Indebted

by Amy A. Bartol

  “Where are ye going?” Brennus asks me in stern tone.

  “To my room,” I reply.

  “Good, ye need a shower, but first, we must have a discussion, ye and me. So, have a seat,” he orders. I stop, knowing that he’ll have his way, one way or the other, so I might as well stay and listen to what he has to say to me. “Declan, Lachlan—wait outside wi’ Faolan and Eion. Finn, I’ll talk ta ye after,” he says, and I stand stiffly as Finn and Molly pass me without a word, like I have wounded them or something.

  When I am alone with Brennus, I sit down at a table and watch as Brennus looks around at the overturned tables and smashed chair.

  “Ye know dat Finn could have easily hurt ye?” Brennus asks as his eyes fall on me.

  I shrug, “Maybe.”

  “Na maybe. He could have broken ye in two because he is very powerful,” Brennus says. “He would na do it tough, and do ye know why?” he asks me.

  “Because you’ll kill him if he does,” I reply.

  “Dere’s dat, but wi’ Finn, I tink ’tis more dat he loves ye, too,” Brennus says in a soft tone. I scoff. “Ye laugh,” Brennus’ brows draw together in a frown. “Why do ye tink he asked for Molly? He wants someting ta love dat will love him in return, and I tink he has found it. He has na had dat since before he was turned, and after we met ye he began to crave it—to yearn for it.” Brennus is watching me for my reaction. “He’s tryin’ to find da alternative ta fightin’ me for ye and I tink he has—I tink he is content wi’ Molly.”

  “He killed her, just like Aodh killed you,” I say, watching him for his reaction. “Did you kill Finn so that you could control him like a slave?” I ask, wanting badly to hurt him like he’s hurt me.

  Brennus stills. Click—his fangs thrust forth in his mouth, letting me know that I have offended him deeply. “Ye want ta know whah happened? Ye want ta know how it was for Finn and me?” he asks with deadly calm.

  “Yes, I want to know why he’s so loyal to you,” I reply, feeling every nerve in my body growing tense and alert because I know I’m pushing a very lethal predator—one that can have me begging for mercy in a matter of seconds.

  “Finn is me little brudder. Me true brudder,” Brennus says significantly. “He was da light of our family—always followin’ me around. He was the kind of lad dat everyone liked—he could make anyone smile wi’ his antics,” Brennus says, and his face loses some of its sternness. “He was so different from me. I was the eldest—quiet, responsible—always working hard ta be da best at everyting. Finn jus didna have ta work at anyting…he could jus do whahever he wanted because of his sweetness. He jus drew everyone in and ye felt better for being near him. Do ye know whah I mean?” he asks me and I nod.

  “It’s the same with Russell. He’s just like that, too,” I say and see the flash of recognition in Brennus’ eyes when I mention Russell’s name.

  “One day, our village was raided by the Gancanagh and Finn was taken. Me Mam cried for days. She begged me athair, dat’s me fadder, to send out warriors to try ta fetch the ones dat were taken, ta get Finn back for her. Me fadder was da equivalent ta a king where we come from, but he knew ’twas no use, dat dey were probably dead, drained as food.”

  “So you went instead?” I ask quietly, knowing the answer.

  “I did, ’twas Finn, I had ta try ta get him back,” he says, like there was no other option open to him. “I didna stand a chance against Aodh, but I went anyway. I was so scared and filled wi’ rage. I know how it feels, mo chroí, da rage dat eats at yer insides like a poison because ye know dat ye lost—dat dere’s only defeat left ta ye. I was in dat cell, too, but I couldna choose death, like ye did. I couldna leave Finn alone, ta face Aodh alone, ta be his slave. He is na like us, mo chroí, he isna strong like dat,” he whispers.

  He moves to my side, bending down he wipes away the tears that have fallen from my eyes. His face softens as he scans mine. He is looking at me like he has never seen me before, or tears. Maybe no one has mourned his death in a long time, but I feel filled with sorrow over the loss of his life.

  “Jus when I tink I know everyting about ye, ye surprise me. Ye can have tears for me, even when I have hurt ye,” he says with a gentle voice.

