Killing Me Softly (28 page)

Cat shuddered once and then straightened her back. ‘I need to ask you something.’

Lexi nodded, waiting.

Cat looked down at her hands. ‘Is he happy? Does he have someone in his life? It’s all right if he does,’ she said hurriedly. ‘I can’t expect him to have waited all these years. It might feel like yesterday to me, but to him it was eleven years ago. I understand if he’s found someone else.’ She looked up.

Lexi smiled.

‘What? What’s so funny?’

Lexi shook her head, unable to stop from chuckling. ‘Why do you think he’s here?’

Cat cast her eyes down and then looked up sheepishly through her eyelashes, her face starting to light with hope. ‘I did kind of wonder about that.’

‘He chose his career because of you. He wanted to help you. We both wanted you back. I wanted my sister. He wanted . . . ’ Her throat closed over. ‘I tried at times to make him move on, to tell him it was all right to look for his happiness somewhere else. I didn’t think you would blame him if he did. But he didn’t. He loves you. He always has. He always will.’

‘Oh!’ Cat’s hands flew to her trembling mouth, tears glistening in her eyes. ‘What should I do? How can I tell him I feel the same way?’

A footfall behind them had Lexi turning around. Billy stood there, staring past her, his eyes on Cat. Turning, she said to her sister, ‘I don’t think you’ll have to.’

Lexi silently moved away, giving them time to themselves.

As she reached the bend in the path, she saw two figures merge into one in the shadows near the fountain. She smiled. The sun might have risen today on sorrow, guilt and uncertainty but it set on a world filled with hope for them.

She was happy for them. She really was.

But why did she feel so hollow?

Annoyed, she pushed the dark thought away. It was just the fading light and deep shadows that filled her with gloomy thoughts. She’d always been susceptible to feeling a little lost, a little alone, at this time of the day.

And there was also the fact she had to find Daemon. She couldn’t put it off any longer. She made a resolution sitting by the stream in the dell: she had to tell him it was over. Only then could she move past this sensation that made her feel as if she was choking.

Her pace quickened and she was soon out of the walled garden and walking along the path towards the studio. Daemon would most likely be there. She would close the door on what they had started and once that was done, she would march on, finding her way in this new life she found herself in.

Cat was awake.

Cat and Billy loved each other.

For now, that would have to be enough happiness for them all.

She was awake! He couldn’t believe his luck. He felt the hand of the Lord at work. He was giving them both to his loyal servant as payment for all his patience. They would be offered as sacrifices for the glory of his Lord. His Lord was vengeance and he was the Angel of Destruction. The time of retribution was at hand.

Excitement built inside, a sick well that gripped him low in the groin. His eyes glowed as he touched himself, feeling the response from his own flesh. Soon, she would do this for him.

But first, she must suffer.

His gaze scanned the manor house then came to rest on the stables. He knew exactly what to do. He’d just have to find the perfect moment.

The smile on his lips had nothing to do with sexual relief as he came.

Lexi stepped through the kitchen door and headed down to the stables, glad to escape the scene of domestic bliss that was playing out inside.

The fact Cat’s therapy with Doctor Carlton was going so well was such a relief. He was also happy for her to spend time with Billy, pursuing the fledgling relationship they’d started before she’d been kidnapped, with the proviso they take things slowly. And they were – but the way they looked at each other, the joy shining in their eyes, it made Lexi’s chest ache.

She was happy for Cat and Billy. She truly was. It was just that it was hard to swallow their happiness when hers had been whisked away by the carelessness of a few words. And that Daemon had been avoiding her the past few days, made it even more annoying. When she’d entered the studio after her talk with Cat, he’d been on the phone and then ran out of the door – after giving her one of those swift, breathtaking kisses that befuddled her brain so she couldn’t even remember her name, let alone the fact she wanted to give him a serve.

