by West, Sinden
She stared hard at me then looked away. “Speaking of piss, you need to empty the bucket.”
I walked over to it and grabbed the handle before heading for the door.
“You don’t need to lock me away, Aaron. What are you scared of? That I’ll run, or that someone will steal me?”
“Don’t flatter yourself. I just don’t need the distraction right now.” I stepped through the doorway and slammed the door closed, bolting it firmly in place behind me. Why the fuck did she have to be so difficult all the time?
After emptying her piss I went downstairs, only pausing briefly by the door to the basement before continuing onto the kitchen. Sitting at the table, I pulled out my phone. I’d managed to change the settings so that it gave a false location in case I was tracked, just in case Luca had decided to move that quickly. Still, nothing was full proof.
The only phone calls that I’d missed were from Antony. He sounded stressed in his messages. Luca was asking him questions about Andrea and he was freaking out. He was stupid. His brother would know he was lying. Luca and Antony were worlds apart, but Antony had surprised me with having the balls to sleep with his brother’s girlfriend or wife in the first place. Maybe there was hope for him yet.
Luca hadn’t bothered to call me. Was that a good sign?
Sighing, I collapsed down into a chair at the kitchen table. I’d acted too hasty. The threat to Rachel…that’s what had made me behave so irrationally. I should be back in Luca’s circle, observing and playing my role, while waiting for just the right time to strike…
I’d fucked up, and now was the time to act. I needed to take Luca out. It would be like cutting the head off a serpent, the body would fall and collapse and in the confusion, it would be easy to just disappear and start again.
Every part of me felt tense. I curled my hands into fists. I felt like punching something. But instead I went outside and began to chop firewood. It was an easy way to work up a sweat and regain focus. I stayed out there for about an hour, repeating the same mundane task, over and over again. The winter sun was out and giving a slight amount of warmth. For a moment, I considered bringing Rachel out to sit in the sun like I had the other time we were here.
Even when she was handcuffed so she couldn’t run, it had seemed so normal to have her right there, watching me work. If not for the metal around her wrists, we could have been any other couple.
I slammed the blade of the axe into the tree stump to keep it sharp before gathering up the firewood.
Would she run again? Her hatred would be reigniting right now, burning brightly as vengeance grew in her mind. She would see this as the greatest betrayal. We were supposed to be together, on the same team, and instead I had made her captive again and taken away all of her power.
Except that wasn’t quite true. She had never lost that power in the first place.
Once the last load of wood was stacked, I started up the stairs. This was stupid. I had to let her out. She wasn’t a fucking doll or a toy. I’d given her freedom before. Hell, I’d even given her a fucking car and she still hadn’t run.
I paused though, before I could pull back the bolt and release her. Was I doing the right thing? Then I pulled back the bolt and opened the door.
She sat on the bed, casual as ever, except for the eyes: there was hatred there. It was to be expected.
I gave a nod toward the hallway and she slowly got to her feet and walked past me, taking the lead and heading down the stairs. The front door was right at the bottom, unlocked and waiting for her. Her head went in its direction as she stopped in front of it, before twisting to look at me where I waited on the stairs.
“What games are you playing?”
“I’m not playing any games, Rachel.” Slowly, I walked down the stairs to join her.
Her mouth twitched. “Maybe they’re not games to you. Maybe it’s just how your sick little mind works.” She waited several beats, then walked away from the door and down to the kitchen. I followed and watched as she began to make herself a cup of coffee. Her movements betrayed her anger as she slammed canisters and the cup down on the counter and splashed coffee as she stirred it.
She let the teaspoon fall noisily onto the counter and then she froze with her head down. Suddenly, with speed, she grabbed the cup and flung it straight toward my head. She was a bad shot and I only had to move my head half an inch to avoid it. I heard it smash into the wall behind me.
“You done with your tantrum?”
She bared her teeth. “Not even close.”
“Okay, come get me when you’re done.” I strolled out, hands in my pockets. It would infuriate her but that was the plan. I wanted her anger, not the cold calculation of that girl who was speaking to me through the door; not that icy demoness.
In the hallway, I came to a stop by the door that led to the basement. That door hadn’t been opened in years. One day I would, just not yet. I continued on and went to sit on the porch in the sun.
It wasn’t long before she joined me with a complete cup of coffee in her hand.
“Is that for me?”
“No.” She took a sip as she sat down on the step next to me. “You’re fucked up, you know that?”
“Yes.”
We watched the landscape together in silence. Nothing moved. No birds, not even the wind.
“I want an apology.”
“Fine. I’m sorry.”
“Why did you do it then? To fuck with my head?”
“Your head’s already fucked. It doesn’t need any more of my help.”
“That’s not helping, Aaron.”
I sighed. “I need everything to be under control, including you. It’s just easier with you‒”
“Locked away? Safe in a ‘tower’? This isn’t a fairytale, Aaron. Happy endings don’t come like that. Besides, it’s always supposed to be the wicked witch who holds her captive, not the hero.”
“Well, I never said I was the fucking hero now did I?”
She moved her head to watch me. “Don’t worry. No one will ever mistake you for one of those,” she said dryly.
