My hand clenched on the suitcase as another announcement was made over the loudspeaker. It wasn't the announcement I've been waiting for. The flight I was supposed to be on was delayed and there wasn't another one available until tomorrow. By then it would already be too late to leave.
I glanced around at the people hurrying about. Most of them were in a rush but others were waiting for their flight like me. Pain flashed through my chest when I thought of Silas. Usually when he went to the office, he didn't come home until late at night. Hopefully by the time he found the letter, I was already on the plane and far, far away from here.
My eyes lingered on a coffee stand a few feet away. With one last glance up at the announcement board, I headed towards it. I had just enough money in my purse for a black coffee. After paying for it, I took a seat at one of the tables and pushed my luggage underneath the table. I added some sugar and stared at the black liquid as I stirred.
Why hadn't Silas told me the truth yet? I've brought it up on numerous occasions but he always changed the subject. Why?
My body jerked in fright when the chair across from me scraped loudly against the tiled floor. I glanced up and then froze when I realized who it was. Silas's lips tilted up slightly in a half smile as he took a seat across from me. I stared at him silently as I tried to comprehend how he knew where I was.
"Running away is never an option," he said softly after a few minutes of silence.
"You ran away from home."
His smile dropped. "That was different. I didn't belong and I still don't."
Swallowing, I licked my lips and glanced down at the cup again. "How did you find me?"
"I asked the man at the front desk to call me if you leave the building."
"And you bribed him into telling you exactly where I am?"
He chuckled and leaned his elbows on the table. Entwining his fingers together, he watched me silently for a few seconds. "He volunteered the rest of the information, actually. He told me that he had asked if you needed a cab and you told him that you wanted to go to the airport."
I sighed, so much for my escape plan. Pushing the coffee aside, I sat up a little straighter and stared at him. Silas reached inside his suite jacket and removed the letter I had written for him. So he got it.
"You lied to me," I accused him softly.
Silas glanced away from me. "I know. I'm sorry." He reached across the table and gripped my hand. "You were already suffering and the last thing I wanted to do was add more worries."
My eyes dropped to our hands. "D-do you hate me, Silas?"
"Hate you? Why would I hate you?"
There were a lot of reasons I could think of but I brought up the one we both knew he hated. "I can't give you children without Ethan."
When he stayed silent, I glanced up at him. Silas was staring down at the table. I watched him battle whatever thoughts he had racing through his mind. What was he going to say? Was he going to lie again just to make me feel better? Silas moved his hand and grabbed mine. I watched as he traced a finger over the ring on my finger.
"If it was any other man, I'd be planning on ways how to kill him," he smiled but it quickly faded, "but Ethan can't change things just like neither of us can. You were made for both of us, Lara. The three of us were destined to be together and because of a mistake I made when we were younger, I ruined our chances of ever finding happiness."
I frowned at him. "A mistake?"
"I killed a boy because he was torturing an animal. When I saw him and heard the pain he was causing, I saw red. I killed him and Ethan helped me burry the body. We never told anybody about it and now my actions has come back to haunt us." He gave my hand a squeeze and leaned closer. "Everything that's been happening to us, to you, is because of me."
"I don't understand," I whispered.
"And you're not meant to, sweetness. This is something Ethan and I will fix but until we figure out a way to do that, I need you to be happy."
"Silas—" I broke off when I caught movement over his shoulder.
My eyes narrowed as the man took a seat at a table a few feet away. He placed a cup of coffee down on the table and then opened a newspaper. It would've looked normal if he wasn't watching us over the paper. Unease rippled through me. I gripped Silas's hands tighter.
"Lara?"
My eyes snapped back to his. "What if I'm ready to have a baby and Ethan isn't willing to help? What if Avery doesn't want him to help us?"
"Ethan had made you a promise, remember?" My eyes widened, how had he known? "Avery has nothing to do with us. She doesn't have a say in anything Ethan wants to do."
"But it'll affect her too."
"Avery is a bitch, Lara. She doesn't deserve your sympathy."
"It wouldn't be right!"
"Just like it wasn't right when you had phone sex with Ethan," he said.
