by L. A. Casey
I didn't reply.
Uncle Brandon made Alec do this?
He wanted me to be hurt?
"He held me as I cried," I whispered.
"I'm so sorry, Keela. I truly am."
I walked out of the kitchen and down to my bedroom where my phone was.
"What are you doing?"
"Ringing me uncle, I need to hear this from him."
I closed my door to keep Alec out.
I dialed my uncle's number when I had my phone in my hand and fear gripped me.
If Alec was telling the truth then I couldn't trust my uncle anymore, my most beloved family member... But if Alec was lying then I was still going to be left miserable and heartbroken because of his cheating.
There was no good outcome.
"Keela? Hello baby girl-"
"Is it true? Did you make Alec do it?" I cut my uncle off.
Silence.
"What did he tell you?"
I sobbed. "That you told him to cheat on me or you would kill his family."
My uncle swore but he didn't deny it.
"Uncle, is he lyin'? Please be honest with me, I need to know the truth."
My uncle sighed and after a long pause he said, "No baby girl, he is tellin' the truth."
I broke down into tears.
"Why? Why would you want me hurtin' like this?"
"Because you deserve better than a whore!"
"He is not a whore! He was forced to work for Marco because that bastard held the threat of hurting his family over his head, just like you did! He would have never done it if you didn't back him into a corner!"
Silence.
"I can never trust you again, do you understand that? You have lost the ability to call me your niece. I'm fuckin' done with you!"
I heard my uncle’s sharp intake of breath. "I was tryin' to protect you from getting hurt, Keela."
"You caused me to get hurt, Uncle!"
"You deserve better than him!"
"I deserve to decide for meself who is good enough for me! I deserve to be happy and you ruined that for me. I hate you for it. You lied to me face! You sat in that hotel room back in the Bahamas knowing good and well what you did and you let me hate him!"
My uncle was at a loss for words so I hung up on him.
I kept my phone in my hand as I opened my bedroom and walked down the hallway and into the kitchen where Alec was still leaning against the kitchen counter top.
"You were right."
Alec frowned. "I'm sorry, Keela... I had to tell you the truth, it was killing me."
I nodded my head.
Alec pushed off against the counter and I think he was going to hug me, but I stepped back letting him know that it was not what I wanted.
"I told you the truth. Why can't I touch you?"
I looked away. "Because I can still see you touchin' them."
Alec looked tense as he whispered. "But I told you the truth."
This hurt.
"I know you did, I know you had no choice-"
"The only choice I had, was to be with you after the welcome dinner and I had to be with you Keela. There was no bad intent or ulterior motive, I just wanted to feel like you were mine. You have no idea how much I feel for you."
I swallowed. "It doesn't change anythin', Alec. I can still see you with them and it makes me skin crawl."
Alec stared at me for a long while without speaking and it was during this period of silence that I knew what I had to do. Uncle Brandon would still most certainly want me away from Alec and he would keep good on his word about harming Alec's family if I didn't.
I had to do what he did to me so he would stay away... I had to make him hate me.
"Please, don't leave me again... it nearly killed me when I read your note and realised you'd left the Bahamas."
I forced a bored sigh out of my mouth. "Alec, you hurt me and the only reason for that hurt was because I was starting to get attached to you. But it's better that we go our separates ways now, feelin's make everythin' messy."
He looked perplexed. "I don't understand, you told me you-"
"I wasn't meself in the Bahamas, I let the thought of us really datin' go to me head but it was a lie."
Alec was lost. "A lie?"
"Yeah, I don't want you, Alec. Everythin' was just a ruse for me family... nothin' between us was real. It was a just a favour, remember? All fake. I pretended to have feelin's for you to make us seem real as a couple because I wanted to one up Jason. You don't really think I could love someone who fucks people for a livin', do you?" I said my voice cold.
"Keela," he whispered.
"Come on, Alec-"
"But I love you."
I almost dropped to the floor at his declaration, but I managed to keep myself upright and still as a statue.
"You love me? You don't even know me!"
"Yes I do, and I do love you."
I wanted to cry, but I chuckled instead.
"Do you not abide by your own conditions? What happened to number one - no fallin' in love?"
Alec leaned back against the kitchen counter and slowly slid down until his arse hit the floor.
"You're the only person I've ever cared this much about in my entire life," he whispered.
My heart was breaking all over again, and my stomach was threatening to empty at any moment but I had to remind myself why I was doing this, why I was hurting him. I was keeping him alive.
"It was a favour, a job to you-"
"You weren't a job, Keela. It started out as a favour, but that changed... You know it changed."
I shook my head. "It never changed. It was always fake. I was fucked over by Jason, do you really think I could have feelin's for you so quickly? Come on, think about it."
Alec remained silent.
"If it was fake then why were you so upset?"
"Because I couldn't believe you slept with me auntie, I hate that bitch."
"That's the only reason?"
"Yep."
I tried to keep my composure when Alec got to his feet and directed a hateful glare in my direction. I began to breathe heavily when he walked towards me. He stopped right in front of me and looked down.
"You feel nothing for me?"
