When the waitress comes to get our order, I’m quick to make sure she knows that I’ll be picking up the tab. “I’ll get the check on this.” I gesture to Bell. “She and I will have a couple of chocolate shakes, cheeseburgers, and curly fries.” Then I look at Jake. “And you guys want?”
“That sounds delicious. What do you think, Alice?”
“Sounds good to me, count me in.” She gives him a smile, and I think I already like this girl for my baby brother.
The waitress looks happy with such a simple order and heads off to get things going. “Has Jenny filled you in on what I’ve gotten done so far, Jake?”
“Not today, she hasn’t. What’s new?” He kicks back to see what I’ve accomplished today.
“I made a few phone calls a while ago and found out the coroner found tumors in Mom’s body. He’s sent samples to the lab to find out exactly what was wrong with her. And a call to my lawyer had me finding out that if the specialist is able to determine that Mom’s wrist wound was self-inflicted, then he has a judge that’s going to have Dad released immediately. The tests will be back by the end of the week. This whole thing might be settled that quickly.”
Bell looks amazed. “I didn’t know you had gotten that far, Grant. You’re kind of amazing.”
“Nah.” I shake my head. “Just kinda smart.”
Jake mock punches me in the arm, and I feign pain. “Ow!”
Jake laughs, and so do the girls. I find myself really enjoying the conversation—it’s a light and easy time. For once.
The food and drinks come, and we eat and enjoy each other’s company. Just like a family should. A thing I’ve deprived myself of for way too long.
But I’m rectifying that every minute I can. If I hadn’t ever gone off the deep end in the first place…
I stop that train of thought as I look at Bell. She’s laughing and talking and having such a good time. If I hadn’t gone off the deep end, I would’ve never met her.
I guess there’s a reason for everything. But I can’t see the reason for Bart Mason and what he did.
My eyes must’ve gone dark as I thought about the man because Bell stops laughing. “Grant, you okay, baby?”
Blinking, I nod. “Yeah. Sure.” I take a nice long drink of my chocolate shake to get rid of the thought. Whatever the reason for that man and what happened to Bell, I can’t let it mar this nice time we’re having.
The sky has gone dark outside the large plate glass windows of the café and lightening makes trails of light through it. Thunder rumbles in the distance and a shiver runs through me.
Will he come after her tonight?
Jake puts the white paper napkin over his empty plate. “Well, this was fun. Alice and I are heading to go see a movie. You two want to join us?”
“Thanks for asking, but Bell and I have to get back home. Oh, um, maybe you and our sisters and I can get together this Sunday? I want to discuss selling the house.” I place the cash on the table to cover the meal, with a little extra for a tip. Then I pop a couple of hundred into my little brother’s shirt pocket. “And your date’s on your big brother tonight. And don’t you dare say you can’t accept it. I should’ve taken care of you. Let me make up for it now, please.”
He laughs and nods. “Thanks, big brother. And I’ll see you Sunday. Text me the time and the place and I’ll be there.” He nods toward Alice. “Is it okay if I bring my girl along too?”
Bell’s the one who answers that question as she smiles at Alice then Jake, “You better bring her. And why not come out to Grant’s place?”
“Our place,” I quickly correct her. “And that’s a great idea. We can have a cook out. It’ll be fun.”
Bell adds, “How about around one or so? We can make a day of it.”
“Cool with me. April, you game?” he asks her.
She grins from ear to ear as she says, “I’m in, Jake.”
And with that, we have a normal American family Sunday planned. Wow, look at us. A couple of underground BDSM club runners hosting a nice, normal family Sunday dinner. Who knew?
Chapter 32
Isabel
One day later
Sitting on the sofa in the den, Grant and I are cuddled up, looking at a website for one of the local jewelry stores. I never thought in a million years that he and I would be picking out wedding rings.
“Oh, I like this one, Bell. Look, baby. It has the one large stone in the center and smaller stones along the platinum band. And then you have the wedding band with nice sized diamonds all the way around. I think this set would look beautiful on your long slender finger.” He pulls the picture up so we can really see the rings.
