C14 Careful What You Wish For

As they entered the gazebo where he sat, Annabelle’s eyes were drawn immediately to the familiar piece of paper in his hands.

He nodded at Mary and the latter left immediately.

Annabelle remembered where she had seen the paper before, and she unconsciously patted herself before she remembered that she had already changed her clothes.

“Looking for this?” He asked as he held the paper up in front of him.

“That is mine. You have no right to…” She remembered her vows and looked fleetingly at the three men standing back from the gazebo.

Though they looked relaxed and even turned away, she knew they could pounce on her immediately.

A shudder went through her as she remembered the man from earlier.

She looked back at his raised brows and lowered her voice. “Yes, it is mine. I…had it in my pocket.”

“Hmm,” he made a barely audible sound while still looking expectantly at her.

What else did he want? She wondered as she stared back at him.

“And?”

“And?” She echoed while staring at him.

He rubbed his hand over his face like a man at the end of his patience, then looked back at her. “You had no phone but you had this. Who were you going to call?”

Annabelle hesitated as she wondered if it was safe for her to mention Jose’s sister. What if he found out who she was and told her stepfather?

“What other choice do you have?” her subconsciousness whispered.

“She is a friend,” she said hastily. “She knows where my sister is. I am…was supposed to call her when I got to Acadia…here?”

“A friend, huh? Then I suppose you must know where she is because you won't be able to reach her through this number.”

Annabelle had no idea she had moved forward until she felt his warm hand beneath hers.

She followed his gaze downward to where their skin touched, and she quickly snatched her hand back before squeezing out what she had in mind.

“What do you mean her number is not going through? Her number is supposed to go through. She is supposed to answer the call and tell me where to pick up Cathy. She has to.” She said in a frenzied tone.

She didn't give a damn when she saw one of the men step closer.

He must have given a signal because the man stepped back immediately.

“Are you saying I am lying?” His calm tone penetrated her tumbling mind.

“No, I didn't mean…” he had to be lying. “Yes, you have to be lying. I mean… I don't mean…she has to pick up the call. She has to make the call and tell me where Cathy is!”

She held her head as nausea rolled through her again.

The face of her sweet, trusting sister was torturing her mind as she wondered what the girl would be thinking right now.

She didn't even want to think about what could be happening to her.

“Sit before you faint again, okay?” His calm voice came again, infuriating her more. How could he be calm right now?

“I am not going to faint. I just need…”

“Sit.” Her body reacted to his commanding tone so effectively that her butt plopped down on the wicker chair.

Before she could speak again, he dialled the number and turned it towards her after putting it on speaker.

“We're sorry, the number you have dialled is no longer in service.”

Annabelle gaped at him like she couldn't understand what the tinny network operator's voice was saying.

She felt a rush of sound in her ear as everything around her seemed to disappear. Everything but the damn phone telling her that the world was ending.

“Hey, hey, hey” the voice was coming from far away, and she could barely hear it over the waves crashing in her ears.

But she felt his strong, warm hands as he gently bent her forward until her head was almost touching her knees.

“Easy there, slow breathing now. Gently. Yes, just like that. Do it again. I got you.”

As Annabelle focused on his soothing voice and the hand gently patting her back, she began to regain herself.

His voice wasn't so cold now, and her body seemed to want to lean into his reassuring hands.

“Who is reassuring Cathy right now?” Her mind whispered and she jerked away from him.

“Hey, stay with me. Okay?” His concerned voice was alien to her, yet it helped to keep the last of her panic at bay.

The flecks of gold in his dark eyes surprised her as he faced her. She realised she had not been that close to him before, and she should be running as far as possible from him not finding reassurance in his gaze.

“Are you fine now?” He said as he moved back.

She would never be fine again. But Cathy had to be. Cathy didn't ask for any of this.

She nodded and swallowed the lump in her throat before she said, “Please, I need to find her. Help me find her. Anything at all. Just help me, please. She is just twelve. I will do anything you want me to do.”

“Be careful what you wish for,” he said in that cold tone again, as he stepped away from her.

She heard the sound of liquid splashing into a glass, and she looked up as he held a glass towards her.

She glanced at the amber liquid in the glass. When he raised his brow at her, she quickly collected it.

She had never had such a drink before, but he didn't need to know that. Maybe it will help her clear her mind.

As he turned away from her, she held her nose and poured the liquid into her mouth.

Her eyes watered as she coughed and grabbed at her throat.

“What is it now?!” He snapped tersely as he turned. Then his eyes narrowed as she gasped and took out her tongue as if that would get rid of the awful taste burning down her throat. “You've never had brandy before?”