Fourth a Lie (GODDESS ISLES Book 4)

by Pepper Winters

  A few times on Sully’s islands, I’d had moments of premonition: bathwater puddles revealing that Sully would forever change me. A parrot chirp hinting at a man behind the monster. A kiss without sensors or masks delivering my destiny.

  And now, a brother who gave up the secrets of their joint childhood.

  Sully was a control freak because he’d had all control taken away when he was a boy—by this man. He had no faith and broken trust because his brother had physically punished him every time he’d tried.

  My heart spasmed as things fell into place—Sully’s many long-ago scars. His torment at falling for me. His denial of our closeness.

  The last person he’d been close to had been his family, and they’d done unspeakable things.

  “You hurt him,” I hissed. “You scarred him.”

  His eyebrows tugged down—or as much as they could with chemicals preventing facial movement. “I’ve hurt him all my life.” He jerked me closer, his fingers twitching around my neck. “But I haven’t been able to hurt him nearly as much as you have.”

  He laughed softly, sounding like a psychotic boy with a box of kittens, lighter fluid, and matches. “You’ve been able to create a pain deeper than I ever managed. You’ll be the one to kill him, Eleanor Grace...not me, and I can’t wait to watch you do it.”

  * * * * *

  Blood.

  Bright vicious crimson.

  It was all I could see.

  All I could smell.

  Blood.

  Sully...God, Sully.

  I tripped as Drake dragged me over the threshold of the villa and dry-heaved as he carted me to stand beside Sully’s cage.

  The same cage I’d spent a night in.

  A cage that’d been flipped on its side to give enough horizontal room for the tall man within it.

  “Eleanor?” Sully spasmed the moment he heard my footsteps. His gorgeous, powerful body jerked to get free. The metal ring of handcuffs clanged as he struggled, slowly at first as if he had no strength left, then faster, crazier. “Eleanor?”

  His eyes.

  God...what’s wrong with his eyes?!

  Drake snickered beside me, staying silent while his brother danced on the border of life and death by his feet.

  I’d never seen anything so spiteful, so tyrannical, so inhumane.

  A sob caught in my throat as I fell to my knees.

  Sully’s beautiful blue gaze was a morbid black, staring at nothingness.

  Drake let me go, his snicker morphing into a self-congratulatory chuckle as I crawled over the floor, shoved my hand through the bars, and linked my fingers with Sully’s.

  The second I touched him, he broke.

  His face twisted, his head tipped back, and his lips parted in the most heart-stopping, belly-stabbing howl. “FUUUCK!”

  The chemistry between us. The connection. The bond.

  It hurt.

  It hissed from his skin to mine. It electrified, it condemned, it hummed along its conduit with a lick of lust and love—a link that shared our pain, our promises, and every other pitiful thing we’d become.

  “Eleanor...Jesus Christ.”

  I clung to his hand, bowing to kiss the dried blood flaking from each finger, frantically pulling out the nails that’d been driven into his pads.

  Blood.

  So, so much blood.

  I couldn’t speak.

  I couldn’t breathe.

  All my fight.

  All my bickering, feuding challenge died a miserable, despairing death as I drowned beneath crippling grief. “Sully...”

  He shook his head, shaking the cage around him. “This isn’t real. You can’t be here. You. Can’t. Fucking. Be. Here.”

  I pulled out the last nail of his left hand. He didn’t even flinch, as if his threshold for pain had been crossed hours ago.

  “I’m so, so sorry.” I kissed him. I kissed his knuckles, his palm, his fingers. My lips stained red from his blood as my tears splashed onto his feverish skin. My gaze stuttered over his body, unwilling to look, violently sick at what Drake had done to him.

  His chest oozed with plasma and blood. His wrists lacerated from the handcuffs, his ankles bleeding from the ropes. A large bandage hugged his thigh. It might’ve been white, once upon a time, but now it’d soaked into a rusty carmine.

  “What were you thinking coming back?” His voice cracked with misery; his eyes unseeing. “How can I survive now that you’re back?”

