"How did you trick her into marrying you?" Sully asked. The sound of throats clearing went up around the table as the other guys finally heard what Sully was so upset about.
"I didn't. It was a dare. We'd had a rough day and were playing drinking games. Isabel dared me to marry her, and I—"
A gasp sounded behind him, and all the color drained from Ethan's face. It wasn't a big deal, not really. But he hadn't had a chance to explain what had happened that night, and now Isabel had heard only a fraction of the tale.
"You said you didn't remember," she accused.
"No, I never said that. You assumed," he reasoned.
Isabel shook her head, her eyes wide with anger and humiliation. He'd known that she'd feel that way. And he knew that when she realized that they'd slept together before and she couldn't remember, she'd be even more humiliated. He didn't want that.
"Outside," she said, motioning towards the balcony and not waiting for him to follow behind.
Ethan stole a glance at Sully, whose hard expression had yet to change. He prayed that his friend would understand and embrace their relationship, because no way was he letting Isabel go.
As soon as the sliding door to the balcony had closed, Isabel turned on him. "How much do you remember?"
Ethan sighed, dreading this confrontation but knowing that the only way forward was to deal with it and move on. "All of it."
Her mouth dropped open. "All of it?"
He nodded.
"Oh my gosh. I'm such an idiot. Were you even drunk?"
"Yes, I was. But just not so much that I blacked out. I didn't realize at the time how drunk you were, or I never would have married you."
Hurt flared in her eyes.
"Not in that state," he added hastily. "Look, Izz—" He took two steps towards her, and she backed up, her hands in front of her to keep him from touching her.
"I can't believe you didn't tell me," she said.
"I was going to. That's what I wanted to tell you today—what I kept trying to tell you at other times, but you weren't ready to listen."
"Well, that's convenient. Blame it on me. It's my fault we got married. My fault you didn't tell me the circumstances."
"I'm not blaming you at all," Ethan said.
"Wait." She shook her head as if trying to clear her thoughts. "If you were sober enough to remember, then why?"
"Why what?"
He knew what she was asking, but this wasn't exactly the way he wanted to tell her how he felt.
"Don't act stupid, Ethan. You know what I'm asking. Why did you go through with it?"
Ethan shrugged, trying for a nonchalance he knew he didn't feel. "I wanted to."
"But why?" she asked.
Ethan breathed in a heavy breath and blew it out. He took two more steps forward, backing her up against the balcony railing. His hand lifted to push a strand of hair away from her face. Meeting her gaze, he took the plunge. "Because I love you."
Isabel's breathing became erratic. Her pupils dilated slightly, and he saw her look at his lips. Then she shook her head. "No. No, that can't be the reason. How did you—I mean, when did you—?"
Ethan held her closer. "I think I've loved you for a while now. Weeks? Months? I'm not sure when it happened. But almost losing you, and then when you asked—well, I hoped that the alcohol had lowered your inhibitions enough that you finally realized you loved me as well. You told me you did."
"When?"
"That night. At the altar. You told me that you loved me. I knew then that what we had done was right."
She struggled to pull away, but he held her tightly against him. She relaxed a little, but huffed out a sigh of frustration. "I was drunk, Ethan. I don't remember any of it."
"Nothing?"
"I don't think so. I mean, wait. Is there more?" Ethan looked over her shoulder, not meeting her eyes. Isabel grabbed his chin and turned his face to meet her gaze. "What else are you not telling me, Ethan?"
He released her, stepping away to give her some space. He knew her mortification would flare, even though she had nothing to be embarrassed about.
"You're telling me you don't remember anything else about that night? About what happened after?"
Isabel shook her head, but then stopped. He could see her mind working. See her trying to put two and two together.
"It can't be. I mean, I thought it was just a dream." Panic radiated from her in waves, and Ethan stepped closer, taking her elbows in his hands.
"It wasn't a dream," he said softly.
