by Sarah Bailey
There was a whistle behind us. I pulled away from her, finding Ben in the doorway looking a little worse for wear. I gave him the middle finger and he just grinned at me.
“Deb and Grant are going home, but if you want to meet him, you can,” he said, shrugging.
Avery took my hand, her face eager, so I nodded. We followed Ben out of the waiting room and down the hall.
“Can I start calling you Uncle Aiden?” she whispered to me.
I rolled my eyes.
“Please don’t.”
“Spoilsport. It’s the only time you’ll ever be an uncle since neither of us has siblings.”
Ben was family to me even though we weren’t blood-related.
“I’m not good with kids.”
“You have me. I’ll teach you.”
And this was now getting officially out of hand. I looked down at her face and the mischievous glint in her eye told me she was messing with me.
Ben opened the door to their room and we all walked in. Skye was sat up in bed with a bundle in her arms. She looked tired but happy.
“Aiden, come meet your nephew.”
I eyed Avery who was grinning from ear to ear. I tugged her over to the bed and we both stared down at their son. I wasn’t sure what to say because to me, babies were these tiny humans with squishy faces who looked like they could break any moment. Plus, they were usually kind of ugly.
“Do you want to hold him?”
“Um…”
She smiled at me and indicated her head towards Avery.
“Oh… shit, okay, Skye, this is Avery.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” Skye said. “You’re welcome to hold him since Aiden looks like he’d rather be thrown off a cliff.”
“I know that look all too well,” Avery replied. “But yes, if that’s okay.”
Skye nodded and passed her son over to my girlfriend. She held him like she was a natural, cradling him to her chest with one arm. She stroked his little face and he reached up, grabbing her finger in his tiny hand.
“What’s his name?”
Skye looked up at me with a glint in her eye.
“Joshua Aiden Andrews.”
I glanced back at Ben who shrugged as he came around and sat in the chair by Skye’s bed.
“Don’t look at me, it was Skye’s idea.”
“Hello Joshua,” Avery whispered, rocking him in her arm whilst he held her finger. “I’m Avery. Maybe one day you can call me Auntie Avery and this here, is your Uncle Aiden. Your mummy named you after him.”
Fuck. Seeing her like that with a baby gave me a really weird feeling in my chest. Her eyes twinkled and she looked so fucking happy. It made me wish we lived normal lives where this sort of thing didn’t seem like a pipe dream. Unless we could sort out the shit with her family, we’d never be free.
“Are you sure you don’t want to hold him?”
I didn’t know how. He looked so small and fragile. Avery gave me the softest smile and turned to me.
“Here, you just need to support his head properly,” she told me as she held him out to me.
I carefully put my hand under his head and took him from her, holding him close to my chest. Such a tiny human. He had blue eyes and a little tuft of dark hair on his head.
“You got him?”
“Yeah… I think I do,” I replied.
I stepped back, letting Avery speak to Skye as I stared down at the little human in my arms. My nephew. The weird feeling remained. I wanted to protect him. I carried him over to where Ben was sitting.
“Never thought I’d see the day you held a kid,” he said, grinning.
“You’re the one who decided to knock your old lady up.”
I almost didn’t want to put him down.
“You sure you’re not getting broody?”
“Don’t make me rip you a new one in front of your newborn son.”
He chuckled, shaking his head. This little bundle in my arms needed to grow up without all the bullshit and violence Ben and I had witnessed in our lives.
“You sure Bob and Val will be okay with you naming him after me?” I asked.
“They’re just happy they’re having a grandchild. I sent them a text, but they’re probably asleep. Avery still ready to get her ink done?”
I looked at the two girls who were deep in conversation.
“She doesn’t mind waiting.”
He shook his head.
“You two can come to the house and I’ll do them there. I’ve already made a head start on designing and I want to do it in time for her birthday.”
“You really don’t have to.”
“I never thought I’d see the day you found a girl who makes you this happy, so don’t be an idiot. I’m happy to do it. Skye gets it. We’re all family here.”
Ben was the only person I kept in contact with from the army. We’d done a lot for each other over the years. Loyalty, friendship and trust ran deep with us.
“I appreciate it.”
We left not long after that. Avery needed sleep if she was going to work tomorrow. I wanted to keep her at home and make love to her now we’d cleared the air, but it could wait until the evening. It was almost four by the time we got in bed. Her alarm would go off in a couple of hours.
“I like Skye,” she said, curling up against my side.
“I thought you might.”
She yawned, closing her eyes and wrapping her hand around my waist.
“Are you sure I’m not allowed to call you, Uncle Aiden?”
I shook my head, stroking her hair.
“Only when speaking to my nephew.”
She nodded, yawning again.
“Night princess.”
Her breathing became steady and even. She’d dropped off to sleep. I watched her for the longest time. I wanted all this bullshit to be over. I wanted a normal life with her more than I’d ever wanted anything else.
I decided right then and there, I’d stop at nothing to make sure we could have that. To make sure we had a future we could look forward to. Nothing and no one would stand in my way.
