Evening had begun to settle over the beach, the last strands of sunlight glimmering on the water's surface. A soft breeze blew Finley's curls out of her face as she stared out at the water. She smiled to herself as she watched the ripples and waves move in a hypnotic pattern. She had truly missed the normality of doing something as simple as going to the beach. But Kade's surprise date had given her that feeling back. She glanced over to where he was picking up the remainder of their belongings. His hair was still slightly damp from when they had gone swimming and he had sand stuck to his skin where he'd been sitting. His chest was bare exposing his muscular body, the sun making it a nice golden colour. His green eyes were fixed on the basket as he picked it up before he rose up to face her.
They had spent the remainder of the day lying on the beach soaking up the sun, swimming and eating the food he had prepared. It had been such a relaxing day and it almost seemed like a dream. Finley had never considered what her life would be like after she knew the truth about her parents and her brother. For most of her life she had just hoped that one day she would know. Now that she knew the truth she wasn't sure what she was going to do with her life. It was like her purpose had been taken away. But she thought she could get used to it if it was just her and Kade spending endless hours together. He had become such a constant in her life and she couldn't picture it without him.
Kade trudged up the hill to the sand dune that she was standing on. He flashed her a charming smile when he reached her side. "Ready to go?" He asked curiously, placing the basket down at his feet.
Finley's eyes drifted back out to the water as the last remainders of the sun drifted behind the horizon. She had always loved watching the sun set and it was the perfect ending to such an amazing day. And yet she didn't want it to end.
"I wish we could just stay here forever," she said as another gust of wind blew across her face.
He took her hand in his and she met his eyes. There was a glint of something reflected in his beautiful green orbs but she couldn't quite pick up on what it was. "We have our whole lives to come back here again Finn. We can spend each and every day here if that's what you desire because we are finally free. No more Arlin Shade. No more searching for answers. We can finally start living."
A smile grew across her face as she looked at him. He was completely right. There was so much they could do now that they had found out the truth. They could finally live their lives the way they were supposed to. The idea filled Finley's heart with excitement. She wanted to do so much with her life. She wanted to share so many memories with him. She loved him in so many ways for everything he had done and everything that he had made her feel. He had come into her life at a time when she had needed someone to believe in her and here he was standing in front of her and promising her the world.
In that moment she wanted to reach out and kiss him. She wanted to show him just how much he meant to her and how deeply she loved him. As if knowing what she was thinking he pulled her against him and his lips crashed against hers. Her eyes flew shut and she sunk against him as her heart hammered against her chest and her stomach flew with butterflies. She would never get over the feeling of his hands against her skin or his lips against hers. She would cherish every memory that she shared with him for the rest of her life. She knew in her heart that she would never stop loving him.
They pulled apart breathlessly and a blush crossed her face. She could see the lust in his eyes as he looked at her and in that moment she wanted nothing more than to be connected to him in the most intimate way possible. As if sensing her thoughts he placed another kiss on her lips, this time more gentle. She felt like she could lose herself there in the sand at the beach but she knew that this wasn't how she wanted it to happen. Regretfully she pulled back placing a hand on his chest. "Not here," she breathed.
His eyes, alight with fire shone and he nodded. "Okay sweetheart," he said, "Let's go home."
A small smirk crossed her face as he turned and picked the basket back up. He held her hand as they moved off the beach and over to the car. He unlocked the car door and placed the basket inside. There was a certain amount of excitement radiating off him and she couldn't help but laugh. He turned around to face her, his eyebrow raised. "Something funny?"
"You are," she chuckled, "You're so excited."
He grinned and a sarcastic look crossed his face, "Of course I'm excited sweetheart. I've always wanted to sleep with the prettiest girl in school."
A blush covered her face as she rolled her eyes at him. She couldn't help but grin wider at his comment. The wind blew again and she caught a strange smell in the wind. She crunched her nose up in disgust. "Do you smell that?" She asked.
Kade's face frowned as he glanced around. "Is something on fire?" He asked.
Finley's eyes widened as the realization set in but it was already too late. Something large smashed into them and they went tumbling to the ground. She hit the ground with force but she moved quickly scrambling to her feet and scanning the surroundings for Kade. A huge demon was standing over him, its pincer white teeth hovered above his neck. Her eyes widened and she took a few steps forward but something hit her across the head. She fell forward, her head hitting the pavement. Her vision blurred but she could just make out the figure standing above her, his dark eyes staring down at her with amusement. "My dear, I thought we had come to an agreement. Clearly I was wrong in assuming that you would stand by your side of the deal," Arlin's voice said.
