by Sarah Bailey
I looked at my face in the mirror. A little worse for wear, but not as bad as I was expecting. I found mouthwash in the cabinet and gargled it before drinking some water from the tap. Next, I washed my face properly, getting rid of the last of the makeup.
Aiden was waiting patiently by the door when I finished. He took my hand and led me back into the room where Rick was. He gave us the once over.
“Are you okay darlin’?”
I let the fact that he said that slide because I wasn’t in the mood to argue about it further.
“I’m fine.”
It was a lie, but whatever. I needed this evening to be over. Enough revelations. All I wanted was for him to hand over the rest of the evidence so we could leave, but I knew that wasn’t going to happen quite yet.
I wasn’t sure how to deal with the fact that my father had cameras in my room and that they’d been there since I was young. It disgusted me as well as it being an invasion of privacy. What other videos did he have of me?
“How do you have this?” I asked.
“It was on Nick’s computer. I don’t think your father kept any other footage if that’s what you’re concerned about.”
“I’m more disturbed by the fact he even installed a camera in my room in the first place.”
“Your father was a very cautious man. I believe he and your granddaddy knew about your uncle’s predilection. I imagine this footage was used to keep him in line.”
I shuddered.
“Now, you two have some decisions to make. I have all the evidence you need on this hard drive here.” He pointed to something on the desk. “I don’t think you want to see any further videos of your uncle, but I assure you, there’s more.”
I tried not to think too hard on that. More videos meant he’d abused kids and I just couldn’t go there. I was kind of grateful to Rick that he’d never shown me them that day he’d taken me.
“As I said, you can sign your company over to me or destroy everything. And you can take your uncle and your cousin or… you can end him here and now.”
I knew exactly what ‘end him’ meant because my eyes fell on the table in the other room. Sitting in the middle of it was a handgun. I swallowed, looking over at Aiden. I couldn’t read his expression but I knew he’d seen the same thing that I had.
“Aiden,” I whispered.
His eyes met mine. I saw something in them I didn’t want to. It was that cold, calculating look, but this time there was something else simmering below the surface. White hot rage. And it terrified me.
I took a step towards him.
“Don’t, Aiden.”
He shook his head slowly at me.
“Please, I hate him too, but this isn’t the way and you know it.”
His fists clenched at his sides.
“He’s a sick fuck,” Aiden said, his voice low and rough.
“I know, but please, no one else needs to die. Let the police arrest him, please.”
We stared at each other for the longest time. My heart broke further with every second and I knew before he said it that he wasn’t going to listen to me.
“I’m sorry, princess.”
He strode out of the room. I tried to follow him. To stop him, but Rick held onto my arm.
“Let go of me.”
“Let him go,” Rick said.
“No, I can’t let him do it.”
I struggled in his grasp, but he tugged me against his chest and banded his arms around me, pulling me over to the two-way mirror. I watched in horror as Aiden walked into the room with my uncle.
“Who’s there?” Uncle Charlie’s voice came through the speakers in our room.
Aiden didn’t say a word. He moved over to the table, picked up the gun and pointed it at my uncle’s head.
“No, please, no. Please, let me go. Please, I have to stop him,” I cried out, struggling against Rick’s grip on me.
“Shh darlin’, it’s okay. He has to do this.”
“No, he doesn’t. He doesn’t need to do it. My uncle doesn’t need to die.”
My heart was racing at a million miles an hour. I could hear it pounding in my ears. I had to stop Aiden if it was the last thing I did.
“Please.”
Aiden just stood there holding the gun to my uncle’s head without moving.
“Who’s there?” Uncle Charlie asked again. “Don’t be a coward, tell me who you are.”
“Please, Rick, let me go. Let me stop this. Please,” I begged. “Your son doesn’t need any more blood on his hands. He’s trying to heal. This will make it worse. Please. Please, let me go.”
I don’t know if my words were enough, but Rick’s arms around me loosened and I ducked out of his grasp. I ran out of the room and threw open the door to where my uncle was.
Saying anything to Aiden wouldn’t help so I walked up to him and wrapped my arms around his stomach, pressing myself into his back. I held him for the longest time as he stood there pointing a gun at my uncle’s head, willing him to put it down. Willing him not to go through with this.
There was another way. We had the evidence we needed to send them to prison. All of them. Not just my uncle and my cousin, but all the men involved. We had to do it right this time. No more vigilante justice. It would only bring down more trouble on our heads. This time we had to do it cleanly.
I needed him to stop this. He had to put the gun down. He had to. He had to be the man I knew him to be inside. The one who didn’t do shit like this anymore.
He had to be the Aiden I loved.
Because if he wasn’t.
I wasn’t sure if we could survive this.
I desperately wanted to.
We’d promised each other forever.
And I was going to make sure Aiden kept that promise.
Even if it was the last thing I ever did.