“I think it’s gorgeous, but did you see that list of numbers underneath it? It’s a bit pricey.” I point out a cheaper set. “That one’s nice too and not nearly as expensive as the one you picked out.”
“Ignore the numbers, baby. You know damn well I can afford it. And I want everyone who looks at your left hand to know how much I cherish and value you.” He kisses the side of my head and I melt into him.
It’s hard to believe this is the same man from a year ago. It sure took a hell of a lot to get him to appreciate me. But at least it finally happened.
I point at the man’s ring that goes with the set—a plain platinum band with no adornments whatsoever. “But the one that goes with it is too plain.” I move my finger across the screen to one that’s also platinum, but has small diamonds on the top in the shape of a cross. “I like this one for you. I’m buying you this one.”
He raises his brows, clearly a bit surprised. “You’re buying me that one? Did you happen to see the price of that thing?”
Snuggling even closer to him, I laugh lightly. “My bosses pay me well. I have it to spend, my love.”
Grant’s cell rings and he picks it up. A frown fills his face as the name Steve Wilkins shows up on the screen. “I wonder what he wants. It’s nearly midnight.”
“Answer it and find out. Maybe something happened at the club you should know about.” I swipe the screen for him and I can hear the noise already. Sirens in the background.
“Shit,” Grant says as he answers the call. “Steve, what the hell is going on there?”
“Betty is what’s going on. She came back after being told she no longer has a job here and brought a few friends to try to trash the place,” Steve lets Grant know.
“Betty doesn’t have a job there anymore?” I mouth at Grant as this is the first I’ve heard about that.
“She falsified Bart Mason’s background checks.” He tells me before switching back to the phone. “Did they damage anything?” he asks Steve.
“Just the employee entrance. They used a battering ram to try to get in. Her employee key-card had been deactivated, of course. She was furious, Grant. Like in a way I had no idea she could be. She wasn’t herself at all.”
“Possessed,” I whisper. Betty wasn’t a crazy person. She was very sweet and helpful. But she was the one person who was responsible for getting Bart Mason’s membership accepted. Could he have done something to her?
“Have she and her friends been arrested?” Grant asks as I get up and grab my bottle of water off the coffee table and take a few gulps.
“They have. The police are about to take them away right now. We’ve pressed trespassing charges as well as destruction of property charges on them all. Grant, I know this is going to sound crazy, and there has to be an explanation—like maybe they all have on creepy contacts or something. You know, meant to frighten people. But all of their eyes had fire in them. It was the creepiest shit I’ve ever seen.” Steve hesitates then goes on, “And Betty said something that’s very off-putting.”
Grant pinches the bridge of his nose as he looks irritated with a side of fear. “And what was that, Steve?”
“She said, ‘He will get what he wants. No one can stop him.’ What do you think that means, Grant? And who is he? I asked her several times, and she just laughed like a fucking ma
niac.”
Grant’s eyes catch mine and I mouth, ‘Me, he wants me…’
It’s obvious that Bart Mason will do everything within his power to get his master what his master has asked for. And how much destruction can I stand by and watch before I give in?
“I’ll head down to the police station first thing in the morning to see if I can talk to her. Maybe I can get some answers out of her,” Grant tells him.
“You do that. I’ll get on replacing the door in the morning, and we’re leaving security here overnight to make sure no one gets in through the broken door after we close. See you tomorrow then.”
Grant puts the phone down and looks at me. “Funny how you think you can move on from a thing like this, but you can’t.”
With a nod, I sit back, and he puts his arm around me. I lay my head on his shoulder and wonder what the fuck I can do to end this shit. “I have no idea what Bart is or what his master is, Grant. I have no idea if there’s a person on Earth who can help me.”
