by Sarah Bailey
He claimed my mouth, devouring me from the inside out. He didn’t let up until I trembled and shook beneath him, unable to form coherent thoughts any longer. It was exactly what I needed.
He kissed my face and got off me when we both came down from our highs, sitting up with his hands resting on his knees. My limbs felt like jelly, but I needed to get in the shower and wash away the scent of sex on my skin.
When I came out of the bathroom after getting thoroughly clean without wetting my hair, Aiden was sitting on the bed staring down at his ringing phone.
“Who is it?”
“I don’t know…”
“Then maybe you should find out.”
I went over to my cupboards and pulled out a fresh set of underwear along with the dress I was going to wear.
“Hello?”
I looked back at him, watching the colour drain from his face.
“I’m giving you one fucking minute to tell me why you’re calling me before I hang up.”
The venom in his voice made me freeze.
His grey eyes met mine. The anger in them made my heart pound.
‘Who is it?’ I mouthed at him.
He put his hand over the speaker.
And the name he blurted out sent a chill down my spine.
“Rick.”
Chapter Eight
Aiden
Rick’s voice grated on my ears. I knew as soon as I heard it who he was. We’d never actually spoken before, but I’d heard him enough times from when he visited my mother. What I didn’t know is why the fuck he was calling me.
“I suggest you don’t hang up on me. What I have to say is important.”
Avery’s face was full of concern when I told her who it was. She needed to continue getting ready because John would be here soon. I waved her away, pointing at her naked body. She frowned but started getting dressed.
“What do you want?”
“Did you think no one would find out about your marriage?”
I stiffened. It wasn’t like I hadn’t considered that possibility, but I didn’t care any longer. It was done. Legal. Avery was my wife.
“What’s it to you?”
“You’re walking on very thin ice.”
“No shit. Tell me something I don’t know.”
I hated this man. He might be the reason for my existence, but he was scum. He was worse than fucking scum. Rick Morgan was a cunt of the highest order.
I stood up and paced the room. I hated that I was even giving him the time of day, but I was fucking concerned about him being aware of my marriage to Avery and what he would do with that knowledge.
Why hadn’t it occurred to me before that he, of all people, would be the first one to find out? I knew he was watching us and knew things about us no one else did. Intimate details of my relationship with her. I hated him knowing anything. I still hadn’t worked out how he found out. I scoured the flat high and low for cameras, but there was nothing. What I hadn’t done is check Avery’s. I needed to.
“She’s a real doll that Avery. Feisty.”
I clenched my fist, wanting to punch the fucking wall.
“Don’t you fucking say shit about her.”
He laughed, making my skin crawl. He had no fucking right to talk about her. He didn’t know her. They’d spoken once and if I had my fucking way, they’d never speak to each other again. He didn’t deserve to know Avery.
“That little darlin’ has you wrapped around her finger. It’d be such a shame if something happened to her because of your recklessness.”
“What the fuck are you talking about? Are you threatening her?”
I’d already threatened to kill him and now he was just making it that much easier.
If it came to it, I would destroy him.
And I’d start with exposing his biggest secret.
Me.
His son.
“Me? Hurt your little darlin’? Why no, what kind of father do you take me for?”
“You’re not my fucking father.”
I felt a hand on my arm. I stopped in my tracks, staring down at my wife. She was dressed now. Even in my agitated state, she looked fucking good enough to eat. It was a demure little black number which fell to her knees. It concealed the knife strapped to her thigh. It was the only form of protection she’d have against Tristan and Frazier considering it was nigh on impossible to get her to agree to take a gun with her. I didn’t have time to show her how to shoot one and I didn’t have one here anyway. It was too much of a risk to have an illegal, untraceable handgun in the flat. I’d taken enough of those procuring one to take her parents out.
I put a hand around her waist and pulled her into me, holding her to my chest. Feeling her against me helped me focus. I had to stay calm even if Rick was winding me the fuck up.
“I mightn’t have raised you, but you’re my son by blood, Aiden.”
“Yeah? Try telling that to your wife.”
Fuck him. He could go to fucking hell.
“This ain’t getting us nowhere.”
“No. Why the fuck did you call me? To tell me you know about my marriage to Avery? Big fucking deal. Unless you’re planning on telling Chuck, then I don’t give a shit.”
“It’s not me knowing you have to worry about.”
“Then who?”
Fuck. He was really driving me crazy. Avery wrapped her arms around my back, running her fingers down my spine. She always knew how to soothe me. My girl. My beautiful raven haired princess.
“Anyone can access marriage records.”
That didn’t mean anyone had the fucking inclination to do so unless they had a reason to.
“If you’re not going to give me a valid fucking reason why the fuck I’m still talking to you then I’m hanging up.”
I heard him sigh deeply. I wasn’t going to let him just talk my fucking ear off. He’d taken my fucking girl once and I didn’t trust him. Not one bit.
“Be cautious.”
“Thanks for the fucking warning I didn’t need.”
“Not the only reason I called.”
