“Oh shut up. I want you to tell me if he sees anyone outside of business; report to me his every move,” Grandfather says as I catch Ro’s eyes and direct his motions perfectly so Grandfather believes Ro is his servant. “I need to find a way to kill that woman before it is too late. I fear Kayla’s very existence has an effect on him. She must be dealt with, and if the High Council prevents me from doing it, then maybe someone with less ranking can.”
Once Ro meets me outside, I immediately pull him to an out of the way place. “Don’t ever let him know he can’t control you. I need you to help me, and in order to do that, I need you to be fully functional and aware.” I taught Ro how to look at my grandfather and, most importantly, how not to. He should never listen too closely or stare too long but always … always, seem to be under my grandfather’s control.
“He is going to kill Kayla. Did you hear him… kill her or I guess have her killed,” Ro says, jumping around in a panic.
“I heard him.”
“Well, what are you going to do Nick?”
“What can I do? I can’t go against Grandfather?” I say, avoiding looking at him.
“You are going to let him kill her?!” he says, shaking his head.
“If he wants her dead, there is little I can do about it,” I snap at him.
“Oh, well maybe you should go see her tonight then since it will probably be your last time before she dies. I am sure you will find someone else though, and it will be just the same I am sure,” he says, walking away from me.
I hate is sarcastic attitude sometimes.
Chapter 22
Catriona
The whole crew is gathered together, trying to decide if we can come up with a plan to win this battle with Savage before the Masquerade, before our next to the last minute ticks away. No one seems to have any great ideas until Amery stands up and says we need to take Nick out. Now. He continues to explain that there is no other way and we are out of options. Obviously, he has no understanding of the people he is speaking to. The cold silence in the room makes me uneasy, but it doesn’t faze Amery one bit. He goes on to say how we need to follow Nick and search for a time that he is at his most vulnerable so we can impose one fatal shot to his head. All we have to do is distract him so he doesn’t see it coming. All we have to do is have a plan. It should be easy, easy for them to kill their brother, best friend, and the father of two young children. Sure, that should be a piece of cake. I am not sure which person is going to say something to him first, Ryan or Elijah. They are both tensing and steaming in the same manner, not that the rest of Nick’s loyal friends in the room aren’t ready to tear Amery apart, too. I brace myself as Ryan and Elijah stand, but when Kayla steps into the room, she steps in front of them both before turning towards Amery.
“You can do whatever you want, but unless you want a target on your own back, other than the one you already have, then I suggest you work with the allies and not against them,” Kayla says with a powerful tone. “I think, instead of Nick, we should concentrate on Savage. There has to be something we are missing about him, something we can use against him. Let’s study him and understand his every move. Maybe if we understand him better, we can prepare to battle him more effectively. He is, after all, the main goal for all of us.” She doesn’t bother to ask if anyone agrees before she asks who will take the first watch. Amery storms out in frustration. Ever since Timber was killed, he has wanted to get revenge against Nick.
“What is his problem?” Elijah asks me.
“Nick killed one of his few friends,” I reply to him.
“How did that happen?”
“Amery and Savage engaged in a battle, and his friend was about to kill Galena when Nick came after him. He tried to lure him into the water so he and Amery could gang up on him and kill him, but Nick was too strong and killed Timber before Amery could make it to them.”
“If he went after Galena, then Nick was only defending her and himself. It’s not as if he went after his friend straight out,” Elijah says, satisfied with his understanding.
“Yes, but it was the plan Amery came up with, only Timber got to Galena first. It was supposed to be Amery … that is what he is truly upset about. Timber died because of Amery’s plan. He died instead of Amery,” I say.
Elijah nods. “Okay, I guess I understand being upset about that, but he needs to understand that it is his guilt controlling him and not the proper justice he is always talking about.”
Elijah and I volunteer to go and spy on Savage together. We barely get to the car before Amery jumps in with us.
“What are you doing here?” Elijah asks him with a sour expression.
