breaking the kiss.
I staggered on my feet. “I’ll do my best,” I replied breathlessly, unsure if I could even walk back to my room after everything we’d shared. The wicked smile forming on his face clearly showed that he knew it too.
Chapter 17 - Caleb
I still couldn’t believe that everything could change so much just in the space of a few hours. I’d been so determined to let her go for her own good, but then when I’d thought I’d lost her, I’d felt a pain so intense, so raw, that I knew I couldn’t. I shivered at the reminder. Some residual pain still echoed in my chest as I retrieved my discarded shirt from the floor.
But the impossible had happened. She had shown me that she cared, truly – although maybe not in the obsessive way than I did. She had also shown me that she hadn’t betrayed me. That was worth all the pain I’d experienced
“Where’s my sister?” Archibald asked as soon as I met him in the small library.
“Taking a shower. She’ll join us in a moment.” I gestured him toward one of the maroon leather chairs surrounding the rectangular coffee table.
Archibald detailed me. His mouth turned down in a disgusted pout. “I don’t think I’ll ever be okay with you defiling my sister.”
I sighed. I was going to be the mature one and not say that if it was my decision, I would ‘defile’ her in every room of this house.
“And I can’t say I like the light in your eyes at whatever you’re thinking, but–”
“But?”
He shook his head, sitting on the chair I’d pointed him toward. “But I’m glad she has you. With what’s to come, she’ll need all the help she can get and I saw it today. You love her.”
There was no point denying it, but I wouldn’t confirm it either. She deserved to be the first to hear it. “What happened?”
“Let’s wait for Esme.”
I rang for tea and coffee just as Esmeralda walked in. How was it that she looked breath-taking with her face bare of makeup and her body clothed in a simple pair of jeans and sweatshirt?
“You look grim, brother,” she said, giving him a hug before coming to stand beside me. It felt so good to have her stay by my side.
I wrapped my arm around her waist and kissed her cheek.
Archibald looked at both of us and sighed. “Your car was tampered with Esme. Your brake line was severed.”
I froze as she tensed beside me.
“What did you say?” I asked slowly. Please tell me I’d heard wrong.
“Somebody’s really trying to kill her.” Archibald’s eyes reflected the dread I was feeling inside.
I pulled her closer as if I could shield her by making her a part of me.
“Oh...” She paled. I feared she was going to pass out.
I pulled her to the loveseat and sat as close as I could beside her.
“Esmeralda, it’s okay. I’ll keep you safe.” I looked at Archibald sitting across from me and added, “We’ll keep you safe.”
“Do you think that’s what happened to mom?” she asked.
Archibald sighed. “Maybe. I…” He stopped talking when Benjamin entered with the cart containing coffee and tea.
“Thank you, Benjamin. You may go now.” I looked at the cart before standing up. “I think this dis
cussion calls for something stronger.” I walked to the well-stocked bar. It was one of the perks of living with high-functioning alcoholics. “Name your poison.”
Archibald rubbed his hand over his face. “Bourbon, double, neat.”
Ah, it would be that kind of conversation. I turned to Esmeralda. I wasn’t keen on her drinking alcohol, so I was relieved when she shook her head.
“No thanks. I’ll stick to tea.”
I copied Archibald’s choice before taking my seat beside Esmeralda again. “So?”
Archibald took a long sip. “So, yeah, I went to the station and asked for the car to be looked at as a priority. After less than thirty minutes, the expert told me the brakes had been tampered with.”
“Couldn’t it have been just a fault?” Esmeralda tried, much paler than usual. I couldn’t blame her. The thought of having someone out there wanting to end her life was terrifying for all of us.
Archibald shook his head, finally showing the extent of his weariness and worry. I felt sorry for him. “No, I asked the same question. The man showed me a photo. The cut was too even, but it seemed to be amateurishly done.”
“Amateur?” I asked. That didn’t sound like something belonging to our lives. Nothing was done by amateurs.
“Why does it matter?” Esmeralda asked, still paler than a ghost.
I squeezed her knee. “I’m not sure yet, but it just…”
“Doesn’t fit?” Archibald offered.
I rubbed my jaw. “Yeah…”.
Archibald shrugged. “Unless it was not planned – something done in the spur of the moment.”
“Do you think they know about David Phang?” Esmeralda asked.
Archibald cocked his head to the side, twisting his mouth with uncertainty. “I doubt it, but it might just be a sloppy professional job too.”
“Who? Oh God,” Esmeralda rested her hand on her mouth as if she’d finally caught-on to something. “Who was driving?”
I knew the answer before Archibald uttered a word. She looked enough like Esmeralda for me to believe that she had died. She had also been the reason why I’d picked her as my preferred sextoy for my sexual needs after meeting Esmeralda– so I could pretend she had been the woman sitting before me.
“Aleksandra Dermot.”
“It’s horrible. If she hadn’t–”
“Don’t.” I took Esme’s hand, intertwining our fingers together. “Don’t do this. Don’t feel guilty. She did what she did because it was the person she was. I can’t feel sad. The only thing I can feel is relief because you’re sitting beside me. I know it sounds cold and uncaring, but I couldn’t care less about who was in that car as long as it wasn’t you.”
“She was a daughter, Caleb. A sister. What she did to me was petty, but it was harmless and –”
“Her parents wanted to sue you for the car tonight, Esme,” Archibald interrupted.
She looked at him, blinking back the tears, guilt morphing into confusion. “What?”
“When those people should have been at home mourning the loss of their daughter, they were at the police station with their lawyers wanting to know who the car belonged to. When they heard the name Forbes, I swear their faces morphed and dollar signs appeared in their eyes.”
“How do you know?”