  “You’re like me, Brennus,” I murmur, “sometimes we don’t know that it’s best to run. Hanging on in desperation seems to be our way.”

  “Ye’re a warrior. Defeat is never ta be tolerated, but ’tis da way, Genevieve. I take someting ye love, like Molly, and it makes it easier ta submit because ye can na leave her here wi’out yer help, wi’out ye ta protect her,” he says. “It will be up ta ye ta see dat I do na have ta take anyting else dat ye love, like da other,” he adds, and I know he is talking about Russell.

  Would he try to turn him, too, just to bind me to him more than I am now? I wonder feebly.

  “Ye are too strong. Submission is hard for ye, I know dat. I promise ye, ’tis da last ting ye’ll ever have ta submit ta because after dat, I will give ye da world—anyting ye want—everyting, jus choose me, love me.”

  “Why would you do this to me, if you love me, Brennus?” I ask in desperation, not understanding why he would insist on my becoming Gancanagh if he himself would have chosen death if it had not been for Finn.

  He strokes my cheek lovingly as he says, “Because I know more dan ye do. I’ve lived for a long time, I see whah lies ahead for ye. Ye have more enemies dan ye know. Da aingeals who have been protecting ye must know whah ye are facing, even if ye do na. I wanted nuting ta do wi’ ye when Alfred first told me of ye, knowing whah ye will face. Wi’out dat portrait, ye would probably still be back in Houghton. It’s because I love ye dat ye’re here now. I’ll protect ye, even if ye do na like it.”

  “I don’t like it. I want to go home,” I breathe, placing my hand over his on my cheek and staring into his eyes.

  “Ye are home. Accept it,” he replies. I lower my eyes from his, dropping my hand.

  My shoulders round. “I want to go to my room now,” I say in a near whisper.

  “Ye can go in a minute. I want to say one more ting ta ye,” he says softly, gripping my chin and turning it so I will meet his eyes again. “Ye can na walk around here unaccompanied. Dis is yer home, but ‘til everyone gets used ta ye being around, I need ye ta be watched. It’s for yer protection, na because I do na trust dat ye will hold ta yer end of our bargain,” he says in a gentle tone, watching me for signs of dissent.

  The thought strikes me then, like a bolt of lightning—I can’t be bitten. That breaks the contract. If they bite me and I survive it, I’m free. Then I cringe, remembering the pain and fierce need for blood after I was bitten the last time. I had been almost completely out of it and would’ve given in not soon after if not for Russell saving me.

  Could I survive it again? If I can, then I can have Reed. That’s worth any risk, worth any pain. I must be smiling because Brennus’ face stills near mine.

  “Whah are ye tinking?” he asks with suspicion.

  “Be careful not to get too caught up in my world, Brennus,” I warn him in a soft tone, watching his eyes grow darker. As I reach out and touch his face, running my fingertips over the cold planes of his cheek, I add, “I may just end up doing you wrong.”

  “I will remember dat, ye sweet aingeal,” he replies, focusing on my mouth.

  “See that you do,” I reply.

  “I want ta spend some time wi’ ye, mo chroí. Will ye allow me ta show ye around da grounds later on, after ye have cleaned up a bit?” he asks.

  My hand stills on his cheek. The Brennus I know gives orders and expects everyone around him to do what they’re told. To be asked is quite a change.

  “Uhh, sure…why not. I have no idea where I am right now and no way of knowing how to get back to my room. Maybe you can let me in on that secret, too,” I say, watching his eyes as I pull my hand away from his face.

  “Maybe I could,” he replies playfully. “Ye’re in da kirk. I should’ve known dat if ye’re look
ing for an aingeal, ye should start in da chapel,” he says. Standing, he extends his hand for me to take.

  “Well, it was empty, so it looked like a good place to eat in peace.” I say, taking his hand and walking with Brennus out the doors.

  My personal guards fall in behind us as we pass them, making me feel a little self-conscious. I’m only wearing a backless t-shirt that says ‘shut yer gob’ and Declan’s boxers that I had to fold over at the waistband so they wouldn’t fall off of me. My wings are arcing out, too, because I haven’t tried putting them back in. I probably can, but they’re helping me feel less naked.