I wish I’d known then our future would never turn out the way we’d planned it.
I wish I’d known what was about to befall us.
Then I might have been able to stop the descent into complete and utter chaos.
One thing was for sure.
No one was coming out unscathed.
Chapter Twenty One
Avery
Uncle Charlie paced in front of my desk, his brow furrowed. He’d come in here to officially tell me about the company party he was throwing for me, but I’d ambushed him instead.
“Why would you want to go to the penthouse?”
“I didn’t get to go to their funeral. I want to say goodbye.”
That was a complete lie, but I wasn’t about to tell him I wanted to find the paperwork for my trust fund. Going back to that place felt so wrong. I had no choice. I couldn’t ask Frazier for copies of it or he’d get suspicious and demand to know why. Keeping him in the dark about what I suspected he wanted was for the best all round.
“And whose fault was that?”
His tone chilled me to the bone. Why would he get so worked up about me going there?
“Look, it’s mine, isn’t it? Dad left it to me. Unless you want me to get a locksmith to break in and change the locks, then just hand over the key.”
He stopped, eying me with no small amount of distaste.
“You don’t need to go there to say goodbye. Go to their graves, you know where they are.”
I sighed, rubbing my forehead.
“Why are you against me going?”
“You ran off for three months after they died. Do you think it’s wise to go back to where they were killed?”
If I didn’t know any better, I’d say my uncle was worried about my mental state. Sadly, I did. He didn’t care about me. All he cared about
was keeping me at the helm of the company so their dirty dealings didn’t come to light.
They would one day when Aiden and I were ready. When we’d amassed enough evidence to destroy them for good. I’d known asking my boyfriend to execute them all had been a knee jerk reaction to what Rick had shown me. All I really wanted was for them to be stopped so they couldn’t hurt anyone else.
One of the biggest problems we faced was knowing where exactly they kept the girls. My uncle didn’t keep records nor could Aiden find a paper trail leading to them. He’d told me my father had handled it all until he took over Daniels Holdings, but he had no idea who they’d given the role to after that.
Neither of us could stand the thought of those women being handed around Charlie’s associates like they were slaves ordered to do their master’s bidding.
“Didn’t know you cared that much.”
“You’re my niece, of course I care about you.”
He had a funny way of showing it.
He sighed, sitting down in the chair opposite my desk.
“Is it really that important to you?”
I nodded. My dad’s office held the key to working all of this crap out. I was sure of that much. It was a wonder it hadn’t occurred to us earlier. Aiden had never checked the room when he was there, too busy getting me out quietly. I really had messed up all his plans. Turned his life completely upside down.
“I know we haven’t really seen eye to eye since they died. I’m sorry for that. We’re family and family should be there for each other. Instead, I’ve been treating you like an inconvenience when none of this is really your fault.”
He rubbed his face with his hand.
“Them being gone has been tough on all of us. It’s not like when Nick died. We still had each other to rely on. You’re still young and this is a lot to put on your shoulders.”
My uncle apologising to me was about the weirdest thing to happen since my parents were murdered in front of me and a lot of weird and fucked up stuff had happened since. Was this genuine or not?
“I’m sorry too.”
He gave me a tentative smile.
“Frazier has been visiting with increased frequency. He was in twice last week. Do you want to tell me why?”
I sighed, leaning back in my chair.
“He wants me to get engaged to Tristan.”
I didn’t see the point in holding back the truth. In all honesty, I was curious what my uncle thought about it. Did he agree? Did he also want me marrying into the Shaws?
His expression darkened significantly.
“And what do you think about that?”
“I don’t like Tristan nor do I want to be his wife.”
He fiddled with the arm of the chair for a long moment. His expression was still dark.
“Mitch wanted the two of you to be together.”
“I know. We argued over it. He conceded and said it was ultimately my choice. Now, I don’t feel like I have a choice at all.”
He leant forward in his seat.
“There is always a choice, Avery. Always.”
I looked away, trying to work out why he’d say something like that to me.
“Is there? Do you think I should?”
“Honestly? No. Frazier was Mitch’s friend, not mine. His son is a prick.”
My eyes met his. He looked entirely serious. I had no idea he felt that way.
“Is that why you insisted I have a bodyguard?”
“Partially. Look, I know we never spoke of what happened when you were young. I know it was wrong and I apologise for that. Contrary to what you might think of me, I don’t want you to be subjected to an abusive relationship you can’t escape from. That is all you would get if you married Tristan.”
I bit the inside of my cheek. I hadn’t misheard him. He’d just apologised to me again and this time for what he’d tried to do to me when I was a kid. Who was this man in front of me? He didn’t sound like my uncle at all.
“Thank you for saying that.”
“It’s the truth. Don’t marry Tristan. No matter how many times Frazier insists you should. Don’t trust either of them.”
“Don’t you trust them?”
He shook his head.
“No. There are very few people I trust in this world. The Shaws do not count amongst that number.”