“I am here to make sure Cat doesn’t need any help,” Amery says, making himself comfortable in the back seat. “So, what have you found out so far? Nothing? Figures.” Elijah rolls his eyes and drives us away without another word.
Following Savage around all day is not all that exciting, but Elijah and Amery provide enough entertainment to keep me from getting too bored. The two bicker about every little thing: how close to follow Savage, where to park the car, how to park the car, how to walk up to a safe place to watch him from, where to watch him from, who should be next to me, and most importantly, who shouldn’t be. Every time Savage leaves for a new place, the arguments start all over again. I decide it best to sit in the backseat most of the day while the two continue to squabble.
After a couple of hours of constant bickering, the entertainment is no longer that entertaining. I have had enough and decide I am going to leave them to explore on my own, anything to keep from having to listen to them anymore. Little did I know Savage would be meeting Marius, who is always followed by my sister, today. Unfortunately, she can sense my presence better than anyone.
“What are you doing here Cat?” Ria asks, sneaking up behind me. I should have known.
“I thought I would take a nature walk,” I retort, smiling sarcastically.
She looks me over once before approaching and circling around me. “You look different. Dressing yourself for your future husband, are you?” She leans in and looks over my face. “Makeup too?” She laughs. “Someone is obviously helping you with that. Who is it?”
“Don’t you have somewhere to be Ria? I am sure Marius or Savage has something, or some other low-class being, for you to do.”
“Wow! A little makeup, some new clothes, and a new prominent fiancé and you are suddenly better than me?” I have never been especially close to my sister, but we have never been rivals of any sort, until now. I have seen Ria’s vengeance acted on other women before; she never holds back and maintains her grudge until revenge is acted out to her full satisfaction. The usual distaste that she has for other women I now feel against me. She clearly wants to rip my head off. As strong and powerful as Ria is, she has never been able to battle me straight up, and she knows it, but when Marius shows up, I get nervous. The smile forming on Ria’s face tells me all I need to know. I have never been afraid to fight, but I am also smart enough to know when I should run. When the right moment hits me, I move fast and towards help. Marius catches me after a few feet and grabs me by my hair, throwing me to the ground. He takes hold of me and pins me down as my sister draws a knife.
“How about a facelift, Cat, to go with all your new clothes and hairstyle? A little touch up here and there should do wonders for you and your future,” Ria fumes. I do my best to break free from Marius while Ria sits on my chest and toys with me, touching my cheek with the point of the blade. “From here, up to your eyebrow, should be a nice effect. You might lose an eye, of course, but you do have another. No hard feelings, dear sister. I do wish you the best, just not when you are in my way.”
“Ria, stop! Savage will not approve. He will only kill you for damaging his plans.” She pulls away for a second, considering.
“Just do it! How will he ever know it was you? It could be that ex-wife of Nicholas’s for all he would know. Just cut her tongue out, too, so she can’t talk,??
? Marius says, gripping my chin and trying to force my mouth open. “Go ahead … scream,” he dares.
“No, you scream,” Amery says, kicking Marius in the mouth. Elijah grabs the blade from Ria and takes her down with the blade to her throat, challenging her to scream as well. Marius thinks about battling Amery, but he knows better. He runs swiftly, leaving Ria behind. Amery runs after him, determined to get in another powerful blow to his ego.
I look over at Ria who is struggling against Elijah’s hold. “Stop squirming! You are not going anywhere, Franky. I mean, Ria. Fucking bitch,” Elijah says.
“Hey,” Ria says, causing him to turn and look her way. She smiles, and I watch as her body quivers, morphing into Elijah’s greatest desire. With the knife pressed against her throat and his strong hand gripping her, she stuns Elijah into shock and tricks him into releasing her. Ria runs towards the nearby Sovereignty tower while Amery slugs Marius and forces him on the ground. Ria stops short from hiding inside the building and calls out to Amery to distract him. Marius gets in one hit against Amery, knocking him to the ground. The strong body blow to Amery’s side gives Marius enough time to run to his car and speed away before Amery can get back to his feet. Steaming, Amery quickly twists his body towards Ria, but she smiles and runs into the tower before he can make a single move towards her.