Of course it fucking wasn’t. Rick wouldn’t fucking break twenty eight years of fucking radio silence to tell me to be careful.
“Did your little darlin’ do what I asked her to?”
He didn’t deserve a fucking answer to that. He didn’t deserve anything from me, but I wanted to know who murdered my mother. I needed to know.
“Yes.”
“Good. You can tell her I’ll see both of you soon. It will be nice to meet my daughter in law in person.”
I almost fucking lost it. I didn’t want him anywhere near Avery ever again. She didn’t need his shit in her life. Neither of us did.
“Didn’t you get my fucking message?”
He laughed. Fucking laughed. Cunt.
“Oh, I heard. Bob was furious with you. I told him antagonising you was a bad idea. He has a habit of not listening to sound advice.”
“Then you know I won’t fucking tolerate you coming anywhere near her.”
Avery stiffened in my arm, raising her head off my chest, her doe eyes wide with fear.
“Your threats are meaningless, Aiden. If you kill me, you’ll never know who really murdered Lizzie.”
I dropped my arm from around Avery, clenching my fist and grinding my jaw. He was fucking pushing my buttons and he knew it. I wanted him dead. So fucking much. But he was fucking right. I also needed to know who killed my mother. Who took her life. Who slit her throat in front of me. It was the only thing I didn’t know and it fucking killed me.
“And what, you’re not going to fucking tell me unless she’s there?”
“Your little darlin’ is an important piece of the puzzle.”
What the actual fuck did that mean? He was talking in fucking riddles the worthless piece of shit.
“She has nothing to do with any of this.”
“I think you�
�ll find she has everything to do with it.”
“You know what, go fuck yourself, Rick. Stay away from me and stay the fuck away from my wife. I meant it. I will fucking kill you.”
“Tut, tut, Aiden. Your temper will be your downfall one day if you don’t keep it in check. Keep her safe. The vultures are circling. They’re out for blood and she’s in the crossfire.”
He hung up before I had a chance to say anything else. I almost threw my phone against the wall.
“Aiden?” Avery said.
I looked down at her still wrapped around me. What had Rick said? She’s in the crossfire? Did he fucking know what we had planned this evening? Was he warning me not to let her go to Frazier’s? I wasn’t sure whether to listen to his fucking warnings or not. It nagged at me. Avery wasn’t safe. She would be in serious shit if she went tonight.
Keep her safe.
“You’re not going tonight.”
“What?”
“I said you’re not fucking going to Frazier’s tonight.”
She dropped her arms and stepped away from me, eyes full of confusion.
“Why not? What did Rick say?”
“It’s what he didn’t say. You’re not safe.”
She folded her arms across her chest.
“We already knew that.”
I hadn’t wanted her to go through with this before, but after Rick’s words, I was even more paranoid about what might happen. Frazier was fucking unpredictable and dangerous. He didn’t have my wife’s best interests at heart. And his son was a fucking worthless piece of shit who would rape her any chance he got.
“We’re calling it off. You’re going to phone Frazier and tell him you’re not feeling well. Make some shit up, but you’re not going to the Shaws.”
She stared at me for several seconds before she frowned.
“We’ve worked towards this, Aiden. This is our chance to set things right.”
Didn’t she understand? She was more important to me than taking down Frazier. If I lost Avery, I’d have nothing. If they did something unspeakable to her, it would break me. I couldn’t live with myself if she went through any more shit. I’d done enough to her as it was. I’d messed with her head. I’d fucking broken her. Fuck. I couldn’t have her going into the lion’s den without me. I couldn’t.
“It’s too dangerous.”
She sighed, turning away and walking out of the room. I followed her into the bathroom. This conversation wasn’t over. She started applying her makeup in front of the bathroom mirror.
“I know it’s dangerous. Do you think I’m not terrified about walking into his house unprotected? I have no idea what they have planned, but I can’t just let this opportunity slip by.”
“Avery—”
“I don’t want to hear it. We’ve known from day one this could go wrong. Why are you acting like this now? I know you’re worried about me, but I’ll be okay. I have to do this. I need to destroy them. Don’t you understand?”
“Do you think I don’t want that? I want them all fucking dead, but not at the expense of you. Never at the expense of you.”
I ran a hand through my hair, my fear and agitation growing. Couldn’t she see? This could be a fucking trap for all we knew. My gut was telling me if she went there, something really fucking shit would happen. Something neither of us could come back from.
“For fuck’s sake, I can’t do this. I can’t let you go there. They’ll hurt you.”
She shook her head before turning to me.
“I know the risks.”
“You don’t fucking understand. Frazier is a psychotic cunt and Tristan tried to rape you. Do you think he won’t try again? He fucking told you he was going to fuck you at your birthday party.”
She flinched. She’d told me that the day after. I was fucking mad about it. His dick was not allowed anywhere near her. He was not having access to my wife. My fucking wife. I wasn’t even being a possessive or jealous piece of crap. I was worried about her fucking safety. It wasn’t fucked up to not want my wife to get raped by someone who’d threatened it on more than one occasion. I took his fucking threats seriously. I didn’t trust him near Avery.
