by Sabre Rose
“He got let go.”
“Oh.” Cameron is under no illusion as to what that means. “Rough,” he says. “Were you the one to do it?”
I merely nod and leave, not wanting to think about it.
When Everly and I first arrived at the mansion as kids, we often had dinner with the family. But as time passed and I grew to be more involved in the business, the invitations waned. Everly, of course, still ate with the family on occasion, but I avoided it like the plague. As well as feeling more like a servant at the wrong table, Mrs Atterton had become increasingly interested in me, her hands lingering just a little too long when she touched me, her eyes daring me to do unspeakable things. Katriane Atterton is a stunning woman and I once made the mistake of accepting her advances. It won’t happen again. The temptation is there though. Mrs Atterton isn’t used to not getting want she wants. None of the Attertons are.
With the van set to cruise control, the trip back to the mansion doesn’t take long and soon I am turning down the long driveway, the trees lit up by spotlights. Turning off the driveway before I reach the house, the familiarity of the stables warms me. The second story is dark, no one occupying it in my absence. I jerk the van to a stop and run up the outside stairs, threading my key into the lock. The place smells musty but I’ve got little time to worry about it. Heading into my bedroom, I open the wardrobe, scanning my clothes for something appropriate to wear for the ‘family’ dinner.
There’s something about the invitation that makes me wary, makes me think it is just another one of Senior’s mind games, but there is no way I can refuse, so I suck it up and pull out a suit. It’s usually reserved for my attendance as Mr Atterton’s bodyguard at one of his many parties, or one of the auctions, but I haven’t got anything else other than jeans and shirts so it will have to do.
Back in the van, I hurriedly make my way over to the mansion and press the doorbell. The butler answers with a blank expression.
“This way,” he croons with a swoop of his hand.
“Cheers, Oscar.” I smile wickedly and pat the top of his bald head. He pretends to hate it when I do that, but secretly, I think he likes it.
I follow him into the grand entrance, craning my head upward to see the hanging chandelier and sweeping staircase. I usually enter through the back entrance into the kitchen which is humble and pales in comparison to this. Smack damn in the middle of the floor stands Grace. The horse that started it all. Stuffed of course. There’s something about it that gives me the creeps. I’m not a fan of dead things pretending as though they are still alive.
“Follow me,” Oscar barks, and I grin at him again, invoking an eye roll worthy of the record books.
The mansion is somewhat of an odd building. It’s fucking huge, but it hasn’t always been that way. It started off as a grand, but modest house and each generation of Attertons have added to it, leaving their mark on both the architecture and the décor. I follow Oscar through the warren of hallways until we reach the dining room. I’ve never eaten in here before. I’ve stood to the side and watched as other people sat around the table consuming copious amount of decadent foods, but I’ve never actually sat at the table. Like the house, it is huge. The placings have been set for five, and briefly, I wonder with a little trepidation who the other person will be. There’s something wrong about this whole situation and it’s making me uneasy.
Oscar pulls out a chair and I slide into it, trying not to look at the three massive portraits of the Atterton men on the walls. Junior, Senior and the old bastard. Well, not officially, but it’s what I like to call them. The old bastard was only alive for a few years when I first got here. They all look strikingly similar, as though the artist has simply changed the outfits to reflect the times. But Senior doesn’t look like that anymore. He’s spent too much time and money trying to look young that he’s ended up making a mess of himself.
While I’m waiting, there’s a rumble in the distance, the faint sound of something whacking air. A helicopter. Mr Atterton must have been away, and there’s part of me that can’t wait to get back to my old life. A life where I’m not responsible for training another human being. But then I think of Mia and the fact that returning to my old life would mean her starting a new one and nausea twists in my gut. Unwantedly, my eyes gravitate to above, where I know the rooms of Senior’s girls are. I’ve been in them often enough to deliver messages, seen each of their rooms decorated in what I assume are Senior’s taste for them rather than their own.