  Passing fellas I don’t know, they all stop and step to the side, allowing us to walk by while they incline their heads. “Why do they all do that?” I ask Brennus, inching closer to him because it’s kind of creepy.

  “’Tis a sign of respect,” Brennus says, knowing what I’m talking about without me having to explain it.

  “What am I supposed to do when they do that?” I ask him.

  He smiles down at me in amusement. “Nuting, but if one of dem doesna do it, ye tell me and I’ll kill him,” he says.

  “Why?’ I scoff, thinking of the fellas in the hallway earlier that flashed their fangs at me.

  “Ye are deir queen,” he replies.

  I roll my eyes. “Oh, that’s right,” I say with sarcasm, “where is my tiara and I seem to have misplaced that darn scepter.”

  Brennus’ face grows serious. “If ’tis a tiara dat ye want, it will be yers, but dey know whah ye are wi’out it,” he replies.

  “I don’t want a tiara, Brennus,” I sigh. “I wouldn’t know what I’d do with it. You have seen how I was raised. I know that you have been in the house that I grew up in. They said you took everything that I owned from the storage unit. This is all so…I don’t…” I say, before falling silent because this is all so bizarre.

  Magical creatures aside, I can’t get over the opulence of where I am now. It’s like the chateau where everywhere I look there is an amazing work of art or a delicate, silk covered settee and these are just hallways. My room is filled with priceless pieces of furniture and artwork, but I have yet to see anything that used to belong to me in it.

  “I understand,” Brennus says next to me. I frown up at him. How can he possibly know how I’m feeling? “Molly told us many stories of when ye were a wee lass,” he adds, placing his hand on the small of my back as we begin to climb a grand stone staircase, ushering me up. “She said dis will be hard for ye in dat ye’re na one ta crave a lot of attention or wealth. Dat makes tings harder for me, na easier.”

  “Why does that make it hard for you?” I ask him curiously.

  “Well, making ye me queen makes ye da center of attention, and I am wealthy, so ye probably feel like a stranger in a strange land,” he says. I almost stumble because that’s exactly how I feel. “And, since I treated ye so poorly da last time ye were wi’ me, ye are probably scared too, but ye will na show it because ye have more courage dan ye should.”

  “Maybe you’re not as scary as you think you are,” I reply.

  He looks at me with a grin. “I am scary, never forget dat,” he warns, turning into my room. Only Declan enters the sitting room of my suite with Brennus and me. He checks everything before he nods to Brennus and leaves the room, taking a position with my other guards in the hallway.

  Turning to Brennus, I feel awkward with him here. This has been my sanctuary from all of them for the past few days and now he’s invading that space. It’s his house, but I feel territorial about these rooms.

  Twisting my hands nervously, I blurt out, “Where do you sleep?” His eyes grow dark and a small smile softens his lips. I try again, “I mean…where’s your room?”

  “Dis is me room,” he says, watching me grow pale as all the color drains from my face.

  “Excuse me?” I ask.

  “I have moved most of my tings into dis closet in da suite,” he says, walking to one of the enormous walk-in closets and pulling it open, he lets me see his exquisite suits, tailored jackets, shirts and ties, belts and shoes. “I do na require sleep, so giving ye da bed has na been a hardship ta me, unless ye consider dat I miss being in it wi’ ye. I tought dat ye needed some time ta get used ta me before we get ta dat.”

  Feeling my heartbeat kick up and my face flush with color, I turn away from him and the closet, not seeing much of anything.

  Brennus walks across the sitting room to the opposite wall from the bedroom. He opens another door, and as he holds it wide, he beckons me into a large, comfortable office area that has a carved desk. Hand-crafted sofas and chairs are arranged in a few seating areas, but there is still plenty of room to roam around.

  I walk with measured steps to the windows that have a view to the sea beyond. A wide set of double doors leads to a balcony that has a stone table and luxurious chairs for sitting and enjoying the sun, if it ever comes out in this part of the world. Mostly it has just been overcast and gray, I think to myself, feeling numb.

  When I turn away from the view, my eyes lightly touch everything in the office until they fall on something that makes my pulse beat painfully in my chest. Without a word, I walk to Brennus’ desk, picking up the figurine on it that I recognize. My fingers tremble as I run them over the smooth, marble surface—the image of me in my field hockey uniform. It’s one of the carvings that Reed created. It used to be in his room in Crestwood.