My eyes lowered as shame shot through me. I had no right but that didn't stop me.
"You've been ignoring my calls and messages for weeks and when he calls you end up having phone sex with him." Anger made his face flood with colour. "I've been worried sick about you and then when you do call me it's to tell me that you had phone sex with my brother."
"Silas—"
"What made you do it?" he interrupted.
I licked my lips. "I called to talk to you but you were in the shower. I don't know what happened. We were talking and . . ."
"And?"
"He was growling and making noise like you do and I got turned on. I'm sorry Silas."
He glanced away from me and stared off into the distance for a few minutes before he turned to stare at me again. His peculiar eyes darted over my face. "Do you feel guilty about it because you're wearing my ring?"
I hesitated and then decided to answer him truthfully. "I honestly don't know what I feel. A part of me liked it. I like the way he makes me feel but then I crave you too. It doesn't feel right without you, though."
"Lara—" he shook his head, "Ethan. . ." He broke off and shook his head.
Silas stood and leaned down to pull my suitcase from underneath the table. He straightened and held his hand out to me. I hesitated and then slipped my hand into his. We stayed silent as we made our way out of the airport and towards the parking where he had parked his car. I watched him as he loaded my suitcase into the boot of the car.
Everything was normal, until it wasn't anymore. One minute we were alone, and the next, men suddenly surrounded us. A gasp fell from my lips which instantly alerted Silas. He spun around, gripped my arm and pulled me behind him.
Fear shot through me when I spotted the guns they held pointed towards us. I immediately recognized the man right in front of us. He was the one who sat at the table a few feet away from us, pretending to read the newspaper.
"If you work with us, nobody will get hurt," the man said.
The others shifted uneasily on their feet. Two of them were glancing around nervously while the other three stood stone-faced. It was clear that whatever their leader was doing, weren't part of their original plan, and they proved it when one of them spoke up.
"What are you doing?" he questioned with an urgency in his voice that made the others frown. "Boss told you to wait until she's alone and grab her."
"Shut up!"
"What do you want?" Silas asked the man in charge. "From what he said, it's obvious that you don't want any money. What do you want?"
He smiled, showing off stained crooked teeth. "Let's just say that as long as you comply, you're woman won't be hurt."
I clung to Silas when he pointed the gun at me. He looked scarier than the other guy who had kidnapped me while we were visiting Silas's parents. He wanted money and that was why he kept his word, but this man wanted more. He was willing to do anything to get it.
"Get in the car." He nodded towards a black car parked not far from Silas's car. "Don't try anything."
Silas reached back and gripped my hip. He gave it a firm squeeze before he let go and took a step back. I knew that if we got into that car that we wouldn't ever make it out alive. As soon as he got what he wanted, he'd kill us.
"What guarantee do I have that if we comply then you won't kill us?"
The man laughed and glanced around. His laughter slowly died down. "You don't."
I could almost imagine the gears turning in Silas' head as he thought of a plan. Surely someone would come through those doors any second now but no matter how hard I prayed the doors stayed closed.
Silas took another step away from me and suddenly kicked out. The man closest to him went stumbling backwards. He hit the ground but quickly climbed to his feet again. Silas yelled something to me but I didn't hear over the sudden shot that had been fired. My arm was grasped tightly from behind and then I was pulled against a hard body. Cold metal was pressed against my temple.
"One more move and I'll shoot her."
Silas froze. Horror and fear flashed through his eyes as he realized that the man had me at gun point. His eyes locked with mine for a few seconds before darting up to stare at the man holding me.
"Let her go."
"Of course."
Movement from the corner of my eyes caught my attention but I was too scared to move. My eyes widened when the man stepped into view. He walked behind Silas and handed something to the man Silas had kicked. My eyes widened and a whimper fell from my lips. I was about to warn Silas but it was already too late.
The man jabbed the needle into his neck and emptied the contents in the syringe into Silas. He stepped back with a small smile. Silas stumbled forward with a hand pressed against his neck. I watched in horror as he fell to the floor, knocked out cold. Before I could think of something, pain shot through my head. I stumbled forward and then fell to my knees.
The last thing I saw were the men closing in on us before everything faded into darkness.