“Help us,” he corrects me. “I’m in this too, you know. If something happens to you again… I’ll lose my shit. I can promise you that. They’ll have to put me in a straitjacket and leave me in a padded room.” His lips press against my cheek, and I turn to catch his mouth with mine.
Holding his face in my hands, I kiss him and wish our kiss would cloak us from all the evil that’s out there. But I know we need more. We need help.
His mouth leaves mine and he moves his hands over mine, pulling them off his face and to his lips where he trails soft kisses all over them. “Let’s Google psychics in Portland.”
“Okay,” I say without any hesitation at all.
Before all of this, I wouldn’t have put my faith in a psychic. But now, well, hell yes I will totally put my faith in one. Things change once you’ve been abducted by a monster.
With the laptop still up, I type ‘psychic’ into the Google search engine and a list of names pop up. Grant’s eyes and mine go to the same name at the same time. A good sign, I think. “Penelope Pinkerton,” he says.
I nod in agreement. “That’s the same one I was looking at.” I click the link by her name and it takes us to her website. Her profile picture makes her look very professional. Short blonde hair hangs neatly to her shoulders, light blue eyes make her look sweet and honest. “Not kooky looking at all. She seems pretty normal. There’s a place to email her. Should I do that?”
“I think so. The sooner we have help, the better off we’ll be.” He clicks the mouse to get to that page and I type in our request along with my cell number.
Then we close the laptop and Grant drums his fingers on the case. I take his hand and hold it in mine. I know he’s worried. I know he’s wondering if he can really protect me.
“There are forces that are beyond our control. But only for the moment, Grant.” I pull his hand up and hold it to my heart. “We’ll find the help we need. Nothing is invincible. Nothing.”
“I want to make you my wife. I want you to be as close to sin-free as possible. Let’s get packed. We’re heading to Vegas.” He gets up and pulls me up with him.
I’m kind of shocked. “Grant, I’m sure the powers that be don’t give a rat’s ass if you and I have a paper that says we’re legally and morally fucking. There’s no reason to rush this marriage.”
The look in his eyes tells me he’s read too far into my words. His eyes narrow and his lips form one hard line. “You’re not sure about marrying me, are you?”
“What?” I shake my head.
But his eyes only go narrower. “You think this change in me is only temporary. That all that’s happened has pulled this out in me and I’ll go back to the hard man I was before.”
I look down, unable to hold his glare. “Maybe.”
“You don’t have faith in me, Bell.” The glare turns to sorrow, and he lets my hand go. “I deserve that. I know I do. But it doesn’t hurt any less just because I know that.”
My heart aches and I reach out to him, taking his hand in mine and pulling him into my arms. “Grant, I love you, and I know you love me. But I’m afraid that, once this is all over, you’ll look back at this extremely tumultuous time and think that maybe we should’ve waited a while. Maybe we should’ve waited until things settled down before we got married, before we made things permanent.”
“I won’t go back,” he tells me, but he can’t look at me as he says it. “I never go back. I only go forward. But I can see you’re unsure of me.” Then he looks into my eyes as he caresses my cheek. “How long, Bell? How long do you want me to wait? I owe it to you. I’ll wait as long as you want to. But I do want to marry you. I want to see your belly swollen with our babies. I want to see my ring wrapped around your finger. I want all of you. And although I want all of that right now, I’ll wait until you feel comfortable with marrying me.”
Biting my lip, I can’t believe how honest and open he’s being. I cannot believe how vulnerable he’s being with me. It’s just so new that I don’t know how to take it.
But maybe being married to Grant will make a difference to Bart. But is that the reason I want to look back on?
Chapter 33
Grant
Two days and two nights have come and gone and nothing has happened. We’re meeting with the psychic today. We asked her to meet us in Isabel’s office. I thought that might be best since Bart had spent some time in it. Maybe she’ll be able to pick up his evil-as-shit vibe in there.
Bell and I settled on staying with the date we’d chosen in the first place. We’ll still get married on October 31st at the Halloween Ball, here at the club. She and I both want everyone to know, without a shadow of a doubt, that we’re actually together and married–and that I’m no longer available to participate in any BDSM activities with anyone other than my wife.
