Betrayal of Cupids (15 page)

Ryan

“Where are they, Rock?”  I asked as he put the final stitch in my chest.

“Your main concern right now is resting.  Sean really did a number on you.”

“I want to know where my guys are!”  I raised my voice, attempting to show him how serious I was.

He took a deep breath, moving his hands to my ribcage.  “They’re at a rest stop about ten miles back, awaiting my call.”

“And who made that decision?” I lowered my eyes to him.

“We all did, Ry.  Sean isn’t a friend to any of us.  We want to see this thing over as much as you do.”

I knew it to be true, but I still saw this as my battle.

“You said you needed ice packs?”  My gorgeous Grace entered the room, pushing away any negativity that I felt.

“Yes.  He has at least one cracked rib.  We just have to keep the swelling down; it’s all we can do.”

She came over and sat beside me.  “How are you feeling?”

“Better, now that you’re here.”

“Well, aren’t you two adorable?” Rocky jumped in.

I weakly punched his shoulder.  The act didn’t hurt the way I thought it would.

“Pain meds kicking in yet?”

“I think they might be.”

“Good.  I’ll leave you two for a bit, and see about getting acquainted with the lady of the house.  Try and sleep.”

“Thanks Rock.  I really appreciate it.  All of it.”  I really did mean it, even if I was annoyed that he had the entire club tag along with him.

Rocky nodded and left the room.

Grace turned back to me.  “What did he say?”

“They’re here, about ten miles out.”

“Maybe it’s a good thing.”

“Grace, none of this is good.  He’s going to cause a full-fledged war between the clubs.  My club can’t handle that, especially if Sean has leaked any information.”

“Maybe we could all just talk it out.”

The laughter that escaped my breath caused me to buckle in pain.

“Shit.”

“Ryan, what happened?”

“I was laughing at your ridiculous plan.”

“It’s not ridiculous.  I was just saying…”

I had to interrupt.  “Am I missing something?  Were you shipped off to boarding school as a child?  These people don’t talk, Grace.  You know that.”

She stood, angered by my accusation.  “Don’t you dare talk to me that way, Ryan Cassidy.  I see what you’re doing.  I am as much a part of this as you are.  You can’t push me away and take over.  Not now.  Not like this.”

“You don’t know what we’re dealing with.”

“I don’t?  I’m sorry.  So then what have I been dealing with for the last few months?  I thought it was this rivalry, but I must have been mistaken.”

“Grace, it’s…”

“No.  I want to let you be the man and I want to let you protect me, but that is not how I grew up, Ryan.  I grew up in this, just like you.  I take action and I protect my own.  You need to learn to trust me.”

“I do trust you.”

“Then fucking tell me what we’re dealing with instead of just throwing me away because I don’t know your family.”

I pushed myself up, and my feet hit the ground.  I stood up, towering over her.  If I had my way, I would lock her up until this whole thing was over.  I knew that wasn’t an option; I’d have to respect her.  I just wished she understood my reasoning.

“Grace,” I lightly placed my hands on her shoulders, “believe me, I understand what you’re feeling right now.  I know you want revenge for your mother, your father, and for what he did to you.  I really do get that.  But,” I looked away, not wanting to picture what I was about to say, “He’s going to hurt you.  He’s promised he would.  How can I let you near him, how can I let you fight this fight, if I know there’s a possibility you won’t be coming home to me?  Just answer me that.”

Her palm on my cheek brought me back.  “And I’m just supposed to stay home and pray you make it back alive?”

“It doesn’t make sense, I know that.”

“We can fight about this all we want.  We can say that the other is unprepared.  The truth is, unless both of us are a part of this, it’s never going to happen.  We need to work together.”

I knew she was right, she was always right, but that didn’t mean I had to like it.  Like it or not, I knew I wasn’t getting my way.  Grace would be part of this fight.  I would have to trust that she could protect herself.

“So how do we finish this thing?  Together.” 

“I thought you’d never ask.”  Grace grabbed my hands and squeezed.

Grace

It was oddly exhilarating, sitting there and comparing notes on the inner workings of our families.  We got to see sides of each other that, for the entirety of our relationship, we had been hiding.  I saw the hurt and pain he felt, but also the pride he was afraid to show.  He didn’t want to be evil, he didn’t want to have any evil thoughts, but being raised with a slightly off-balance moral compass is sure to mess with anyone’s brain.  It surely messed with mine.

“I don’t want to see anyone hurt, Grace.”

“I don’t either, and if we could find a way to not involve them then that would obviously be ideal, but this is their livelihood.  They live to protect their own.  We can’t ask them to step away from that.  Same as you and me, they’re in this.”

“Do you know how brilliant you are?  You are so practical, so self-aware.  Every decision you make is only after careful deliberation,” Ryan said

“I’ve been told that from time to time.” 

“So how did the decision to fall in love with me stick?”

I snuck a kiss as I stood.  “Falling in love with you was the only thing I’ve ever done that I didn’t need to think about.  Now will you try to get some sleep, please?”

“I could sleep.” He repeated the words I had said to myself only a few days ago.  Why did it feel like these past few days were a lifetime?    

I didn’t want to leave him, but I wanted to check on Rocky and Aunt Kathryn.  Although Ryan trusted him with his life, I still felt as though I should be there, just in case.  As I rounded the corner into the kitchen, I heard laughter.

“What’s going on in here?”