For as long as I can remember he’s had his collection of girls. The first time I saw them was not long after I came to live with the family. I followed Senior up the stairs, careful to stay concealed from his keen eyes, and hid in the shadows as he keyed in the code and opened a door that had always been locked. The door closed so slowly behind him, I was able to slip in unnoticed. He called out to them the same way as the trainers called to the horses when they were in the paddocks, crooning their names, and holding treats or jewelry in his hands as though they needed tempting. They came out of their rooms, some running into his arms and the others hanging back with fear in their eyes. All of them were beautiful. It makes me sick to think that Junior is starting his own collection with Mia. She must be so scared and confused back in her cell, wondering where I am, wondering why I’ve deserted her.
The blades of the helicopter slow to a stop once it’s landed and not long after, the door opens and the family walks in. But it’s not just the family. Everly is there too. I stand, surprised to see her as she runs into my arms and hugs me tightly. Her eyes are wide with excitement.
“He sent the helicopter just to collect me for dinner!” she squeals. “Could you ever imagine such a thing? My classmates were so jealous. It literally landed on the yard in front of the school and they all crowded around wondering who had arrived. I just about died when they said it was here to collect me. Isn’t it a wonderful surprise, Ryker?”
She’s already untangled herself from me and sat herself down at the table in a poof of pink. I haven’t seen the dress she’s wearing before and I frown slightly, wondering where she got the money to afford it. But then I catch Senior’s eye and I know it was from him. I love and hate his attention to Everly. Love it because it makes her so happy and provides her with all the things I never could. Hate it because he uses it to control me, and I often wonder if there’s a darker motive to his attention. Everly’s only 16. She’s young and innocent of the world the Atterton’s live within. I want to keep it that way. I will take her away from this place, as soon as I can figure out how.
Junior slides into the chair next to Everly and smiles thinly. His eyes glance over to her talking animatedly and fall over her body possessively. My hands form fists under the table. Is it not enough that I had to watch him salivate over Mia, do I have to watch him do it over my little sister too?
I grit my teeth together and attempt to smile at Everly as she turns to me, another tale of her classmates spilling from her mouth. She is everything perfect and innocent in the world. I just want her to stay that way.
While Mr Atterton sits at the head of the freakishly oversized table, Katriane sits opposite me, red wine in her hand, sipping on it daintily. She attempts to catch my eye over the rim of the glass and smiles seductively.
“So where have you been, Ryker, hmmm? I’ve missed seeing your beautiful smile around the house.”
Everly slaps the table and laughs. I’m not known for my smile.
“Yeah, where have you been anyway?” she asks just as the first course is laid on the table. My mouth waters at the sight of it. The food back at the stables has been limited.
“Yes,” Katrine corrects.
“Yes, what?” Everly asks.
“You said yeah. Yeah is not becoming. Use yes.”
“He’s actually been working for me,” Junior interrupts.
“For you?” Everly lets out a half laugh half snort. “What on earth have you got going on that would need my brother’s help? Fli
pping the pages of your music?” She neatly arranges a mouthful of food on her fork and pops it into her mouth, her eyes darting to Katriane for approval.
“You’d be surprised.” Junior winks. “Ryker has proven himself very useful, if not a little over-zealous with my current project. He damn near killed someone who tried to steal something of mine.”
“Oh!” Everly’s eyes sparkle. “That sounds dangerous, do tell me more.”
“It’s nothing you need to worry about.” My voice is gruff and there’s a little hurt in Everly’s eyes. Junior’s amused gaze snaps to mine and I muster as much warning in my glare as I can.
“So what project are you working on? Composing? Or are you tackling some impossibly hard piece on the piano? I constantly tell my classmates about you. They would die if they heard you play, just die.”
“There seems to be a lot of dying going on at your school,” Katriane says dryly.
