I heard Aidan curse as he pulled over to the side of the road.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“Damn car’s out of gas,” he murmured.
“What?” Rudy growled. “It was completely full just before we got here.”
“Abraham.” He sighed under his breath. “Damn—we really do need a car.”
“That’s not exactly an option,” Rudy chimed in.
“Nonsense.”
“Okay, another question then. How do you propose we get a car?”
He looked at Rudy and smiled. For the first time, I had noticed something other than anger and resentment between them.
Aidan shook his head. “It won’t be too difficult.” He drummed his fingers on his cheek and hummed quietly a few times. “Okay,” he whispered.
We waited for the actual beginning of his sentence.
“Rudy,” he started, “I need to go back inside. Stay in the car and look after the girls. Lock the doors. If Dorian gets back, I’ll take care of it.”
He nodded.
I sat there silently. Becky was still asleep, and Rudy didn’t even turn to look at me. He was so quiet that it made me nervous. I was shaking the entire time, terrified that Dorian would appear out of nowhere, but Aidan returned as quickly as he always did. He walked back to the car with something in his hand, looking completely content and emotionless. Rudy unlocked the door.
“Let’s go,” Aidan said, showing us a small, silver key hanging from a keychain.
I smiled and stepped out of the car. Rudy carried Becky and followed Aidan and me around the house. I lost my breath for a moment when I spotted a black Mustang in the open garage. I stepped closer and saw the familiar license plate. Aidan turned and looked at me.
“Are you okay?”
I nodded, but I figured he knew I was lying. I was pretty far from okay.
Chapter Sixteen
He got in and started the car. Rudy put Becky in the back seat. She stirred silently, and it was a relief to see her move. A breath escaped her lips, and it seemed like she was trying to say something.
“Becky?”
She didn’t wake up but whispered Aaron’s name. I smiled.
Rudy got in the passenger’s seat, and Aidan sped off, driving like a lunatic the way he usually did.
“Slow down,” Rudy sputtered. I could tell he was trying to hide the tension in his voice.
“Sorry.” Aidan laughed. “It’s simply out of habit.”
“I wouldn’t mind getting home a little sooner,” I said.
Rudy turned around and looked at me. “Are you going home?”
I shook my head. “I guess not, but the sooner Becky gets to a hospital, the sooner we all get home.”
He nodded. “She’ll be okay. You should get checked on too.”
“This is silly,” I said. “Take her to my house. Ethan’s a doctor, you know.”
“Ah”—Aidan chuckled—“that’s right. He is a doctor.”
“Hmm,” Rudy muttered. “Thought he was a shrink.”
“No,” I answered. “He’s the one who fixed my ankle when I got hurt in the woods that night.”
“Oh, we’ll take her to Ethan then.”
“I’m still not sure about it though,” I said. “We’re going to need a pretty good cover story.”
“Don’t worry about that,” Aidan answered.
I leaned my head back to rest. What seemed like seconds later, Rudy was whispering my name. I opened my eyes to see his smiling face.
“You’re home, sweetie.”
Aidan pushed him aside. “You all right, love?”
Rudy glowered.
“I told you I’m fine.”
“That never means much coming from you.”
I tried to smile.
“Becky,” I whispered. “Becky, honey, wake up.”
She opened her eyes for a second, then closed them again. “Are we at the hospital?”
“We’re at my house,” I told her.
“Good,” she whispered.
“How are you feeling?”
“Not sure. Tired.”
“Anything hurt?”
She shook her head. “Just a little sore.”
He must not have hurt her as much as I imagined. “Can you walk?”
She nodded and sat up slowly.
“Don’t try!” Rudy demanded. His concern was tangible.
“Really, Rudy, I’m okay.”
“I should carry you.”
“Rudy, I’m not even dizzy. I’m fine.” She stumbled toward the porch. “Is…this a different car?”
Aidan laughed. “Yes. The other one was out of gas.”
“How long had I been out?”
“A while.”
“Ethan isn’t home yet,” I said, “which is good. Gives us time to come up with a plausible story.”
“Already taken care of,” Aidan said, tapping his finger against his temple. “Just let me do the talking.”
I should have guessed as much. Becky went straight to the living room to lie on the couch. “Can you call Aaron?” she asked. “Please.”
I nodded and picked up the phone on the kitchen wall. He answered after one ring.
“Becky?”
“No. It’s Jane.”
“Is she with you?”
“Yeah. She’s here.”
“Is everything okay? I’ve been calling both of you all day.”
“Things are complicated, but we’re both okay.”
“Can I come over?”
“Of course. That’s why I’m calling.”
“Okay. Be there soon.”
When he said soon, he meant it. In ten minutes, a knock came at the front door. Becky perked up.
“Lie down,” I said.
I went to open the door, but before Aaron saw me, Becky shoved her way through and into his arms.
“Oh my God,” he choked out, noticing the dirt and the blood. “Becky, what happened? Are you okay?”
She moved away and avoided eye contact. “I’m okay. No worries.”