Chapter Twenty Four
Aiden
“Further arrests have been made following the recent discovery of a long standing sex trafficking ring in London. Two weeks ago, Charles Daniels and Edward Daniels, who both worked for Daniels Holdings, were arrested following evidence coming to light showing they were the ringleaders in this sordid business. We also have confirmation that the deaths of Mitchell and Kathleen Daniels and Frazier and Tristan Shaw are also connected to this sex trafficking ring. The police believe their deaths were acts of revenge, but they do not have any suspects at this time.”
I stroked Avery’s hair as the broadcaster continued. She was fast asleep with her head in my lap. The past two weeks had been exhausting for her. The media circus following Chuck’s arrest had been non-stop.
“A statement was released yesterday by Charles Daniels’ niece, Avery Lockhart. Mrs Lockhart stated she was shocked and appalled by the allegations made against her uncle and cousins and that she would personally donate to the fund set up to help the women who were trafficked by her family. Mrs Lockhart has also made front page news following the announcement this morning that Daniels Holdings is being sold to The Harris Corporation.”
Avery stirred in my lap. She looked up at me, blinking. She’d woken up ridiculously early this morning because she was worried about the announcement, but by nine am, she’d rested her head in my lap and fallen asleep.
“What time is it?” she asked.
“Twelve.”
“Oh, oh shit, I should be in the office.”
She started to sit up but I stopped her.
“Shh, I told Saskia you’re not coming in today. You’re not needed. It’s okay, princess, just relax.”
The board was dealing with the sale of the company. It wasn’t a decision she’d taken lightly. After what happened with Rick that night, I wasn’t sure she’d go through with it. Avery ultimately decided she couldn’t allow all of the employees to lose their jobs. We’d kept a copy of the evidence we had against the company which Rick didn’t know about, but we were washing our hands of that mess. Avery
just wanted it all to go away now we’d taken down their sex trafficking ring.
That night had been a shitstorm of emotional turmoil for both of us. If Rick hadn’t let her go and if she hadn’t come in the room and wrapped herself around me, I think I might have actually shot Chuck dead. It was her silently begging me not to do it as she held me which stayed my hand. Instead, I’d put the gun down and walked out of the room with her. We’d stood in the hallway for a long time, just holding each other until she spoke.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
“He’s going to rot in prison for what he’s done.”
“He will. We’ll make sure of it. I don’t want to do this anymore. I want to let it all go, Aiden. I want to take his offer. Take the money so I can help the girls and then I want to walk away.”
“Okay, princess. That’s what we’ll do.”
When she’d told Rick, he’d nodded and said he’d instruct his lawyers to draw up the official offer and the acquisition paperwork.
We’d gathered up the evidence from my flat as well as the hard drive Rick had given me before dropping both Chuck and Ed off outside a police station. We’d told them they were going to turn themselves in, providing the evidence necessary and plead guilty when their cases came to court. If not, then I’d find them and end their lives. Funnily enough, neither had objected at this point. Avery and I had watched them walk into the station with the hard drive. They didn’t come back out and the news broke two days later.
Avery settled back down in my lap, staring up at me with those beautiful doe eyes of hers.
“It’s almost over.”
I nodded. It was. And I was fucking glad of it. All the women who’d been involved had been rescued and were now being cared for. Sophie and Cora had come forward and made themselves known to the police. Both were more than happy to give evidence against Robert Bassington and the other men they’d had to service.
“Have you spoken to Tina yet?”
I winced. I didn’t really know what to say to her. She’d kept the fact that Nick Daniels had murdered my mother a secret from me. I wanted to forgive her and put this behind us, but that would take a conversation I wasn’t sure I was ready to have.
“Aiden, you need to talk to her.”
“I know. I know.”
She looked over at the coffee table, spying my phone on it. Before I could stop her, she’d reached over and grabbed it. She knew my passcode by now so she unlocked it, pulled up the contacts and clicked on Tina’s number. She held it out to me as it started ringing.
I took it from her, shaking my head. Even though she was interfering, I couldn’t be annoyed about it. At the end of the day, Avery was my wife and I knew she was right.
“Aiden… I thought you’d never call,” Tina said when she answered.
“I was going to…”
“You’re angry with me. I get it.”
The only reason she knew anything was because Avery spoke to her after the news broke. I wasn’t ready and, in all honesty, I still hadn’t entirely forgiven her for it.
“You could’ve told me.”
“I wanted to protect you. You were so young when it happened and the longer I kept the truth from you, the harder it was to tell you. I’m so sorry. I really am. I should’ve told you when you came to me about Mitchell. I just hated him so much. Hated all of them. I wanted them gone just as much as you did. I’m so sorry, please believe me when I say that if I could go back, I would’ve told you the truth, but you know Rick told me he’d cut off the money. You really mean everything to me, Aiden. You know that, right? I love you like you’re my own son.”
I could hear her voice falter on the words. Something about it broke my heart. Tina would always be my parent even though we weren’t related by blood. My only parent as far as I was concerned. Rick wasn’t a fucking father nor would he ever be. He’d promised us that once the sale went through, we’d never have to see or speak to him again.
“I know. I love you too, Tina.”
