Redemption: Darkness Falls

by Ivory Quinn

  After the scene was over and they had made sure Chloe was well enough to return to her room, Cal took Noelle into his study.

  “What did you think?” He asked and she smiled, taking a seat by the window to catch the sunlight streaming in.

  “I found it fascinating. I’d really love to learn how to do that. All of it – the rope and the way you talked her into subspace.”

  He gave her a genuine smile. “I’m glad and I can certainly teach you some of it when I have time. I’ll look into courses and workshops though. They’re run quite frequently here in the city and I think it would be healthy for you to meet other people like us in an educational environment.”

  “Are you sure?” She asked cautiously. “My face is pretty well known.”

  “The BDSM community is notoriously close-lipped.” He reassured her. “The first rule you learn is that you never out another practitioner. You have no need to fear.”

  “Okay then.” She nodded, realising how radically her life was changing. Attending community kink classes was as far removed from being a teacher as it was possible to be. She was about to ask something else when there was a knock on the door and Blue stuck his head in when Cal answered.

  “Raze is here and he’s pretty agitated.” He explained, his tone apologetic. “Red’s phone has been ringing for the last couple of hours.”

  “You should go.” Cal nodded to her and she rose to her feet.

  “Thank you for letting me watch this morning.” She hoped her voice showed her genuine gratitude. “It was fascinating.”

  “You’re welcome.” He graced her with another smile and she left, irritated that she had to leave before the conversation was done.

  Raze was pacing in one of the studies downstairs, looking anxious and irritated. “Where the hell have you been, Baby Bear?” He rushed across as soon as she entered and swept her up into a hug.

  “I was in the play room with Master Henway.” She explained, her voice muffled by his chest. “What’s wrong, Papa Bear?”

  “Thank god...we thought you weren’t answering because you were mad at us.” He finally relaxed and released her.

  “Why would I be mad at you?” She blinked up at him. “What have you done?”

  “Jax had a change of heart.” He explained. “He woke up early this morning and called John, asked him to arrange the press conference.” His face took on an anguished cast. “He forbade any of us to call you until it was over, but then we couldn’t get hold of you and thought you must have seen it on the news.”

  “Why couldn’t you call me?” She staggered back as though she’d been slapped.

  “Because he wanted to avenge you and Gabriel. I guess it was penance.” He pulled her back into him. “I’m so sorry, Baby Bear. I knew this was something you wanted to do, but I was torn between you and Jax.” He sounded so helpless that her anger started to subside. Now that the initial shock was fading, she was able to look at it in a more objective light.

  “It’s okay.” She shrugged. “What matters is that it’s done. The word is out there and hopefully someone will come forward and end this once and for all. I’ll let you off on one condition.”

  “Anything.” He promised, without hesitation.

  “I want you to take me this afternoon to get a tattoo.”

  “Excuse me?” He held her out at arm’s length and looked at her like she was crazy.

  “I want a tattoo. It’s not a last minute thing, Raze. I’ve been thinking about it for a while. I don’t want a big one – just four words.”

  “Just four words?” He still hesitated and she nodded.

  “They’re going to be small, too. Please, Papa Bear. You said anything.”

  He sighed. “I’ll take you if Cal’s okay with it. I’m not going to do anything he disagrees with while you’re still under his care.”

  That was fair enough and she couldn’t argue with him. It made sense and she didn’t want to anger the master either.

  Cal was fine with it and spent a few minutes talking to Raze alone before he would let them leave. The only stipulation he had was that he wanted them to take Blue in case the pain triggered some sort of delayed shock response. That was fine with Noelle and Blue was happy to go, so they all piled into Raze’s truck to head into town.

  “I’ll take you to my guy.” Raze said absently as he drove. “We can ask him about your wrists while we’re there.”

  “Are you going to get the scars covered?” Blue asked curiously and Noelle nodded.

