The NSC Boxset: Heart of Stone

by D H Sidebottom

  Kade didn’t.

  “She didn’t leave Katie that night Brad; she tried her hardest to save your sister.”

  He scoffed at my words and curled his lips with distaste, “Fuck that bullshit, that’s what she tells us Mason but I know . . . I know what evil is inside her. She helped them; she laughed as Katie screamed in torture. Ava is a tough bitch, there is no way she couldn’t help Katie.”

  “But look at her Brad,” I nodded my head encouraging him to look at Ava but he continued to stare at me. Shit, I needed him to turn, even for a second, so I could nudge forward. I saw Kade through the corner of my eye as his feet slithered across the carpet gradually. “Look at her. Does she look like she can protect herself?”

  I swept my arm out exaggeratedly to get his attention on me. It worked; he watched my arm swing through the air as Kade launched himself at Brad.

  All five men outside the door piled in as I hurled my body into Kade and Brad. There was blood everywhere as they tumbled to the floor, Kade on top of Brad as he rolled him away from Ava.

  I slid to the ground beside her and pulled her onto my lap as the other’s assisted Kade and pulled Brad into a hold. They wouldn’t touch him, they knew he was mine.

  “Baby. Ava . . .” I almost shouted at her and I frantically pulled my rage back, I needed it for later.

  Blood covered every part of her and I tried to wipe it from her face but the blood from her body had seeped onto my hands and I just made it worse, “Baby, please.”

  “Mason” I heard Sam say but I stroked at Ava’s cheek again, desperately trying to wake her.

  “Ava . . .” I shouted this time, almost shaking her to rouse her. “Ava!”

  “Mason . . .”

  “What?” I snarled as I turned to Sam. He moved aside and my heart shattered inside my chest as I saw Kade. His eyes were dead and staring ahead as Elijah furiously fisted his heart to restart it and Neo pressed his knuckles into the open wound in Kade’s neck.

  My whole body shook as a roar of fury surged through my empty soul and my spirit exploded in grief as my lover died in Elijah’s arms and my wife took her last breath in my arms.

  Chapter 42

  Mason

  EVERYTHING FELT SURREAL, almost vapour like and I stared at the wisps of dust floating in the air as they caught the stream of sunlight in the room.

  They hovered before me, the dust practically taunting me that they were free and I would never be. I studied them, my soul trying to leave my body to dance with them, to frolic in the sunlight and leave the shell in which it was held prisoner.

  The particles moved and cavorted in the filth of the dirty hospital waiting room, collecting new fragments of earth’s unnatural refuse and extending its play area.

  They moved and shifted, forming a shape as they grouped together and I finally shifted on my seat for the first time in five hours.

  I stared in disbelief as they transformed in appearance and a structure took shape. My lungs refused to accommodate the air in them as the hairs on my body stood to attention at the sight before me.

  My eyes imperceptibly swept over the form as it stood clear before me.

  “Katie . . .” I whispered instinctively. Although I had never seen her, I knew.

  She smiled softly at me, the specks of random atoms floating around her caught the sun and I blinked as they reflected Katie’s light at me.

  The elements moved as she tilted her head and regarded me, her eyes scanning my body as though she was deciding if I was worthy or not. Her eyes lifted back up to mine and she smiled again.

  Fragments shifted and reformed until her fingers appeared at her lips and she kissed them, twisted her hand, nodded and blew the flakes of dust at me.

  I blinked at the sting in my eyes, squinting as I reopened them to catch sight of her again but she was gone; just a cloud of grains and flecks floating back to the floor.

  I looked around the room but everybody remained motionless, each of them as anxious as I was for news.

  “They’re gonna be okay” I choked out as tears fled from my eyes, their desperation to fall had them flowing down my cheeks in a torrent of release.

  They all turned to look at me and I smiled with a sigh of relief as I closed my eyes and sent up a prayer of thanks. The first time I had ever thanked god, but it definitely wouldn’t be the last.