I heard her gasp of surprise followed by a sob. I’d never actually said those words to her before. She’d been in my life since I was five years old, but it was only now, at almost twenty nine, that I felt able to.
“Oh, Aiden. I…I…”
“Hey, don’t get all fucking soppy on me. I’m just telling you the truth, okay?”
She was silent for a few moments. I suspected she was composing herself.
“That girl has changed you.”
I looked down at Avery who was looking at the TV. I knew she was listening to my side of the conversation even if she was pretending not to.
“She has.”
“I know I’m not your mother, but she is the perfect daughter in law. Don’t mess it up ever again, you hear me?”
“I won’t… She’s the one.”
That made Avery turn her head up towards me, her doe eyes wide. I stroked her hair, smiling.
“Are you talking about me?” Avery asked, her voice too low for it to carry to the phone.
I winked.
“I never thought I’d hear you say that about a girl,” Tina said.
“I married her, didn’t I?”
Tina chuckled and I saw a blush rise up Avery’s neck and cheeks. Fuck. She was so cute when she got embarrassed. It wasn’t that often I told anyone else how I felt about her and especially not in front of her face. She knew how I felt obviously, but that was different. I had no qualms about telling her just how much she meant to me.
I trailed my fingers down Avery’s bare arm. She squirmed a little.
“And you know that was also an unexpected surprise. I’m glad you’re happy. Do you think we can put all of this behind us now?”
I let out a long breath.
“We can try. Just give me time... How are the girls?”
“They’re fine. They’re still staying with me, but the police have interviewed them several times. I like having them here if I’m honest. I’ve told them they’re welcome to stay with me permanently.”
I smiled. I hoped Sophie and Cora would continue to live with Tina. They’d formed a kinship with her in the last few months. I might be her adopted son, but I was never really there for her in the way she needed. She’d constantly had to deal with me getting into trouble and when I’d left to join the army, she was alone. She’d never met anyone she wanted to spend her life with. I sometimes wondered if that had anything to do with me, but Tina had assured me it wasn’t.
“Adopting more strays then?”
“You were not a stray and you asked me to take care of them.”
I laughed.
“I’ve not heard that sound in a long time nor you making jokes.”
“Another thing you can thank Avery for,” I replied, still chuckling.
“It seems I have a lot of things to be grateful for when it comes to your wife.”
I looked down at my girl. She was eying me warily because she could only hear my side of the conversation.
“Anyway, I should go. I said I’d make lunch for the girls.”
“Okay, I’ll speak to you soon.”
I hung up, dropping the phone on the arm of the sofa before I leant down and stole a kiss from my wife who was about to open her mouth to speak.
“What were you saying about me?” she asked when I pulled back a little.
“Only nice things, princess.”
“I take it from your smile that things are okay.”
“Things will be fine… eventually.”
I wasn’t going to stay angry with her forever. It was time to let go of the past.
“Come on, there’s something we need to do,” I said, changing the subject.
“What?” she asked as she sat up.
“Something we should’ve done a long time ago, princess.”
~~~
Both of us stood in the cemetery side by side. Avery hadn’t really wanted to come, but we needed to.
“Yeah… I guess she was.”
The one thing Rick told us before he left was where they’d put Lizzie. In Avery’s family’s plot no less. Nick had told him before he died. Mitchell had been insistent about it. What better place to hide a body than in a fucking cemetery. They’d paid handsomely to keep it quiet.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah… It’s kind of a relief to know where she is, you know. Are you?”
We were going to have a gravestone put here for her at some point, but it wasn’t urgent. Just knowing she was laid to rest made me feel better about saying goodbye. That was why I’d brought Avery here. So I could let go.
“Yeah… I never really said goodbye either.”
She squatted down and placed a white rose on her parent’s graves. She put a hand on the gravestone.
“Mum… Dad… There’s a lot of things I want to say to you, but not a lot of them are good. I’ll always love you because you’re my parents, but that doesn’t negate what you’ve done. If I come to visit again, it won’t be to see you. I hope you understand that. I wish you’d lived so I could’ve said this to your faces. Told you how much trouble you brought, but it’s okay. Your empire crumbled and that’s good enough for me.”
She rose to her feet and tucked herself under my arm and wrapped a hand around my waist, giving me a squeeze. I kissed the top of her head, knowing how hard it was for her to be here, but ultimately, she had to do this. For her own sake.
I stared down at the plot where my mother lay for the longest time.
“I wasn’t sure what I’d say when I got here,” I started. “And now I am here, I still don’t know.”
This was harder than I expected. There were so many things I wanted to say to her, but the words failed me. So I decided to tell her about the one thing I could talk about.
“I spent a long time being angry at the world, but not any longer. You always called me your angel, but I think perhaps I was destined to be someone else’s angel instead. I think you’d like her. She’s the kindest, most understanding and selfless person I know. I wish you could’ve met her. Just once. Then you’d know how much happiness she’s brought into my life. How much she’s healed me just by being her.”