Amery, still cursing Ria under his breath, returns to us with fisted hands. “You can’t even hold a
woman down?” Amery yells at Elijah.
“She changed on me! I thought she was …” He looks at me oddly and then looks down at the ground.”
Just like my sister can sense me I can sense her, Ria slyly tries to sneak out a side door of the building. She steps out into the clearing and meets my eyes with a cursing anger before she runs for her car. “Amery it’s Ria!” I yell.
“I want that little bitch!” Amery yells as he runs after her while Elijah helps me off the ground.
“Ria can change into who you most desire and bring out feelings that keep you from acting out against her. All you feel is desire, and if she finds the right person, love,” I say, noticing the cut on his arm. “Oh no! You’re hurt, Eli.” He looks down with little concern, but I take hold of him and look it over to see if I can help. “I can fix this for you. Come back to the car with me.” Holding his hand, I lead him back and find what I need to bandage him up properly. He watches me closely and meets my eyes directly several times during the process. I try not to smile but one look into his eyes and that mischievous turn at the corner of his lips, and I realize it’s no use. So, I simply try to contain my smile the best I can. I lean forward to concentrate more on his wound, but when my hair falls down into my face, he takes his fingers and sweeps it away with a light touch across my cheek and a closeness that causes my heart to speed. “There you go. You should be good …” I say, noticing how close he really is. “You’re …”
“I’m what?” He fingers some strands of my hair back in place, trailing his finger down and around my face, stopping under my chin. His gentle touch urges me forward and closer until I can almost feel the heat from his lips on mine. “Thank you,” he mouths, touching my lips lightly with his. “Breathe, Cat.” He smiles.
“Ria is going to let Savage know we are here. We might as well go now,” Amery says, causing a huge separation between Elijah and me. Amery steps towards me and takes my hand, pulling me even further away from Elijah. “Are you okay sweetheart,” he says, awkwardly hugging me.
“What the fuck is your problem? If you have something to say to me, then say it. Stop looking at me like that,” Elijah says suddenly.
“I got nothing to say to you, sweetheart. What happened? Did the little girl hurt your arm?” Amery says back to Elijah.
“I got cut taking the blade away from her that she was waving around. What happened to you? You let Marius go? Maybe you should be worried about your screw up. You should have been able to kill that old fuck with no problem,” Elijah yells at him.
“I don’t have the authority to kill another Lord. Besides, he isn’t worth it. Marius will get his, eventually.” Amery rolls his eyes away from Elijah with nothing else to say to him. He takes a moment to look down before looking me over. “How are you doing, Kid?” he says, using his old nickname for me. I have been in love with Amery since I could walk. Following him around whenever I could and falling more in love with him every time he invited me to go with him. He would always say, “Hey Kid, do you want to go too?” I loved him so much that I wasn’t even jealous of Haile, despite Amery clearly being head over heels for her. She was good to him, and he never ignored me because of her. He still made me feel important. My heart broke for him when Belinda killed Haile out of jealousy. She was extremely beautiful, and Savage was determined to have her. Belinda was afraid he would send her away and make Haile his wife, and that may have happened if Haile had not preferred to die before every cheating on Amery. Savage has the power to sway just about any woman he wants, unless their heart is meant for another. Nick has a similar quality, and their alluring spell can be broken by the right one, or the right one for them. That’s how Amery knew Haile was the one, and ever since her death, he has been blinded by revenge and has never looked at any woman for anything other than filling a sexual desire. Last night was the first time since Haile that I have seen him really smile, and it was at me. He finally smiles at me, and all I can see is …
“Alright, Short Stuff. How about we all go back now? I don’t think there is much more to gain today,” Elijah says, harshly eyeing Amery as he passes.
