AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You’re fine,” Cyril murmurs as if I need the reassurance. He pulls me closer to him, his legs around mine but not quite touching, and works more slowly.
“Then the Uber driver texts me. Says that he’s waiting for me outside of my apartment. I looked at the app, asked my ‘supposed driver’ what his name was, and it didn’t match up. That’s when I texted you. He also realized pretty quickly that I knew, so that was kind of shitty.” I wince as he finally pulls away from my arm after picking out a few small bits of asphalt from the scrapes.
“What did he say?” Quickly he strips a few bandaids out of their packages and puts a few over the worst scrapes, not making me feel any better about them with the waythathurts too.
“He said he was taking me to his boss. That they want tohelpme.” My voice turns scathing, and I let it. “That they just want to save me fromyouand yourboys.” Like I can’t make that decision for myself. Like Ineedto be saved.
Cyril hesitates, his eyes searching mine. “How did they know anything about you?” He asks. “That seems incredibly out of the blue.”
“Ah, well…” I trail off as he pulls my leg across his lap to examine the scrapes there and clean them. I hiss as he does so, grabbing at the table because it fuckinghurts. “It may not have been the first time I’ve talked to his boss or something,” I admit sheepishly.
The words make Cyril pause, his eyes narrowing in confusion. “What do you mean?”
“So, a few weeks ago, right after the whole tattoo thing, I was trying to figure out who youare,” I admit, hating that I have to tell him this. Especially like this, when I already feel like shit. “So I called Chancellor Enterprises. They wouldn’t tell me anything, obviously.”
“Obviously,” Cyril agrees dryly.
“But after I hung up, some lady called. She asked if I was looking foryou. Asked me if I meant to sayCyrilsince I hadn’t said your name before. And kind of pressed the subject when I acted dumb. I thought…” I trail off with a sigh and scoff. “Look, I know it’ll sound dumb, but I thoughtyou’dset up that call. I thought you were testing me. I got a couple more like it, too. Kind of asking about you guys, and I just thought, again, you were seeing if I’d spill the beans on you if someone asked. So I didn’t say anything. Igetthat it’s dumb–”
“I don’t think it’s dumb at all.” I don’t expect the way he says the words so levelly, without any anger in them. I’d expected him to be mad. To be irritated and frustrated that I hadn’t told him sooner.
But he’s…not.
“It’s something I would do,” Cyril goes on. “I’ve probably done it to someone before if we’re being honest. And my uncle definitely has. So I understand why you didn’t say anything to us. Go on?”
“Then, a few days ago, I got a different kind of call. It sounded like someone was trying to disguise their voice, but instead of asking about you guys directly, they…” This is the part I hate the most. The part that preyed on my fears, and now Cyril willknow. “They said all the things I’m afraid of. That you’re using me, or that I’m just a toy you’ll throw away when you’re bored with me.” My fingers flex against the counter and I close my eyes hard for a moment as Cyril sticks a couple of bandaids on my leg.
Coolness surprises me and I gasp, a small squeak coming out alongside it as Cyril presses the ice pack to my face. With my leg still across his lap, there’s only so far I can go.
Not that I want to move away from him.
“So they used what you’re afraid of to try to get you to tell them about us?” When I open my eyes to see his face, I find that his eyes are hard, and disbelief burns in their dark depths. “What a fucking asshole. But hey. Ari.”He says my name with a conviction it doesn’t deserve, his other hand gripping my chin while he ices the cut on my face. “It’s not true, okay? I know why you might think that. I get why ittotallyseems that way. But if you need me to remind youevery daythat it’s not true, then I will. My boys and I spentmonths, yesmonths,following you. Learning about you. All of that.”
“That’s called stalking,” I point out dully.
He grins but continues. “If they, or I, were going to get bored, it would’ve been then. We don’t spend that much time on someone just to let them walk away.”
“You could’ve just walked up to me and said something like a normal person,” I can’t help but point out, though I can’t deny the happy feeling that curls my stomach and sets the butterflies there into flight. I can’t help how good his words make me feel, despite the cuts on my body.
“Probably,” Cyril agrees. “But I’m not exactly a normal person, and neither are my boys. God, Ari.” He gets to his feet and pulls me to mine as well. “I haven’t told the others about this yet, but I need to. I need to find out who kidnapped you and who hisbossis. Can you wait for me to do that?”
I nod, fighting not to lean into his hand that he raises to press against my jaw.
He sighs his approval, a smile curving his lips upward. “That’s my good girl,” he purrs and goes to grab his phone from by the refrigerator.
It doesn’t take long for him to call them. It’s a group call and on speakerphone, and while he talks, both Ezra and Isaac interrupt him enough times until I have to speak up from where my forehead is resting against the cool marble of the island after I’ve sat back down.
“Can you guys–” Cyril begins, but this time it’s Arlo who interrupts him.
“I’ll go see what I can find.” He sounds angry. And it takes me a moment to realize it’shimspeaking. “Ezra and I will go.”
“That might be a bit overkill, don’t you think?” Cyril chuckles, the heat absent from his voice.
“Nah, it’s not overkill,”Ezra agrees. “You want to come, Isaac?”
“Yeah,” Isaac agrees instantly. “If I don’t go, and you find who fucked with Ari, who’s going to remind you to save a piece for us to bring back to her?”
“You aren’t cats, guys,” I call from the kitchen island, my words muffled from the way I’m sitting. “I don’t need trophies from your kills.”