  I reached through the cage, straining to touch his face.

  I couldn’t reach.

  It killed me that I couldn’t reach.

  I have to touch him.

  Have to kiss him.

  Have to help!

  A sob crawled up my throat and broke free. A sob born from seeing the worst thing of my life happen to the most important person in my world.

  I couldn’t do it.

  I literally couldn’t cope.

  I couldn’t live in a world where men like Drake could kill hundreds of animals with a single bomb, then torture his own flesh and blood for days.

  I...I can’t.

  My mind fractured.

  I lost all links to my girlhood, to goodness, to grace.

  I became feral.

  Single-minded.

  One purpose.

  Him.

  Help him.

  Now!

  I screamed as I scrambled at the cage, desperate and frenzied to get to him.

  My ears rang from my sobs.

  My gaze stung from my tears.

  And I snapped.

  I can’t touch.

  I can’t help.

  His eyes.

  His body.

  Fuck!

  I swooped to my feet, and I threw myself at Drake.

  His smug smile tumbled as we plummeted to the ground. I slapped and scratched; I hit and punched.

  I couldn’t see to strike.

  I didn’t plant strategic fists.

  I just couldn’t contain the violence.

  The hunger.

  The rage.

  I vaguely heard someone screaming.

  Felt someone tugging.

  I went weightless as I was hauled off Drake.

  Commotion bellowed around the villa.

  Sully’s shout, Drake’s curse, men’s panic.

  As quickly as I’d entered the black stupor of mania, I slammed back into my body.

  I hissed with a fire that lived in every artery and vein.

  I trembled with hate that screamed to hit, maim, and kill.

  “Eleanor!” Sully’s gaze couldn’t find me. His face twisted in my direction; his sea-glass blue eyes utterly destroyed.

  My legs gave out again as I stared into the black pupils and red soreness of Sully’s blind stare. Sweat drenched him as he fought his imprisonment. More blood poured, diluted by his sweat, rolling in thick droplets off his body.

  And the opposite happened.

  My fire turned to ice.

  To snow and sleet and blizzard.

  Balling my hands, I shoved off the two men holding me and strode to Drake where he nursed four deep scratches on his cheek.

  He snarled as I approached, but I didn’t fucking care anymore.

  I wasn’t afraid of this bastard.

  “Get him a doctor. Right now.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “Commands now? A breakdown followed by demands?” He snapped his fingers at the men lurking around me as if I’d decimate them all. “Tie her up.”

  A redheaded man headed toward the perimeter of the villa, returning with a length of rope.

  I didn’t flinch as he jerked my hands behind my back and began tying. Ignoring him, I hissed at Drake, “He’s dying.”

  “Do I look like I give a shit?” He wiped his cheek with the back of his hand.

  “Eleanor. Shut up. You’re going to get yourself fucking killed!” Sully continued fighting in his cage, costing himself valuable energy he didn’t have.

  It pissed me off.<
br />
  It angered me that he was so reckless with his life when he’d burned through so much of it without me. “Stop moving, Sullivan!”

  I used his full name.

  I injected venom into my voice.

  He paused, his throat worked, his blind stare seeking mine again.

  My stomach spasmed. Tears clogged my throat, and sobs begged to release.

  He’s blind?

  Don’t focus on that.

  I couldn’t focus on that.

  Not yet.

  Not yet!

  “Get him a goddamn doctor!” I stepped toward Drake, forcing the guard still tying my hands to trip with me.

  Drake crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes. “Never thought I’d see the day.” He looked me up and down with loathing. “You are in love with him. Thought that was just a joke.”

  “Of course, I’m in fucking love with him, you bastard!” I squirmed against the rope.

  Too tight.

  Too restrictive.

  “Eleanor. For fuck’s sake, just be quiet,” Sully growled. “Don’t give him any reason to—”

  “If you love him, prove it,” Drake snapped.

  I froze. “Prove it how?”