  “If I get on okay today, then yeah.” She picked at the dressings still covering her wrists. “When they’ve healed I don’t want to keep looking at them.”

  “Good idea.” He bumped her shoulder affectionately. “You’ll look hot inked up.”

  “Amen, brother.” Raze agreed fervently and Noelle burst out laughing.

  “You two are ridiculous. It’s just as well I love you.”

  The tattoo artist was busy mid-inking when they arrived, but said he could fit her in about an hour later if they could kill some time. It was well past lunchtime and they decided to go and get a coffee while they waited. The parlour was on the same street as the cafe where Sean worked and Noelle found her feet dragging as they approached the front door. She didn’t know why she was feeling nervous, but her stomach was full of butterflies.

  When they entered, Sean was behind the counter and she gave him a shy smile.

  “Hey!” He grinned broadly and she blushed.

  “Hey, Sean.”

  “Sean!” Blue reached across the counter and bumped fists with him. “Good to see you, my man. Didn’t realise this was where you worked.”

  “Not all of us have a day job as exotic as yours.” Sean responded drily and Blue laughed. Noelle had known that they would know each other from the club, especially after their conversation that morning, but it was still jarring to see it in person. In some ways it felt like Sean was the axis point of her life to date – he was the only person, other than her, who knew most of the players in this mess, while still remaining outside of it. She introduced him to Raze and they took their coffees to sit in a corner. It was quiet in the cafe and after a few minutes Sean joined them, fitting seamlessly into the conversation.

  Noelle watched him joking and laughing with the guys and felt a spreading warmth in her chest. He was a good man and it was clear he could fit in comfortably with both halves of her life – the vanilla and the kink. He was easygoing, funny and handsome in his own sweet way. Could she grow to love him? That was the question.

  When their hour was up and the others were heading outside, she hung back and caught Sean’s arm. “I’ve made up my mind.” She blurted out. “About dinner, I mean. I’d like to...” she took a breath, trying to regain some control of her mouth. “When are you free?”

  A smile like a sunburst lit his face until he practically glowed with happiness. “What about Sunday?” He suggested. “I’m not working Sunday night.”

  “That’s fine with me.” Now that he’d agreed, she started to relax. “I’ll check that Cal’s okay to let me out and text you, but I’m sure he won’t mind.”

  “I can’t wait.” He kissed her cheek and she headed out into the street with fresh lightness in her heart. Raze was frowning, looking confused, but Blue was grinning broadly.

  “For what it’s worth, I think you just made a good call, Little Monkey.” He whispered into her ear as they followed Raze up the street. “He’s a good guy.”

  “I know.” She smiled, shy to be discussing it. “I’m not making any promises. This isn’t any kind of declaration. We’re just going to see where it goes.”

  “I hope it works out for you.” He squeezed her shoulders as they headed into the parlour.

  “Thanks for fitting me in.” She said to the artist, a guy almost as big as Raze. “I hope it won’t take up too much of your day.”

  “Sugar, you can take up as much of my day as you want.” He eyed her appreciatively, but with a mischievous g
lint in his eye, and she snorted with laughter, taking it for the joke it was.

  “You’ll be happy when I take my top off then?” She teased and he whistled, low and soft.

  “Yes ma’am. I sure will.” He winked. “What can I do for you?”

  “I want some words under my left breast.” She replied calmly. “Nothing fancy and quite small.”

  “Sure thing. What are the words?”

  She swallowed. “I drown no more.” She said quietly. Raze made a choking noise but she couldn’t look at him, knowing that if she did, she might well start crying. The artist’s eyes softened.

  “No problem. Take a seat and I’ll get something worked up for you in a couple of minutes.”

  ***

  On the way home, they all sat in silence. Noelle’s rib was stinging, but the pain had been much less than she had anticipated and Blue’s calming words as the needle had started to dig in had sent her into something close to subspace. She had to learn how they did that.

