24. Tyran
TWENTY-FOUR
TYRAN
For six hours straight, Sienna was all I could think about.
The flight over the Atlantic was the longest flight ever and a total clusterfuck.
I’d called Sienna dozens of times; there was no answer. It was ridiculous that I even tried, knowing she took however many sleeping pills.
I settled on harassing Niall, who was seated next to Sienna, monitoring her pulse. Just as I started to convince myself things would be alright, I got a text.
Unknown Number: This is Kristoff, Sienna’s father. Your brothers paid me a visit. You don’t have my blessing, but I’ll keep it civil for my daughter. Don’t make me regret that.
I instantly FaceTimed my brothers and berated them, staring at their dumb expressions as they gave some half-assed answers.
Kyran just laughed and said, “He was happy about the wedding.” Fucking liar. And Aiden smirked like a fucking idiot and said he had to be honest with my future father-in-law.
My fists clenched with the need to turn this jet around and get to my brothers, then pound them to the ground. But Sienna was the priority right now.
I swore next time I saw them, I would kick their asses to the moon and back. As it would happen, I would see them on my wedding day.
Instead, I recalled when I saw Sienna for the first time. She watched the club with wonder in her brown eyes. Somehow, from that day on, she’d been the only one I saw and watched. The only one whose image always remained with me through the blur of experiences.
A sigh ripped from me when the jet finally landed, and I dialed Niall again.
“Tell me she’s okay.”
I exited the plane, the cool afternoon air causing goose bumps to erupt over my skin.
“Her pulse is slow but steady. I really think you’re overreacting.”
I stopped in front of my waiting car. “I’ll be overreacting if you leave her side, because I’ll murder you.”
He sighed. “God, you Irish are such pricks when it comes to your women.”
“You’re Irish too, fucker.”
He paused.
“Half Irish. My mother was Brazilian and let me tell you, that’s my better half. Irish men tend to be alcoholics who beat their wives, and their sons keep repeating the cycle.”
I laughed, but it was humorless, because in my parents’ case, it was the exact opposite. However, that was in the past and I had no interest in revisiting it.
“Why is your woman taking sleeping pills in the middle of the day anyhow?” he asked. “Are you keeping her up all night?”
“I’ll be there in fifteen minutes. Don’t leave her side,” I gritted, then ended the call. Then I issued the order to my driver, “Get me to the castle as fast as you can.”
I leaned into the leather seat and closed my eyes.
There’d been a nagging feeling in the back of my head that I’d been ignoring since I found Sienna. What if I destroyed her by keeping her with me?
From the moment our paths crossed, Sienna had lit a spark in my chest and in my world. I kept trying to extinguish it, but then her betrayal happened, and that same spark kept me going for five years. It nurtured my rage, my obsession, my need for her, my hate… Everything I’d ever felt for her.
But now… I was reevaluating everything.
Sienna betrayed me, but apparently she was slowly killing herself along the way.
I had no doubt it was partly guilt, partly demons she didn’t know how to deal with, and I was at a loss as to how to help her.
I retrieved my phone and sent off a message to Dr. Freud, a therapist I knew she was seeing before. The reply was instant.
The car came to a stop and I barged outside, not waiting for the driver to come around.
No one was around when I stepped inside, but there were voices shouting and then a scream. I ascended the stairs two steps at a time, my chest twisting darkly.
I was in front of my bedroom and pushing the door open in record time.
The room was a mess. The pills were still scattered all around the floor around the bed on which Sienna was kicking and screaming. Her gaze was locked on Niall, fighting against him as if her life depended on it.
“Calm down, miss.” He attempted to restrain her legs and arms that threw punches, but that had the opposite effect on Sienna, who went into full battle mode.
The terror on her face was a jab straight to my heart.
“Sienna.”
Her name caught in my throat as I ran over to her.
She didn’t react, instead all her attention was on Niall while her feet kicked and her arms swung as if she was fighting demons only she could see.
“Leave,” I ordered Niall, then turned my attention to Sienna. “Baby, look at me.”
She didn’t, her eyes locked on Niall’s retreating form, her bottom lip trembling and her body shuddering.
“Sienna?” I called out gently to her. She didn’t turn and my lungs burned, considering her strange behavior. “Sienna, baby, look at me.”
She did, but only once Niall disappeared through the door.
Her eyes found me, her blonde strands half camouflaging her face. I pushed them off and brushed my knuckles across her soft cheeks.
“You’re back.”
Her voice was hoarse, like she’d been smoking a pack of cigarettes every day for decades. Or been screaming for a long time.
“Yes, I’m here,” I rasped with the pent-up emotions swirling inside me. “I won’t be going anywhere again.”
She gasped, the sound thin and desperate as she fought for air. Her chest rose and fell in frantic, shallow breaths.
“Need… air…”
I scooped her into my arms bridal-style and crossed the room in two strides. The balcony doors flew open and a rush of cool night air swept over us.
She clawed at her throat, her fingers trembling. I caught her hand and pressed it firmly against my chest.
“Breathe with me.”
Her panic-filled eyes found mine.
I turned my body so my back would shelter her against the wind and pressed her closer to my chest.
“Just breathe with me,” I murmured. “Slowly.”
I drew in a long, deliberate breath, making sure she could feel the rise of my chest beneath her palm.
“In…” I exhaled slowly. “And out.”
She squeezed her eyes shut, fingers curling into my shirt, but she followed suit.
“That’s it,” I whispered. “Again.”
She took another breath. Then another.
Gradually, the frantic rhythm of her breathing eased. The desperate grip she had on my shirt loosened, but I kept my arms around her, refusing to let her go.
The wind rushed around us, cold on my back, but she was warm against my chest. I could feel every uneven breath she took, every tremor that passed through her body.
“Good,” I murmured. “You’re okay. I’ve got you.”
She rested her forehead against my shoulder, still breathing hard but no longer fighting for every breath.
“Don’t leave me with him,” she whimpered, lifting her eyes that darted over my shoulder to the door.
“I won’t.”
“Promise?”
I released a long breath and leaned my forehead against hers. “I promise.”
From here on, there was only one option: wherever I went, she went.