Aunt Kathryn turned to me.  “We were just laughing about this situation.”

“It’s not that funny, you know?”  I was a bit irritated.  This was not a laughing matter.

Rocky jumped in.  “No, we were just talking about the likelihood of you two actually meeting.  Believe me, we don’t think any of this is funny.”

In a way, it was funny.  If I believed in fate, I would’ve blamed it all on the stars.  So many things had to happen for us to fall into the situation we currently were in.  I chose a grad school in Philadelphia, my father agreed to let me attend, Ryan found himself in a part of the city he never visits on the exact night that I finally decided to leave the apartment.  Yes, it all sounded like fate.  Had one of those things not happened, would we be where we were today?  Then again, isn’t that true of anything in life?  I kept blaming myself for all the mistakes I made leading up to my father’s death.  Had I stayed away from Ryan, had I told him whom I really was, had I not rushed ahead to try to warn him of my family’s attack, would none of this have happened? 

Would Ryan and I already be sitting in our dream home with the red door playing fetch with our dog?

I shook the thoughts from my head.  I couldn’t allow myself to live in a dream world.  This was my reality, and I was in charge of the outcome.

My aunt’s phone began to ring, and she excused herself to answer it.

“So, Grace, how do I know I can trust you?”

I had been waiting for this.  “You don’t.  You can only hope that Ryan is smart enough to know whose company he keeps.”

“Snarky, I like that.” 

“I don’t have time to sugarcoat things.  I’m not here to make friends, I’m here to get my life back.”

“And do you plan on doing that by stealing Ryan’s life?”

“Excuse me?”

“You know, he was fine before he met you.”

“Was he?  How well do you actually know him, Rocky?”

“Well enough to know that it wasn’t until you showed up that he started petitioning for the group to leave behind our one percenter patch.”

“What are you talking about?”

“You’re filling his head with this bullshit.”

“I never asked him for any of that.”

“Ask or not, he’s doing it for you.”

“Listen, I appreciate you looking out for him, but he’s a big boy.  And although he trusts you, after the whole Sean and Danny debacle, I’m a little skeptical when it comes to the Cupids, as I’m sure you can imagine.  I never asked anything of Ryan that he hasn’t offered, and I’m sorry if he’s offered more than you or your club is able or willing to deliver, but that’s what I’m talking about when I say that ‘I’m here to get
my
life back.’  I don’t give a rat’s ass what you decide to do with yours.  And yes, maybe I am snarky, but I’ve had to put up with Cupid bullshit for too long, and I’m fed up with it.  Good as you or Ryan may think you are, you’re still a Cupid to me.”

I had said my peace.  I was ready for the conversation to be over.

“You are not at all what I imagined, Grace Brennan.”

“Well, I’m glad.”

“I knew your mother.”

My entire demeanor changed when I heard those words.  I sank into my chair, waiting for him to continue.

“Ryan and I grew up just a few doors down from each other.  I’m ten years older than him, and on nights when his Pops would be out, I’d watch over the little guy.  So, as you can imagine, I met your mother from time to time.”

“She came to the house?”  It occurred to me how little I knew about this part of her life.

“About once a week.  Ryan’s mom wasn’t home much. I think she was having some sort of affair as well, but your mom was different.  She was sweet and caring, unlike any ol’ lady I’ve ever come across.  She always offered to help with my homework.”

“She was a teacher.”

“She told me.”  He paused, taking a good look at me.  “Grace, your mom didn’t belong in this lifestyle.  When I heard about you, I assumed it was that same innocence that drew Ryan to you.  After talking to you though, I see that I’m wrong.  You look just like your mother, but you have your father’s spirit, his drive.  I think this is all more
you
than you’d like to admit.”

My first instinct was to punch him in the face, but that would’ve just made his point.  In all my years trying to hide from it, I had learned to stick up for myself, to take care of myself.  I had hardened myself past the point of normalcy.  But over the last few days, I took that
hardening
to a new level.  I had felt the change inside of me.  I didn’t want to run away any longer; I wanted to fight.  I wanted to kill.  Aunt Kathryn noticed it, then Ryan, and now this man who I had barely known more than five minutes.

But wasn’t the same thing happening to Ryan?  When we first met, we both wanted out.  We hated the life.  But now, we were both determined to fight, to win.  We’d devised plans, been kidnapped, and escaped a madman.  Yet, we were still standing and, in a way, looking forward to the next fight.  In light of their deaths, had we both become our fathers?  If Ryan and I did find a way out, would we be able to survive?  Would we miss the thrill?  Would our boring lives be enough to sustain us?  Without the chase, would we be enough for each other?

It was something that I had never thought about.  I knew I loved Ryan, but what was it about him that I loved?  He was exciting and caring and passionate, but did all that come from of the club?  If we had grown up in normal households with normal parents and normal relatives, would we have been drawn to each other?  Would we still have the same passions?  This was the type of thing I would talk over with Aunt Kathryn.  Where did she go?  How long was that phone conversation?

Something felt wrong.

“Where’s my aunt?”

“She answered the phone and walked out the front door.”

“Something isn’t right.”

“She seemed fine.”

“No.”

I raced out of the kitchen and to the door.  Without another thought, I swung it open.

Sean was smugly standing on the front porch and Mr. Muscles was holding a knife to Aunt Kathryn’s throat.  She lowered her eyes to me.

“Grace, I’m so sorry.”