  Epilogue

  Ava

  3 months later

  “WHERE THE HELL is he?” I grumbled to Mason as I checked my watch for the thirtieth time.

  Katie and George were sat on Nate’s private plane with Mason’s mum as I stood on the tarmac with Mason waiting for Kade.

  “He’ll be here” he sighed as he pulled me into a side hug. His voice was strong but I could feel his apprehension.

  Kade had agreed to come with us to Portugal after all and he was late as usual. His recuperation had taken longer than mine, his release from hospital only being granted a few days ago. I knew he struggled with the sight of his scar. It was jagged and ran the length of his throat from his jaw to his collarbone but neither Mason nor I noticed it anymore.

  “I have a bad feeling, Mason.”

  He frowned but then smiled as he tipped his head towards the departure doors as Kade strolled through.

  My stomach sank as I took a look at him. His footing faltered as he fixed his eyes on mine. “Where’s his luggage, Mason?”

  He was quiet beside me and my soul starting panicking. “Kade?” I swept my eyes over his face as he came before me, his heart displayed openly as he rolled his lips and swallowed gently. “Don’t do this, Kade, please.”

  Mason slipped his hand in mine but I snatched it back, “Kade?”

  His shoulders heaved as he inhaled heavily, “We would never survive, Ava.”

  “What?” I scoffed in bewilderment, “What the hell are you on about?”

  Mason nodded in understanding. He stepped forward and palmed Kade’s cheek, “You know you can always join us if you change your mind.”

  He smiled softly at Mason and nodded, “I do.” Kade pulled Mason into an embrace, and I watched in anger as they embraced hard, both feeding their understanding and affection to the other before Mason took a glance at me and ran up the stairs to the plane.

  “Ava” Kade breathed as he took a step closer. I retreated, taking an identical step back, “Sweetheart, please.”

  I shook my head rapidly as I screwed my eyes up and refused to liberate the tears, “No.”

  His hands gripped me and drew me close. I struggled against him but he held me tighter, his arms wrapping around me as his body took my fury. “Why? Why Kade? It will be fine, it will work. I promise.”

  “Listen to me, Ava” His hands embraced the tops of my arms as he shifted me back a little so I could see his face. That was a waste of time; I couldn’t see him through the rush of my tears.

  “For now, maybe for a few months everything would be great but both Mason and me . . . we’re both so in love with you Ava that we’re eventually going to clash. We both want to own you, both of us want to possess every inch of you, we want you to be ours . . .” His finger tilted my chin until he locked gazes with me, “Our dominance over you will destroy us all and I couldn’t bear for either of you to hate me.”

  “Never, Kade, we could never hate you.”

  He smiled softly as he placed a gentle kiss on the tip of my nose and palmed my cheek, “And what if I started to hate you? What if we each started to wonder if either of us is spending too much time with the other, or if Mason gives you a better orgasm than me? Or . . . or if Mason started to think you loved me more and were plotting to out him. Or you begin to imagine things that aren’t there between me and Mason?”

  His eyes shone with love but they also held a need for me to understand, to listen to what he was saying and to accept his decision.

  I did understand and I knew deep down he was right but I selfishly wanted both men, wanted the best of both worlds. I wanted to have the cake, o
wn it, possess it and devour it.

  “I’ll always love you Ava, always. You are my first love, the first woman who ever owned all of me. I need you to be happy, sweetheart. I need you to live your life now, not live in the shadow of two controlling men; two men who want everything of you, Ava. We’d drown you, suffocate you with love and I couldn’t bear it if we broke you in our desire to make you happy.”

  My heart was bleeding so much I was sure I could feel the trickle of it over my ribs and down into the pit of me. “But . . . I love you Kade.”

  There, I had said it. For the first time in eight years I told this man I loved him.

  He closed his eyes as if savouring my declaration and as he opened them a tear leaked from the corner and spilled down his face and into the groove of his scar as if trying to heal it. Heal him.

  His eyes moved over my face as he burnt me to his memory and a choked sob left my throat as I palmed his face and brought his mouth to mine, telling him everything my heart had to tell him as I delivered my soul to him. He would own it now, carry it with him forever as it protected and cherished him from the inside. He would always possess a part of me.