He pulled her chin up to his level and stared into her eyes. She instantly started crying and moved into Aaron’s chest.
“I’d rather Ethan didn’t know exactly what happened,” I said.
He nodded. “Can you get her some clothes?”
“Of course. Come on, Becky,” I said. “Upstairs. You need a shower.”
“So do you,” she said, wiping her eyes.
“I’m a little more worried about you at the moment.”
She nodded, and I helped her up the stairs.
She went into the bathroom, and I went to my room, fumbling through my drawers for something that would at least fit her and her lengthy limbs. I found a pair of loose-fitting sweat pants and a black tank top. Becky would probably look good even in my “cleaning the house” clothes.
I knocked on the bathroom door.
“I’m alive, Jane.”
“Just checking. I left you some clothes on my bed. I’m going to use the other bathroom.”
“Okay,” she called back. “Thanks.”
She sounded completely content, as if it were just one of our normal weekend sleepovers.
I went to use the master bathroom down the hall, trying to ignore the voices downstairs. Aaron would blame this on Aidan for sure. Rudy did, even I did, but it really wasn’t his fault. I tried to focus my mind on something else, but I was haunted with the memories of the basement, the hanging corpse, the bag of teeth, the man I saw being murdered, and my beaten sister in the other bathroom. Of course, I couldn’t forget the killer of a boyfriend I had and the fact that he may have killed my brother as well.
I suppressed the tears and enjoyed a hot shower. I had never felt so dirty in my entire life. I washed my hair twice and stood there in the water longer than I ever had before. After I was clean, I wrapped myself in a towel and headed to my room. When I heard Becky yell my name, I picked up my pace and raced to my room as fast as I could, and Aaron w
as up the stairs in ten seconds. I walked in, and she was sitting on my bed in my clothes, holding a small slip of paper in her hand. She handed it to me.
Jane Callahan,
We know who you are, and we know that you are the reason for James West’s betrayal of The Sevren. Because of your love for him, your blood is tainted, so it is not yours we want. We have your father. Bring us Rudy Thompson, and your father’s life will be spared.
~Dorian
P.S. I think it best that you do not disregard this note.
“My God,” I whispered.
“What do we do now?”
“Ask Aidan,” I heard Aaron say. “Sorry to intrude,” he continued, stepping into my room, “but I think the new kid is the only one who can know what to do.”
“They have Ethan,” I said to Becky. “They want Rudy, they took Danny, they kidnapped me, and they tried to kill you.”
“This is personal,” Becky whispered anxiously. “It must be.”
I nodded. “Aidan came to North Bend for a reason. He came to North Bend—for me.”
“Before anything else is done, Jane, you need to be taken care of.”
“Aidan, I’m fine. We don’t exactly have time. They’re going to kill Ethan.”
“No, they won’t.”
“And why not? How do you know they haven’t already?”
“One,” Aidan said, reaching into his pocket, “they wait for Abraham’s call.” He pulled a tiny, silver cell phone out of his pocket. “Two, he’s bait to get to Rudy and to get to me.”
“We have to find Ethan.”
“We’ll get him back, Jane, and nobody will be hurt in the process—except maybe me.”
Rudy opened his mouth as if to speak.
“Not one word, Rudy!” I yelled.
He put his hands up and nodded.
“Now please,” Aidan continued. “Aaron brought some food. Eat something.”
I had forgotten about the knotting cramps in my stomach. “Thank you.”
Aaron smiled and pulled his arm a little tighter around Becky’s waist.
“I doubt she’s going anywhere.” I chuckled.
“Eh—you never know.”
“Why me?” Rudy asked, his voice shaking. “Why me and not somebody else?”
Aidan shook his head. “Because they can’t use Jane. Her blood is tainted. To them, you are the next best thing.”
“I don’t even like you.”
“Yes, but they don’t know that.” Aidan was perfectly composed. “They are using you to get to me—and Jane.”
“Me?” I yelled.
He nodded. “Even though they do not want your blood, that does not mean you won’t end up like…”
“Like what?”
He was silent and obviously distressed. My mind replayed everything I had been through. I realized what he was saying.
“Aidan?”
“Like…one of their victims.”
“Oh my God.” My voice was completely throttled. “You know about Sharon.”
He bowed his head and sighed. The nod came later and was hardly a movement at all, but I knew he was saying yes.
“I promise I won’t let anything bad happen to any of you!”
Chapter Seventeen
Rudy sank into the cushions of the couch. I wanted to comfort him, but I really didn’t know what to say. Aidan was right when he said we shouldn’t be friends. If he would have simply done what I asked and left me alone, who knows what I could have been doing. Maybe I’d be out to a movie with Rudy, or maybe Becky could drag me along to another party or shopping trip. I’d been locked in a basement for three days; I could hardly comprehend how sick Ethan must have been with worry. Of course, I couldn’t completely blame this on Aidan, could I? After all, it wasn’t him who captured me or hurt Becky. It wasn’t him who took Ethan.
I couldn’t stand the look Rudy was giving me. He looked like he was struggling just to keep from fainting. I could see how terrified he was. I stuffed my fries in my mouth and went to talk to him.
