Chapter 35
35
SOFIA
I t’s over. Stephen Black is really gone. We’re all safe.
The moment I enter Briar House, I spread out my arms and inhale deeply. It smells like my childhood, sweet and inviting..
“Sofia!” Carina comes out of the dining room and throws herself on me. “You’re here!”
“Where’s Gideon?” I ask, craning my neck to peer out the front door where multiple guards are chatting. “He was right behind us.”
Luca and Carina look at each other. I narrow my eyes on them both. “What’s going on? Where is Gideon?”
“Sofe, we need to talk.” Luca attempts to take my hand, but I snatch it away.
“Where is he?” I repeat.
“You should sit. Come with me.” Carina puts her arm around my shoulder and tries to guide me to the parlor.
I shrug her off. “Just tell me what’s happening.”
“Sofe, I…” Luca takes a calming breath. “Gideon made a deal with me.”
“Regarding?” I’m getting more and more agitated by the second.
“You.” His tone is low, as if he wants me calm before delivering some horrid blow. “We all believed it would be best if he left after we rescued you.”
I shake my head violently. “No. He would never have agreed to that. I’m his!” I point to my chest. “Where is he? I need to talk to him.”
“We don’t know where he went, Sofia,” Carina interjects. “But he’s not coming here. He’s never coming back here.”
“Liar!” I scream at Carina and she takes a step back in shock. “He would never have let me go. You did something to him. What did you do?”
“Nothing. We did nothing,” Luca says. “He knew this was the right thing for you and the baby. Don’t you see, Sofe? He’s exactly like his father.”
“He’s nothing like Stephen,” I hiss.
“He took you against your will,” Luca reminds me. “He stole you from us!”
“I went with him!” I wipe angry tears from my cheeks. “I’m the one that pursued him. I went into the car willingly. And do you know why? Because I wanted him!”
“You’d delusional. It’s the stress.”
“Should I call the doctor?” Carina asks.
From my waist, I tug out my knives. I slice them through the air so that they get the message. “Call him and I’ll slit your throats.”
Carina covers her neck with both her hands protectively. “Luca.”
Luca stands in front of her and extends his hands imploringly. “Sofia, it was for your own good. Even Gideon agreed you were better off.”
“You have no right to make that choice for me.” I lunge again and he flinches. “Give me the car keys.”
“Sofia, don’t do this,” he begs.
“Give me the damn keys!” I’m crazed, my breath coming in harsh pants.
“Where are you going?” he asks as he carefully hands me the keys to his car.
“I’m going to find Gideon. He must still be at the manor. Don’t try to stop me, Luca. I love him and I will kill anyone that gets in the way. Even you.”
His shoulders drop and he lowers his eyes. “I only wanted to protect you. I love you, Sofe. I want to keep you alive.”
Damn him and his ability to touch that soft spot inside me even when I’m fuming. “I love you too, Luca. But in keeping me alive, you’re also not letting me live.”
“You really love him, don’t you?”
“Yes!”
Something inside him gives and he nods. “Fine. Go to him. Find him and live.”
Tossing the knives to the floor, I throw myself onto my brother. His arms come around me tight as we hug. I wipe my tears on his shoulder, and say, “Thank you, Luca.”
“When you’re ready, come home. Please.”
“Kingsbrook is my home,” I tell him. “But you will always be my big brother.”
It’s still raining when I arrive at Kingston Manor. Everything is dark. The bodies of the men that fought are still here, waiting for someone to come claim them.
“Gideon!” I call out, but all I hear is the echoing of my own voice. “Gideon, where are you?”
I run through the house, past the goriness in the grotto and up the stairs. When the alliance forced their way into the house, I finally opened the door of my dark room. Both blades in my hands, I was ready to kill whoever I encountered. When I saw it was Luca, I flew into his arms.
“Sofe, you’re alive.”
“You have no idea how happy I am to see you.” We embraced tightly, both of us refusing to let the other go.
Luca wrapped his arm around my shoulders as he guided me past the carnage, shielding me from it. He’s not here to do that now.
It’s terrible that anyone had to lose their life like this. The worst part, most of these men will go to an anonymous grave, with no one there to mourn them. No one who even knows they’re dead.
I understand better than ever why Scarlet was adamant about having a plot next to Gideon. She doesn’t want to end up like them.
Hurriedly, I go up the stairs, searching the entire first floor for Gideon. When I don’t find him, I go up to his suite. Still nothing.
Then, it occurs to me where he might be.
“Gideon!” I burst into my old room.
There, in the alcove, is Gideon. He’s sitting in the freezing darkness, staring out the stained-glass window. I move closer and spy the firearm in his hand.
“Gideon, no!” I fall beside him, grabbing the thing and tossing it far from us. “What were you about to do?” I cry. “Oh my, God!”
“I don’t know.” He turns to me slowly, and blinks. “Sofia?”
“I’m here. I’m here.” I cup his face and kiss him on his lips, his cheeks. “Everything is going to be okay.”
“You came back?” He looks at me as if he can’t believe I’m truly here.
“Of course I did, you stupid man.” I kiss him again and again, my tears covering every inch of his face. “Why did you let me go in the first place?”
He takes hold of my wrists and holds my hands to him. “Because… I love you.”
My heart swells at his declaration. “Don’t ever do that again.”
“You can’t stay.” He shakes his head vehemently. “You must go back to Luca. We made an agreement.”
“That I wholly disagree with! What right did you have to make that decision?”
“It’s for the best,” Gideon insists. “I’m a monster, Sofia. I’m like my father and you’re everything that is good and worth fighting for.”
“I’m not. I’m a little bit bad too, remember?”
“No.” He shoves me away and stands. “I had to make you believe you were like me so that you’d stay. But you’re not. You gave up your freedom for your brother. I forced you to love me. You said so yourself. It’s Stockholm. My father did it to me. I did it to you. You should hate me.”
Stockholm. The day I mentioned it, he recoiled. He must have already been considering the possibility. I didn’t mean it, because I don’t believe it was my case. But it might be his.
I stand too, refusing to back down. “You’re right, I should hate you. You held me against my will, seduced me. You used me.”
He fists his hands and clenches his jaw. “Yes, I did.
“And you destroyed your world to save mine.” I reach for his hand and lace my fingers with his. “So I’m left with only one choice. The only one I ever had.”
His gaze lifts to mine. “What’s that?”
“I’m going to keep you, Gideon.” I lean into him. “Forever.”