by Sofia Grey
The argument continued between them, Suki yelling and bawling while Gabe sneered back.
Jesus. If this was symptomatic of their marriage, no wonder she’d been so unhappy.
In the middle of the chaos Dante shot to his feet, staring at the corner of the room. “No, Eve. Stay away.”
I followed his gaze and saw a young woman walking toward us. Like Gabe, she glistened as though wrapped head to toe in pearls—quite at odds with her goth appearance—and my eyes were drawn to her heavy boots. They made no sound on the polished wooden floor.
A giant pink bubble of gum emerged from her lips as she approached.
Dante spoke again, his voice stressed. “Eve, go back. This is too dangerous for you. Turn around and walk away. Now.” She rolled her eyes in response and plucked the gum from her mouth, pinching it between her fingertips and drawing it out in a long strand.
“Hey, Gabe. How ya doing?” She snapped the gum back and winked at Gabe, pausing just a few feet away from him. Dante groaned as Gabe straightened his back and spoke coldly.
“Do I know you?”
“Nah, maybe not.” The girl walked up to him and stood on tiptoe, cupped one hand around his ear, and whispered directly to him.
His reaction was immediate. He jerked back as though slapped, his eyes opening wide as he stared at her. His gaze flicked across to Dante, scanned the room, and then darted back to Eve, standing there with a grin on her face.
“Bye bye, Gabe. Pass on my best wishes.” Her sparkling tone a direct taunt.
For a moment, we all hung in the balance. I’m not sure I even breathed.
Then Gabe leaned down, so close he could kiss her. His snarl, “you haven’t seen the last of me,” made me shiver, but in the blink of an eye, he disappeared.
I swallowed, my throat dry and tight and looked round at the others. Josh stared blankly into space while Suki buried her face in the crook of her arm, and dropped to her knees beside him.
I looked to Dante for guidance, to find him staring at Eve. “What just happened?” He sounded as baffled as I felt.
“To Gabe?” Eve gave us an innocent smile. “I scared him away.”
“Huh? What did you say to him?”
“Oh, it was something along the lines of ‘my dog’s bigger than yours’. He’s gone for the moment, and as long as I hang around with you, he’ll stay away.” She pursed her lips and pulled a mock worried face. “That is, until he comes back with his mates and they all bring their dogs. And that’s when the shit will really hit the fan. But that won’t happen for a while.”
“Define ‘a while’. Are we talking days or weeks?” Josh had been paying attention after all.
Suki’s tears were reducing to a ragged sniffle, the only sound in the room besides our harsh breathing as Eve scratched her nose, a frown on her face. “Well,” she hedged, “that’s a bit tricky, but yeah. You know.”
“No Eve, we don’t know.” Dante shook his head. “Would you like to explain?”
She dropped to a crouch, not far from Josh, and peered at his face. “He’s cute.” She glanced at Suki then resumed her study of Josh. “Way hotter than Blondie, I can see why you picked this one.”
“Eve.” Dante’s voice held a warning note, and she pulled a face in return.
“Okay. Like I said, I was bored. There’s not a lot to do on the other side, you know.” She trailed one finger down Josh’s cheek making him shiver, a look of astonishment flashing across his face. “Yeah, I’m outta here. Laters.”
Josh raised his hand to his temple, his brows tugging together into a single dark V. “Did she just touch me? I didn’t think they could do that. And how come I could see her? The circle was broken.”
“No idea.” Dante resumed his seat on the floor. “Wait till she pops up in the bathroom with you. That’s, uh, scary.” He shuddered.
There had been too much upset today. I claimed my place next to Dante and slipped my hand into his.
He linked our fingers and gave me a small, tight smile.
Josh and Suki had still not spoken to each other, and I felt horribly embarrassed at Gabe’s revelation, if it was even true. They needed some privacy.
I tugged at Dante’s hand and nodded my head toward the door. “Let’s go and get a drink of water.”