"You lied to me!" she shouted, anger now taking the place of the embarrassment she felt.
"I never lied. I was going to tell you all about it," he protested.
"But you didn't. You slept with me the other night. I thought it was our first time, and it wasn't. You should have told me before. And then last night, you should have said something."
"I tried. Right here, before we went to your room—and then again last night, I wanted to, but—"
"You should have tried harder, Ethan. It was important."
"I know. I just—I wanted to show you how good we are together. I wanted to win you over before we talked about annulments or any of that."
"The annulment. Did you really even contact a lawyer?"
Ethan dropped his head. He hadn't wanted her to know that they had options, because selfishly, he’d wanted her to remain his. But she had a choice in this. He didn't want to win her through deception. He wanted her to be with him willingly.
"I looked it up on the internet. Annulment has always been on the table because you were intoxicated the night it happened. But I wanted you to have a choice. I wanted you to know the truth." He pulled her closer, trying to capture her gaze. "I wanted you to know that I loved you."
"Oh—"
"I don't want an annulment, Izz. I want you. Forever. I want to grow old with you and have babies with you. I want it all."
Isabel stood, her mouth slightly open, shock written all over her features. She opened her mouth, then closed it.
"I know I don't deserve you. Even Sully knows I don't deserve you. But I swear I can make you happy, if you'll just give me a chance."
Her head whipped back and forth. "I can't do this," she said, and jerked free of his grasp, pushing past him.
"Isabel! Wait!" he called after her, rushing to keep up with her. "Isabel. Please, let's talk about this."
"I need time, Ethan," she said, and kept walking to the doors of the suite.
Sully stepped in front of him. "Let her go. She needs to cool off." He clapped Ethan on the shoulder and steered him towards the dining table, where Gabriel, Lucas, and Zach sat, mouths agape. In the doorway to her room, Quita stood with her arms crossed over her chest. On all their faces was a look of pity.
Ethan couldn't lose Isabel. If he did, life wouldn't be worth living.
* * * *
Isabel pushed through the door of the suite and rushed to the elevator doors. She pressed the button repeatedly, praying that the elevator car would hurry and show up. She couldn't face Ethan right now. "Come on, come on, come on," she murmured.
He'd lied to her. Well, maybe not lied. He'd omitted the facts from her. Hadn't told her the humiliating story of her daring him to marry her, followed by her declaration of love—one she couldn't even remember giving—and the night of passion that happened afterwards.
Flashes of that night flooded her mind. The kisses in the limo. Ethan's hands on her when they entered the hotel room. Flinging her shirt across the room as she tried desperately to get closer to him. Ethan's tongue sliding over her skin. His murmured words of love and adoration.
It hadn't been a dream. She remembered now. Maybe not every detail, but she remembered enough. All those memories were real.
Ethan's declaration of love.
He loved her. Ethan had told her that night that he loved her, and then again just now. She'd heard his shouted proclamation to her brother, but she'd chalked that up to getting caught and try
ing to save his friendship. But now she remembered the words he'd said to her at the altar. "I love you, Isabel. For now and for always."
She remembered the words he'd said to her as he’d made love to her that night.
Those weren't the words of a drunken lover. They were the words of a partner, friend, and husband.
Isabel tipped her head up to look at the ceiling. She ran her hands over her face and through her hair. What was she going to do?
The elevator doors popped open, and she stepped inside, pressing the button for the lobby. She needed to walk. To think.
Ethan wanted to stay married to her. This morning, that was what she wanted, too. But could she trust him? Would he always keep unpleasant things from her? She didn't think so, but it was so hard to muddle through her own thoughts right now.
The elevator came to a stop, chiming as the doors opened onto the fifth floor. Four heavily armed men in Rat Pack masks stood there.
"We knew you'd have to leave sometime," one of the masks said.
Isabel opened her mouth to scream. But before any sound filled the air, Frank Sinatra lifted his gun, slamming the butt against the side of her head.