  When they pulled up outside the manor, Blue jumped out of the car almost as soon as it had come to a stop. “I’ll wait inside for you.” He told Noelle gently, nodding to Raze as he closed the door.

  “Why did you choose those words?” Raze turned to stare at her.

  “Because they’re everything I need to say.” She shrugged. “I loved him. I hated him. I feel connected to Darkness Falls. It’s a happy and a sad memory. It’s everywhere I’m coming from and everything I’m heading to. I drown no more, Papa Bear. This is my time of ascent, but I can’t afford to let myself forget. If I do that, I’ll lose sight of how precious everything is to me.”

  He nodded, his throat working as he tried to force down his emotion. “I love you.” He blurted out. “You’re like one of my sisters. I hate that you were hurt and I’m so fucking proud of you.” He wiped his eyes.

  “I love you too, Papa Bear.” She reached up to kiss his cheek. “Thank you for doing this for me. I wouldn’t have trusted anyone else.”

  “You’re welcome.” He ruffled his beanie and tried to pull himself together. “I’ll call you later, yeah?”

  “I’ll look forward to it.” Smiling, she kissed his cheek again and slid out of the truck. She was so damn lucky and she knew it. Waving, she skipped up the steps and into the manor. This was definitely her time of ascent and even the pain in her rib couldn’t bring her down.

  She had a nap before dinner and went down to find the others already sat in the dining hall. “I hear you had some artwork?” Storm grinned when she entered and Noelle nodded.

  “Just a little one.”

  “Can I see?” Without thinking anything of it, Noelle lifted her top to show her ink. It was covered in cling film so it could be clearly seen and Storm grinned. “Nice!”

  “Thanks.” It wasn’t until she’d lowered her top and sat at the table that she realised what she’d just done. She was comfortable enough with these people to just open up to them like that. She was feeling at home and it was good.

  After they ate, she went into the small den where they could relax when they weren’t in their rooms to watch the news. Storm came with her and settled down at the opposite end of the sofa.

  Needless to say, the press conference was the lead news story and Noelle wanted to both grin fiercely and cry in broken sorrow as she watched the footage of the band speaking about Gabriel. They’d done it perfectly – laying the facts out without any pity for him. Their love shone through and they talked about the effects of his abuse, even going as far as to mention her in way that clearly told the world to back the fuck off. They’d used the papers and photographs she’d left on the side at Jax’s house to show his parents and where he lived, in an effort to try and jog people’s memories.

  The news anchor then went on to say that the Police were already reporting an influx of calls to stations about the incident and had set up an incident room and call centre to deal with the case. Noelle was glad. There was no doubt that a lot of them would be hoax calls or misguided efforts to help, but somewhere amongst them there would be a few gems that would bring the bitch down.

  “They did good.” Storm nodded approvingly when the news finally turned to other issues and Noelle handed her the remote.

  “They did.” She got to her feet. “That was all I wanted to watch. I’ll leave you to it.”

  “Okay.” Storm smiled up at her. “Get some sleep. You look tired.”

  “I will.” She headed up to her room and took a long bath, reading in bed until she fell asleep not long after nine.

  Chapter twenty-two

  For a couple of days she just drifted quietly around the Manor, regaining her strength. She felt almost back to normal now and was more than ready to get her stitches out. She spent some time with Storm and Blue in between their clients, but most of her time was spent in the garden, soaking up the sunshine. She read a lot and did some gardening under the careful eye of the groundskeeper after Cal had said it was okay. Her skin took on a healthy glow, despite the hat Cal made her wear to protect her face from the sun, and she began to feel like her life was getting back on track.

  When the call finally came, on Saturday afternoon, her entire world ground to a halt at Jax’s words. “They got her.” He said softly as soon as she answered. “I just had the call. She’s been arrested.”

  “Oh my god.” She sank to her knees on the grass as her blood roared in her ears. It was over. The woman that had destroyed Gabriel was going to pay for her crimes.