10.6 Josh
The dining room door banged behind us, and I silently blessed Katherine for her tact. For once in my life, I was completely and horribly stuck for words. I had a first-class degree in bullshit and charm, but I couldn’t find the right thing to say to Suki as she fell apart in front of me. Why didn’t she tell me? I bit down on my anger, that wasn’t going to help. I cleared my throat, loud in the silent room, and found my voice. “Suki, babe. Come here.”
She hunched on the floor, just out of my reach, her face buried in her sleeve. Without looking at me, she shook her head.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. She’s in shock too. She’s not thinking straight. I shuffled across the floor to her, trying to cross the rift that had blown up between us, a cold space I hadn’t thought could exist.
“Suki.” Ignoring her token resistance, I wrapped my arms around her and rocked, smoothing my hands over her hair, down her back, cupping her neck. “Talk to me, babe.” Is he telling the truth?
She made a muffled sound against my shirt, her entire body trembling.
“What was that?”
Slightly clearer this time. “You hate me, don’t you? For not telling you.”
My tongue lay thick and useless. I feared the pathetic words that might come tumbling from my mouth so I clamped my lips shut.
The silence grew and stretched. I couldn’t ask, and she wouldn’t tell. A tendril of panic had already taken hold, winding up from my stomach and creeping through my chest, squeezing the air from my lungs. Come on, Suki, I begged in my head. Please tell me he’s just jerking my chain. The longer this was left, the harder it would be to talk about.
She sighed. Pushing my chest with her palms, she sat upright and scrubbed wildly at her red, swollen eyes.
I tried to catch her hands but they fluttered away from me, eventually dropping to rest in her lap.
She kept her face averted, and the panic inside me ratcheted up another level. “I didn’t get my period. So I did a test first thing this morning.” Her voice was dull as though all the life had been sucked out of her. I reached for her hands again, and she moved them away. “It was positive.”
I forced a tiny smile and concentrated on keeping the look of fear at bay. “It doesn’t mean that—”
“We used condoms when we first got together, Josh. And I’ve been careful about taking the pill regularly.”
Finally, her eyes met mine. The brown warmth I usually saw had muted and been overtaken by horror.
This time I stretched out and grabbed her hands, tugged them forward, and enclosed them in my own. “Suki, babe. We face this together. Talk to me.”
“It has to be Gabe’s. The medication I was taking—I’m sure it affected the pill, stopped it working.” Her throat moved and fresh tears sprang from her eyes. “Why can’t it be yours, Josh.” The cry burst out of her. “You can’t… I can’t ask you…”
My core skill, my default setting, was my ability to lie. I squeezed every atom of that into making myself sound convincing. “Babe, there’s nothing to ask. It’s your baby, so it’s our baby.”
“I don’t know if I’m going to keep it.”
I froze. “Condoms do fail sometimes. The pill doesn’t come with a 100% guarantee.” I managed a tiny smile, I felt sick inside. “It could be my—our—child.”
“Oh, God. I only found out a few hours ago.” Her gaze burned into my soul. “I don’t know what to think.”
Without even thinking about it, I started to stroke my thumbs over her hands, trying in my clumsy way to soothe her.
She looked down at where our hands linked and slowly, carefully, extracted hers before scrambling to her feet and wrapping her arms around
herself.
“Suki, I—”
“Do you know what is possibly the worst thing about this, Josh?” Her voice harsh, on the edge of breaking. “He knew. Somehow, Gabe knew.” A quick rasping breath. “And that means he really is haunting me, watching me.”
“No. He’s here, haunting this house.”
“I did the test in the hotel, Josh. Not here. And if he can see me there, he can watch me anywhere.” Her breath hitched, voice rising higher. “In the shower, on the frigging toilet. In bed with you. He’s stalking me. I feel violated. There’s nowhere for me to hide.” She covered her mouth with one shaking hand, and I closed my eyes as her words sank in. Jesus.
He’d screwed with her mind when they were married, but that paled into insignificance against this.
10.7 Dante
Kitten curled up next to me in the back of Josh’s car. With her head on my shoulder and one hand resting easily on my thigh, she quickly fell asleep, and I marveled at the feel of her body close to mine. Her hair smelled like spring flowers, and I had the perfect excuse to bury my nose in the fiery softness as she slept.