  Sully snarled, “Shut up, Jinx—”

  “You want him to have a doctor...and I want...” His lips spread in an apocalyptic smile. “And I want what he’s had.” Grabbing a handful of my semi-dried hair, he murmured, “Show me how Euphoria works, Goddess Jinx. Take the elixir. Beg me to fuck you like a whore. And I’ll agree to bring in Dr Campbell to keep my baby brother alive for another day.”

  “No. No fucking way.” Sully thrashed harder, the handcuffs ringing so loud. “Leave her the fuck out of this, Drake! Use another girl. Any other girl. I don’t care. Just—”

  “I’ll gag you if you keep talking, you little cocksucker,” Drake muttered. “Be quiet, the adults are talking.” His washed-out blue gaze landed on mine again. “Do we have a deal, Eleanor Grace? Your body for his. I break you while the doctor fixes him. I’ll even be generous and give you two the day to recover.” He laughed softly. “After all, you’ve had a long journey, and Sully...well, he hasn’t had much sleep lately.”

  I looked at Sully as he arched his neck and bared his teeth like a demon trapped in hell.

  Bile washed up my throat.

  Drake had blinded him, tortured him, broken him.

  I wouldn’t allow him to hurt Sully again.

  This was why I’d come.

  I’d come to help.

  To shield him.

  To hope upon a wishing star that love would triumph over evil.

  I swallowed hard and nodded. “Deal.”

  Drake grinned.

  Sully howled.

  And I was marched to his cage and tied to the bars.

  So close.

  Not close enough.

  A clock began ticking loudly over our heads.

  A countdown where Sully would get treated, and I would get molested, and our sorry little love story was over.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  “I CAN’T TREAT HIM while he’s tethered,” Dr Campbell muttered. “Uncuff and untie him.”

  I gritted my teeth, my ears burning from the chilli earbuds, my heart in pieces thanks to goddamn Eleanor.

  I could feel her.

  Her every breath.

  Her every heartbeat.

  Her very aliveness sent a shimmer of connectivity to my soul.

  For a man who traded in myth and misery, I had pretty black and white views on what was possible and impossible.

  Possible were fantasies coming to life because of technology, computer coding, and advancements in sensory deceptors.

  Impossible was feeling so deeply for someone that evolution opened new senses.

  Impossible was feeling her as if we shared an intricate spiderweb, and she kept triggering a strand twined directly around my heart.

  Fuck, Eleanor.

  She was here.

  She’d sold herself to heal me.

  She’d sacrificed everything she was...for me.

  My teeth threatened to turn to ash as I tensed in my binds.

  If I didn’t already love her, I’d be hers for the rest of my godforsaken life.

  How had I ever doubted what I felt for her?

  How could she put my health over her own safety?

  She can’t.

  I couldn’t let it happen.

  No matter what she said or what Drake expected, I wouldn’t let him lay one goddamn finger on her. I didn’t know how I’d stop him, but I would.

  For now...at least she’d bargained us some time. A full day. If she could get free, then I’d happily face the rest of my sorry existence knowing she was out of his reach.

  “He stays tied,” Drake barked. “Not debatable.”

  “Don’t you get it?” Campbell said. “You don’t need to tie him anymore. You have the best restraint there is.” His clothing rustled as he moved closer. “Her. As long as you have Eleanor...Sinclair isn’t going anywhere.”

  “Not happening,” Drake snapped.

  “His wrists and ankles are infected,” Eleanor hissed. “You promised he would be treated. That includes every injury, not just a few.”

  I groaned.

  Why did she have to be so stupidly brave?

  Why couldn’t she have forgotten about me? Hated me? Left me?

  “I agree,” Dr Campbell said. “If I’m to tend to his fever and wounds, I need access to all of them. There’s no point only treating—”

  “Fine!” Drake growled. “Henry!”

  Heavy footsteps fell, moving a stranger closer. “Aim your gun at Eleanor. If she so much as moves, shoot her. Hear that, brother? You fight back, you try to escape...she dies before you’re even out of the cage.”

  My stomach roiled, but I kept silent.

