Gabe held reached for her hand, kissing the back of it. “May I have this dance, my lady?”
“Of course, good sir.” Rory did a little curtsy, and Gabe put one arm around her waist pulling her close. She was enjoying it all too much being in Gabe’s arms.
He pulled her closer and whispered in her ear. “I hope this has been a special birthday for you.”
“It has been special, thank you. The last big birthday I had was my sixth birthday which had a horrible ending.” Her voice shook with the memory of her parent’s dying in the house fire.
“I’m sorry Rory. You must miss them so much.”
Rory swallowed back tears. “Yes. Even though it’s been years, I still miss them.”
“Hopefully, by being with your aunts, Raz and my family has helped to take away the loneliness.”
“It has.” Rory leaned against her husband enjoying his closeness for awhile. She knew all too soon that their relationship would be back to the detached lives they had been living. Looking at her aunts dancing with the Stevenson brothers was great to see. She was glad they were having fun. Even Raz was enjoying this slow country dance with Luke.
If the smile on her friend’s face was any indication, Raz was definitely having fun.
It was late in the evening before people started going home. The band packed up left on their boat. Gabe had given Adam the keys to the yacht and he brought everyone back to Paradise Lake.
Gabe and Rory walked her three aunts back to their cottage. When they opened the door to the Lodge is was too quiet.
“Well I’m tired, but it’s a good tired. Thank you so much Gabe. What a wonderful surprise.” Rory took off her shoes and rested for a moment on the living room chair.
“I’m glad. There’s something I need to tell you.”
Rory braced herself at the serious look on his face. “What’s up?”
“I’ve agreed to go do a six week trip with Cyrus Nobel, speaking for the Noble Hotel and Resort conferences.” Gabe’s brows puckered in worry.
“I had no idea.” Anxiety that had been buried in her belly sprung out of hiding. “Six weeks?”
“Yes. I know it’s a long time. And I’m sorry for springing this on you. If you want to, you could go visit Raz or invite her here. Or you could go stay with your aunts if you’d like.”
“No, I’ll stay here. I have lots to take care of. When do you leave?” She fidgeted nervously with her hands.
“I leave in an hour. My pilot is just landed the plane on the airstrip and is waiting for me.”
Rory stood to her feet, her legs trembling. She breathed out slowly, her legs wobbling a little. She steadied herself by putting a hand against the wall behind her. Her husband was about to abandon her for six weeks.
Who knew if he’d be back?
“I hope you have and safe trip Gabe.” Her voice wobbled and she swallowed hurriedly, hoping her husband wouldn’t notice her raw emotions. “You don’t need to worry about me, I’ll be fine.” To Rory’s dismay her voice cracked, but she forced a smile.
He stood to his feet. Deep lines formed on his forehead, his blue eyes intense as he stared at her for a long moment. “You’re sure you’ll be okay?”
“I’ll be fine.” She didn’t trust herself to speak anymore, or she would dissolve into a puddle of tears.
Her husband nodded. Leaning down he kissed her cheek. “I’ll be back as soon as I can, I promise.”
Rory stared at his back as he hurried away.
Her eyes flooded with tears.
Of everyone that left, she hoped Gabe would stay most of all.
He’d become her safe place and her friend.
The birthday party had been lovely, but in the end she would end up being alone on her birthday after all.
Once again — just like when she was six years old — she was abandoned on her birthday.
Tears fell and she hurried to her bedroom.
Without even changing her clothes, she crawled under the covers, her shoulders shaking with heart wrenching sobs of being left alone again.
Was the matter with her? Was she destined to be married to a man who would leave her just like her mom?
Maybe Maddie Winslow got it right after all. Her horrible words came back to haunt her. Gabe married a poor little Island girl with no class or culture. You won’t stay married to him for long. He needs a woman who will help him get to the top, not drag him down. Someone with more to offer than you. When he finishes with you, I’ll be there waiting.