Bizarrely, Eve dozed next to her, with her head resting on the window glass and little snores emerging. She’d kept her word about staying close to us.
The journey to Josh’s weekend cottage would take a couple of hours, and I tried not to fidget while Kitten leaned on me. I wasn’t used to long car journeys. I traveled most places on my bike with the wind on my face, so I felt confined just sitting there. It’d be nice to follow the girls’ lead and crash for a few hours, but my mind had gone into overdrive, and I couldn’t relax.
Things were strained in the front of the car too. Although Josh held Suki’s hand as he drove, for the most part she gazed silently out of the window, refusing to be drawn into conversation.
Motorway traffic gave way to a fast and wide road through open countryside, but I didn’t pay attention to the scenery. I recapped the brief conversation with Alistair and realized the obvious question I’d missed. Why did Alistair want Josh? I felt like smacking myself on the head. Now that my brain had finally switched back on, a rush of lesser puzzles swept in: how did Alistair know Josh to be Raphael? Did Josh know Alistair? And the one that I’d danced around the most: could Josh really be my brother?
“Josh? Do you know Alistair?”
His eyes met mine in the rear view mirror, his surprise visible. “Know him? I’d never even heard of him before. Why?”
“Ah, no reason.”
Suki lifted her head. “If you two want to talk, I’m happy to get in the back seat and let Dante come up front.” Her tired voice caused Josh to frown, and I replied quickly.
“Nah, I’m good back here, if it’s all the same. Katherine’s asleep.”
She shrugged in reply and sighed, before turning back to stare out of the window.
Josh followed her with his eyes, his face a picture of concern.
I tightened my arm around Kitten’s shoulders and nuzzled the shell of her ear as I continued to mull over Alistair. The only thing linking Josh and myself was our Talismans. They had to be connected. Think, Dante. Did Alistair want Josh’s Talisman? He’d just ask me to steal it, if that was the case. And he’d not shown any interest in mine.
I had four days left. There was no way I could ever betray Josh, this maybe-brother of mine. I watched Suki for a little while, seeing her hand tightly clasped around Josh’s, thinking about how much she relied on him. She was pregnant, quite possibly with his child. They had a future together, a family and a life with each other, and I could not take that away. He’d been nothing but decent to me, and I respected that.
Kitten murmured and shifted slightly, cuddling even closer, and I swallowed hard, blinking past the sudden dampness in my eyes.
I was no hero. The prospect of sacrificing myself to Alistair made me want to run screaming in terror, but I couldn’t carry on like this. For once in my life, I was going to do the right thing and my resolve strengthened. Alistair could go fuck himself.
I sucked in a breath and forced myself to focus on the feel of Kitten in my arms. Four days left. I would make the most of every last fucking minute.
Chapter
~11~
11.1 Katherine
The sun hung low in the sky as Josh cruised through a quiet looking village and down a narrow, hedge-trimmed lane.
Dante sat quietly beside me, gazing out of the window, one hand idly stroking my neck.
Suki yawned and stretched, turning to look in the back of the car with a tired smile. “Have you been to Rhosneigr before?”
“No.” Her yawn was infectious. “I don’t know the area at all.” I looked at Dante.
“Uh, no, not much.” He frowned. “We’re not far from the Grey House, are we, Josh?”
“Fifteen, twenty minutes away.” Josh glanced over his shoulder at us. “That’s where I met Dante, if you were wondering. It’s been sold now, but we know the owners. I can find out if they’re home, if you want to go and visit sometime?”
“Yeah, maybe. Thanks.” Dante pressed a kiss against my temple and hugged me a little closer.
“Anita’s here.” Suki sounded exhausted.
As Josh parked neatly in front of a small stone cottage, she flipped open a make-up compact and examined her reflection, rubbing at her eyes and smoothing at a few stray hairs. Her smile reappeared when a young woman rushed out to greet us, a border collie bouncing at her side.