I stored away that titbit of information to mull over with Aiden later. Perhaps we could use his distrust to our advantage. I didn’t know how, but Aiden might.
“I’ll take your advice into consideration.”
He stood up.
“I’ll get you the keys for your parent’s penthouse. I suppose it’s the least I can do.”
I nodded as he left the room before pulling out my phone.
ME: Getting the keys.
AIDEN: Have any trouble?
ME: A little. I’ll tell you later x
When my uncle came back, he handed the keys over and sat back down.
“Now, we still need to discuss this event.”
I sighed, settling in for a long discussion about the birthday event I didn’t want thrown for me.
~~~
I stepped out of the lift into the hallway, taking a deep breath. John had driven me here, but I asked him to wait in the car. This was something I had to do by myself. Being back here made my heart thump in my chest and a cold sweat beaded at the back of my neck.
I couldn’t pick my feet up from the floor. Looking around the hallway, I noticed nothing had changed. There was a vase of dead flowers sitting on the side table. I remembered they’d been blooming with lilies the last time I was here. Above it hung a family portrait my dad had commissioned when I was younger. I stood between them. My dad’s hand was on my shoulder and my mum looked happy.
The sight of it made my heart ache. It reminded me of the portrait I’d started of him which was still in my studio, untouched. I had to do something about it, but I still wasn’t sure what.
The two people who were my world had turned out to be monsters of the worst kind. Hiding behind masks and the illusion of civility. Their true depravity might not ever come to light. I could end this all now. Show the world the truth. It didn’t feel right to do it like that. There were still things we didn’t know. Still pieces of crucial evidence we needed. That meant I couldn’t stand around in the hallway.
I walked towards the first open doorway. My pulse skittered. My fists clenched. I came to a standstill just beyond the threshold, trying to keep the terror at bay.
Right here is where it happened. There was still a faint stain on the hardwood floor in the dining area from where they’d bled out from their gunshot wounds.
The memory of that day hit me. The full force of it causing me to drop to my knees, my hands planted on the floor to steady myself.
I gasped for air, fighting back the tears springing to my eyes. They fell down anyway, streaking across my cheeks.
Dead.
Dead.
Dead.
Coming here was a mistake. No matter how much I hated my parents, watching them die was one of the worst moments of my life. The gunshots rang in my ears. Even though I knew now he’d used a silencer, the shots weren’t exactly quiet. The movies and TV shows got that so wrong.
I needed to get out of this room, but I couldn’t move. I was glued to the floor, watching the scene happen over and over again in my mind. I saw myself hiding behind the kitchen counter. How Aiden had walked over to me and told me he wasn’t going to kill me. How terrified and confused I’d been.
Knowing they deserved this didn’t make it any better. Knowing how I’d come to fall in love with Aiden wasn’t a consolation either. He’d still done this. How could I ever forget his cold, remorseless expression when he took my parents’ lives?
I felt awful. I’d justified everything he’d done. I’d made it okay when it really wasn’t.
“Who are you?”
“Your w
orst nightmare.”
Except Aiden hadn’t turned out to be my worst nightmare at all. He’d been exactly what I never knew I needed.
I sat up, raking my hands through my hair and dashing away my tears from my cheeks. I couldn’t allow myself to break all over again.
You’re stronger than this. You know you are.
This was something I had to face. I couldn’t hide behind my love for the man who killed them. I had to accept the harsh realities in this life. Aiden was a killer. He’d done something unthinkable. He felt no remorse for it. And I still loved him.
The only remorse he felt was that I ever saw him do it. That I was there that night and had to witness my own parents dying. Aiden still had compassion and empathy even if sometimes his form of justice wasn’t right or legal.
Remember his face when you left him that day. When he thought he was losing you forever. It broke something inside you, didn’t it?
All those awful memories we shared bound us together. No matter how sick and twisted this entire thing was, I still had him and he had me. I wasn’t falling apart completely. I was still here. My heart still hammered against my chest and oxygen filled my lungs. I’d faced the memory of that day.
Getting to my feet, I knew I had other things to do. I hadn’t come here to rehash the past. I’d come to find out what conditions my father had put into my trust fund. I wasn’t sure why I felt so strongly about it, but I did. There was a reason Frazier kept pushing me towards Tristan.
I turned and walked out of the kitchen. I passed the bedroom I’d grown up in. There was no point me going in there. It would only make this harder. Those memories weren’t worth reliving.
Reaching my dad’s office, I paused outside the closed door. The dark wood was so familiar. The number of times I’d run in and out of here as a kid, pestering him for one thing or another. The closed door meant he was busy and didn’t want to be disturbed. Except he wasn’t alive any longer.
I grabbed the handle, turned it and pushed open the door. The faint smell of whisky and cigars hit me immediately as I stepped in. The sight of his desk with his chair tucked neatly behind crippled me. Wave after wave of nostalgia and sorrow hit me. Crushing me under its weight.
~~~