I shrugged. "Disgust. I mean, you fucked Everly and Dante at the same. Ew."
Alec set his jaw. "You're a hell of an actress, kitten. You really had me believing that you cared about me."
I frowned. "Damn, I'm sorry. I thought you were playin' off of me. I didn't think you would ever love me."
Alec snarled, "I can't believe a fucking word out of your mouth."
I cleared my throat. "I don't know why you're so mad, you got a free holiday out of it, you had sex with me, and you had a threesome. You should be happy as Larry."
Alec looked at me with nothing but rage and disgust and I knew my job was done.
"We can have one last tumble if you-"
"Don't fucking touch me, you heartless bitch."
I placed my hands on my hips. "That's just rude and uncalled for. I would like you to leave now."
Alec looked me up and down. "I don't know you."
He used my words against me and they broke my heart.
"I never want to see you again. Never."
I felt sick.
I shrugged. "Fine by me."
Alec turned and stalked over to my hall door but before he reached it, a knocked came to the door. I wondered if it was Aideen. I was about to ask who it was when my phone rang and my uncle’s face flashed across the screen.
I looked up as Alec opened the door but not to Aideen, it was to Bronagh Murphy.
She sighed when she seen Alec.
"I knew you would be here, your brothers are lookin' for you."
Bronagh came in and closed the door behind her.
Alec put his hand on her shoulder. "Don't get comfortable, we're leaving."
Bronagh frowned. "Why, what happened? Does she not believe you?"
Bronagh k
new?
"Let's just say Keela isn't who I thought she was."
Bronagh frowned at Alec but when she looked at me, her eyes were narrowed.
"What did you do?"
I shrugged.
Bronagh opened her mouth to speak when the hall door suddenly opened and Aideen entered the apartment with an excited Strom.
"Storm," I beamed.
He came right at me and nearly knocked me to the ground when he jumped up on me.
He licked the hell out of me.
"I missed you too, big boy!"
Storm nuzzled his head against me then sought out Alec.
"Hey buddy," Alec smiled and gave Storm's head a good hard rub.
"What's happenin' here?" Aideen asked.
"Nothing, just realising how wrong I was."
Both Aideen and Bronagh frowned at Alec.
"What were you wrong about?" Aideen asked.
Alec looked at me and said, "Keela."
I opened my mouth to defend myself when a loud knock on my hall door got everyone's attention.
Who the hell is that?
Alec opened the door again, but this time he answered it to two men, two tall men.
"Who are you?" Alec asked.
A face popped out from behind one of the tall men and smiled, "They work for me."
"Marco," Bronagh gasped and took a step back.
Marco laughed when he saw her. "Oh, this is perfect. Three for the price of two."
I furrowed my eyebrows together. "What the hell are you doin' here?"
Marco Miles switched his gaze from Bronagh to me then to Alec and sighed.
"You had to come see the mouthy Daley bitch the first time you leave your house in four days, didn't you? I'm gonna be in serious shit in Ireland now if Brandon finds out she is harmed."
I didn't know what he was talking about, but I knew it was something bad so I answered my still ringing phone.
"Keela, don't hang up. I'm sorry, okay? I didn't mean-"
"Uncle, Marco Miles is at my apartment. He said he is goin' to hurt me."
Marco's face went red as he roared, "Get her."
Alec blocked the door with his body and shouted, "Run!"
"Storm!" I screamed and sprinted down to my bedroom, I looked back for Bronagh and Aideen but the men broke past Alec and while two were handling him, Marco had Bronagh and Aideen by the hair. I slammed my bedroom door shut and moved to the window, I pulled it open but it jammed half way up.
"No, no, no!"
I looked to my phone and put it to my ear.
"Uncle, help me!
"Keela, get out of there! I'm on the way-"
I screamed when my bedroom door was kicked open.
"Come here, bitch." one of the men who fought Alec snarled.
"No, please, no!"
I tried to hide my phone so I jammed it into my dress pocket as I turned back to the window. When it was safely in my pocket I tried to get out of the window but I was lifted up from behind before I could squeeze out the half opened window.
I screamed.
Then I heard a loud growl and Storm's bark.
The man who had a hold of my hair screamed in pain and I knew Storm had a hold of him.
Get him, Storm!
"Get off!" the man shouted.
Storm suddenly cried out and I think the man kicked him. It enraged me.
"Don't you hurt him, you bastard!"
The man screamed in agony and let go of me. I fell forward and crashed into the window. I didn't go through the glass but it did crack when my head made contact with it.
I gripped the windowsill and steadied myself. I lifted my hand to my forehead and groaned as pain began to pulse away.
I groggily turned around and I widened my eyes when I saw the scene before me. The man who had me was on the floor and Storm was attacking him, from what I could see Storm had a hold of the man's arm.
The man was using his other hand to bash at Storm's head to try and break his hold. I rushed forward and began kicking the man in the stomach to stop him from hitting my baby. The man swung his legs and hit the back of mine.
I went up into the air and a second later I slammed into the ground back first.
It hurt like hell and I cried out in pain.