No one speaks the whole way home. The air is filled with silence and a lot of awkward glances, giving me plenty of time to go over the events in my head several times and from every angle possible before realizing something. As soon as we get back to the house, I pull Elijah aside. “Who did you see when you had a hold of Ria? You stopped and turned white with fear, like you were afraid you had hurt someone you truly care about.” His tense mood continues with a shake of his head. “You saw somebody. You said you did. Who was it? Kayla?” I ask, feeling my nerves tighten and twist into a knot waiting to hear his answer.
He looks me over. “Don’t worry about it, Cat.” He kisses my cheek and glances over my shoulder. “Amery,” Elijah says as he leaves me with Amery, who is now steaming and staring at both of us.
“Eli,” Amery says, focusing on me and never bothering to look at him as he walks away. Amery takes my hand. “You should probably go get some more attending to, Elijah. I’m sure Kayla can help you with that. You should probably get a nap, too. You look wiped out from all the excitement. Maybe Brayden will let you use his blanky.”
“Don’t worry about me. I have taken a few beatings in my life, and it takes a lot to keep me down. Not even a demon Lord can break me,” Elijah says with a cursing glare.
“Good for you, but you probably should get back to Kayla shouldn’t you? You don’t want her going to bed without you,” Amery says to him. I look back at Elijah and his awkwardness says a lot.
“It’s not what you think,” Elijah says.
“I am sure it’s not,” Amery replies, putting his arm around me.
“Kayla and I don’t have sex. I hold her hand so she can sleep,” Elijah says back. I look over my shoulder at him.
“That’s sweet,” I say, causing him to smile. “I’m glad you are a good enough friend to do that for her, and for Nick,” I say before Amery pulls me into another room with a sigh. “What is that sigh for?”
“Do you really believe that asshole? They aren’t having sex, he is just holding her hand so she can sleep, bullshit,” he snaps, looking over at me. “Cat, do me a favor. Don’t fall for that jerk’s game. He only wants to get you into bed.”
“I think he is …” Amery stares hard at me before I can finish what I have to say, so I stop myself and keep my opinion about Elijah to myself. “Why are you so angry?”
“I’m not angry at you, Cat. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to take my frustrations o
ut on you. I just hate that guy, and I hate the way he looks at you.” He takes my hand, and continues, “You deserve better. I wish you would consider marrying me and forget all this mess that Savage has pulled you into. Have I not always treated you with respect? I would continue to do that and take care of you. I could give you the life you deserve.”
“Do you love me like that Amery? Like you loved Haile?” His avoidance of my eyes tells me all I need to know.
“You know I love you Cat. I would never let you be unhappy. You have been at my side for so long, and you love me too, don’t you?” Amery’s sweet vulnerability is hard to resist. “Catriona …”
“I do love you, Amery. I have loved you for as long as I can remember but …” I say as Amery looks over my shoulder with a smile. I turn to see Elijah looking in on us. “Eli?”
“Don’t mind me. I was just sent to tell you that there is some food prepared in the kitchen for everyone,” He says quickly before leaving the room. I look back up at Amery.
“Let him go, Cat. You know he is not for you.”
I don’t listen to him. Maybe I should, but there is something about Elijah that makes me feel like I belong within his arms. I chase after Elijah, following him into his room where he instantly gives me a frustrated sigh when I won’t let him close the door to keep me out. I shut it behind me and watch him drink, straight from a bottle. “That’s not necessary.”
“What do you know?” he says, looking me up and down before shaking his head in disgust. “So, when is the wedding? You and Amery, huh?” He laughs. “Wow! I guess I should have known. You guys have been having fun at my expense I guess?” I spin him around and kiss him hard. Nothing feels better on my lips than his.
“Tell me who you saw when you were holding Ria? Tell me, honestly, Eli.”
“What does it matter? You’re not going to be happy until you have every man after you?”