“Hello—you’re early! The van’s just left, and we’ve got most of your basics unpacked.” The woman pulled Suki into a massive hug when she climbed out of the car, her chatter continuing. “I’ve rounded up a few volunteers to help, I thought you’d be tired, and the prospect of unpacking all those boxes would be a bit much.” She turned to hug Josh, beaming when he kissed her on the cheek. “Hello, Josh. I bet you’d like a beer and you’re both hungry…” Her voice trailed away when she noticed us.
“These are some friends of ours.” Josh drew us forward. “Katherine and Dante. This is Anita, a good friend of ours. She lives nearby and helped us find this place.”
I stuck out my hand and smiled. “Hi. Nice to meet you.”
She didn’t look much older than me. Slim to the point of being skinny, her corn-blonde hair had been pulled back into a loose ponytail, emphasizing a narrow face and big brown eyes.
Dante nodded and shook her hand briefly.
Her gaze darted across his bruised face and Josh grinned.
“It looks worse than it is. Dante and I had a disagreement with a couple of bouncers.” He winked at her. “He’s a pussycat really.”
“Bouncers?” She looked aghast. “I don’t think I want to know.” She turned back to Suki and walked into the house with her, while Josh hung back with us.
“You can trust Anita and her husband Jon. But I think it’s best to keep your story quiet until all this has been sorted out.” The sound of a baby’s wail split the air, and Josh grinned. “I think that’s our new neighbors. Come along and meet them.”
Dante took my hand. “So much for the quiet cottage in the middle of nowhere.” His jaw tense, he radiated unease, and I squeezed his fingers.
We didn’t have to go very far. A man stood at the bottom of the stairs jiggling the shrieking baby, a look of exasperation on his handsome face, turning to relief when a slender young woman appeared and took the crying infant.
“He’s hungry,” she cooed. “I’ve got his bottle ready.” Realizing they had an audience, she glanced at us with dark, smiling eyes. “Hi, I’m Sylvie and this little banshee is Joseph. You must be Josh’s friends?”
“Hi. I’m Katherine, and this is Dante.” I had to raise my voice above the howls.
The man dropped a kiss onto Sylvie’s forehead. “And I’m Alex, the forgotten husband. Nice to meet you both.”
We followed them into a large, airy kitchen where Sylvie claimed a chair and produced a bottle for the baby. The bedlam instantly dissolved into satisfied gurgles, an
d I turned to speak to Dante, only to find him staring intently at Sylvie. I nudged him. “What are you looking at?” I whispered.
“Huh?” He met my eyes. “She’s got… ah, you know. It’s nothing.”
Meanwhile, Suki stood in the doorway, her attention riveted on the tranquil scene, her face so pale I wondered if she were about to faint. Thankfully Josh appeared and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.
With Josh busy talking and gossiping with the others, I walked up to Suki and touched her hand. “Should I make some tea for everyone? You look as though you need to sit down.”
* * * *
Anita’s husband, Jon, was busy upstairs and between them, they’d unpacked and made the house habitable. Good friends indeed.
An hour later, we trailed behind the chattering group as we explored the beach right next to the house. I yawned relentlessly and held tight to Dante’s hand. So much had happened in the space of a few days, I wondered if it was all just a dream and when I’d wake up?
11.2 Josh
I guessed years of performing in front of a TV camera meant Suki could put on a decent act in front of our friends. As soon as we were alone with Katherine and Dante, she wilted and sagged into one of the kitchen chairs.
“Please tell me Gabe hasn’t followed us here?” She addressed Dante with a shaking voice, and he sat next to her instantly.
“No, he isn’t here. I can’t sense him in the slightest. And Eve, the girl that appeared at the séance, she tells me he’s staying away at the moment.”
Suki nodded and wiped at her eyes. “Thank God for that.” She took a deep breath and blew it out noisily. “Is she here too? I haven’t seen her.”
He nodded, his eyes flicking to the window. “Yep, she’s right over there.”
I was intrigued.
“So we could only see her because you held a séance?”