Meeting Penelope at the employee entrance, which has been fixed, Isabel greets her first with a solid handshake. “Penelope, it’s so nice to meet you. I’m Isabel, the one you spoke with on the phone, and this is my fiancé, Grant.”
I shake her hand too and give her a nod. “Nice to meet you. Come right this way.”
Her eyes roam the door frame, and she reaches out to touch the side of it. “Hmm. A struggle of some kind occurred here a night or two ago. A young woman with dark hair. Three men.” She closes her eyes then opens them and looks directly at Bell. “He wants you, doesn’t he? The one the woman named Betty is shouting about.”
“That’s why we called you, Penelope.” Isabel holds out her hand, and Penelope takes it. “He isn’t a real man. He’s some kind of a monster. Oh, he looks normal…”
“It’s in his eyes that I can see he’s different. Inhuman,” Penelope interrupts. “But it only seems that way, I assure you.”
Bell nods as we head down the hallway then step into her office. “Please, take a seat,” I say as we’ve placed the chairs in a circle.
I sit next to Bell as Penelope sits on the other side of her. She crosses her legs then smiles at me. “Your mother says hello. She wants you to know that she’s happy with what you’re doing for your father.” She stops and nods. “Of course. To verify that I’m legitimate, she’d like for me to tell you that she knows you have people working on her body to detect what was wrong with her and you have yet to get those answers. Is this correct?”
I nod and feel a lump swell up in my throat. “Yes.” I swallow to ease the pain and wait to see what she has to say.
“Cervical cancer was found. Not until it was at an inoperable stage four and she knew she was going to die from it.” She waits as if listening to a voice that only she can hear. Then she nods once more. “Daphne wants you to know that she’s sorry for how she did things in the end. She took the coward’s way out, and it bothers her immensely that she did that. She stole your father away from you and your young brother and sisters. It was wrong and she would right it if she could. Unfortunately, she can’t do a thing about that.”
“I forgive her. We all do,” I le
t her know. Then I speak to Mom. “Mom, I’m doing what you asked me to. Dad should be out of prison soon, and I’m bringing him home with me. He’ll live with me, and I’ll get him all the help he needs. Don’t worry.”
Penelope’s hand goes to her forehead and she rubs her brow. “Oh, how terrible.” She looks at Bell, and a tear falls down her cheek. “Daphne has shown me where this man took you and what he did to you.” She reaches over and takes Bell’s hand. “The thing that wants you is not of this world. Not really. Although he’s powerful, the light is more powerful than anything else. If you find yourself captured again, I want you to repeat this phrase over and over with your eyes closed, not allowing his frightening images to scare you.” She looks around and sees some paper and a pen on Bell’s desk.
Bell snatches it up. “Let me write it down. I don’t want to forget it.”
Penelope nods and goes on, “The light surrounds me, shutting out the darkness. Nothing is more powerful than the light.”
“I think I can remember that.” Bell writes it down then puts the paper and pen back down before looking back at Penelope. “Is he going to capture me again?”
“That’s the future, and I can’t see that.” Penelope holds her arms out to each side. “You see, it’s like this, I can see as far as my fingertips will allow. I can’t see past right now. I can see what’s happened, but not what will happen. I think that’s because there are just too many variables, making the future indecipherable to everyone. Even the light.”
I have to ask as I’m unsure about her use of this term, “Are you referring to God as the light?”
“Something like that,” she smiles as she adjusts herself to get more comfortable. “You see, I see things on the other side that most can’t. There is no one being. No one spirit that’s any more powerful than the next. We’re a whole. We’re the light. It makes it easier for the human mind to comprehend one entity, one God, so someone long ago came up with that. But the fact is, when you pray, everyone on the other side can hear you. Each and every one of the spirits that are there can help you if they want to. Not all do. That’s just the way it goes.”
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