Reaching over, I grabbed one of her wrists, encircling my hand around it. “Where do you want to go?”
Her forehead crinkled. “Go?”
“Where on this planet do you want to go? Do you want sun, snow, rain, heat, what?”
“Are we running and hiding now?” she asked after a moment.
“I don’t run and I don’t hide.” I released her wrist and she rubbed it like I’d hurt her.
“Then why are we back here?”
I flashed her a grin. “I’m regrouping and preparing for an attack. Luca needs to go. Once that happens there’ll be chaos, but there will still be people out for my blood and unless I want to look behind me my whole life, it would be best to have a change of scenery.”
She stared down at the ground. “Why does he need to go?”
I hesitated before answering. “He threatened you.”
I watched for her reaction. She kept her head down so I couldn’t see her face. Her fingers grazed along the rotting wood and over jagged and splintered edges. “So you’re doing this for me?” Her voice was little more than a murmur.
“I’m doing this for me. You’re mine and he threatened to take you.”
She tilted her head up to look at me through her hair. “At least you’re honest.” Bitterness tinged her words.
I shrugged. “What do you want me to say? I’m not going to lie to you.”
“And what happens when you grow bored of me? Will you throw me to the wolves then?” Her pale lips barely moved as she spoke, but there was a distinct hardness to her words and no hurt this time. It was more of a…what? A threat? How did I get trapped in this conversation? There was no way in hell I would tell her that I would never be bored with her, she was under my skin and in my head. She was like a parasite wriggling around in me, boring holes and eating me from the inside out. A parasite? No, that was wrong. She was a fucking goddess‒li
ke one of the Greek ones, who manipulated and played with humans for their own mere amusement.
Fuck. I ran a hand through my hair. Why was I thinking something so stupid?
“Want a drink?” I asked abruptly.
“It’s a little early.”
I just laughed at her disapproval. That she disapproved of? Of all things? I got to my feet, ignoring her and walked inside, into the living room with its bourbon waiting for me. After I poured the drink, I fell back into the armchair and put my feet up on the table. She had followed quietly, and stood in the doorway before cautiously walking over to stand in front of the fire‒the place where my Uncle had met his death. It was his fault. He had that coming. He was taking things too far and didn’t listen to me. His mind was fucked with the booze by that time anyway. He’d really been good for nothing at the end.
I smiled up at where she stood, clad in jeans that hugged her muscular legs and a knit sweater that hid nothing about her. “Remember when I had you naked and I’d make you stand up there reading from that stupid diary.” I pointed a finger before taking a drink. “Those were the days. I swear you and I got on better back then than we do now.”
“One drink and you become an asshole?” She arched an eyebrow while I laughed.
“I’m always an asshole. You should know that by now.”
Her lips curved into a crafty smile. She was about to hit back and I readied myself. “You know what I remember? I remember how stupid you were. You believed your crazy uncle when he told you that I was an evil manipulating bitch and that I was the reason behind his downfall.”
My own smile dropped as I shook my head. “Not true, plus, he wasn’t all wrong.”
She stared down at me. “You sound like a petulant child who never admits that he’s the one in the wrong.”
I smirked at her. “The same goes for you, Rachel. You always end up admitting to being the victim and nothing else.”
Her eyes narrowed. “I’ve paid plenty for my crimes. I don’t owe anyone anything and I certainly don’t owe you of all people an explanation.”
“Fuck. I’ve had enough of this. I don’t want to fight with you. I’m sick of going around and around in circles. What do you want? What the fuck do you want, Rachel? Do you want to stay or go? I’m not forcing you to be here. I’ll give you money or whatever you want if you want to leave, but you need to realize that once you’re away from me, I won’t be able to protect you. Luca never forgets. He’ll hunt you down just to get to me, and when he does, you’ll wish that you stayed with the lesser of the two evils.”
“Are you trying to scare me into staying with you, is that it?”
I shrugged. “Think whatever you want. It doesn’t matter to me.”
She moved over and crouched down beside me. “Maybe I should just kill you then. I could kill you and send your head to Luca. That would solve a lot of my problems.”
“True, but you’d miss me.”
She didn’t return my smile and just kept watching me with those hard eyes. Abruptly, she stood and moved over to pour herself a drink. Taking a seat away from me, she stared at the fire as she drank her bourbon, each of her movements silent like she was a ghost.
And in a way, she was.
She haunted this room as that naked girl standing by the fire, begging and threatening. But she wasn’t that girl anymore. I’d had a hand in that, for better or worse.
“What are you going to do with Luca?” she asked after minutes had passed.
“Get him alone and kill him.”
“How?”
I raised an eyebrow. “Why?”
“I just want to know. Tell me.” How could she ask that question in such a soft voice?
“I’m going to ram a knife into his throat so he won’t die straightaway. It will be painful and slow and I’ll finally see some feeling in the bastard’s eyes.” I smiled as I imagined the scene.
“Why in such a gory way?”
I cast my eyes in her direction and lifted a shoulder. “Why not? He deserves it and I’ll enjoy it. It’s a win-win.”