Maybe she really wasn’t good enough for Gabe. Maybe she really wasn’t a woman who had anything good to offer him. Maybe she really wasn’t worthy to be loved.
Gabe settled his head back against the cushioned airplane seat, trying to get comfortable.
He was too keyed up to rest.
Doing this series of conferences for Noble Hotels and Resorts would help expand his audience and would help give him access into the Hotel and Resort Industry.
This really was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
A dream fulfilled.
Then why didn’t he feel excited?
Memories of Rory’s pale face as she stood in front of him. He thought he saw her lips tremble as she smiled at him. And her beautiful violet eyes, instead of being soft and warm, were unnaturally bright almost as if she was scared of something.
What would cause his wife that much fear?
His thoughts swirled with memories of Rory’s birthday party tonight. They had fun and even danced a slow dance together, but he didn’t really get closer to his wife tonight. It seemed like she was still distancing herself from him.
When she stepped out of the trees on her way back to the party, her face had looked pale and her hands were shaking.
What had happened from the time she was at the birthday party to when she stepped into the forested area behind the Lodge?
Rory had already gone to bed by the time he had packed his suitcase and got ready to leave the house. As he bent down to get his shoes on, he’d seen an old gold bracelet lying on the floor. Picking it up he read the engraved words on the back. To our daughter Mallory Murphy, love Mama and Papa.
Who was Mallory Murphy?
The questions had troubled him ever since he’d got on the airplane. He tried to remember every conversation he’d had with Rory or her three aunts.
When he’d first met them they had been concerned about their niece’s safety. They had said something about her father having a mistress which had proven true. The result being Rory’s half brother.
Slowly a memory of his conversation with Aunt Merrie came back to him. Rory’s Aunt Mal complained that Delanie’s little princess got everything that should have come to her, but never did. There were definitely some bitterness and resentment between the sisters.
But there was something else that nagged at him.
It was when they were at the police station when Rory was talking to Ned. He had mentioned Rory’s aunt too. What was it he said? Your Aunt Mal contacted me and suggested I scare you a little, that it might help me to feel better knowing that my half sister was getting a little of what she deserved.
The bracelet belonged to Rory’s Aunt Mal. If his wife found the bracelet in the forested area behind the Hunting Lodge it could only mean one thing.
Gabe lurched upright in his seat and called out.
“David, I need you to turn the plane back around. We need go back to Walker’s Island. And hurry.” Gabe’s voice called out to his pilot, his voice sounding strained to his own ears.
“Sure thing, Mr. Stevenson. Estimated time of arrival is thirty minutes.” His pilot responded quickly.
Gabe knuckles turned white on the armrest as the planed turned midair.
He sent up a prayer that Rory would be safe. That he wouldn’t arrive too late to save her.
Chapter Fifteen
“Mommy where are you? I can’t see you. It’s hard to breathe. Please come help me.” She woke up with a scream and sat straigh
t up in bed, panic hitting her. Smoke filled the room and she could hardly breathe. Scurrying off her bed, she ran from her room out into the hallway.
“Daddy?” Her hands shook as she ran them along the wall that led to her parents bedroom. Fits of coughing soon followed. Where was Mommy? Why wasn’t Daddy answering her? How come she could hardly breathe?
She called again, only no one answered.
Sweat formed on her forehead as heat and flashes of fire spewed from the big crack in the door. She was about to touch the door, when someone grabbed her by the shoulders…
The familiar dream came back and she woke up screaming.
Suddenly she started coughing until her shoulders shook. As she woke up, her eyes watered and she could hardly breathe.
Smoke had flooded her bedroom.
A woman loud cackle-like laughter, echoed off the walls.
“Your mommy and daddy aren’t going to save you this time princess. In fact no one is.” A deep grainy voice uttered a threat that sounded like a death-knell in Rory’s ears.