  “I’ve loved you for eight years, Kade and I will love you for eternity.”

  He nodded as his tears flowed freely, his chest stuttering with his sobs as mine choked me.

  “As I will always love you Ava, forever and absolutely” he whispered as he rested his lips on my forehead.

  “Go.” Was the last word I ever heard from him, the last time I would ever hear the soft grate of his voice and the last time my heart would stutter at his closeness.

  I turned and walked; walked away from a part of my heart, a huge part of my life and all of my soul as I ascended the plane stairs and never looked back.

  Never once saw his face again.

  Never heard his words of love again.

  Never felt his tender touch again.

  Never saw the twinkle of fun in his eyes again.

  But never regretted his decision.

  He was right; we would have destroyed each other in our attempt at happiness, in our effort to share each other and in our greed.

  Mason had pushed aside his fear and his own wants in his endeavour to make me happy, but in the end would he have been happy? Would he have been content in life as he watched another man love and please me, another man own the part of me that should be exclusive to Mason.

  Mason was my world, the life force than ran though my veins and I would forever be his, wholly and entirely.

  “Ava?”

  I turned to him as his fingers gently swiped my tears, “We’ll be fine, baby. We’ll be happy. I promise.”

  I nodded, I knew it and as I turned to look at my babies, my amazing peanuts, I understood finally that God had repaid his debt to me, reimbursed me for the blackness that had once overwhelmed me and had offered me a way out and I was grasping it with both hands.

  It was time now; time to take what was offered and relish it, consume it and feed from it and time to live. Live a life my parents would have wanted for me. Live a life that George had fought for me and finally live the life that Katie had granted back to me.

  Time to live the life that my family cherished me with.

  THE END

  Chapter 1

  Mason

  KERRIE LIFTED A brow as I walked through the door and huffed loudly. “What the hell, Mason?”

  “Nice to see you too, sis.”

  I walked over to Courtney and placed a kiss on her head, ignoring Kerrie’s heated glare on my back. “Hey.”

  She smiled widely, her bright eyes dancing with delight and peered behind me before her face dropped, “Where is she?”

  I smiled and cupped her cheek, “Relax, she’s just settling the kids then she’ll be in.” The grin that covered her face made my heart smile and I gave her a wink.

  “Don’t ignore me Mason,” Kerrie grumbled and I turned to her. I was having trouble reining in my anger at the state of her and I clenched my fists to try and steal the fury swirling inside me, its intensity making my lungs tighten and my heart beat crazily as my eyes roamed over the mess some fucking bastard was gonna pay for.

  One of her blackened eyes was shut tight, the swelling large and furious as the purple skin pulled taut against the inflammation. She had numerous grazes and bruises on her face as her swollen split lip still trickled a trail of blood down towards her chin even though it had been stitched hours ago. But what I was having real trouble with was the knife score straight across her throat and I rubbed my face with my hands as I blew out a hefty breath.

  “I can handle this Mase; you shouldn’t have come all the way home for this,” she said as she narrowed her eyes on me and I sank my teeth into my lower lip to restrain the scolding I wanted to give her.

  I scoffed and shook my head, “Kerrie it’s a few hours on a plane. It takes longer to drive to bloody Scotland. You’re my sister and I do not like what I’m seeing here.”

  She sighed as she hoisted her beaten up body into a sitting position and I reached out to help her but she hissed at me. “When you handed over the business to me, Mason, tell me why.”

  I shrugged at her, not understanding what she was expecting from my answer, “I’m not sure what you mean. You’re my sister and it was the right thing to do.”

  She nodded and pursed her lips, “But you could have handed it over to Sam or Greg, so why me?”

  “Because you’re a tough bird who has her head screwed on and isn’t gonna go into things all guns blazing without thinking it through. You understand the ins and outs and you know how to deal with stuff.”

  She opened her palms, sweeping them across the bed and nodded, “Thank you, so what the hell are you doing here?”