  “Weird isn’t it?” Jax laughed, but it was strained. “They didn’t say much, but I do know there were other victims. Lots of them. The same name kept coming up, again and again.”

  “Oh my god.” She repeated, helpless to form any other sentence.

  “The Police are going to want to speak to you.” He reminded her. “They need to know what Gabe said. He’s not here to speak for himself.”

  “That’s fine.” She whispered. She’d known all along it might come to that.

  “It’s over.” He finally said quietly. “We thought we should celebrate.”

  “Sure.” She couldn’t pull herself together enough to formulate any kind of reason why that might or might not be a good thing.

  “We’ll pick you up at eight.” He offered and she swallowed.

  “I’ll have to check with Cal.”

  There was a long silence and then he sighed. “When are you coming home, Princess? I miss you.”

  “I don’t know.” Her tears fell silently. “I’ll go and speak to him. I’ll see you later, Jax.” Without waiting for an answer, she hung up and then cried. It was over. She couldn’t believe it.

  “Noelle?” Cal’s voice floated across the garden as he approached. “What’s wrong?”

  “It’s over.” She hiccupped through her sobs. “They’ve arrested her.”

  “I see.” Reaching her side, he crouched down and lifted her easily into his arms, the muscles bunching and flexing beneath his skin. “However prepared you are for things like this, it’s still a shock. You should come inside.” He carried her in and set her down on the chaise longue in his morning room.

  “They want to go out and celebrate.” She blurted out and he stopped, halfway across the room, where he’d been heading to call for drinks.

  “And how do you feel about that?” He asked.

  “I don’t know.” She shook her head. “I’m glad they’ve got her, but it doesn’t wipe out the evil she caused. It’s not going to bring Gabriel back. It’s not going to magically heal any of the lives she destroyed.”

  “That’s understandable.” He gave her a level stare. “I can tell them I don’t think you’re emotionally stable enough to go out drinking with them.”

  It was so tempting, but she couldn’t hide behind him forever. “I don’t know...” She hesitated.

  “Why don’t you celebrate at the club?” He offered an alternative. “You won’t be bothered there – no paparazzi. It’s about time we all had a night out and I’m gl
ad for you all.” He lifted his lips in the ghost of a smile. “We’ll be there if it gets too much.”

  “Thank you.” She nodded. “I don’t know why you’re doing all of this for me, Cal. I don’t even know how to begin expressing my gratitude. This is way above and beyond the remit of getting me back in the land of the living.”

  He shrugged, unemotionally. “I like you, Noelle. I think you have it in you to be a great asset to the Manor. I’m hoping you’ll be part of our family for a long time to come.”

  “I’d like that.” She gave him a tremulous smile. “I really would like that.”

  When her legs were feeling a little less wobbly, she borrowed Blue’s keys and drove out to see Pastor James. He’d heard the news and had been waiting at the front of the rectory for someone to come and visit him. His face lit up in a smile when he saw it was her and his eyes shone with tears.

  “Noelle.” He greeted warmly when she got out of the car and she ran straight into his arms, overcome with it all. “How are you holding up?” He asked pointlessly, just for something to say, and she chuckled despite her tears.

  “I just can’t believe it.” She admitted, finally letting go. “It feels like I finally did something right by Gabriel. I know I wasn’t there, but it was me that laid the foundations for the guys.” She took a deep breath. “I feel like I’ve balanced out my actions in some way. I know it’s not my fault he’s dead, but I didn’t help him either.”

  “I understand.” He laid an arm around her shoulders. “Come inside, child. I’ll put the kettle on.”

  She stayed and they talked for almost three hours before she reluctantly had to leave. Part of the conditions of her borrowing Blue’s car was that she was home in time for a nap before dinner and she was cutting it fine. She didn’t feel tired, but she knew she’d struggle with a night out if she didn’t get some rest beforehand. Besides, whatever entente she’d come to with Master Henway, she wasn’t going to disobey a direct order from him. She respected him too much.