Then everything went black.
Chapter 25
"I need to go after her," Ethan said, pushing against Sully's restraining arm.
"We need to talk first." Sully pushed him lightly towards the couch. Ethan went reluctantly, plopping down and placing his head in his hands.
"What are your intentions towards my sister?" Sully asked seriously.
Ethan lifted his head and raised a brow. "What is this? 1950?"
"Don't screw around, Ethan. I want to know what you intend to do to fix this."
"Well, first, I need to get to her in order to fix it." Ethan started to stand, but Sully held up his good hand.
"Give her some space. She'll come around. Now," he said, giving Ethan his “don't screw with me” look. "Do you really love her? Or are you just saying that to get out of the shitload of trouble you're in with me?"
"I really love her."
Sully's face relaxed, breaking into a huge grin. "Well, it's about damn time!"
"What? I thought you said I wasn't good enough for her. That she deserved someone who didn't have the past that we did—that didn't put himself at risk like we do."
"Yeah, well. No one's past is perfect. And I didn't say you didn't deserve her. I just wanted to make sure you'd spend your days making her happy."
Ethan shook his head. Unbelievable. But Sully had done him a favor. He'd never wonder—never second-guess himself as to whether he really loved her.
"Anyway, you two have been sniffing around each other for months. It's about time you did something about it. Although I will say, I'd rather it not have been a quickie wedding in Vegas. I was thinking more along the lines of several years of dating, and then marriage."
"Several years?"
Sully shrugged. "Seems appropriate. What are you going to do now?"
"Talk to her, I guess. Try to convince her that I love her."
"Good luck with that!" Sully said, then threw his head back with a bark of laughter.
"Thanks," Ethan answered sarcastically.
"You've done a good job of pissing her off. Now you're going to have to go crawling back." Sully leaned forward slightly. "But she loves you, too. She'll come around."
"I don't know. I mean, she said it…that night. But—"
"She does. Give her time." Sully stood, squeezing Ethan's shoulder as he walked back to the table, where the rest of the team still sat in awkward silence. Ethan rose, making his way over to them.
Both Gabriel and Lucas gave him sympathetic smiles. Zach didn't stop his typing.
"Almost in," Zach said, his keystrokes increasing in fury.
"How's Quita this morning?" Ethan asked.
"She came out for breakfast. She seems to be doing better. Just tired," Lucas answered. "I made her promise to take her pain meds. That will help her to rest, at least."
Ethan nodded. He was glad that Quita was going to recover. Her actions last night had increased their chances of taking Bruno down for good. Ethan hoped that there was more in those files that would help take down whoever was funding him, too.
Ethan's phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out to see Unknown Caller on the screen. He slid the bar over to answer.
"Brooks."
"Bring me the files, or she dies. You took my girl. I took yours."
"You son of a bitch! How do I even know she's ok?" Ethan yelled into the phone. Concerned expressions met his gaze as heads around the table jerked up.
"I guess you'll just have to trust me."
Ethan laughed. "Right. Trust you. Sure."
"I need those files. I want you all dead, but for now, I'll settle for the files. You want her back? Bring me the thumb drive. And I'll know if you make a copy. There's an encryption for that, too."
"What if I can't bring them? What if we've already opened it?"
"You haven't. That encryption is solid. Bring the files, or she dies."
"Where?"
"Tonight. Seven o'clock."
"Wait! Where?"
"I'll give you the location when you need it."
The line went dead.
"Who was that?" Sully asked, fury reddening his face.
"Bruno. He has Isabel. He wants the files. Said there's an encryption to keep us from making a copy. We bring the files, or she dies."
Fear rose up in the back of his throat, nausea overwhelming him. He had to get her back. The alternative was unacceptable.
"I'm almost in. What do you want me to do?" Zach asked.
"We're not returning those files. But we won't risk Isabel, either. What time is the swap?" Sully asked.
