CHAPTER 18 #2
“Tough luck. I need to find out why Hilt was trying to find me. Something’s going on here, and I’m pretty sure it’s going to have something to do with my Mum. I need to know what, and make sure Gia’s not caught up in it all.”
“It’s unlikely.”
“Nothing is out of the realms of possibility where my mother and her quest for drugs was concerned. I just need to try and see Hilt before we leave. There has to be an important reason that he went searching for me.”
“Aye, and that reason could be a reward for handing ye over to the Armenians,” Arran grumbled.
“He wouldn’t do that. We weren’t close exactly, but he cared about me. He was protective. I doubt he’d hurt me, but even if that is his plan, you’ll be there, won’t you?”
“Rafe willna like this.”
“You leave Rafe to me. This is what I came all of this way for. I have to see it through, Arran, especially now something’s going on with Gia.”
“Fine, but Brax is coming with us if you’re not comfortable with Dante. I’m not taking any risks.”
“What do we do about Dante?” I asked. I knew he would be fuming that I wouldn’t allow him to come out with us, especially when we were going into a potentially dangerous situation.
“I don’t know, Cara. He hurt ye. I’m so fuckin’ angry wi’ the bastard, I could kill him right now. If Rafe knew…”
“No!” I cried. “We’re not telling Rafe about this. I’m upset with Dante, but he doesn’t deserve Rafe’s wrath.”
“Rafe will ken something’s happened between yer’s as soon as we get home and he sees the two of ye are nae speaking or even being in a room at the same time.”
“I’ll handle it, Arran. I’ll get over what happened. I just need some time. Please, just tell the others not to blab to Rafe,” I pleaded.
“Jesus, Ye know Rafe’ll kill me if he finds out I kept this from him?”
“He won’t find out. Call Cal. I want to leave in twenty minutes.”
With those words I turned and walked back to my bedroom, closing the door behind me once I was inside. I paused there and took some gasping breaths, just trying to get some oxygen in.
I was freaking out inside. I was back in that hell.
My old life was chasing me like a dark shadow.
Dante had hurt and terrified me. And now Gia was missing, and it likely had something to do with my manipulative monster of a mother.
It was too much, and yet I had to keep it all in.
I had to appear strong so that I could at least see Hilt and find out what he knew.
Hopefully, it would bring an end to this whole nightmare and ensure Gia got home safely.
Maybe then we could work on repairing what had been broken with lies and deceit, and I could finally have my sister back in my life, just as I’d always wanted.
ARRAN
“What’s going on?” Cal asked as he walked into the hotel suite a short while later, his clothes drenched with sweat from his workout.
I knew he had needed it that morning, after spending all night seeing Cara’s fear so open and raw after what Dante had put her through.
That was why I had told him to go as soon as I saw him that morning.
“Cara wants to go and look for this Hilton guy before we get on the plane later.”
“I sort of expected that. She wants answers about her Mum, Arran. I can understand that,” Cal reasoned.
“I know, an’ I’ve agreed we can go, but we’ll need to be careful. Rafe’ll skin us alive if anythin’ happens to her.”
“Were you not being careful before Rafe laid down the law?” Cal smirked.
“Ye know I was,” I sighed. Bloody smart ass! “It’s just, Cara doesnae want Dante comin’ with us either. Have ye seen how bruised she is after last night?”
“She told me she was, but she was too upset to allow me to look last night.”
“Her whole torso is black an’ blue, Cal. Dante really fuckin’ hurt her, and I can only imagine how terrified she had to be, with him holding her that tightly, and no’ lettin’ her free.”
My rage was still right at the surface after seeing her skin marred with all of that bruising, inflicted on her by a man she, and I, had trusted implicitly to never put hands on her.
She was still shaken that morning, hours later.
No one had the right to do that to her, and certainly not someone who was supposed to be there to protect her.
“Can I trust that he won’t be leaving this hotel less bruised than Cara is?” Cal asked with some ire he didn’t often show.
“Aye, ye can bank on that, brother,” I agreed easily. “Can ye see to the lass, make sure she’s up to going out? If she’s no’ I can go there with Brax, and get some answers. Make sure she kens she doesnae need to go if she’s no’ feelin’ up to it.”
“I’ll speak to her, and try to check over her bruises. Where are you going?”
“To handle that monumental dickhead next door.”
“Keep him away from Cara. Make sure he doesn’t go anywhere near her until she tells us she’s ready for that, if she ever is. I’m not sure I would be after the way he acted last night.”
I agreed and turned to leave. My brother was right, Cara may never forgive Dante for what he had put her through, and why should she?
She barely even knew him really. Yes, she had trusted him, but he’d destroyed that now, and I got the sense Cara was not a person who would trust easily in the first place, let alone a second time around.
But if Cara didn’t trust Dante again, then Dante would have to leave Rafe and the family we had all kind of made ourselves into.
If Rafe even knew what Dante had done, I had a feeling he’d kill him.
But if Dante left, I’d be lost. He was as much my brother as Cal.
They all were – him, Dario, and Rafe. Our family wouldn’t be whole without our resident wild card there with us.
I tried to rein in my temper as I crossed the hall and opened the other room door with my key card.
I was pissed with Dante, but he was volatile at the best of times, and I wasn’t insane enough to want him spoiling for a fight with me.
Because that would be bloody and likely result in us killing one another.
But then I walked into the room, just in time to see Dom, one of four of Rafe’s men that we had brought with us, come stumbling out of the bedroom. He had a split lip and blood was trickling from a cut near his left eye.
“What the fuck?” I snapped.