“I know because I was there trying to figure out what had happened to your car, because I’ve seen enough gold-digging assholes in my life to recognize one even with my eyes closed, and because Aleskandra didn’t become who she was by accident. Her parents always wanted more money. Their money was drying up and they were desperate.”
“What did you do then? Offer them some?”
Archibald snorted. “Hardly! Those people won’t get a penny from me! No, I walked up beside them and told the police officer I wanted to press charges against their dead daughter for theft.”
Esmeralda looked a bit disappointed in him. “You said that after they’d just lost their daughter?”
“Did you miss the part where I said they wanted to sue us?”
She shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. A life was lost, Archie. You can’t be so dismissive.”
But he could be, just like I could be. She was too good. She was untainted. This, I knew, was something that Archibald and I agreed on. We would do anything in the universe to keep her that way.
“Archibald did what he was supposed to, Esmeralda.” I couldn't believe I was defending him and yet – “I would have done the same.”
“But, it’s not right! I–”
“Later, okay?” I tried. I would do what needed to be done to pacify her, even if that meant giving those fucking leeches some money. I loved her enough to do just that. I wanted to give her some peace, some closure.
“Yeah, sure.” She thought I was humoring her, but she’d learn to trust me. With time, she would.
“So, I guess you had weeks to investigate. Who’s on the list of suspects?” I asked, turning the discussion back to what really mattered to me - Esmeralda’s safety.
Archibald flushed slightly and I knew I would not like the answer. “Mainly?”
“Uh huh.”
“Our father and…your parents.”
I was startled by the admission, not that it should have come as a shock, but still. I knew my parents were not good people, but to the claim that they would try to kill a mother and daughter...
“It wasn’t my father who tried to hurt Esmeralda. It’s not possible.”
Archibald looked at Esmeralda with uncertainty. Did he take my statement for a stupid attachment to my genitor?
“I’m not saying he is not capable of doing that. He very much would and it would not stop him from sleeping. But he is fascinated by Esmeralda – fascinated in a way that I'm anything but comfortable with. No, he would not do that.” My mother, on the other hand...
Esmeralda looked at me and I could see she understood where my thoughts were going. She squeezed my hand.
“What about your mom?” she asked, mirroring my thoughts.
“Ah, that’s the question, isn’t it? I’d like to say she has nothing to do with this, but there are things about my mother you don’t know.” I looked down, somehow ashamed even if I had no logical reason to be. “So no, Esmeralda, I can't say my mother has not tried to kill you or taken part in your mother's death.” I shook my head. I hated the idea.
Esmeralda pulled my hand to rest it on her lap. “Caleb, I’m sure she has nothing to do with this. Why would she try to kill me anyway?”
“Yeah...” I was so uncomfortable. I hated saying all of this in front of Archibald even if he knew some of it and suspected the rest. Saying things aloud were much more difficult. “My mother is not… She is quite unstable.”
“Okay…” Esmeralda trailed off.
I looked heavenward. Pulling Esmeralda’s hand to my lips, I kissed the back of it before resting it on my lap. “For you to understand, I need to start from the beginning.”
“We can discuss it later if you want, when it’s only the two of us.”
I threw my hands up. “Oh, what the hell. It might be best if I get it all out now. We’re family now aren’t we, Archibald?”
He smirked. “Whoever takes care of my sister is my family, Astor. You do care for her, don’t you?”
“I would die for her,” I replied, my voice neutral, but somehow hurt and vexed that he felt the need to ask. “I felt her loss twice. I never want to experience that again.”
Archibald nodded, taking a sip of his drink. “Then we’re good. Well at least as far as Esme is concerned.”
I snorted. Like I needed a reminder that nothing could ever save our former friendship.
“You’ve both seen the scars, but–” I leaned back in my seat. “What you don’t know is that my mother was the one who gave them to me.”
Esmeralda gasped and scooted closer to me on the loveseat. As unlikely as it seemed, having her closer helped me so much more than I cared to admit.
Archibald looked away
and I was grateful. He didn’t want to show me whatever it made him feel and I approved. I didn't think I could have handled seeing the pity in his eyes.
“She had a psychotic episode. I was five when I woke up to my mother standing above me with a knife in her hand. She’d stabbed me six times as I tried to crawl away before Benjamin came in and stopped her.”
“Ah.” Archibald looked down at his hands clasped together. “Is that why she left for a trip to Switzerland?”
I laughed. “Yes, to one of the best loony bins in the world.” I shrugged, but held Esmeralda's hand as if it was a lifeline. In many ways it was. “She wanted to kill my father’s heir as she was certain your mother had had an affair with my dad.”
Archibald looked up sharply. “She didn’t.”
“He knows that now. Caleb, don’t you?” Esmeralda said.
I looked into her eyes and I couldn’t deny her. She believed that and her mother's diary. No matter my doubts, I couldn't foist them upon her.
I leaned over and kissed her forehead. “Of course I do. But what I believe or not doesn't matter. My mother believes that and my father's attention toward you could be a trigger.” I shook my head. “That and the white wine.”
“The Jägermeister?” She asked.
I chuckled, only she could make me laugh in such a moment. “The Gewurztraminer, yes. It’s my mother's favorite wine.”
Esmeralda looked at her brother again just as Benjamin appeared to let us know that Antoine and Taylor had arrived.
I nodded. I felt raw. It had been thirteen years and I could still see her crazed eyes as she’d stood over my bed that night. I could still feel the blade entering my back.
I let go of Esmeralda's hand and jerked up from my seat. “Let them in.” I looked at Esmeralda. “I’m just going to get some fresh air for a few minutes. Just catch them up, okay?”
I walked out onto the library balcony, closing the French doors behind me. I took a deep breath before leaning against the balcony rail and looking out at the dark garden.