★
V A U G H N
Mason Holiday is dead. I will skin him alive.
I pace across the hall, tapping my phone in the palm of my hand as I wait for them to come home. Mom is sitting on the couch, pinching her forehead between her fingers. Just like me, she is worried ever since we got the call from Rose about what happened at the bar.
Jake Gallagher is getting fired. I gave him one job and he left without informing me. If I had known that he was gone, I would have gone there myself. It's my fault I left my girls in the care of some idiot.
"This can't be happening, son...How did it..." Mom sighs, tears forming in her eyes. I ignore her, my mind occupied by the doors through which they are supposed to arrive.
Rose called me after they got in the car, knowing that I would have come rushing if it wasn't for that. My sister assured me that Claire was safe and some Noah was with them, that the guy saved Claire. As much as I knew all about my wife's life, there was no mention of any Noah ever. Either I missed something or he is new in the picture.
The sound of footsteps alerts me and I fix my eyes on the door as Rose steps in, followed by a guy I don't remember seeing — Noah probably. A little startled by the stranger's appearance, I stay rooted to my place until my eyes fall on Claire.
Her head is pressed close to the man's chest and he is carrying her securely. There is a leather jacket around Claire's shoulder, hanging loose due to her feminine frame. I run towards them, shoving my phone into my pocket while Mom gets up from her seat, rushing to hug my sister.
"She's just fainted," the man says when I reach them. He is almost my height and stares at me with his green eyes.
He looks older, probably around his late twenties with brown hair and green eyes which shine. He is dressed in boyish clothes like he is attempting to look younger than his real age but the signs of maturity are visible on his face and in the depths of his eyes.
Why is an older man part of Claire's group?
I don't find any words to respond to him. I instead take Claire from his arms, cocooning her body in the comfort of mine. Her face is ashen-like, her lips pale, and her skin cold. She is unresponsive, having no clue how she is being handled without her permission. The fact that I wasn't there to protect her even when she asked me to go with them fills me with remorse.
I should have been there. It should have been me and not some random guy keeping her safe. I don't get it — I have everything at my disposal and yet, I fail to protect her always. What am I doing wrong?
"Vaughn, I'm so sorry...I should have looked after Claire..." my sister says from behind, sobs following her words.
I look back at the new guy and he takes a step back. I hold Claire closer to me, hiding her face against my chest.
"Thank you..." I halt on my words, not knowing how to address him.
"Noah Striker," he introduces himself properly, giving a tight-lipped smile. "I'm the fiancé of Claire's friend. I asked them to stay in the car since they have been crying the entire journey."
I swallow a gulp as I look back at Claire. Her arms are dangling in the air, giving her the appearance of a dead person. I don't waste any more time talking to Noah as I turn around and rush towards the stairs with Claire in my arms.
"Call Dr. Chase, Rose. Tell him to come as soon as possible," I shout at my sister before disappearing into our room to tend to Claire.
***
An hour later, I am sitting beside the bed, moving a strand of Claire's blonde hair behind her ear. Dr. Chase came in half an hour ago and examined her. He assured us that she didn't have any injuries and that the drug was purged out of her body after she puked. He suggested letting her rest and he will come back in the morning again.
I put her to bed for the night after changing her into one of my T-shirts. She hasn't woken up yet and even though it worries me a little, the doctor said that she should be okay in the morning.
"Come in, Rose. You don't have to stand there all night," I say to my sister who has been standing behind the door for fifteen minutes now, thinking I am oblivious to her presence.
There is a tap on the door and I find her slowly walking in. She is wearing a pair of pink shorts and a loose T-shirt, looking at Claire with quivering lips and tears rolling down her eyes.
"Vaughn, I'm...sorry..."
"You already said it once, Rose. I get it," I mutter in an irritated voice and she flinches.
"No, that's not it...please don't hate me." She starts crying as she intertwines her fingers together, wringing them nervously. "I asked Jake to leave. He...he wasn't feeling well. I...it was all me. It's not his fault and neither is Claire's...please forgive me, brother..."
She sniffs, rubbing her tears with her knuckles. To say that I expected that of her wouldn't come as a surprise. I already told Jake that if Claire asked him to leave, he shouldn't listen to her so definitely, he ended up finding a loophole in my statement.
I sigh, pressing my hands on my knees to get up, standing tall in front of Rose as she slowly walks to me. She cranes her neck to look at me, her nose coloring red along with her cheeks.
"You should sleep, Rose. It's late."
I walk past her to head over to my closet. I open it to take out my nightclothes and hear soft footsteps come to a stop behind me.
