Chapter three

Gabriel

“Where have you been?”

Sighing I eyed Adam where he was sat behind my desk. He looked completely at home. Which was strange because he never came here. None of my brothers did. My father turned up now and then but even that was a rare occurrence. Usually they just sent a message.

So seeing him was a surprise. One that I quickly hid because it didn’t do any good to tell him that he’d got the drop on me.

“What are you doing here?” Moving around the room I headed straight the safe and slid what I had down the back of my jeans into it.

“I think I asked first Gabriel.” Adam’s voice was harsh. “Because-“

“I was doing my job.” I snapped back. “The one you asked me to do so you didn’t have to get your hands dirty. Now tell me-“ turning I straightened my shoulders and glared at him.

Adam stared right back. And to any other man it would have been enough for me to piss myself but I’d stopped being scared of any of my older brothers years ago. There was nothing they could do that hadn’t already been done to me at the hands of much more sadistic man.

“Father sent me because he heard the news.” He didn’t say anymore but he didn’t really need to. I knew why he was here. They had heard that Coral had died.

“Yes.” I said evenly and without an ounce of emotion in my voice. “It’s very sad.”

“Sad yes.” He rolled his eyes. “But that’s not why I’m here. And I think you know it.”

Falling into the chair opposite him I didn’t move my eyes away from his face. I knew exactly why he was here and why my father would have sent someone from the family instead of a message.

They were afraid I was going to do something stupid and reckless and they had every reason to be afraid.

“I saw her, you know.” He leant back and studied me. His fingers steepled up under his chin. And he had never looked more like my father than he did now. I’d never noticed it before because out of all of us he had blonde hair from our mother but in any other way he was just like our dad.

Just as conceited as well.

“You saw who?”

“You know who.” He didn’t bat an eyelid. “The girl. Although I wouldn’t call her a girl anymore.” He smirked. “She’s definitely a woman now.”

At my side my fingers curled into a fist. Everything he was saying was to get a rise out of me and I knew it so I wouldn’t bite. That’s exactly what he wanted.

“I have no idea who you are talking about.” I lied smoothly.

“Of course you don’t.” He all but rolled his eyes. “Because you’re not obsesssed with her at all are you? I mean-“ leaning forward he narrowed his eyes. “You used to dream about her after your- incident.”

Incident? I shook my head. It was over ten years since I had been taken and tortured because of who my family was and they couldn’t even say it out loud. I had long ago come to terms with everything that had happened to me. I’d learnt to embrace my scars , both physically and mentally but my family? They held on to the guilt they felt because they had allowed me to be taken.

I was a constant reminder that they weren’t untouchable and they hated that. It was one of the reasons they let me stay here instead of with them in the city.

That and the fact my entire family thought I was bat shit crazy. Which I was sometimes.

“Oh her.” I shrugged. “Corals granddaughter?”

“Yes.” He continued to stare at me unblinking but if he thought he could find something on my scarred faceou

he was going to be sadly mistaken. I didn’t let my emotions out and I wasn’t about to start now. “Audrey.”

“Audrey.” I drew the word out. Tasting her name on my tongue like I would one day soon taste her. “Was that what she was called. I forgot,”

Forgetting Audrey was never going to happen. But my brother didn’t need to know that.

“You forgot. Once upon a time you were obsessed with her.”

I shrugged. “I was a kid who had just been through a horrific ordeal. She helped me heal.”

Adam’s eyes narrowed. “You didn’t even meet her.” He scoffed. “Tell me you didn’t -“

“Of course not. Coral moved her away before I had a chance but she was the first pretty friendly face I saw after dad came and got me and hey- she was a pretty girl. I had a bit of a crush.”

“It was more than a crush.” He answered evenly but before I could say anything he continued. “But I saw her in town. Did you know she was already back.”

“Corals funeral was yesterday. So that’s not surprising but no I didn’t know she was back.” I lied again. They just kept coming out of my mouth. So easily and so smooth. “I should probably send a card or something to send my regards. After all we were neighbours to her grandmother.”

“The family will arrange it. Maybe it would be best for you to come back to the city with me? Just for a little while. We have already decided that we will buy the property when she puts it up for sale.”

I blinked at him in shock. It was the first emotion I had allowed myself. “Why do you need to buy-“

“There are plenty of skeletons in our families closet Gabriel. And a lot of them are-“

I stood up so suddenly that he fell silent mid sentence. “I don’t need to come back to the city. I don’t need to be watched like a child. I am more than happy here.”

“You are slipping Gabriel. The last few - interventions.”

I rolled my eyes. He called the interventions. I called them what they were. Killings.

“Have been sloppy.”

“I got the job done didn’t I?”

“We are worried about you Gabriel. And having Audrey back and so close is going to trigger you. I don’t want you to lose yourself.”

Adam didn’t need to know that I had lost myself years ago. Just like he didn’t to know that the only thing that kept me tethered to the earth was her. The girl I had seen watching me from the window of her grandmothers house as I buried the body of the man who had mutiliated me.

That girl was a woman now. But I had watched her grow up. I had been there , for every step of her life so far.

But my brother didn’t need to know that. No one did.

Audrey was my secret.

And she would remain my secret.

“I’m not going to lose myself.” I said evenly. As long as I didn’t lose her then I would be fine.

But I didn’t tell him that either. For now the relationship I had with Audrey, the future I planned for us had to be kept secret. Even from her.

“Fine.” Adam gave up with a sigh. He knew better than to argue with me. “Tell me what you found out. Dad will want an update.”

***

Adam stayed longer than I wanted him to. Longer than any of them had stayed since the Christmas after I had been taken which had been the last time we had all been together as a family.

They had given up after that. I was a lost cause. Too broken and scarred for them to look at and truthfully it suited me well. I was better off alone. It was safer for webeykne that way because my family was right. My brain was broken and the rages were getting worse. The state I had left their last hit in was proof of that. Usually I was more in control, more precise but that had been a- bloodbath.

It was such a strange thing being certifiable crazy and knowing it. I knew the things I did, the things I enjoyed doing weren’t normal. But I didn’t want to stop.

I enjoyed them. The feel of blood running over my skin was the only thing that gave me any peace. Because every time I killed one of my families enemies I was killing the man who made me this monster to begin with.

There was only one thing that topped the feeling and that was watching Audrey. She didn’t know it yet but she was mine. She always had been. Since I had looked up and saw her face pressed up against the window.

She had done the same again last night. Pressed her face up against the glass and stared right towards me but last night she hadn’t seen me. I had made sure of that. Now wasn’t the time for her to know I was with her or that I had always been with her.

My brother was right though. She had grown into a beautiful woman. But then in my mind she had been the most beautiful female in the world for my entire adult life. The woman that would one day be my bride.

She didn’t know that yet either. That good news could wait until she had got over her grief.

Audrey felt alone. But then again she had for a long time. I had read her journals. The ones I could get my hands on anyway. I knew how lonely she had always been but she really didn’t to. I’d always been with her.

And when I finally showed myself she would realise she would never be alone again in her life.

But for now I just needed to watch and make sure she was ok. Like I had been doing for years.

Pushing the knit hat over my head I pulled my hood over it. The storm was over and I would have to be careful not to be seen but there was no way I could go any longer without seeing her.

That would be a torture that really sent me over the edge.

If I didn’t see her then an innocent person would be hurt and I didn’t want that. I wasn’t that kind of monster.

Slipping out of the door I padded silently down the wide stone steps and let the darkness of the treeline swallow me.