Fear coiled in her belly at the woman’s words. She rubbed her eyes, wanting to see who this was. But it was no use. She couldn’t see anything in the dark smoke-filled room.
“Who are you? What do you want?” She could hear the quiver in her own voice.
“My darling girl. Don’t you remember me? I’m your dear Aunt Mal.” Her laugh was reckless and bawdy. “Of course, your mother never approved of me. I know that because she hardly ever invited me to any of your birthday parties.”
Rory lay there silent for a moment. Then she remembered. The bracelet she’d found last night. An intuitive feeling told her, that her Aunt Mal had been on the Island. But Rory never expected her aunt to try to harm her.
“Aunt Mal. I remember you used to stop by and read me stories. I was about four, I think.” Rory spoke of fond memories without thinking.
“Yes, silly me. That was fun for a time. Then my sister — your mom — said I complained too much when I came to visit, so she stopped inviting me. But it especially made me angry when your Mom stopped inviting me to your birthday parties. Suddenly, I was no longer part of the family. You, their only princess, was more important. No longer was I valued. No longer was I loved.”
“That’s not true…”
Aunt Mal screeched at her. “It was true! But, I took care of that on your sixth birthday when I showed up anyway.”
“How come I don’t remember seeing you that night?” Her sixth birthday party was quite vivid in her mind. For some reason, her Aunt Mal’s red hair and green eyes, didn’t come back to her memory.
“Because I snuck in by the back door. I was hiding in your dad’s office. You see I was very clever.” Her Aunt’s voice lilted upwards in a childish way as she giggled at her own cleverness. “I watched from the crack in the door. I saw you blow out your candles, and I even saw when your mom put my mother’s gold heart-shaped locket necklace around your neck.”
Aunt Mal’s voice suddenly switched becoming angry. “That was supposed to be my necklace from my mother. It matched my bracelet. I earned it, taking all of the beatings from my drunken father. It should’ve been mine. But no, your Grandmother decided to give it to your Mom instead of me. Then for your sixth birthday you Mom decided to give it to you.”
Her hands fisted the locket around her neck, her hands shaking. In her memory, she’d always held that moment when her mom placed the locket around her neck as a treasured moment. Her mom had put pictures of Rory’s Dad and Mom inside this heart-shaped pendant. All these years later, she loved the feel of the heart hanging around her neck. It was a way of keeping the love of her parents close by her side throughout her childhood.
Smoke increased in the room, and Rory let out a hacking cough.
Her Aunt Mal continued talking as if nothing changed. “But, when I saw you were given the necklace I decided it was my time to take control. So I did.” She laughed insanely. “As soon as everyone went to bed, your parents were still on the balcony of their bedroom. I snuck in and lit candles and set the curtains on fire that covered the balcony door. They were trapped.” Rory let out an anguished cry. “Why did you do that, Aunt Mal. I loved my parents.
“Because they didn’t treat me like family. They didn’t give me those things I deserved. They didn’t value me. So they deserved to be treated in the way they treated me… with disdain and cruelty.”
Aunt Mal’s laughed cruelly for a long time before she quieted. Rory heard footsteps coming nearer. “So this time it’s you who is doomed to die. But not before I get what I came for.”
Without warning, Rory felt long cold fingers reach for her fumbling until they came to her neck. With a sudden jerk, she felt her necklace snap in two.
“I have it now. It’s mine now forever. Besides you won’t need it where you’re going.” The woman’s cold calculated laugh sent terror through Rory’s veins.
Hysterical laughter echoed through her bedroom and down the hallway as Aunt Mal walked away.
Scrambling off the bed, Rory tried to find her way to the door through the thick haze of smoke.
Rory’s whole body was shivering, trembling and quaking.
Heat from the fire pelted her skin like thousands of tiny rocks thrown at her. Darkness surrounded her except for the orange-red glow of light from the fire.
All she could think of as the smoke and heat increased in the room was that she’d lost everything she ever wanted.