  “’Tis as if he saw ye in da marble and worked ‘til he set ye free,” Brennus says from just behind me. “It tells me whah I need ta know about him.”

  I know better than to speak Reed’s name to Brennus. He is testing me to see what my reaction will be to all of this. “It says a lot about you, too,” I say, putting the statue back down on the desk just where I had found it.

  “Whah does it say about me?” he asks as I turn to face him, noticing his beautiful arching eyebrow rise in question.

  Reaching out, I play with a button on his shirt, looking up into his eyes to see that they are focused on my fingers. “It says that you are so possessive of me that you will not even let him have a piece of stone, if it represents a piece of me.”

  A sexy smile forms on his lips while he touches my finger as it rests against his chest. Bringing it to his cold lips, he kisses just the tip of it, watching my reaction to what he is doing.

  “Dat is very shrewd, Genevieve. Whah will ye do wi’ da information dat ye learn?” he asks, his dark hair falling across his brow as he leans closer to me.

  “I’ll do with it what you’ve been doing,” I reply, watching his lips near mine. When he is a breath away, I say, “I’ll use it to my advantage. You have your plans and I will have mine.”

  “Da sooner ye stop seeing me as yer enemy, da sooner we can begin ta enjoy one another,” he says softly, pressing his cold lips lightly against mine.

  I want to be indifferent to his kiss, but that is not the reaction I’m having at all. I feel a mess of emotions all caving in on me. I feel rage and desire—a need to tear him apart coupled with a need to pull him to me. I grip the edge of Brennus’ desk so that I won’t do either option. I cannot allow myself to hurt him because I’ll be hurting myself too—not until I get out of this magical contract.

  As he pulls back from me, deep desire enters Brennus’ light green eyes. “So strong,” he says to himself. “Even wi’ me in yer blood, ye can still resist.”

  “What?” I ask breathlessly.

  “I have bitten ye. I’m in yer blood. I know dat ye desire me—’tis whah happens when ye’re bitten, and yet, ye fight it,” he says, puzzled yet very intrigued.

  “You forget, he is in my blood now, too,” I say in a soft tone, watching anger transform his face from lovely and sultry to cold and hard. He must not have remembered that I swore a blood oath to Reed. Reed’s blood is now mixed with mine, so that he is always with me, no matter where I am.

  “I will erase him from everyting, even yer heart,” he promises me with deadly calm.
>
  His words steal my breath for a second while images of ways to crush Brennus flash in my mind. The angel in me is raging, wanting to suffocate him, like he is doing to me. He is empty bliss. I will free myself from him and then I will kill him.

  I force myself to smile, but I know that it’s not reaching my eyes. This is a game and the winner is the one who doesn’t lose his cool. “To the victor goes the spoils, Brenn, don’t be angry if I’m a sucker for the underdog,” I say, pushing him back lightly with my hand so that I can step around him. “I’m going to clean up, then, you can show me the house.”

  I walk out of the office and across the sitting room into the bedroom. Closing the door, I run to the bathroom. I close that door too, locking it even though I know that he doesn’t need to use a key to open the door, he can just break it down. Leaning against the door, I hold my breath, but Brennus is not following me. I still feel the shape of his lips against mine as I put my fingers to my mouth, but that is nothing compared with the empty shape he leaves inside my heart.

  CHAPTER 13

  The Queen

  After taking a quick shower, I walk to the vanity, finding all kinds of perfume bottles that range in different sizes and shapes. I unstop a few, holding them to my nose to smell the scents inside. They range from light, flowery odors to exotic, sexy aromas. I don’t put any of them on; I bet that the scent of my blood is heady enough for the fellas without adding anything to it.

  Taking my time, I style my hair, sweeping it up away from my neck. A plan has been running through my mind since I left Brennus in his office. I want to see just how much of a temptation I am for him and the fellas. I have to figure out if one of them can be enticed into biting me. If so, I have to prepare myself for that type of scenario, because once I’m bitten, the clock will be ticking for me. I will need to have some access to blood other than Gancanagh blood.