“I know what he said.”
“Then why are you arguing with me about this?”
She turned away, continuing with her makeup. I couldn’t fucking stand this. She was acting like my concerns meant nothing. Maybe I was going off the deep end because of my conversation with Rick, but that didn’t negate how helpless I felt. I couldn’t protect her. Fuck. This reminded me of how I’d felt the day Rick took her.
I strode towards her, grabbed her arm and forced her to look at me.
“Stop. Just stop. I don’t want you going to their house.”
“Aiden, you agreed to this. You said it was our best chance. You don’t get to change your mind now. I have to do this. I need them out of my life. This is the only way I can expose them all. Don’t you get it? I’m married to you, but I can’t openly admit it. I can’t tell the fucking world I’m not a Daniels any longer and that I love you. You. My husband. Do you know how that makes me feel? Like shit. I can’t carry on like this. It has to end and it has to end now.”
She wrenched her arm out of my grasp. I knew this was tough on her, not being able to be honest about us being together. But this is how it’d always been from day one. Things didn’t just change overnight. We had to work towards it. Did she think I wanted to hide it any more than her? Fuck. I wanted everyone to know she was mine. I was fucking proud to be her husband. I was proud to have her on my arm. She was the fucking world to me. The most beautiful girl I’d ever seen. So fucking smart. So fucking radiant. And she picked me. Me of all people to be her man.
“I get that you’re angry about Rick phoning you and taunting you with whatever bullshit he decided to sprout, but you don’t get to take that out on me.”
“Take it out on you? I’m not fucking taking it out on you. I’m fucking well scared for your fucking life and wellbeing.”
She didn’t soften. Her doe eyes hardened.
“You are. You’re shouting at me and getting pissed off because you think I’m not listening. I am. I understand what this is doing to you. Do you think I want to go over to their house and make small talk with two people I hate? I don’t. I really don’t want to do this, but I have to. I can’t go on like this. I want to have a normal fucking life without all of this bullshit. I want a life with you. What we have now is not a fucking life. We’re living in the shadows. I’m living in hell because of my family and Frazier fucking Shaw.”
Tears welled in her eyes. The sight of it fucking killed me. Her words destroyed me.
“I love you, Aiden. I love you so fucking much, but you’re not going to stop me doing this.”
She turned back to the mirror, finishing up her makeup whilst I stared at her silently. What the fuck could I say to any of that? I wanted a life with her too. A life that didn’t include her shitty family and the Shaws. And one where Rick fucking Morgan left us alone.
I followed her out of the bathroom. She slipped on a low pair of heels and her coat.
“Avery, please don’t do this.”
She didn’t look at me as she opened the front door. I couldn’t let her fucking go. I walked out of the flat with her, grabbing my keys on the way. She fiddled with her phone, doing her best to ignore me as we rode down in the lift to the ground floor. My heart was in a fucking vice. I needed her to come back upstairs with me. How was I going to convince her? I understood what she was saying, but the threat the Shaws posed to her was more important.
Why the fuck had I even agreed to this stupid idiotic plan in the first place? Why had I ever thought this was a good idea? It was the worst idea. Absolute worst idea ever. She fucking knew that. This is what broke us apart in the first place.
I stopped her from opening the door when we reached John’s car, turning her to face me. I had to try. I had to convince her.
“Avery, please. Just stop and think about this. Think about what you’re walking into.”
She took a deep breath, her doe eyes softening.
“I know what I’m doing. Please, stop making this harder for me.”
She reached up, placing her hand on my cheek.
“I love you. I’ll be back with what we need.”
She stepped back out of my grasp, opened the car door and slid in. I watched the car pull away, unable to stop the sinking feeling in my stomach. The one that told me this was going to end badly. Avery was walking into a trap of Frazier’s making and I couldn’t stop her.
“Fuck.”
I turned away to walk back into the building when I felt a sharp pain radiate from the back of my skull. I staggered, reaching up and touching where someone had clearly slammed something into my head. My vision blurred a little, but I kept upright. I swung my fist, connecting with something soft. The person grunted.
“Fuck,” someone said.
“Just get him already, we don’t have time for this,” said a second voice.
I put my fists up. Whoever the fuck these guys were, they were not taking me down easily.
“Do I look like I want to get beaten the shit out of? Just fucking knock him out already.”
I swung at the first man who came into view. The knock to my head really fucking hurt. What the fuck did they hit me with? I should’ve concentrated on the others, but the first one came at me, distracting me. I swung again, managing to hit him straight in the jaw. He grunted but didn’t go down. I wasn’t sure how hard I’d hit him considering I could barely fucking see straight.
The next thing I knew, a needle was jabbed into my neck and I was drowning. I felt my feet fall out from underneath me. Someone caught me. I tried to look up at them, but I couldn’t make out their features properly.
“There we go. That wasn’t so hard, was it?”
“Hurry the fuck up and get him in the van before someone sees us.”