Then he had the presumption to send her flowers, not once but twice a day for the past two days, each with a card attached and poignant words of apology penned in his own hand. The smiley balloons she’d received last night had sent her in search of him again. She really had to put a stop to it. He had to know that even though she was beginning to forgive him for going behind her back – she kind of understood it from his point of view, and would possibly have done the same if she’d been in his shoes – she couldn’t continue to be his lover. She’d been too hurt the other night.

Imagine what would happen if she gave her heart to him and he left. Which he’d do. There really was no reason for him to want to stay after they’d finished the CD.

But he hadn’t been in the studio or the Dower House last night and when she’d trudged back up to the house, Bev had told her he was at the hospital with Craig. Phil had rung to say Melissa had been taken out of intensive care.

So she supposed he wasn’t really ignoring her. It just felt like it.

She’d woken in a bad mood this morning after having erotic dreams about him all night. Now, after witnessing Billy and Cat’s happiness, a feeling of restlessness weighed her down. There would be no use tracking Daemon down until she’d shaken it off. She didn’t want to argue. She just wanted to state what was what and leave it at that.

But the way she was feeling, she knew if she didn’t go for a ride first, if she saw Daemon she wasn’t sure if she’d yell at him or kiss him.

As she swung through the door into the stable, she almost slammed into Karl. ‘Oh, sorry, Karl. I didn’t see you there.’

‘You’re back! I was just about to give one of my men a right bollocking for letting you go out on Viking alone.’ He looked past her shoulder. ‘Speaking of which, where is Viking?’

Lexi shook her head. ‘He’s in his stall, isn’t he? I only woke up half an hour ago. I was just about to have a ride before going into the studio this afternoon.’

Karl swore. ‘Viking’s not in his stall. I thought you must have taken him out.’

‘What do you mean he’s not in his stall?’ Lexi pushed past him, the hollow feeling in her chest filling with rage. ‘Who would let him out? I want you to find out who let him out and fire them.’ Her fingers curled around the top of the stall, the rough wood digging into her skin, the pain giving her something to focus on. ‘We have to find him, Karl.’ Dread crept over the rage. ‘He can’t be left out to wander. The mares are in heat and he might try to get to them. You know how stupid he gets. He could hurt himself on one of the fences. We have to find him.’

Karl put his large hand on her shoulder in a fatherly gesture. ‘He’ll be fine, lass. The mares in heat are still safe in the corral out back. We would have known it if he’d tried to get to them. One of the lads probably just didn’t close his stall door properly and he took advantage and galloped to the stream in that little dell you both like to go to. He’ll be sheltered from the wind there and there’s plenty of fresh grass and water.’ He patted her shoulder, nodding, as if trying to convince himself as much as her. ‘Yes, that’s where we’ll find him, lass. I’ll call in some of the men. Don’t worry. We’ll find him.’

‘I’ll come too.’ She could see Karl was about to protest. ‘Don’t say I can’t. It makes sense for me to come. Viking’s my horse. He knows me and if he’s hurt himself he’s more likely to calm down for me than for anyone else. Besides, I can’t sit around here doing nothing. I’ll go crazy thinking of all the things that could go wrong.’

Karl sighed heavily after a moment. ‘But you’d better saddle up quickly. We’ll need to head out right away.’

‘I’ll come too.’ They turned to see Daemon standing behind them.

Alexia glared at him for a moment, then went to saddle Kelsey.

‘Are you sure you’ve got time for this?’ Karl asked.

‘Yes. It’ll mean there’ll be one fewer of your men out looking rather than doing his work or on guard duty.’

‘You’re right. I just wish John and his men were already here, but they had to finish up a job in Argentina.’

‘You said he’d be here tomorrow.’

‘That’s what he told me. The lads and I will continue to keep her safe until then.’ He handed Daemon a saddle. ‘Don’t saddle up Old Sarge. He’s liable to set off Viking if he’s in a mood.’ He pointed to a pretty palomino gelding in the next stall. ‘You take Star.’

‘We’ll see you down by the gate in five.’ Karl nodded and headed out to grab the men and get Jimbo, the big roan he preferred to ride, saddled up already from the morning round up.

