Delilah #2
“Oh.” I never even finished elementary school. The institute taught us basic literacy and arithmetic, but I can guarantee my education looked entirely different than his. “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me yet.” He pulls a laptop out of his backpack and boots it up before handing me something from his pocket.
“What is this?” I study the small, rectangular box, and remember using something like it in school. If I recall correctly, you can save computer files onto it.
He sits in the camp chair across from the bed, bracing his elbows on his knees. “Plug it in.”
I do as I’m told, clicking on the file that pops up.
Countless thumbnails of videos appear, but they’re too small for me to see clearly.
I click on the first one, and the video player starts running.
My and Gabriel’s bedroom fills the screen from the vantage point of our dresser.
A younger version of Gabriel comes into view and sits on the bed in his briefs.
A moment later, I walk into the frame in my towel.
Our wedding night. Dread sinks in my stomach and I slam the laptop closed, looking up at Maverick with shock. “Did you watch this?”
He immediately shakes his head. “No. We were able to infiltrate the Brotherhood’s internal network, and we found a site the lords created. There are videos of them engaging in intimate acts with their wives, as well as other women.”
My first instinct is to accuse him of lying, but the evidence is irrefutable. With shaking hands, I open the laptop back up and press play on the video. The sound is off, which I’m grateful for.
I look so young.
It’s all I can think as I watch Gabriel and I have sex for the first time.
Feeling nauseated, I click the “x” in the upper right corner of the video and open another one.
I’m older in this one but not by much. I’m bent over the end of the bed as Gabriel pushes into me roughly, over and over again.
The expression on my face is clearly one of pain: eyes squeezed shut tight and jaw clenched.
Maybe this was one of the times he punished me for starting my period instead of being pregnant.
I think I’m having an out of body experience.
I feel detached from myself as I watch video after video, many of them of Gabriel with other women.
Most of those videos seem to take place in a hotel, from what I can tell, and despite knowing that this is common practice among the lords, it still hurts to see my husband—the man who I’ve been loyal to, the man I love—with other women.
I feel numb, but tears slide down my cheeks anyway. I’m not even sad, I don’t think, just confused. I want to take a shower hot enough to burn so I can scrub away this feeling.
“Delilah.” Maverick’s voice is gentle, but it startles me anyway. I’d been so absorbed in the videos I forgot he was even here.
I wipe my tears away, glaring at him. “Don’t call me that.”
He holds both hands up in apology. “Whatever you’re feeling right now is valid.”
“I’m fine,” I lie. My skin feels like it has spiders crawling all over it.
“I didn’t want to show you until you were ready, but you deserve to know the kind of man you’re trying so desperately to get home to.”
“Gabriel is a good man,” I insist, though my conviction isn’t as strong as it was before.
Maverick’s jaw is so tight I fear he may crack a molar. “Have you ever been tested for STIs?”
“For what?”
“Sexually transmitted infections. Since your husband has multiple partners, you may be at risk of exposure.”
“V said my bloodwork was normal,” I say, hoping that means I’m also clear of any of those infections.
He nods. “That’s good.”
I huff a humorless laugh. “Yeah. Great.”
Maverick gets off his chair and kneels in front of me. Kneels, like he’s worshiping me. Yet another thing a lord would never do. My eyes find his, once again noting the uniqueness of the coloring. “I just want to help you.”
Whatever hypnosis I was under while holding his stare is broken and I scowl. “You want to help me? Is that why you kidnapped me against my will and are holding me hostage until I change my mind about the Brotherhood?”
He sits back on his heels, studying me. “I promise you, I’m not the villain here.”
I cross my arms. “I don’t know you. Why should I believe anything you say?”
He shifts his weight again so he’s sitting, arms braced around his knees. “You don’t have to take my word for it. Anyone here can attest to what we’re trying to do.”
I think back to what Liv said about Maverick saving her and Charlie and I soften, if only by a fraction.
“Do you have any other family? Parents or siblings?” Maverick asks. “Maybe we could try to find out where they are.”
My breath catches in my throat as I think back to the last time I saw my family, and a tiny spark of hope takes root in my chest. “My mother and baby brother were taken the night of the Reckoning.”
He nods. “Your father?”
Any good memories I have of my father are always overshadowed by that night, by the feeling of what I suspect was his blood I walked through as I was taken away. I shake my head. “I think he’s dead.”
Maverick takes a deep breath. “I’m so sorry, Del—” he cuts himself off. “I’m sorry. Losing a parent is never easy, even if you’re prepared for it.”
Our eyes connect. “Sounds like you’re speaking from experience.”
He nods. “My mom passed when I was eighteen. She had cancer.”
“I’m sorry.”
He stands, apparently done with our conversation. “Get some rest. We’ll try to find out where your mother and brother are tomorrow.” He turns and ducks to leave the tent.
“Maverick.” This is the first time I’ve said his name out loud, and I think it surprises us both. He turns back around and looks down at me. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, Mrs. Sinclair.” He whistles, and the dog gets up and follows him as he leaves the tent without a second glance.
I flop down on the bed and stare up at the ceiling, hating myself for wishing he would’ve called me Delilah again.