She frowned in confusion but before she could even open her mouth to answer the darkness took over and she passed out.
~
Finley awoke to darkness and the sensation that she was being watched. She blinked her eyes, struggling to gain her consciousness as the pounding in her head worsened. She could feel the blood that had trickled down the side of her face and she hoped that her injury wasn't too serious. As her eyes began to adjust to the dimness of the room she realized she wasn't alone. A row of four people sat in a line, at intervals, across the room. It was too dark for her to make out any distinct features but she had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach.
She sucked in a breath of air and the putrid metallic smell of blood engulfed her senses. She scrunched her nose up in disgust, trying to move up from the chair and realizing that she was tied to the chair with metal restraints. She took a few more breaths of air to try and calm her nerves and her racing heart. This wasn't good. She had no idea where she was or how she was going to get out of this situation. Arlin's words echoed in her head and she sighed in confusion. What had he been talking about? She had kept up her end of the deal.
She heard the click of a door and her head snapped in the direction of the sound. A second later light blared up around her, illuminating the room. She recognized the room immediately and a feeling of dread washed over her. It was the Old Theatre where Arlin had hosted one of his parties. Her eyes scanned the room and stopped on the four chairs in front of her, each holding a person that she knew.
In the first chair sat Jin Oakly, the Asian warlock with the dyed red hair that had helped her at the supernatural market place. There was an ugly bruise under his right eye and a bloody scar along his jaw. As well as a dagger that was sticking out from his chest. Sweat had gathered on his brow as he breathed heavily, pain clear on his grimacing expression.
Draven Michaels sat in the second chair. The rough werewolf with the blue Mohawk that had also provided her with assistance was barely conscious. There was a large open wound across his chest, blood seeping from the wound and pooling on the floor in front of him.
Finley's gaze moved to Kailee's fearful violet eyes that were full of tears. Her face and body were covered with cuts and bruises, like she had been run over by a car.
In the final chair, Kade was slumped over. Cuts littered his once perfect skin, blood oozing down his entire body. A bruise covered his cheek and there was a cut across his lips. He was looking at her sadly, almost regretfully so and her heart clenched at the sight of him.
Suddenly Arlin appeared in front of her, an amused expression on his face. He wore a red tuxedo with shiny black shoes that clicked on the floor as he walked. His dark eyes seemed to dance with excitement as he peered down at her. "Ah, my dear Finley," he taunted, "How sad it is that we meet again. I had hoped that our previous encounter would be our last."
She narrowed her eyes at him doing her best to appear fearless despite the terror that was in her chest. "We had a deal," she muttered, "Why did you break it?"
His eyes flared in anger and he stopped in front of her. "I did not break it!" He snapped, his words were like venom, "I am a man of my word. You are the one who broke our deal."
She shook her head in disagreement, "No Arlin. I didn't do anything." She knew that she was telling the truth. She had not done anything to jeopardize their deal. A small grin crossed Arlin's face and even before the words left him mouth Finley tensed in apprehension.
"No my dear," he said, "But your boyfriend did it for you."
Finley's head swung over to meet Kade's gaze and she could see the flicker of guilt in his eyes. She knew even without asking that Arlin was right. Kade had gone behind her back and tried to find Arlin. "Why Kade?" She questioned softly.
He sighed, "I'm sorry Finn. But I wanted to find my mother."
Finley's heart softened and she understood why he had broken her trust. If there was any chance that her family member was still alive she would jump at the chance to get them back. She couldn't blame Kade for wanting to find his mother. She shouldn't have asked him to give up that chance.
Arlin cleared his throat breaking Finley out of her thoughts. "A deal is a deal Finley," he said, "I warned you and now as a result everyone who helped you and the people you love will die."
Finley felt a burst of panic go through her. "No!" She cried, "Our deal was if I looked for you. Not Kade. Our deal is still in place. If you do this you are breaking your word."
Arlin's eyes darkened and a frown appeared on his face. She knew she was right and a flicker of triumph crossed her face. But it was short lived as Arlin moved towards her and grabbed her chin. "We are playing by my rules not yours. I will kill who I want, when I want to."
As if to prove his point he strolled over to Jin grabbing the dagger from his stomach. A cry came from his lips as Arlin savagely stabbed him repeatedly in the chest over and over again. Finley watched in horror as Jin cried in pain before the life left him all together. Tears stung her eyes as she watched Arlin take a step back, a sickening grin on his lips and moved towards Draven.
