Chapter 47 Collateral – Briar
COLLATERAL
brIAR
Now
My phone buzzes and I reach for it quickly, relieved when I see Lily’s name flashing on the Caller ID. We’ve been playing phone tag since the night after last, and I’m desperate to talk to her and hear Remi’s voice after Gio’s threats this afternoon.
I do a quick scan of the empty studio, even peering out into the darkened hallway before answering. Can’t be too careful with Koen and his guys lurking about.
“Briar?” Lily’s nervous voice comes through on the other end when I don’t immediately say anything after accepting the call.
“Yeah, it’s me,” I breathe out once I’m sure I’m alone, pacing slowly around the studio with the phone pressed up against my ear.
“You alive?” Her tone is teasing, but I can detect an edge of concern.
“I’m surviving,” I admit.
“I’ve been so worried. You didn’t text me back, and when I couldn’t reach you last night...”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“What’s going on?” she asks, picking up on my tense tone.
“Are you alone?” I ask, not wanting Remi to overhear Lily’s half of the conversation.
“For now…” Lily confirms. In a house with both of her parents, two brothers, and my daughter, that’s got to be the best case scenario.
“He found me again.”
“Who?” There’s a pause before she continues,”Oh Shit! Koen?” She whispers his name, as if he can hear her on the other end.
“Yeah. He showed up at Wonderland.”
“Holy shit.”
“I know. I—I’m kind of stuck with him for now.” I bite my lower lip.
“What does that mean?”
“I guess he and Gio had some sort of business arrangement,” I start, deciding how much information to give her for her own safety. “Gio reneged on his end of the deal, and Koen—” My lips press tightly together. “He sort of took me as collateral.”
A choking sound comes through the other side of the phone. “I’m sorry—He what? He kidnapped you?” she hisses.
“No!” I defend, until having to admit, “Yes? Maybe a little bit? It’s a bit of a gray area…”
“Maybe a little bit?!” she squeaks. “Briar!”
“I’m fine.” I attempt damage control, not wanting her to worry.
“Just keep Remi safe. I’ll—I’m handling it,” I say, hoping I sound braver than I feel, considering I just had a mini-meltdown on the studio floor not too long ago.
“The plan is still the plan. He’s paying me,” I say slowly.
“By the end of this, I’ll have the money I need for Remi’s medication, and my debt to Giovanni will be settled. ”
“Koen is… paying you?” Lily’s question is laced with horrified apprehension.
“Not for that!” I clap back, immediately realizing where her mind went.
“Well if not that… for what exactly?”
I check around the studio again, careful to keep my voice as low as possible. “He just wants me with him. To hold me over Gio’s head, I think. And he’s bringing me places—clubs. He wants to know if I recognize anyone from that night at Wonderland and the warehouse.”
I don’t tell her how Koen admitted he and his brothers are trying to take down the trafficking network I got swept up in. One, because I’m still not one hundred percent sure I believe him, and two, if it’s true, and I tell her and he finds out, he might go after her.
There’s a pause, and then her voice comes in softer, “Are you going to tell him?” And I know she’s not talking about familiar faces.
I stop my pacing, turning to stare at myself in the mirror for a long second.
The question has been at the forefront of my mind ever since I saw Koen that night.
It’s a question I’d shoved away for years, constantly reminding myself that the man I’d spent the night with, Rí—with his devilish charm and quiet smiles—wasn’t real.
He’d flipped the switch on me so quickly, he left my head spinning for days.
The real Rí— Koen O’Rourke, is ruthless, all hard edges sharpened by near constant violence.
The man wouldn’t hesitate to kill me if it furthered his agenda.
But yet… he hasn’t hurt me, even when he thought I was a threat and might expose his brother.
And last night, he carried me home and put me to bed instead of taking advantage.
He could have, I wouldn’t have been able to stop him.
The few flashes of memories I have, I remember how gentle his touch had been…
“I don’t know,” I admit. To her… myself… my voice barely audible.
“If you don’t tell him, and he finds out about her—” Lily whispers anxiously into the phone.
“He’s not going to,” I say firmly. “I can’t risk it.
There’s no telling how he’ll react, what he’d do to me.
What if he tries to take her?” My voice betrays my fear and I feel my hand shaking.
I’m not mafia, but I know enough to know those families are insular as all hell.
He’s never going to marry me. Girls in families like his are nothing but currency.
Like his brother’s new wife, Rory, I think her name is.
An object to be traded for one means or another.
I can’t let that happen to Remi. I have to keep her safe.
Koen can’t be trusted.
“Just be careful,” Lily breathes, her anxiety transferring through the phone and feeding mine.
I let out another sharp breath before diving in to what I really need her to know. “That reminds me,” I pause, working through my words on how to say this right, “have you noticed anyone following you?”
There’s a long silence on the other end, long enough I have to verify she’s still there. “Lily?”
“No. Why?” I feel like I can see Lily peering through her curtains as we speak.
“Gio found you. He sent me a photo of Remi. She was wearing that jersey your parents got her.”
“Oh my god.”
“I don’t think he’ll do anything. I’m doing everything he wants, but—he knows where you are. I’m so sorry I dragged you into this.” I press my forehead against the glass, shame burning through me. This is all my fault. I’ve put everyone I love in danger.