As I lift my wine glass, Katriane’s foot brushes against my leg, and I jump, just about spilling the liquid. She looks me directly in the eye as her foot rises higher and higher until it rests on the seat between my legs. I sit up straighter as the heel of her shoe pushes into my crotch. Her face is impassive as she takes another sip of wine.
“So,” Senior’s loud voice booms, startling me even more. “Tell us more about your school, Everly. Is it everything you wished it to be?”
“Well, yeah, I mean yes.” Everly places her cutlery across her plate. “It is everything I imagined it would be and more. The teachers are sensational. I’ve learned so much since I’ve been there, it seems so much longer than a few months, but then again, on the other hand, the time has flown by because I’ve been having so much fun.”
“Not too much fun, I hope.” Mr Atterton attempts to lift a warning brow but it kind of gets stuck halfway, quivering as though the muscles have forgotten how to respond to the command.
Katriane’s foot pushes into me painfully and my dick unwillingly hardens as she takes another leisurely sip of wine, staring directly at me as though her husband isn’t even in the room. I close my eyes and breathe heavily, trying to think of anything other than the pressure of her heel.
“Oh, not bad fun,” Everly is quick to reply. “Just good fun. I would never squander the opportunity you’ve given me by paying for my tuition.”
Senior reaches out to pat her hand and it takes all my control not to swipe it away.
“Always such a grateful girl.” Senior looks over at me, his eyes boring into my soul. I turn away only to be greeted by Katriane’s slow smile. In the end, I drop my gaze to the gold shoe twisting into my lap.
Fuck. This is awkward.
But as Everly prattles on about her new school and everything she’s learning, I come to realize the reason Senior invited me to this little soirée.
To remind me of everything I’ve got to lose.
CHAPTER TEN
RYKER
The drive back to the stables seems to take longer than it did before. The road stretches before me as a lonely line of black and my thoughts are just as dark.
Senior was warning me, that much is clear. Maybe he didn’t fall for my lies, maybe he knew the torment inside me over ensuring Mia’s captivity. I’ve been stupid to put Everly at risk, but I simply can’t resist Mia. I know I can’t have her, but it doesn’t stop me from wanting her.
She’s still sitting under the window, illuminated only by the light of the moon as I stride past the monitors. She doesn’t look at me when I walk in. Already, that look of hope, of happiness at my appearance has been tainted. I don’t know what else I expected.
I slink down the wall beside her, wanting—no, needing her to look at me.
“Are you okay?”
It’s a stupid question, I know. We were lost in our own world, a fantasy world in which we had some sort of choice about our situation. Now reality has come crashing back down, cementing the walls of our world back in place. Senior ensured it.
“I didn’t know they were coming.” It’s a pathetic excuse, but it’s the only one I can offer.
She turns to look at me then, those dark eyes searing into my soul. She’s so young. So innocent.
“Who is he?”
Closing my eyes, I think of my sister, carefree, full of life and unaware of the monsters around her. Is what I’m doing to protect her worth hurting the only woman I’ve ever cared about? It’s an impossible situation but I know there’s no way I could put Everly at risk. Whether she knows it or not, I’m the only person she’s got.
It’s times like these that I wonder about my parents. Are they still out there? Is my mother mourning the loss of her children, or did she never want us in the first place? But thoughts like those only lead to dark places, and it’s dark enough already. I’ve always been good at blocking them off, but lately it’s becoming more and more difficult.
“You’re freezing.” I grab the blanket off the bed and wrap it over her shoulders. “You’ll get sick.”
The blanket falls to the ground and her eyes move back to the moon.
“Look at me.” I meant it as a question, but it comes out as a command. As if controlled by some other power, she turns to gaze at me and the pain in her eyes causes my heart to constrict.
I should walk out the door and leave her alone.
I should get into the car, grab my sister and leave forever.
I should open the door and let her go free.
But instead, I kiss her, desperate for a reaction, desperate for her to respond in some other way than this coldness.
“Mia, please,” I beg, though I don’t know what it is I’m begging for.