  Frankly, I hovered on the dangerous edge of passing out again. I didn’t have the energy for another battle—intellectual or physical. The stress of having Jinx beside me had amplified my fever and increased the pain in every limb.

  I needed to gather my strength if I had any chance at saving her.

  He took my silence as obedience.

  Clearing his throat, he yawned. “Know what? If we’re having a little break before more games begin, I might go have a snooze myself.” He chuckled. “Might shoot a few of the squirrels in your palm trees, Sullivan. Have a roast rodent for lunch.”

  You motherfu—

  My hands balled, and once again, I resisted the urge to reply.

  Eleanor sniffed, her temper a buffet of air even if I couldn’t see her cheeks pink or grey eyes turn into thunderclouds. “Don’t you dare kill any more creatures, you sick sonovabitch.”

  Drake laughed. “But I’m hungry.”

  “Eat a damn vegetable!”

  He laughed harder. “God, you two were made for each other. Matchingly pathetic.” His footsteps faded toward the doors. “Men, stand guard. I’ll be back tonight. I expect both my brother and his little goddess to be exactly where they are when I return, got it?”

  A murmur of acquiescence as fresh air entered the villa, then vanished as he opened and closed the door.

  Eleanor inhaled heavily, her presence electrocuting me, granting much-needed stamina. When she’d touched me before? Christ, my heart had almost given out. I’d never been superstitious, but touching her had been like touching an angel—willingly placing my life into her divine power, ready to transcend this shitty body and shitty situation.

  I’d failed my animals.

  I’d failed her.

  Death could delete all of that in one instance.

  “Are you okay, Sully?” Her gentle question poked my temper awake.

  I loved her.

  I fucking adored her, but she’d disobeyed me. She’d returned, despite the difficulty of finding my islands. And now, she was trapped because of me.

  Drake would hurt her...because of me.

  Everything she’d endured was
because of me!

  I groaned, my blind eyes throbbing in agony. “You don’t get to ask me that question, Jinx.”

  “What?” She twisted to face me, the rope hissing against my cage. Every sound was louder, every sense straining to compensate for lack of sight. “What the hell does that mean?”

  “It means he’s blaming himself...as he should,” Dr Campbell answered on my behalf. “He’s finally earned a conscience where humans are concerned. You’ve taught him that it’s fine to have empathy for animals, but it’s hypocritical not to care for his own species.”

  I bared my teeth in his general direction. “You’re saying I should let men like Drake live? Men like you? Men who betray—”

  “I’m saying every animal—man or beast—has good and bad in them. It’s not up to you to play god.” A creak of the floor sounded as he stopped outside my cage. “Open the door. I need to evaluate my patient.”

  “You’re going in there with him?” a mercenary asked.

  “I am.” Dr Campbell aimed his next question at me. “You won’t hurt me, will you, Sinclair? After all, I’m here to keep you alive.”

  My anger boiled.

  He was the reason this had happened.

  I owed him for the death of all the creatures who’d died on Serigala.

  But...I also needed him.

  I needed his help to protect Eleanor.

  For now.

  “I give you my word, I’ll behave.”

  “Good. Release his binds,” Dr Campbell commanded. “And unlock the cage.”

  The screech of the cage door opened. Two seconds later, hands touched my ankles, unthreading the rope until my legs were free.

  Instinct ordered me to snatch and strangle, but I restrained. Jim was right; Eleanor was the biggest set of handcuffs I needed. Knowing that my actions increased or decreased her lifespan was enough for me to lie there perfectly still while a guard unlocked my right handcuff and then my left.

  Sit up.

  Sit up!

  The urge to get off the wire bottom was unbearable. I jack-knifed up, groaning in misery and absolute relief.

  My spine rolled. My legs bent. Pain swarmed.

  I almost passed out, clinging to awareness with difficulty.

  I’d never thought sitting would be so rewarding.

  Vertigo found me, sloshing my insides as my head pounded. My leg passed painful and entered a realm of burning hellfire. I was hot-cold, hot-cold, jittery and shivery.

  I was weak and beaten and so fucking fucked off that all my control had been stripped away.