Illicit Captor by Maggie Cole

17

Scarlet

"This is your bathroom," Alaina states, opening another door. I step inside the large interior, glancing around. It's the most luxurious thing I've seen since I was in my father's house. Lit candles create a soft glow against the teak wood. Roses float in an oversized jacuzzi tub. White, fluffy towels are draped over heated racks.

A bad feeling moves through me. I swallow the lump forming in my throat.

Alaina frets, "What's wrong? Ya don't like it?"

I pin my gaze on hers, asking, "Did ya really kill him?"

Confusion lights up her features for a moment. Then her face pales. "Ya don't know what was going on. There wasn't a choice. Tommy kidnapped me and then Da arrived to kill me."

A shiver runs down my spine. I state, "I'm not mad at ya."

"You're not?"

I shake my head. "No. After what he did to me, making me marry Tommy, I'm just sad ya didn't slice him to pieces sooner."

A sense of understanding mixed with guilt crosses her face. It's something maybe only I'd understand. At the end of the day, he was our da. No matter how awful, we can't escape the lifelong brainwashing to love, honor, and respect him. So I step forward and pull her into me, admitting, "I'm grateful ya killed him first."

She hugs me and then retreats, questioning, "Do ya want to talk about it?"

I consider it for a moment. Then I shake my head, replying, "No, not right now."

She hesitates, then adds, "Whenever you're ready to know the details, I'll fill ya in."

I blink hard, claiming, "I don't need to know the details."

"Ya might change your mind."

"I don't think so."

Silence fills the air. I glance around again, unsure why I still feel uncomfortable when I know it's safe here and doesn't harbor any of the dangers my father's house would.

Alaina states, "Ya should take a bath and relax."

"I can't because of my stitches," I reveal.

"Oh. Sorry. I should have known that," she says.

"It's okay. I'd love to take a shower though," I admit.

"Sure. I filled the dresser and closet with clothes for ya. I think I picked stuff you'll like, but we can switch it out if ya want."

"That won't be necessary. Whatever is in there is fine. Thank ya," I state.

She studies me.

"What did I say?"

A tiny smile appears on her lips. She answers, "I never thought I'd hear ya say that."

"Meaning?"

She arches her eyebrows, holds her hand over my forehead, and teases, "Are ya sick?"

I jerk my head back. "No. Why would ya say that?"

She softly laughs. "Ya always used to say you'd rather be caught dead than in something that wasn't designer."

The dark room Tommy kept me naked in flashes through my mind, and a chill seeps into my bones. I mutter, "That was before I was forced to be Tommy's prisoner."

She freezes, then a pitying look overtakes her features. "Jesus. I'm...I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking."

I lift my chin. "It's fine. I'd like to shower now."

She lowers her tone. "Okay. I'll wait in the bedroom until you're done. Then we can talk more." She pats me on the shoulder, then moves toward the door.

"Alaina!"

She spins back. "Hmm?"

I cross my arms. "Ya can't keep Aidan from me."

Hatred fills her face. "I can and I will. He took advantage of ya. And he disobeyed our orders."

"He did not take advantage of me. Ya don't know what you're talking about, so don't ya dare accuse him of anything of the sort!"

She pins her eyebrows together. "He did. And I know you're confused right now. You've been through a lot. It's my fault. I didn't protect ya."

"Ya had no choice. Nobody could have protected me against Tommy and Da."

"No! I should have kept ya safe!"

"It was impossible."

Alaina squeezes her eyes shut. "I should have."

"Don't do this," I order, not wanting to see the guilt all over her face since it's true. There's nothing in the entire world she could have done to stop Da from forcing me to marry Tommy. The last thing I want is for my sister to take the blame for things she shouldn't.

"I should have," she repeats.

"Ya couldn't. But the person who did protect me was Aidan," I declare.

Her guilt turns to anger. "Once you've had a few days away from him, you'll have time to think. You'll realize he should have brought ya to me right away. He shouldn't have kept us apart."

"That's not true," I insist.

"It is," she declares.

I lean against the counter and point out, "Why can't ya give him credit for rescuing me? He did something even ya couldn't do."

The guilt returns, swirling with her rage. It tears at me, but I'm not going to sit back and watch her make Aidan suffer. Her voice shakes, which I've rarely heard, as she claims, "I tried to find ya. I would've done anything, but I didn't even know ya were alive. Tommy told me he killed ya."

I squeeze the edge of the quartz countertop. "I know, but Aidan was the one who found me. He was the one who took care of me."

"He disobeyed my orders."

"So what?"

"When I give an order, it's his job to obey. Ya know how this works."

I hurl, "Da wasn't always right. Neither are ya."

Her face hardens. "You're just confused."

"I'm not," I snap.

Tense silence fills the space between us.

I blurt out, "I love him, Alaina," before I can even think about it.