“Dante’s flipping out. He’s not pleased about being kept here,” Dom sighed. “You could give us a hand, if it’s not too much trouble,” he added with a roll of his eyes.
I cracked my neck to both sides and shook my arms loose as I crossed the room to follow Dom.
Dante had Joey, the youngest of the guys with us, in a headlock, the both of them laid across the askew bed. Joey was bleeding and fighting to get free of the hold, but Dante was red faced, breaths heaving, and refusing to relent.
Joey, the poor kid, looked frantic. He wasn’t even supposed to be there. He’d been in Chicago for weeks, investigating Isabella’s murder. He’d only come to join us on this trip, so that he could catch a lift home. Now he was getting his ass kicked by his own fucking boss!
“Christ!” I cursed.
Dom jumped on the bed to grab Dante around his wide neck, causing him to release Joey, and as the lad jumped up, Dom released Dante and leapt out of fist throwing range fast too.
I was ready when Dante jumped up with a roar, fists flying.
I dodged his first two hits, then used my speed to throw a hook at his head hard, when he stumbled back I grabbed him, wrapping my arm around his neck and gave him two swift hits to his ribs, not enough to bust them, but definitely enough for him to feel the pain he had made Cara wake with that morning.
He tried to fight off my grip, but he was tired, likely having been fighting with the others for a while, judging by how cut up and bruised they all were. He had also woken with a nightmare of a hangover and my guess was it was making him sluggish.
“Stop fightin’ me, ye prick!” I hissed at him. I landed a couple more blows to his side and his fight died.
“You shouldn’t be here! Who’s with Cara?” he growled.
“Cal and Brax. She’s safe. She doesnae want ye anywhere near her, ye stupid bastard!” I raged. I released him and when he doubled over in pain I kicked out at his other side, determined to ensure his whole body was as bruised as Cara’s.
“Fuck off, Arran!” he cursed as he fell back, landing on the end of the bed.
“She’s bruised, Dante! Her whole fucking torso, front, back, and sides. Bruised because ye put hands on her, and terrified her!” I barked as I fell back, leaning heavily against the wall opposite him, breathless and still filled with fury.
I was grateful when Dom and Joey quietly left the room, closing the door behind them. I knew they wouldn’t share anything they heard us discuss, but I still didn’t want them knowing Cara’s business.
“She was bruised before,” Dante sighed.
“Don’t you dare!” I snapped. “You fuckin’ terrified her! Ye locked her in a room and had her crying out for help! And the bruises all over her are new, and yer doing! What were ye thinkin’ getting’ drunk? Ye know it sends ye stark ravin’ mad!”
“I don’t know. I didn’t mean to. I was just angry. Cara needs to understand that she’s mine, and she doesn’t! She put herself in danger last night. She tried to deny me protecting her!”
“She’s no’ yours, pal,” I sighed. “She doesnae want to belong to anyone, and she’s an adult.
She gets to make her own decisions, foolish or no’ without anyone treating her like she’s a naughty fuckin’ kid.
I understand that ye want to protect her.
We all do, but ye can’t try and bulldoze her.
She’s had too much of that in her life.”
“Did I really scare her that much?” he asked as he looked to me with regret, finally.
“Yes, ye did. Cal was up wi’ her all night and she’s still shaky and jumpy this mornin’ too.
She’s asked that she no’ have to see ye, and I agreed I’d make sure we respected that.
Ye fucked things up, Dante. Now yer gonna have to step back and leave Cara be, at least until she feels ready to face ye again,” I explained honestly.
“Fuck that! She’s not safe right now. I don’t care what she wants. She needs me to be close, to protect her. She’ll get over this. We don’t let her have a choice in the matter!”
I couldn’t have held back if I tried. I stood and lunged forward, punching out and landing a blow to the left side of Dante’s jaw before he even saw it coming.
“What the…” Dante glared at me as he held the side of his face.
“If ye ever try to take Cara’s choice from her again, I’ll kill ye, Dante, and that isnae just a figure of speech!
Cara has been abused and raped, taken advantage of her whole bloody life.
She’s had all of her choices taken from her for too long.
That’s no’ happening any longer. I won’t allow it, and neither will Rafe.
If he ken’t what you did to his sister last night, he’d likely kill ye anyway. ”
“Arran…”
“No! Stay away from Cara! I won’t tell Rafe about last night, as long as ye do, but the first time ye try to approach her, or upset her, I’ll tell him everything.
Yer my brother, but I’ll no’ sit back and let ye scare Cara away from the life she deserves,” I raged.
“Pack yer bags and make yer way to the airport. I’ll tell Rafe you needed to wrap up some lose ends, and ye’ll be making yer own way home. ”
“But Cara…”
“Isnea yer concern right now. I’ll make sure she’s safe. When we all get back to London, ye stay out of Cara’s way. Am I clear?”
“I don’t like it. I should talk to Cara. She’ll understand,” he argued.
“If ye went into that room right now, I think Cara would have a panic attack and run from ye. You were all of her terrifyin’ memories and nightmares come true last night, and she’s no’ gonna get over that fast. Like I told ye, ye fucked up. I wouldnae blame the lass if she never forgives ye.”
“I can’t live with that.”
“Then do as I’ve told ye, and give her some time. Hopefully, she’ll come around when everything calms down.”
“Okay,” he gave in. “But will you tell her I’m sorry, please? I need her to know. I’m never going to drink again, not if it means I could hurt the people I love.”
“I’ll tell her.” I assured him, hating to see the pain and fear in his face. Knowing Cara I was sure she would forgive the bastard eventually, but I needed to make sure Dante respected her wishes until she got to that point, whatever it took.