Lexi turned and looked into Daemon’s eyes as he walked into Kelsey’s stall rather than Star’s. ‘You’ve got the wrong stall. Star’s next door.’

Daemon reached over, tucked a curl behind her ear and cupped her face gently. ‘I know. I just wanted to say good morning.’

Her heart leaped into her throat, her pulse thrumming through her entire body. God, she wanted to lean up, touch her lips to his in a gentle kiss, take the comfort he was offering. But she couldn’t. Pulling away, she shook her head, swallowed. ‘Daemon, please. Don’t do this.’

‘Do what?’ He took her shoulders, turned her, staring intently at her. ‘This?’ he asked, bending to touch his lips to hers in just the way she’d been wanting.

Desire fired through her so strong, she kissed him back even though she knew she shouldn’t give in. It was sending the wrong message. But right now, she needed the strength and compassion he was offering. Was it so bad to lean on him right now, when she needed it?

Before she could answer that question, he pulled back. ‘I know we still need to talk and I know that I still have a lot of apologising to do, a lot to make up for. And I’m not expecting you to just forgive me, but could we just pause this for the moment and come back to it after we’ve found your horse? I want you to be fully with me when we talk.’

She nodded, aware of Karl and the men waiting for them outside.

Turning, she pointed at the saddle and bridle he’d slung over the stall door and said, ‘You’d better saddle up, then. Karl won’t wait forever.’

It took her longer than usual to saddle up Kelsey – her thoughts kept wandering to Viking and what he might have got up to.

If he was hurt . . .

She bit down on that thought. Her stallion would be fine. They’d find him, bring him back and make sure no-one would leave the gates open again. Mouth pressed into a thin line, she led Kelsey out to find Daemon waiting for her with Star already saddled. They joined Karl outside.

‘I’ve already sent two men ahead to search – told them to go to the dell first.’

Lexi nodded and mounted. ‘Thanks.’

They rode in silence down the road and through the gate into the home field.

As they breasted the rise at the far end, they saw one of the men come out of the copse, riding hard. He saw them and made a beeline towards them, pulling up hard a few metres away. Karl trotted forward, pulling up beside the sweat-lathered horse and rider. Leaning forward, the man spoke quietly, his eyes darting to Lexi. Karl said something back to him and he nodded, kicking his mount up into a gallop, heading back towards the house. His face blank, Karl turned back to her, his glance flicking to Daemon, a silent communication that made her suspicious the two men had been bonding over protecting her.

Normally, the thought would have made her angry, but right now, anger was taken over by a prickling sense of doom.

She sat straight, her fingers white as they grasped the pommel of her saddle, lips thin, her cheeks stung by the wind. Her voice when she spoke was like steel. ‘What is it, Karl? Viking’s hurt, isn’t he?’

He met her eyes, unflinching. ‘The men found him where we thought he’d be.’ He coughed, finding it hard to go on. ‘I’m sorry lass, but he’s dead.’

Her eyes widened, and she choked out, ‘I want to see.’

Karl shook his head, his gaze shooting to Daemon. ‘That’s not a good idea, lass. The men and I’ll take care of him. It’s better if you go back home now, get warmed up. It’s getting brutally cold out here.’ He shivered.

Her eyes narrowed as she caught another glance between the two men. Without a word, she kicked up Kelsey who, delighted to be getting a run, jumped forward into a fast gallop, catching the two men by surprise. She ignored the yells behind her as she headed towards the wooded copse beside the stream, knowing they followed close on her tail, but she didn’t stop. She couldn’t. Driven by a feeling she couldn’t explain, she knew she had to go and see what they didn’t want her to see.

As she careened into the clearing, Kelsey reared, his nostrils flaring at the smell of death and blood. She slid off the horse, throwing the reins to one of the men who ran forward to stop her from going any further. The action caught him off-guard as he tried to catch the reins and calm the frightened horse. She slipped past him, running towards the body lying on the ground beside the stream. Behind her, she could hear footsteps pounding after her, arms grabbing for her, pulling her around into a strong embrace.