“Jane?” His voice trembled.
“Are you okay?”
“Can I talk to you for a minute?”
“Of course.”
“I mean…um…alone?”
I nodded.
He stood up and walked around the corner so the spying eyes in the kitchen wouldn’t make him so nervous. His entire body seemed to be trembling.
“Rudy…”
“Really, I’m okay,” he said. “I’m just confused. This was all thrown on me for no reason.”
“I’m so sorry for letting you become part of this.”
He moved his gaze to the floor, shaking his head, and cleared his throat. “No. I was the one who didn’t trust Aidan. I wanted to protect you. I got myself involved.”
“I should have listened.”
He smiled. “Should have—yes. When do you ever do what you should?”
I tried to smile but felt slightly insulted. I always tried to do the right thing.
“If I go…I think that if I just go…willingly—”
“No!” I yelled. “Rudy, don’t. Please!”
“It’s better than getting us all killed and Ethan too.”
I shook my head mechanically. “Stop that, Rudy. Aidan will figure this out.”
His voice turned acidic. “I know.”
I sighed, but before I could say anything, he took one long stride toward me and locked his eyes onto mine, erasing my thoughts completely and leaving me wondering what he was thinking.
“If I die, Jane, I want you to know something.”
I tried to look away, to hide the expression on my face. I knew this was coming.
“I love you.” His voice became soft and sad. “I’m in love with you.” He paused and cleared his throat. “Just know that.”
I couldn’t answer.
“That’s why I have to go. I’ve loved you since we were kids. Everything about you, Jane—your courage and your love…your beauty.”
I still couldn’t say anything, but I shook my head. He was doing this on purpose. What did it mean that I was so desperate to keep him alive? I cared about him, yes, but the thought of him strapped to that stone ate through me like acid, making me feel as if I would do anything to keep that from happening. There was this nervous stinging in my stomach. I touched his hand, trying to get him to say something—anything. He moved his hands to my waist, but this time, I didn’t fling them away.
“Rudy…”
“I know…” he said, “I know as I knew from the beginning that I can be the one to stand beside you—to protect you. You love me, Jane. I know you do.”
He leaned forward, almost touching his lips to mine. I closed my eyes and exhaled softly. When I opened them, he hadn’t changed position, but there was this stronger desperation in his eyes.
“I don’t want to die without feeling you close to me at least one time.”
“That isn’t fair,” I growled.
“I never claimed it was.” His voice had changed, and I almost heard a smile in it though he wasn’t smiling. His expression remained serious. “I love you, and so does Aidan. That means there will be a fight, Jane, so here I am—fighting. And I don’t fight fair. There’s little gain in that.” It was then that he smiled, making me unsure how serious he really was.
His hands were still on my waist, and I was beginning to feel this sort of heat from them piercing through my skin, scorching me. I wanted to pull away from him, but I couldn’t.
Rudy had always been there for me on the days I needed to forget about home and Danny and Aidan. He held me together when I felt like falling apart. He was like the last leaf on the dying tree that was my life. And after all of that, I was still resisting his affections. This time, it was more mentally than physically. I didn’t move away at all, but I refused to let my mind drift into thinking this was okay. I knew I couldn’t betray Aidan even if he had betrayed me in some small way.
Yet even as I resisted him mentally, I
still didn’t push him away when I felt him stroking the back of my neck. He twisted my hair around his hand and leaned in toward me again. He found my lips and kissed me softly at first, but when he realized I wasn’t stopping him, his passion heated, and he began kissing me almost violently. I found something somewhere in me to push him away and slap his face—but I ignored it.
I suddenly found myself kissing him back. My lips moved with his in ways they never had with Aidan. Aidan had always stopped me before letting me get too involved, and that’s when I realized this could go on as long as I wanted it to; this could lead to whatever I chose. I wrapped my arms around his neck, and he pulled me close against him. I could feel the hardness of his chest and the strength in his arms as he wrapped them around me. I never realized the thin lines of muscles I could feel in his stomach. I found myself admiring the feel of his body near my own. I found myself wanting him closer to me, but there was no way that could be right, and I knew it.
I tried to pull away, but I wasn’t strong enough against his passion. I pushed on his shoulders with the heels of my hands and arched my back until I was free.
He stared at me. His expression was a collage of confusion and triumph. I sighed and looked away from him.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered. He touched my face, and I closed my eyes, waiting for him to kiss me again, wanting him to, but he walked away. I opened my eyes to find that he was back on the couch.
I ran up to my room and locked the door. I didn’t even have time to lie face down on my bed and scream before a knock came at the door.
“Go away!”
“We both know you are going to let me in, so either open up now or argue with me for fifteen minutes.”
I opened the door, and I was once again reminded how stunningly beautiful Aidan was. I pressed myself against him, and he returned my embrace. I took his hand and led him through the doorway and into my room and shut the door. He stared at me, unmoving.
Summers' Deceit (Hunters Trilogy Book 1) Page 17