All I know is this feeling inside me, the one that has ripped open my chest and exposed my heart, beating and pulsing in some empty cavity. Threading my fingers through her hair, I pull her to me, pressing my lips to her passionately, roughly, needing something, anything from her.
“Please,” I beg again.
“Please what?” Her voice is flat. “It would be my pleasure to obey your command.” She holds my gaze, her eyes somehow a combination of emptiness and defiance.
And then she breaks.
“What do you want from me? If you want me to obey, I can do that. If you want to give me over to him, that’s your choice, but I can’t do this. I can’t do us. I can’t be trapped in this imitation of happiness only to have it ripped away from me. I’d rather have nothing than have that. Just tell me what you want.”
I want to be free of the Attertons.
I want my sister to be safe. I want her to have everything she ever wished for in life, but most of all I want her to be happy.
But I don’t say any of those things, because they are not the words that pound with desperation through my head.
“I want you. I want you free. I want you free to choose me.”
Her eyes flash with anger. “But I am not free! He owns me. He owns my body. You’re the one who told me that. You’re the one who made me chant it over and over until the words got stuck in my head.”
Her words push into my mind, forcing flashes of images of the first time I made her come. The way her body trembled, the way her fingers dug into my hair, and the way she cried out. Then I think of the way she scrambled to the corner, fear and confusion showing in her eyes as she tried to hide from me.
Who is this person I’ve become?
Who is this man that forced himself on her and now demands her love?
Her voice quietens as she pleads with me. “You’re the one who holds my freedom in your hands. Just open the door. Let me go.”
I turn away, pressing my back against the wall and closing my eyes as her voice cuts me open. It would be that simple. All I would need to do is open the door and set her free. She would walk along the road and in an hour or two, she would find herself back in her hometown. But again, those are not the words I say, because in letting her go, I would be imprisoning my sister. I would be risking my life. And Mia would still never be free.
/> “It’s not that simple. I cannot betray them. They would kill me. They would kill you. They would kill Everly.”
I know this to be true because I’ve seen it. I heard the coldness in Senior’s voice when he ordered me to kill Marcel. There was no torment, no emotion at the thought of ending someone’s life who had been loyal to him for years. The Attertons may make you think that you mean something to them, but when it comes down to it, they only look after themselves.
“You’ve already betrayed them by fucking me.”
The words sound strange on her lips. Almost blasphemous.
“That’s different.”
But it wasn’t. I know that if Senior or Junior found out what I’d done, my days would be numbered. My only hope would be for them to leave Everly out of it. Punish only me and not her.
And I didn’t like to think of what happened between us as fucking. But I guess that’s what it was. I thought I was a strong man, but around her, I am weak. Just listening to her utter those words makes my cock hard. I get visions of her stretched on the ground below me.
Calling to me.
Begging for me.
Needing me.
Only me.
But then she puts me through hell, describing things that he might do to her. I try to block her words out of my head, but her voice penetrates my mind and forces the visions on me. My hands are in hers and her fingers dig into the soft flesh of my palm, somehow making her words more real. They force me to think of what Junior might do to her. What he will do to her.
“Enough!” I pull my hands away, pleading with her to understand. If I set her free, my sister is in danger. Mia is in danger. Everyone she cares about is in danger.
But she keeps on pushing, telling me how I’m burned into her skin, how I own her body, torturing me by reminding me of all the things we can never be. “You, Ryker. Only you.”
“They know everything about you, Mia. Everything. Do you understand?” I tell her they know about her parents, her best friend, even the little kid next door that she looks after each Friday. “I know what we have between us is twisted. I know we should stop, that no good can come of this, but here, now, us, being with you is the only part of you I will ever have. I can’t stop. I don’t want to stop. I crave you. I hate that I crave you, but I do. I’ll take any part of you I can get.” I grip her cheeks between my hands, searching her face for understanding of the situation we are in.