Tears fell down her cheeks, mixing unheeded with the fire that surrounded her.
First she’d lost her parents who both died leaving her alone. Then she found out she had a half brother who did his best to scare her and an Aunt who hated her enough to kill her. But, the last loss was the most devastating.
Losing Gabe.
He might have rescued her with a marriage promise, but she had grown to love him. Now she realized her love had blinded her to the truth. She was someone who wasn’t worthy to be Gabe’s wife. Instead, she was someone for Gabe to feel sorry for, much in the same way his friend Billy had been all those years ago.
Her husband might even believe that he had started to feel something more for her now, but time would prove him wrong.
Gabe’s mother said that it didn’t take him long to shift his interest to other friends. She was convinced the same thing would happen to her. There was no guarantee that things would be different with her, that within a few short weeks or months her husband wouldn’t regret that he married her.
But, none of that mattered anymore.
It was too late for her dream. It was too late for her marriage. It was too late for her to love.
She barely made it a few steps before she collapsed and lay still.
Memories of reaching out for her parents in that smoke-filled hallway when she was little girl, came back to her before all went dark.
Pouring rain hit Gabe as he hurried down the steps of his private jet. He could hardly see his way clear as he ran down the trail that led to the Lodge.
He’d already called the emergency dispatch number and the police, ambulance and fire fighters were on their way.
As he got closer to their home, he saw an orange-red glow from the windows and flames licking their corners.
Please God let me save my wife in time. I love her. I want her to live. I want to have her by my side.
Rushing through the kitchen door, he hurried up the stairs. The fire was raging from his bedroom and out into the hallway.
It looked impossible to get through that way.
He rushed outside and grabbing a ladder from the shed, he set it against the wall near the window to Rory’s bedroom.
Using a hammer he smashed the glass on the window, careful to make sure all the glass along the window pane was crushed.
He scurried up and inside Rory’s bedroom. A thick haze of smoke filled the room and he could hardly breathe.
Climbing down from the window he couldn’t see, so he reached out his hands in the da
rk to try to find Rory. He searched the bed and he wasn’t there.
Next, he got on the floor and crawled on his hands and knees, determined to find his wife.
Suddenly he reached out to touch something soft.
She was here.
“Rory can you hear me?” He leaned down to talk to her, but all was silent.
She lay motionless.
He needed to get her out of here. Fast.
Lifting his wife up into his arms he carried her to the window.
Climbing through the window he held her so she wouldn’t fall, then carried her over his shoulder as he went down the ladder.
As soon as his feet touched the ground he hurried over to the guest cottage where their cook lived. He needed to get Rory out of the rain and to help her.
Mrs. O’Toole answered the door as soon as he knocked. As soon as she saw he carried Rory she hurried inside. “Lay her on my bed. The poor lassie, we need to get her better.”
Rory lay on the bed white as a sheet. Gabe heard the sounds of the helicopter landing on the Island.
“Mrs. O’Toole, I just heard the emergency helicopter land. Would you go tell the emergency crew Rory needs immediate care?” Gabe turned to her and she nodded quickly, putting on her shoes and hurrying out the door.
Turning quickly to Rory, he remembered what he’d learned from his first aid training years ago. He slid two fingers to the side of her neck and could feel a faint but steady pulse. Leaning down he listened for her breathing, but only heard shallow breaths.
She still wasn’t moving, so he tilted her head back, closed her nose with two fingers and opened her mouth. Setting his lips to hers, breathed oxygen into her lungs.
He puffed two quick breaths into her mouth and checked her. It was only after he repeated the process two more times that Rory inhaled a deep breath.
“Rory.” Gabe ground out her name as though in torment and reached for his wife, hauling her into his arms with the force of his need.
All the pent up fears and worries came suddenly crashing down on Gabe. “I thought I’d lost you. I nearly went mad with fear.”
The Billionaire's Marriage Promise Page 18