“It’s not your fault, Briar.”
I sigh. It is though. But she knows me too well. “Just stay close by your brothers, alright? Is Dash there?”
“Yeah,” she agrees, and I breathe a little easier.
Lily’s two older brothers are a force to be reckoned with. Growing up, my parents were always out of town, and instead of staying home with the hired au pair, I found myself spending more and more time with Lily’s family until they’d all but adopted me as their own.
I spent far more time with her family than I ever did mine. My house was always clean, cold, and empty. But Lily’s house was every bit the opposite. Her house was messy, loud, and pure chaos the majority of the time. Her parents made sure I knew I was always welcome. Always. I loved it.
Her two brothers, Dash and Sam, were pains in our asses growing up, ridiculously over-protective of their little sister, and by extension, her best friend.
I can’t prove it, but I’m almost certain the pair of them are the reason Lily and I stayed single all throughout high school.
No one wanted to piss off the resident hockey gods of Lake Placid.
Especially Dash. He was built like a tank, strong, dependable, good with guns, and he could fight.
Sam, too. While smaller than Dash, he had sharp instincts and noticed things others didn’t. He was a brick wall, both on and off the ice. Dash was lucky enough to score a Division I scholarship at Northgate University right in our hometown, but both Dash and Sam were home for winter break.
"Ok good. He won't have to do anything if I just do what I'm supposed to do...bide my time with Koen, and keep my head down, and we all just might survive this."
I hope.
“Can I talk to Remi?” I ask, my voice thin.
“Of course,” Lily breathes out, the heaviness of our conversation weighing on her. Guilt nags at me again for putting her through this. “Just give me one second, I think she’s still outside with the boys.”
There’s a shuffle and the sound of Lily moving through the house, another shuffle, and then a sweet little voice fills the line, “Mommy?”
My entire body softens and tears prick at my eyes, and I lean back against the mirrored glass of the studio to keep myself upright. “Hi, sweetheart.” I swallow hard, brightening my voice for her benefit. “How’s Auntie Lily’s? Are you having fun?”
“Yeah. Yeah. Mommy, guess what?”
“What?” I ask, smiling at the excitement in her voice.
“Uncle Dash taught me how to skate.”
“He did, did he?”
“I’m a hockey player now!” she boasts, sounding so proud of herself. “I scored a goal on Uncle Sam! Can you believe it?” I’m pretty sure it’s Sam I hear in the background, shouting about how she just got lucky. I can’t help but laugh.
“You did? That’s amazing! I’m so proud of you!”
“Do they have hockey in Boston?”
I can already see where this is going. “I think they do.” Looks like we might be trading in ballet slippers for ice skates.
Shit. Hockey is expensive, isn’t it? The only reason I can afford ballet for her right now is because the studio lets her take lessons for free since I teach there. But maybe if I get that audition…
Remi’s excitement quells and her voice quiets. “Do you think I can play?”
I wince. I can’t make any promises, but I swear to god I’ll figure it out. Of course her asthma is a concern too, but that new medication is supposed to work better…
“I think we can figure something out, baby.”
She screams with excitement and the phone clatters to the floor. The sound of little feet bouncing up and down on the hardwood fills my ears.
“Hi,” Lily laughs, picking the phone back up.
“How’s her asthma?” I ask, chewing my bottom lip, worried about her skating.
“It’s been good. No attacks so far.”
“Not even on the ice?” Lily’s family has a small pond behind their house that freezes over in the winter.
“No, but we’ve been watching her closely,” Lily assures me.
“You have her inhaler?” Remi just had her monthly injection two weeks before she left, so she should be okay, but still I worry.
“Of course.” And I relax a little. “Okay, can you hand the phone back to her? I want to say goodbye.”
“Yeah of course. Remi!” Lily shouts, and I pull the phone away from my ear to save my ear drums.
“Mom!”
“Hi, babe.”
“Mommy! When are you coming here?”
“Oh, honey, I thought we talked about this.” I swallow, my throat thick. “I have to work.”
“But don’t you miss me?” Remi whines, and I know it’s getting close to her bedtime and she’s tired, but her words still cut deep. “I miss you…”
“Of course I miss you!” I press the phone closer, wishing I could reach through it and wrap her in my arms. “More than anything,” I add, my eyes burning as I get choked up, and try to keep it from my voice. “I’ll see you soon. I promise.”
I hear a commotion in the background and Remi laughs. “Bye Mommy! I love you!” she shouts out, happy once again.
“I—” The call disconnects before I can tell her I love her, too.
I tip my head back, staring up at the ceiling, hoping that will keep the tears in this time.
There’s a prickle of awareness at the back of my neck and my head jerks to the right.
Koen’s standing there, leaning up against the doorframe leading out to the hall, dark eyes settled on me, watching, listening.
My spine snaps straight and I stare at him like a deer in headlights, phone still pressed up against my ear.
I push myself up, hoping the evidence of my tears isn’t flushed across my face. I cross the studio as nonchalantly as I can. Sliding my phone into my dance bag like I’m burying evidence, before lifting my eyes to meet the burning gaze I can feel following me.
“Ready to go?” I ask, keeping my voice level.
Koen doesn’t answer me, just continues to stare with those shadowed eyes of his, and I force myself not to fidget under his scrutiny.
“Who was that?”