"Seven. Didn't give me the location."
"He doesn't want us to be able to scope it out beforehand," Lucas reasoned.
"How do we even know he has her? Maybe he's bluffing?" Gabriel asked.
Ethan pulled the phone out and dialed Isabel's number. It went straight to voicemail. He tried the GPS locator, but the phone must have been turned off because nothing came up.
"Her phone is off. No way she'd turn it off on her own, which means they had to have turned it off," Ethan said.
"A hundred bucks says they're still in the city, though." Sully paced back and forth, his emotions matching Ethan's.
"That doesn't help us much," Zach said. "I don't have a GPS locator on her, so there's no way to know where she is, and there are thousands of places they could be keeping her."
"Yes, but I guarantee it will be someplace familiar to Bruno. Zach, can you do a search and find out possible locations that he has connections to? Meanwhile, let's get a plan together and go rescue our girl." Sully sat down heavily in the chair at the head of the table, leaning forward as the team suggested ideas on how to rescue Isabel.
Ethan was lost in thought as the guys discussed options. He wanted his wife back, and there was nothing that Bruno Lopez, Tobias Winters, or even The General could do to stop him. He'd give his all, his life, to have her back safe and sound. He just hoped it wouldn't come to that.
Ethan had a lot of life left to live, and he wanted to spend every day of it with Isabel Castle by his side.
* * * *
Everything hurt. The room spun, and Isabel could feel the blood pounding in her head. She reached up and touched her temple, her hand coming away sticky. Blood.
Frank Sinatra was turning out to be a real bastard. He'd cold-cocked her with the butt of his gun. She remembered now. But where was she?
Isabel closed her eyes, then opened them as things started to come into focus. She was in a bedroom. A really nice bedroom, it seemed. Her hands were tied on each side to a four-poster bed. The linens underneath her were soft and expensive. A window was to her left, and she could see another Las Vegas hotel across the street. So she was still on the Strip.
But where was she? And how would the guys find her?
&nbs
p; She assumed that Bruno had taken her. Or it could be Tobias, also. But why was she still alive? If Bruno had taken her, wouldn't he kill her? He'd offered good money for her death, so why was he keeping her alive now? To get the others?
That had to be it. She prayed that the guys wouldn't be stupid enough to play into his hands.
The door to the room opened, and Bruno's scarred face came into view. She could see it up close and personal now. The left side of his face was pulled up tightly, making his eye smaller and slanted, and his mouth was stretched into a permanent grin on that side. The other side must have experienced significant nerve damage. It was as if someone had poured hot water on his face, and it was melting into his neck. His eye drooped like a hound dog's, and his mouth tilted down into a frown. She thought of Two-Face from the Batman series. If you looked at him from each side, it would be like looking at two different faces. Isabel wondered what had happened to him to scar him so badly. If he hadn't been trying to kill her and everyone she loved, as well as being such a terrible person, she might have felt sorry for him.
Bruno stalked towards her, his eyes traveling up her bare legs all the way to her face, resting on the parts of her that she kept private.
"You must have nine lives, my dear. How did you get away from that fire?"
"Never underestimate a woman," Isabel said, her mouth turning up in a sarcastic grin.
Bruno chuckled. "Such a shame I'll have to eventually kill you. We could have a lot of fun together."
"Go to hell," Isabel spat.
"Not yet. Perhaps one day."
He drew closer, taking his time, as if he had all day. And maybe he did. Isabel wasn't sure how long she'd been out. The sun was still up outside, although it appeared as if it were starting to dip below the mountains that surrounded the valley of Las Vegas.
"I thought that maybe you and I could have a little fun before your Mr. Brooks arrives."
"You leave Ethan and my team out of this. What do you want?"
"I want my files, of course. And Ethan will bring them to me, because I have you. Unfortunately, neither of you will be leaving here alive." His smile was pure evil.
Castle Investigations Box Set Page 69