45
Scarlet fell into Gabriel’s embrace willingly. He smelled so good and felt so warm and strong, she didn’t want to leave his arms as they stood in the living room.
Although she’d been safe for nearly an hour, her heart was still beating out of control.
Gabriel kissed the top of her head several times. His voice was full of emotion when he said, “I’m so glad you’re not hurt.”
Scarlet burrowed her face in his chest. “I don’t understand what’s going on.”
“Neither do I.” Gabriel pulled away from her and looked into her eyes. “But I’m going to find out. I promise I will keep you safe.” He kissed her head again. “For now, let’s get you settled. We’ll figure out a plan tomorrow.”
Gabriel took her by the hand and led her upstairs. Scarlet had yet to see any part of the cabin aside from the living room, so she took in her surroundings carefully.
“What’s in the basement?” Scarlet eyed the set of stairs leading into darkness below them.
“Tristan’s room.” Gabriel headed upstairs.
Tristan lived in a dark basement.
Of course.
The upstairs was set up like a house, with everything except a kitchen.
There was a large sitting room with an unlit fireplace and two rooms off to the side. She followed Gabriel into his large and very modern-looking bedroom. His furniture was a sleek black and the walls were a muted gray. Off to the side was an archway leading into a master bathroom with black countertops, chrome fixtures, and a very large shower.
She looked at his big bed, covered in a plush black comforter, and wished she was standing in his bedroom under different circumstances.
Yesterday, she would have loved to crawl into bed with Gabriel and wiggle into his arms.
Tonight, though, she just wanted to go to sleep without anyone trying to kill her.
Scarlet sighed. Tonight sucked.
Gabriel’s hand skimmed down her shoulder until it fell into her hand. He walked her over to the big bed.
“You need rest. Why don’t you try to get some sleep while I figure stuff out?” He smiled sweetly at her as he repositioned the pillows and blankets, making a little nest for her.
Scarlet looked up at him, skeptical of any peaceful sleep coming to her. “Do you think that guy was trying to kill me tonight?”
Gabriel thought about it. “No. I honestly don’t. But since we don’t know what he was trying to do, we just have to be careful. And this,” Gabriel motioned around the room, “is the safest place in the world for you right now. Because I would never let anything happen to you.” He smiled again as she climbed into his bed and leaned back into the fluffy pillows.
He ran his hand along her face and Scarlet kissed his nearby fingers. “I know.”
Once Scarlet was comfortably settled, her eyes became heavy and closed of their own accord.
She felt Gabriel kiss her cheek before she heard his soft footsteps leave the room. Even though she didn’t want to be alone, she couldn’t find the strength to speak or open her eyes. She was just…too…tired….
Against her better judgment, Scarlet surrendered to sleep and prayed she wouldn’t find strangers with knives in her dreams.
46
Back in the living room, Gabriel stared at the black device for a long time. Someone had come after Scarlet. Someone knew she was alone in her house and had snuck in while she was sleeping.
Someone must know she’s special.
The thought terrified Gabriel.
Scarlet was so vulnerable, so weak. She could never have defended herself against a full-grown man. She could have been hurt or kidnapped, and Gabriel would never have known what happened to her.
If Tristan hadn’t been there, Scarlet wouldn’t have stood a chance.
If Tristan hadn’t been there, Gabriel’s world would have imploded.
Which begged the question, why had Tristan been there?
Gabriel fisted and flexed his hands as a familiar suspicion settled on him.
He heard Tristan marching upstairs from the basement and waited until his twin was within earshot before asking, “Why were you at Scarlet’s house tonight?”
His palms began to sweat.
Freshly showered and wearing clean clothes, Tristan sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I was trying to get some sleep.”
Gabriel raised a brow.
“In my car. Outside her house.” Tristan rolled his eyes. “Don’t worry, it’s not like I was sleeping in her bed or anything. I haven’t been able to sleep for two nights now and I thought being near her would help.”
Gabriel nodded. “Is it that bad, now?”
“It’s…bad. It’s worse than ever before.”
“Why?”
Tristan shrugged. “I’m not sure.”
Gabriel looked at the floor, unsure of what to say. He knew Tristan suffered when Scarlet was far away but, with her house being only miles from the cabin, he should be able to sleep without discomfort.
“So,” Tristan said. “Our little dilemma just got way worse. What should we do?”
Gabriel rubbed the side of his face and looked at the black band on the table. “We need to find out what that thing is.”
Tristan nodded. “And we need to make sure no one else comes after Scarlet.”
A few moments passed.
“We need to talk to Nate,” Gabriel said.
“Yeah…Nate will probably have a better idea than us.”
Gabriel pulled out his cell phone and called their longtime friend.
Nate’s voicemail picked up on the third ring. “Hey, this is Nate. I’m currently in the cave of concentration. Leave a message and I’ll call you back in seven-to-ten business days. May the force be with you.” A long beep followed.
Gabriel lowered the phone with a sigh.
“What’s up?” Tristan looked at Gabriel’s phone.
“Nate’s in the ‘cave of concentration’.”
Tristan rolled his eyes. “He’s probably practicing for the video game Olympics or whatever.”
“Video game Olympics?”
“Yeah, he mentioned something about a championship to me a few weeks ago. We won’t be able to reach him. You know how he is when he’s in the ‘cave’.”
Gabriel shook his head, frustrated. Nate was always falling off the face of the earth for brief periods of time when he was working on something.
Sometimes, it was admirable.
Right now? It was inconvenient.
“We need to talk to Nate. What should we do?”
Tristan sighed. “I don’t know.”
“Let me think about it,” Gabriel responded. “We’ll figure something out in the morning. Tonight, we just need to make sure Scarlet’s safe.”
Tristan smiled without humor as he turned to leave. “Well, in that case, I’ll be downstairs, as far away from her as possible.”
Gabriel rolled his eyes. “Don’t be dramatic.”
Tristan spun around, his face fierce. “Did you not see her eyes tonight? They were flashing all over the place.”
“She was scared.” Gabriel tried to calm Tristan down. “Relax. She’s fine.”
Tristan shook his head and exhaled. “Every time I’m close to her it makes her heart beat harder, tearing it in half that much faster. Don’t you get that? I’m killing her, Gabe.”
For a second, Tristan looked as vulnerable and afraid as Gabriel felt. But, in an instant, Tristan’s eyes hardened. “Scarlet needs to stay as far away from me as possible.”
“Tristan.” Gabriel held his palms up, surprised by his brother’s panic. It was out of character for him. “Calm down. Scarlet’s eyes were flashing but she’s not sick yet. She’s fine.”