She looked down at her drink. “And then we just go?”
I hesitated. “No, not straight away. There’s something else we need to take care of first.” She still didn’t lift her eyes to mine. “Your mother.”
She was as still and silent as if she hadn’t heard.
“You asked me once to kill her. Now’s your chance.”
Slowly, she raised her head. “Why now?”
I shrugged. “The opportunity’s here. She still weighs on you, as much as you pretend that she doesn’t. I’m giving you the path to freedom.”
“To freedom…or to craziness. Are you sure that this won’t send me right over the edge? Or do you want me to become like you?”
“This isn’t about me. It’s about you. That bitch deserves to die for what she did, and it’s what you wanted once. I’m just putting the ball in your court.”
She didn’t look convinced, but then, she never did. There was never any trust in her eyes for me. There probably never would be.
Suddenly, she set down her glass and sank down from her chair and onto the floor, right in front of me. Her hand touched my leg as she looked up at me. “What would it be like if you and I were the same? Would we run around killing people? Tormenting people? Laughing?”
I gripped the hand that touched me. “That’s not what I do.”
“Yeah, it is.”
“I do a job, and if I didn’t, there would be someone else to step into my shoes and do it instead. The only difference is that I don’t lie about what I am. I know hitmen that have a wife and kids at home and pretend to go to work in an insurance office all week. Everything about them is a lie.”
“Like Luca?”
I shook my head. “No, his wife knows what he is, but she wanted the power, money and the excitement that came with him. She made her bed.”
She stared up at me for a moment. “Have I made my bed, Aaron?”
“You’re free to go. You always were,” I lied. The nightmares of her leaving me flashed before me and the intense rage that I felt in those dreams was vivid again.
She stood, using my grip on her hand to lift her up before she settled herself on my lap. Her mouth was soft, almost shy as she kissed me. I couldn’t kiss her back though. It didn’t feel real. I’d just lied to her, and she knew it.
But it didn’t stop my cock from hardening against her warm body.
“Kiss me,” she whispered. “It’s just us. Kiss me I want to feel you, and I want you to feel something.” She tried to grip my chin but I quickly grasped her wrists.
“Stop it, Rachel.”
She moved her mouth from mine. There was no question in her eyes.
“Why are you with me?” I shot out at her, anger sparking in me. “You think I’m a nasty psychopath with very few redeeming features. You don’t seem to ever be able to forgive me. So why are you with me, if not to help you take care of your mother?”
She leaned back, taking back her hands to fold them in her lap. “That’s not why I’m with you.”
“Isn’t it?”
“No.”
“Then why?” I held my breath, willing her to say words that I wanted to hear.
She lifted her chin. “I don’t know. Why are you with me?”
I frowned and resisted the urge to throw her from my lap. “I like fucking you.”
“Great.” She shoved away from me and stood. “I’m hungry.” She walked off in the direction of the kitchen.
“Great,” I echoed under my breath.
Chapter Twelve
I waited in bed later, listening to the sound of the shower. We had managed to hardly talk for the remainder of the day, but that was okay, I had plans to make. When she finally came to my room, she let the towel drop and crawled in beside me, not looking at me and certainly not touching me. Those nights we had spent together in this bed were fresh in my memory: fucking in the dark, her limbs wrapping around me and her m
outh fighting to kiss mine.
And sometimes I would let her win that fight even though it felt so wrong to have pleasure in this house.
Even though I knew that every action she made was purely for her own survival, I still played along. In spite of myself, I let the fantasy etch itself in my mind, that she was crazy for me; that this perfect girl desired to please me and only me.
I knew what she was. I was well aware of that before I’d even met her, but I’d still allowed her to enslave me in a way, not that I would ever let her know that, of course.
She lay her head on the pillow, facing away from me. The sheet was tucked under her arm and only just covering her breasts. My eyes raked over her curves‒all that muscle that I had helped her to cultivate deceptively covered by soft and flawless skin.
Mine.
Maybe if I said it enough times it would be true. But I reached out anyway, to stroke her hair with more gentleness than I felt. Her head turned abruptly as if I’d caught her off guard and she stared at me with unrevealing eyes as she lay on her back.
Slowly, I reached over and trailed a finger down her cheek, and further on, close to her mouth that opened slightly the nearer I came. But I bypassed that and ran my fingers down over her long and graceful neck and felt it pulsing with life, more rapidly than it should have been. Grazing her chest, I let my fingers take hold of the sheet and slowly peeled it back to bare her breasts, which rose and fell with each of her breaths, the nipples hard and pink, ripe and waiting.
I bent down and took one of them in my mouth like it was candy, sucking on it made it harden even more. She gave a slight gasp and reached for me.
But I stopped her, taking my mouth from her breast I clutched onto both of her hands.
“I know,” I whispered, the alcohol taking control and saying what I shouldn’t.
She frowned. “Know what?”
“I know why everyone falls for you. Why they love you. Why they destroy themselves for you.”
Her jaw hardened and I saw fire in her eyes. “Why?” she breathed.
“Because you’re a witch, a demon, the devil, a fucking enchantress…”