"Keela!" Aideen screamed.
"Shut the fuck up!" Marco's voice bellowed, then I heard a loud smack that caused mayhem to erupt in the other room, in the form of Alec and Bronagh's shouts.
I refocused on Storm and the thug who was back to hitting him in the head with his free hand. I rolled onto my front, got up on all fours and began to crawl.
Just before I reached the man's body I watched in horror as he managed to break Storm's hold and knock him back. It was then I spotted the gun that was in the hand of the arm that Storm previously had a hold of.
There was blood all over the man and even though he was in a lot of pain, he managed to lift his gun wielding arm and point it at Storm who was already advancing back at him.
"No!"
Storm lunged towards the man then there was a loud bang. My ears rang and my head got a little dizzy.
"KEELA!"
I heard Alec and Bronagh scream for me, but I ignored them and watched as the man pushed a now immobile Storm off his body and onto the floor next to him. When I saw he wasn't moving I screamed louder than ever before.
He was lying on his side, his breathing was rapid and his leg was twitching.
He shot Storm.
"Storm!" I cried.
I crawled over to him and put my hand on his head. "It's okay, it's okay. You're goin' to be fine-"
Storm's loud whimper cut me off.
Oh, God.
"Help me! Somebody help me, please!"
I wished even Mr. Pervert would hear my calls and come to help, but no one came to my aid. No one.
I put my head down to Storm's.
"You're goin' to be fine, I promise... I’m here."
I looked up to see how bad his wound was when I noticed a growing patch of blood began to soak the floor under Storm.
Oh, God.
Please, no!
"Come here, bitch!"
I fought against the hand that suddenly tangled itself in my hair and screamed for help again. It was the last thing I said as a pulsing pain erupted in the back of my head and caused me to sail into darkness.
"Keela?"
I groaned.
"Wake up."
I groaned again, but blinked my eyes open. It took a minute for my eyes to adjust to the dimly lit room, but that didn't matter because I suddenly hissed in pain. My head was pounding and I felt like my stomach was about to explode.
"What happened?" I murmured.
"We were kidnapped."
I looked for the source of the voice speaking to me and when my eyes landed on Alec, I almost cried with relief.
"You're okay."
He was sitting against a wall and his arms were tied above his head with some rope that was nailed into the wall.
"Depends on what you mean by okay."
"You're alive."
Alec laughed. "Yeah, I'm alive."
He laughed, but he sounded far from happy.
"Storm," I whispered.
"I don't know Keela, he never came out of your room."
I sniffled.
Please, no.
"Where is Aideen?" I asked, wiping my eyes.
"They left her back at your apartment, Marco hit her and knocked her out so they left her on the floor."
I widened my eyes. "Was she breathin'?"
"Yes," Alec said. "She was just knocked out from the hit."
I nodded my head.
Please let her be okay.
"Where's Bronagh?"
"Next to you."
I looked to my left then my right and gasped when I found Bronagh strung up in the same position as Alec, but she was unconscious. I didn't understand, I wasn't tied down or bound in any way, I was just sat against a wall.
&nbs
p; Why?
"He won't touch you, he is neck deep in shit now that Brandy knows he has taken you."
I looked at Alec. "How do you know that?"
Alec shrugged. "I pretended to be unconscious when we got here, so I overheard a few things."
I looked around the dark room we were in and swallowed.
"Did you happen to hear where we are?"
Alec smiled. "I know exactly where we are."
"Why are you smilin'?"
Alec chuckled. "Because I hate irony, and being in Darkness is about as ironic as things can fucking get right now."
I widened my eyes. "Darkness? The club where Bronagh, Damien, and Alannah were held by Marco a few years ago?"
Alec winked. "Good memory."
I frowned at him. "Why are you bein' like that?"
"Like what?"
"Cold."
"Cold? Me? I'm barely even lukewarm compared to you, baby."
I looked down. "I'm not cold, Alec."
"You are an ice queen, you heartless bitch."
I flinched and Alec laughed.
"Don't you dare play the wounded little girl, I know who you really are."
No, you don't.
I didn't respond to Alec, telling him I was pretending about all the vile stuff I said back at the apartment would fall on deaf ears right now because he was mad. I groaned as I pushed myself up to my feet. I placed my hand on the cold dark wall to steady myself when my head got dizzy.
That wanker who grabbed me hit me hard.
"We need to find a way out of here."
Alec laughed. "Don't let me stop you from searching for a way out, as you can see I'm a little tied up here."
I ignored him and looked around the room, I slowly walked over to the only door and tested the handle.
It was locked.
"Damn it."
"They won't make things that easy for you, princess."
I turned to face Alec.
"Stop it, hatin' me won't get us out of here. Put a stopper on your feelin's for a minute and focus."
Alec grinned. "Tell me what to do again, baby. I love it when you give me orders."
Damn him.
I stalked over to Alec and bent down until I was face to face with him.
"Hate me all you want, but I need you to focus so we can get out of here. Think of Bronagh."
Alec flicked his eyes to Bronagh's unconscious body and set his jaw.
"This is all your fault."