Her eyebrows furrow. She firmly repeats, "Like I said, you're confused."

"I'm not confused! And stop being a hypocrite! You're married to Brody O'Connor and run his clan with him. Ya made an oath to show no mercy to any O'Leary. If I hadn't gone through what I have, I'd say you're the confused one! But I'm not judging ya, am I?" I cry out.

She turns and walks to the window, crosses her arms, and stares across the lawn. She states, "A lot happened. And our family, the O'Learys..." She swallows hard, her face darkens, and a shiver runs down my spine. She adds, "We should have never been born into their blood."

"But we were," I point out.

She spins to face me. "Yea, we were, and choices had to be made. So my allegiance is no longer with them, but neither is yours, is it?"

I stay silent. I've not had time to think about where my loyalties lie, but I don't need to. After what they put me through, I owe them nothing. And the only person I want to be with is Aidan...an O'Connor.

Alaina asserts, "It doesn't change the fact that he disobeyed orders. He could have brought ya to me. We could have been back together."

"What about ya and your vow? Aren't ya supposed to show me no mercy?" I fume, upset that she's angry at Aidan when he's the one who found me, and I'd still be in Tommy's grasp had he not.

"Ya don't need to worry about my oath. Brody and I will protect ya. When it's time, we'll make it clear to the world that ya no longer have an allegiance to the O'Learys."

I stay silent, and the tension only grows stronger and stronger.

Alaina finally steps toward the door. "I'll let ya shower. We can talk when ya get out."

"No, don't bother. I want to rest," I announce, not wanting to talk anymore. I know my sister. She's stubborn. There's no point talking until I can think about how to convince her to leave Aidan alone.

She softens her tone. "Don't be mad at me."

"Don't punish Aidan. He doesn't deserve it," I state again.

She glances away, then back at me. "Rules need to be followed. Ya know Brody and I can't allow disobedience."

"I'm so sick of all your clan bullshit," I blurt out.

Her eyes burn like fire. "It's not bullshit. There are reasons things are the way they are."

"Yea, well, where's that gotten us?" I question.

She hesitates.

"Ah, it's all water under the bridge now that you're in power," I accuse.

She scrunches her face. "Don't say that. What they did to ya will never be water under the bridge."

"But you're okay ruling how Da did?"

"I don't rule how he did," she snaps.

"Don't ya? Seems to me that ya do."

She glares at me with her emeralds, retorting, "No, I don't. Things are different now. You'll see."

"Why? Because you're at the top, and ya get to order everyone around? And then if they don't do exactly what ya want, ya get to punish them even if they did the right thing?"

"It's not like that," she claims.

I huff. "Sure it isn't."

"What he did wasn't right!"

My stomach pitches, and my mouth turns dry. I seethe, "What wasn't right, Queen Alaina? Rescuing me from another night with Tommy?" My lip quivers and my eyes fill with tears. I turn to avoid her pity-filled stare.

She puts her hand on my shoulder. "Scarlet—"

"Don't!" I warn, shaking her hand off me and wiping the tears off my cheek.

She stays quiet.

I add, "I need to shower. Please leave."

She doesn't move.

"Now," I demand.

She sighs, then steps toward the door. She gets two feet into the bedroom, then spins and softly states, "I promise ya things are different now."

"Keep telling yourself that," I say, then shut the door and lock it. I put my hands on the counter, staring at my reflection, trying to stop my insides from trembling with anger and sadness.

Thanks to Aidan, I've gained some weight. Not that my sister would give him any credit. I'm still skin and bones, and I wish she would have seen me when he rescued me. Maybe then she'd get off her high horse.

I push off the counter, turn on the shower, and wait for the water to warm up. Then I step under it. When I'm done, I dry myself, comb my hair, and then go to the bedroom. I open the dresser and put on a pair of designer leggings and an oversized shirt.

I stare at myself in the full-length mirror. The clothes are my old size and slightly big on me. In the past, I would have loved this outfit. Now, it feels foreign.

After a few moments, I force myself to stop assessing my body. I crawl into bed and try to figure out how to get Alaina off Aidan's back, but no answers come. I toss and turn, trying to sleep, hoping that Aidan will be there when I wake up, but I can't get any shut-eye.

Several hours pass. I give up, get out of bed, and leave the bedroom. I go down the hallway. Most of the doors are shut. I don't open any of them. I peek into the ones I can until I step in front of one that's cracked open. A soft light glows from the inch-wide opening, so I push the thick wood forward and freeze.

Large screens fill the wall, and three are turned on. Devin's on the first, Aidan's in the middle, and Tynan's on the last. Alaina stands in front of it, her arms crossed, eyes narrow with calm rage.

Concrete walls form the backdrop wherever the men are, and they're cutting up bodies with saws.

I put my hand over my mouth, swallowing bile. I manage to blurt out, "What the hell is this?"

Alaina spins, her eyes widening. "Ya shouldn't be in here, Scarlet."