"Vaughn...please don't hate me. I'm so sorry..."
I turn to her, throwing the clothes back inside the closet as I cross my arms over my chest.
"You're not the kind who pays attention to my employees...then what is it about Jake that made you forget your logic?" I ask and Rose looks at the floor, hesitantly moving her eyes from one corner to the other.
"I...I...I like him, Vaughn..." she confesses. "I felt worried about him...and I don't know. Seeing Claire support my decision gave me the push. I...I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have made him leave." She looks back up at me. "But... I swear, he was sick. He looked sick. Please forgive me, Vaughn...please..."
Silence surrounds the room, Rose's love confession penetrating my mind slowly. This is strange. I never thought I would have to deal with my sister being in love with one of my employees. They are way older than her and it is supremely inappropriate to my eyes. I stare at her dumbfounded, my eyebrows pinched together.
"Rose...he is too old for you. He's even older than me. You can't be together," I sigh and she bites her lips, squeezing her eyes shut. "And I'm firing him. I can handle being without an assistant for another month."
"No!" She grabs my sleeve, squeezing it tight between her fingers as she looks at me with tear-stained cheeks. "No, don't fire him. The only reason he left was because I told him that you won't fire him. He needs this job, Vaughn. You can't do this to him."
"This isn't a joke, Rose. I allowed you and Claire to go to the concert at his trust. He broke it. I can't have someone I can't trust under my service."
"Please no, Vaughn..." My sister jumps on her feet in impatience. "I'll never again do such a thing. Don't punish him for my mistakes. Don't fire him, Vaughn...please, please, please. I promise I'll always listen to your advice."
She suddenly wraps her arms around my torso and presses her cheek to my chest, hugging me tight. She murmurs her request, muffling her voice over my shirt while I stand there, fingers clenched to fists.
"Rose...go to sleep. We'll talk about it later."
I try to pull her off me but she doesn't let go. Her hold is unbelievably tight, making it impossible for me to release her without pushing her hard so I drop my arms back, looking down at the crown of her head.
I love my sister. I have always felt protective of her. After Dad's sudden demise, it was me she found her comfort in since Mom was busy with her own grief. In all the years I have known her, Rose hasn't been the least bit of trouble. She is the one who always followed the rules, always listened to others, and even let them push her over. I can't imagine hurting her.
Not now, not ever.
"Vaughn, please..."
"Okay, fine," I say finally. "I won't fire him but I'm cutting David's vacation short. I can't have Jake working as my assistant anymore."
Her grip around me instantly loosens and Rose pulls away, her eyes wide and a little smile teasing her lips.
"Really?"
I nod and the smile on her lips widens, taking over her face as she jumps into my arms again, her arms intertwining around my neck. This time, I do return her gesture, pressing a soft kiss on her cheek before putting her down.
"Thank you so much, Vaughn," Rose squeals.
My phone begins to ring just at the moment, cutting our conversation short. I fish it out of my pocket and see an unknown number. I look at Rose and she mouths me a 'goodnight' before heading towards the door to walk out.
"Rose?" I call her and she turns her head to look at me with her one hand on the doorknob. "Draft me a suit, will you? Make sure Mason Holiday never gets out of the mess he created for himself."
Rose smiles, nodding her head and stepping out. The door shuts behind her, allowing me my privacy. I pick up the call when it rings for the second time.
"Hello?"
"Jackson, your lack of calls is appalling," Senator Campbell's voice booms from the other end. "Thought you may have forgotten about your precious request."
I take a seat on the edge of the bed beside Claire's feet, pulling the blanket properly to cover her. "I assure you I haven't forgotten anything, Senator. Although, I believe we have the identity of the man now. It's one of my wife's exes."
I hear the sound of liquid being poured into a glass, a clink, and then the sound of him sipping his drink.
"You're right. The cops found more than they tell you," he begins. "Your wife said that the man said something about her wedding ring. One of their profilers looked into the conversation in detail and concluded that your killer isn't some jealous lover or ex but someone with a more twisted motive."
"I don't understand." My eyes narrow at his long words, confusion replacing the firm-headed ideas of Mason Holiday being the culprit in my head. "What do you mean?"
"That's what they said, Jackson. Your man isn't experienced. They think he is more concerned with your wife's relationships than with her. Claire is not his main target."
"Why would he want to kill her if she isn't his main target, Campbell? It doesn't make sense."
"Your wife is not his main concern but he does have intentions with her. I would love to know how you got yourself in such a mess someday," the Senator snickers like he finds this all pretty amusing, his words mocking me. "After all...it's you he is after."