But not before she’d seen.

Not before she’d seen!

Viking, fear and pain caught forever in his fixed, staring eyes, lay on the ground in a puddle of blood and filth. His throat had been cut, evidenced by the sickening spray of deep crimson on the trees and grass. But as if that wasn’t bad enough, he’d been gutted and castrated. His genitals lay on the ground near his head. Words had been carved into his body, the long crimson slashes cutting to the bone in his once gloriously golden coat.

SHE WAS MEANT TO BE YOU.

The words, imprinted on her retinas like blinding red slashes, were there even when she buried her head in Daemon’s warm chest and closed her eyes, trying to shut out the ugliness and fear that had marked this once-treasured place. The words repeated themselves over and over in her mind as she struggled to make sense of them.

The horrifying realisation struck.

She struggled out of Daemon’s grasp, ran to the edge of the clearing and vomited.

He had been here. He had done this. He had run Melissa off the road because he had thought it was her. The days of receiving nasty but harmless letters were over.

Why? The thought raced through her head as she straightened, her hand pressed against the rough bark of a tree, fighting the numbness that had begun to take over her system. She didn’t have an answer. That someone hated her so much he would do something like this! He meant to scare her. He had succeeded. She was frightened, almost paralysed. She didn’t know what to do.

Daemon stood beside her, his hand on her back. He spoke to her but his words were a roar in her ears. She looked at him blankly, trying to make sense out of the movement of his lips. She wiped her hand over her mouth, her eyes wide with shock and fear as she tried to swallow against the bitter taste of bile and the harsh dryness in her throat.

‘I need a drink,’ she rasped.

Daemon turned and spoke to someone. A moment later a flask was pressed to her lips and she took a long, deep gulp of the cool fresh water as it passed down her raw throat. A hand stroked her on the back, a voice murmured soft words. The only thing she could really hear was the roaring in her ears. The only thing she could see was Viking, butchered with cruel, taunting words etched into his once-perfect hide.

She needed to leave here. She staggered forward. The world tilted and she fell into the abyss

Daemon grabbed Alexia from the ground where she’d fallen with a hard thump. He turned her over. She was out cold. Blood ran from a cut on her hairline. A bump was already forming.

Behind him he heard Karl order the other man to get the utility.

Hooves pounded past him but all he could see was Alexia’s pale face. Fury swept through him as he lifted her from the cold earth and carried her away from the vileness in the clearing.

He had been right about the connection between Alexia’s letters, Jenny’s murder and Melissa’s accident, but being right changed nothing. The bastard had actually come on to the farm, had taken Alexia’s prized stallion and slaughtered him in a place he was certain she would go. He’d done this despite the extra men Karl had put on watch.

Fear lanced him as he realised how well the bastard knew Alexia, how closely he must have been watching her and for how long. He had hit right to the heart of her, taking not only the horse she loved but the place she went to for peace and solace. Now, forever more, she would be reminded of the atrocity done to Viking every time she even thought about this place.

Somehow, Daemon would make sure the bastard was found and made to pay for putting that fear into Alexia’s eyes. He swore the bastard would pay if it took every last penny, every last ounce of energy, his last breath. The son of a bitch would pay.

His resolve hardened, he picked her up in his arms, cradling her head on his shoulder, walking out of the dell and away from the terrible sight of torture and death.

He loved her. So far he hadn’t done a very good job of showing her how precious she was to him, how much her happiness and safety meant to him. That was all about to change. The bastard might have meant to drive a wedge between her and those who loved her, making her feel as if she was alone, but he would soon find he’d done the opposite. No matter what Alexia had to say to him, he was not leaving her side. She was about to discover she would never be alone again, not as long as he had strength in his arms and breath in his body. Kissing her forehead, he whispered that promise to her and walked out of the trees in the direction of the utility rumbling towards them in the distance.