"Stop it!" She cried, "Stop it, they didn't do anything."
Draven's eyes met hers and she saw the flash of regret in his eyes right before Arlin slit his throat and blood erupted around his body. He turned around the blood knife still in his hand. "You are wrong, they helped you. They betrayed me and helped you find me. They deserve to die for their treachery."
She shook her head in disbelief. "Arlin please," she begged, "Don't do this."
He moved towards Kailee and a tear trickled down the other girls face. She met Finley's eyes a flicker of defiance flashed inside of her.
"It's okay Finley," Kailee said, "I'm glad I helped you and I'm sorry that I didn't get to see you kill the murdering bastard."
Arlin raised his hand the flash of the knife coming into view. Finley screamed as it sailed down towards Kailee's stomach. Kailee screamed as the knife went in before Arlin pulled it out again. Blood spluttered from the wound but before Arlin got the chance to strike again, Kailee passed out. Her shallow breathing was the only indicator that she was still alive but Finley doubted she would last much longer.
Arlin strode over to Kade and moved behind his seat. His dark eyes met Finley's and there was no remorse in his gaze. "Any last words to your little boyfriend before I cut him into pieces?"
Tears sprung from her eyes as she met Kade's beautiful green ones. She couldn't stand watching him suffer. She couldn't possibly watch him die. She had to do something but what could she possibly do. "Please just let him go," she pleaded, "Please kill me instead."
Arlin grinned, "I'm sorry my dear, but that's not how it works."
He scrapped the knife down the side of Kade's forehead and she could see the pain that Kade was trying to keep inside. The cut wasn't deep and she knew in that moment that Arlin was going to make him suffer.
She sobbed as she watched Arlin cut slice after slice into Kade's body. He was covered in cuts and blood and she could barely make out what part of him wasn't hurt. He was trying so hard to keep himself from crying out but he was failing miserably. Finley couldn't take it any longer. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to block the sound of Kade's screams from her ears as he suffered.
This was all her fault. None of this would be happening if it wasn't for her. She should be the one suffering, not Kade. She pulled all of the strength she had left and began pulling at the chains that bound her hands. The metal bit into her skin violently the more she struggled but she didn't care. She had to do something.
She didn't even notice that Kade's cries had stopped until Arlin was in front of her grabbing her throat painfully hard and stopping her from struggling. Her eyes widened in surprise as he gazed down at her. "Stop that," he threatened, "You're missing the show."
She glared at him before spitting directly in his face. He looked furious as he wiped the spit from his face and gripped her throat tighter. "Enough," he growled moving back over to where Kade was sitting. His hand whacked across his face and Finley gasped in surprise.
As Arlin pounded his fists into Kade's face, she felt completely helpless. She couldn't stop him, she couldn't fight back. All she could do was sit and watch in horror. "Please Arlin!" She screamed at him, "Please stop!"
Arlin didn't even glance at her. His rage had overcome him as he continued to beat Kade senseless.
"Arlin!" Finley screamed as loudly as she could, "Please, I'll do anything."
Suddenly Arlin stopped what he was doing and spun around. His eyes gleaming in triumph. Kade's head was bent down over his lap and he spat blood onto the floor in front of him. He was badly hurt, that much was obvious and she could tell that he looked weak and slightly dazed.
"Anything?" Arlin questioned, a hint of joy in his words. She met his eyes evenly a serious expression on her face. She was sick of watching Kade suffer. Sick of feeling helpless.
"Yes, I'll do anything. Just please leave my friends alone. Let Kade and Kailee go and leave Harley and Tate alone and I will do anything you want," she urged.
A loud chuckle erupted from Arlin's throat as he began to pace across the room. He seemed to be deep in thought despite the laughter that filled the air. Finley's eyes drifted over to Kade and she could see the panic in his eyes. He shook his head slightly as if urging her not to make any kind of deal with him. But she didn't really have much of a choice. She had gotten them into this mess and she was going to get them out.
"What exactly would you be willing to give up to save them and ensure their safety?" Arlin questioned. There was a more serious look in his eyes and she found herself swallowing nervously under the intensity of his gaze.
"Anything. Nothing matters to me except their safety," she pleaded.
A sly grin grew on Arlin's lips at her words and she could tell that he had his request ready.
"Will you give up your life to save them?" He asked, "Will you sacrifice your freedom and everything you hold dear? Will you leave them all behind and work for me in return for their lives?"
~