I stare at the screen Aidan's on. It looks like he's working on a body that's been burned. I glance back at my sister. "What is this?"

"Their punishment."

"Their punishment?" I question.

"This is clan business. Ya shouldn't be in here."

"Don't give me 'it's clan business.'"

"It is, and nothing has changed regarding clan business. You've never had an interest in it, and I'll be damned if ya start now. Ya don't need to know anything about this. Pretend ya didn't see it and go back to your bedroom. I'll be in soon, and we can talk."

I narrow my eyes on her. "No. We can talk here. I'm not returning to my bedroom. I'm not your child. And I'm an O'Leary, so I'm not under your jurisdiction."

"Watch it," she warns.

"Or what?"

"Scarlet—"

"Ya say you're different from Da, but it sure as hell doesn't look like it from where I'm standing."

Her face hardens. She insists, "I am. You'll see."

I stare at the screen again, then demand, "Bring him home, now."

"No, he has a job to do," she asserts.

I blink hard. My voice cracks. "I swear to God, Alaina, if ya don't bring Aidan home soon, I'll never talk to ya again."

"Ya don't mean that. You're being emotional, and you're confused."

"Stop telling me I'm confused!" I yell for what feels like the hundredth time.

She picks up a remote and clicks a button. The screen turns black.

"Who are those dead men?" I ask.

She stays quiet.

"Tell me," I seethe.

She squares her shoulders. "They're O'Learys who Tommy had hunting ya."

My stomach churns.

"This isn't your concern," she softly adds.

More anger fills me. I hurl out, "Do ya think ya can just turn it off, and I'll drop it or forget about what you're making him do?"

"Making him do? This is what he does. This is what our people do."

"Our people. The O'Connors, ya mean?"

She shakes her head, deeply exhaling. "I know ya don't understand this."

"I don't care about the O'Learys, and I don't care about the O'Connor clan business. I care about Aidan, and I'm telling ya right now, Alaina, ya better bring him home. If ya don't, I'm leaving."

"Yea? Where will ya go, Scarlet? Did Aidan not tell ya Tommy and our brothers are hunting ya down?"

More bile rises in my throat. I hold on to the doorframe, and tears stream down my face.

She lowers her voice. "Ya know what they're capable of, so don't make stupid threats."

I swallow the lump in my throat, asserting, "I want Aidan home now, Alaina."

"Brody and I will take care of ya. We'll protect ya, and we'll make sure Tommy dies," she insists.

I stare at her, trying not to cry, but I can't. She's always been stronger than me. I only remember once in my life seeing Alaina cry. But the tears stream down my face, and I swipe at them, declaring, "I don't want ya to protect me. I want Aidan to protect me, and I won't tell ya again. If ya try to keep him from me, I swear to God, Alaina, I'll find a way to kill ya myself." I turn and leave the room. I continue down the hall and go down the stairs.

"What are ya doing? Ya shouldn't be racing down the steps with your stitches," she cries out.

I spin on the landing. "And ya shouldn't interfere in my life when ya have no right."

"No right? I'm your sister!"

"That means nothing," I say.

Hurt fills her expression. She claims, "Ya don't mean that!"

"I love him!" I exclaim.

She gapes at me.

I look away, my insides quivering.

Why the hell did I just say that again?

She lowers her voice. "Ya don't love him, and ya don't need him. I'll take care of ya."

Rage fills me. "If you're going to keep the one person from me that I trust, the one who's done more for me than anybody in my entire life, then I want nothing to do with ya," I snarl and continue down the stairs, wincing from the strain in my stomach.

She yells, "He took advantage of ya!"

"He didn't! Stop saying that!" I shout back and continue moving through the house.

"Ya can't know something is real when you're forced to stay with them," she claims.

"He didn't force me to do anything!" I seethe, then turn the corner and run into Brody.

"Whoa, ya all right there, lass?" he asks, grabbing my shoulders.

I cringe but jab his chest, stating, "I don't care what your laws and rules are. Ya and my sister better bring your brother back to me now, not later." I push on his chest, shove past him, find a loo, and lock myself in it.

I sit on the bench and put my hands over my face, trying to calm my emotions.

I need Aidan with me. How am I going to get it through to Alaina?

I told her I loved him.

Do I? Is it possible?

I've never been in love with anyone before. It even shocked me when it rolled out of my mouth. But if this isn't love, I don't know what is, yet I also don't know what this means. It's not like I had any examples of it growing up, except for when my mum was alive.

I stay locked in the loo, ignoring Alaina's orders to come out, trying to decipher all the new questions forming based on my admission. The biggest one won't stop nagging me.

Does Aidan love me, or are my feelings one-sided?

I stare at my reflection in the mirror, still disgusted by my too-thin body, wishing I had answers I'm unsure I'll ever get—especially if my sister has anything to do with it.