  Running my tongue over my teeth, I leaned into her and narrowed my own eyes, “I am here because no one fucks with my family. I don’t care if you’re gonna be an arse with me Kerrie, but I’m here to sort this shit.”

  “You are a fucking caveman. I can handle this, I didn’t and don’t need your help. You left this shit for a reason and I not happy knowing you’re gonna run back every time there’s a problem.”

  “Tough!”

  She huffed and shook her head in frustration but conceded the fight and leaned back onto the headboard. “So where’s my little people and where are you staying?”

  I stood back up, more relaxed now that Kerrie had accepted how things were gonna be. “We’ve rented a house and they’re already round at Layla and Lucas’s.”

  I flinched at her hurt look but smiled as I took her hand, “I didn’t know what to expect with you so I stopped them from coming until I was sure you could handle them. George is going through some issues at the moment and I didn’t wanna upset him more.”

  She frowned at me as Courtney came to sit beside her, both of them concerned with what I had said. “What issues?”

  I exhaled noisily and shrugged. How did I put into words what I couldn’t even explain to myself.

  “I don’t really know but he seems to be drifting away from me and clinging on to Ava too much,” I clicked my tongue as my stomach clenched with George’s recent behaviour. “It’s like he . . .”

  “Like he . . . ?” Courtney pressed as I moved my gaze to the window.

  “Like he . . . hates me.”

  They both shook their heads and rolled their eyes at me, as though I was exaggerating but they didn’t know, they hadn’t seen how he was with me, so I just shrugged it off with them.

  “Details” I ordered as I pulled up a chair and leant forwards, resting my elbows on my knees as I braced myself.

  “Mason, I’m tired. Greg has all the details, can’t you just ask him?”

  I sighed with a heavy anger as I watched her struggle with the pain as she tried to settle down under the sheets.

  “Come round tonight. I’ll dump the kids on Greg’s mom and we can make a night of it.” Courtney told me and I didn’t miss the heat in her eyes as she sil
ently revealed what else we would be doing along with talking.

  “Sure.” I smiled slyly at her as I pushed my chair back and planted a gentle kiss on Kerrie’s forehead, avoiding her cuts, “Sleep, I’ll bring the twins in tomorrow.”

  She nodded and smiled tiredly before I walked from the room. The difficulty at keeping my rage sustained was growing worse by the second as my blood heated at the sight of her. There was nobody more gentle and caring than Kerrie and this . . . this bullshit needing dealing with, fast.

  And mercilessly.

  Chapter 2

  Ava

  “YOU ARE KIDDING me?” I laughed as I swiped a pizza slice from the box and stared at Courtney.

  “Uh-uh.” Her lips twisted gleefully as her eyes twinkled with the fun. “He grinned at Lay, practically ate her up as she danced, then Lucas turned, glared at him and lifted his wedding ring in warning.”

  My jaw dropped and I stared at her, “Yeah but . . . Bulk! Room 103 Bulk, in the Panther! Damn, I miss all the excitement.”

  “They were all in there, but it was Bulk that was eyeing Layla.”

  Mason growled beside me and I rolled my eyes and stared at him, “I’m sure Lucas looked after her, Mason. In fact Little Willow doesn’t need any protection; she’s a near match for me.”

  Scoffs resounded in the room as I leant for my drink. “Come on then, what’s the score?” Mason asked and we all looked at Greg.

  He sighed and frowned as his face covered with a slight anguish, “It’s sorta’ hard to explain but I’ll start from the beginning.”

  “Well, yeah that would help.” Mason scoffed sarcastically and I glared at him. He raised an eyebrow at me, goading me to argue but I rolled my eyes and backed down. We didn’t need to argue when this was something that needed sorting sooner rather than later.

  “William has been called for jury duty.” Greg started and I groaned, knowing where this was going before he’d got there. He turned to me and nodded, “Yep, the Denarii case that’s been in all the press.”

  “Fuck!” Mason spat as he leaned back in his chair to digest the information.