Chapter 16 #2
She let tears gather in her eyes. It wasn’t hard after everything she’d discovered. “I can’t feel him anymore, Fabian. It’s like part of my soul has been ripped away. I’m desperate enough to do stupid things if there’s even a chance...”
Fabian’s expression softened. His predatory calculation gave way to a mask of genuine sympathy. Although Summer was sure it was tinged with satisfaction that his manipulation was working so perfectly.
“Oh, ma chérie.” He edged closer, moving softly. “This is exactly why you shouldn’t be investigating alone. These facilities—” he gestured around the warehouse “—they’re dangerous. The people running them wouldn’t hesitate to hurt you.”
“I’m sorry.” Summer let her voice break. “I just... I needed to do something. Sitting in your lovely home, reading your books, it’s not enough. I’m going crazy.”
“I understand.” Fabian’s hand touched her shoulder gently. “Grief makes us reckless. Makes us chase impossible solutions instead of accepting what we cannot change.”
The words were designed to reinforce her helplessness, to keep her dependent on his guidance. Summer nodded as if accepting this wisdom, when every fiber of her being wanted to rage against his gaslighting.
“But Summer, you must trust me to handle these investigations. The supernatural underworld is more dangerous than you realize.” His pale eyes held hers, and she shivered under their hypnotic intensity.
“Promise me you won’t do this again. Promise me you’ll stay safe at Le Sang while I track down the people responsible for these attacks. ”
Summer hesitated just long enough to seem believable, then nodded. “I promise. I’m sorry, Fabian. You’ve been so good to me, and I repaid you by being foolish.”
“Not foolish. Desperate.” He guided her toward the exit, his hand still on her shoulder in a gesture which looked protective but felt controlling. “Come. Let’s get you home before anything else happens.”
As they walked through the warehouse toward the exit, Summer caught movement in her peripheral vision—the two vampire guards slid back into the shadows, and the voices she’d heard earlier fell silent.
Fabian was cleaning up evidence of his operation, making sure she saw only what he wanted her to see.
“The people I heard talking,” Summer said carefully. “Were they?—”
“Security contractors I hired to investigate the hybrid attacks,” Fabian interjected smoothly. “I’ve been working to dismantle whatever operation is targeting supernatural beings. It’s why this facility has been under surveillance.”
The lie was delivered with such casual conviction, Summer almost believed it herself.
“You’ve been investigating too?” She let a trace of hope into her voice. “Have you found anything to help locate Rowan?”
“I’m following several leads.” Fabian’s hand tightened on her shoulder. “But Summer, you must prepare yourself… He may be beyond help. The mate bond’s silence suggests?—”
“I know what it suggests.” Summer cut him off, letting genuine anguish show. “But until I see his body, I can’t stop hoping.”
“Hope can be a cruelty when it prolongs suffering.” Fabian guided her into the waiting car and settled beside her. “But I understand. I’ll continue searching, ma chérie. For your peace of mind, if nothing else.”
The drive back to Le Sang passed in silence. Summer stared out the window at the Halloween celebrations still raging in the Quarter. Costumed revelers stumbled between bars, street performers juggling fire. The whole city appeared oblivious to the horror unfolding in hidden warehouses.
When they arrived at the mansion, Fabian walked her to her room with solicitous care. At her door, he paused.
“Get some rest. Tomorrow, we’ll discuss how to channel your need for action into something... safer.” His cool hand touched her cheek. “I care about you too much to lose you to reckless investigation.”
“Thank you.” Summer forced herself to lean into his touch, to play the grateful dependent. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“You’ll never have to find out.” His smile was warm, possessive. “Sleep now. Everything will seem clearer in the morning.”
After he left, Summer locked her door and sank onto the bed, her performance finally cracking.
Closing her eyes, she imagined Rowan on the porch of their cabin in the bayou.
But she immediately thrust the image away.
She’d maintained her cover, convinced Fabian she was still his compliant project.
But she’d also confirmed her worst fears—he was running the operation, using Vatican hunters as cover, systematically destroying supernatural beings while playing the concerned benefactor.
And she was trapped here in his house, pretending ignorance while her mate suffered somewhere she couldn’t reach.
Summer pulled out her phone, looking at Marcus’s contact information. Dawn was still hours away, but she needed allies. Needed people who weren’t playing elaborate games with her sanity and survival.
Tomorrow, she’d reach out to the pack. Tonight, she’d plan her next move carefully, because Fabian was watching more closely than she’d expected. Knowing she was foolish to underestimate him, Summer knew her cage had just gotten smaller, but she was done being a compliant prisoner.
Tomorrow, she would make sure everything changed.