Behind the Secrets (Behind the Lives #4) (5 page)

“Ant Torres just phoned me on my cell.
He’s threatening Beth Connor if I don’t help him with the trial. We need to
arrange protection for her straight away.”

“How the hell did he get a phone?” Joseph
sliced a hand through the air, cutting off a reply. “Scratch that, money talks
and he has screeds of it. But this situation needs to be dealt with straight
away. I want you and Sarah to go safeguard Miss Connor until I can make other
arrangements.”

“I don’t have the time to watch her,”
Saul said, not wanting to have any contact with Beth. “I told you I’ve got
paperwork to do.”

“Miss Connor’s safety is more
important.”

“Just get someone else to monitor her.”

Joseph frowned. “This isn’t like you,
Saul. When do you choose paperwork over protecting a witness?”

“I’m just snowed under.”

“I think there’s more to it than that. Don’t
think I didn’t notice the awkwardness between you and Miss Connor earlier. What
was that about?”

“She’s scared of me. I had to intimidate
her while undercover.”

“Your situation was explained to her,
plus you saved her life. She should at least be grateful for that.”

“She isn’t, so it’s best I stay away
from her.”

“I don’t agree. You need to resolve any
issues you have with her, because I don’t want them affecting the case. Hear
me?”

Exhaling loudly, Saul nodded, not
willing to tell Joseph the full story.

Joseph smiled. “Good. Also tell her that
the police presence is a routine measure we do to make witnesses feel safer. You
don’t need to let her know she’s in danger. She’s the only Connor cooperating.
I don’t want her to get spooked. Understood?”

Saul nodded, wishing he’d kept his mouth
shut, although he knew he wouldn’t have—Ant’s threat real.

Joseph flicked a hand for him to leave.
Saul went to go, stopping as Joseph called out, “I want all your phone calls
recorded until the trial. If Torres calls again, I want proof of his threats.”

Saul nodded.

“Good. Now, go explain to Miss Connor
about the protection.”

Saul turned for the door, not sure how
he was going to handle Beth.

5

L

It had been ten long years since L had
been in New Zealand. And it scared the hell out of him. The other travellers
instead appeared excited as they dragged their suitcases through Auckland
International Airport, heading for the passport control point. On his left was
a family, the mother and father in their forties. Their young teenagers
chattered excitedly, looking like they couldn’t wait to see the beauty of New
Zealand. L had never seen the beauty, only the horrors, which was why his
mother had taken him out of the country when he was sixteen, whisking him back
to her homeland: Wales. He loved everything about Wales, especially the farm
they’d lived on near the Cambrian Mountains, a remote place where L could hide
away from the world.

Then why am I back?

The name Dante Rata came to mind. A
close friend had asked him to be Dante’s lead guitarist, and if it had been
anyone else he would’ve said no, but he’d accepted because… he wanted to see
Dante’s oldest brother again. Ash had been the first and only boy he’d fallen
in love with. L frowned, knowing it was stupid to return, especially since Ash
had never been interested in him in that way. Still, he ached to see him again,
which was something he’d wanted to do for a long time, only his fear stopping
him.

L shuffled forward, dragging his
suitcase behind him as the family of four were ushered through the control
point, their passports having been checked. The passport checker indicated for
L to approach the booth, the middle-aged man smiling at him, the appreciation
in his eyes evident.

The man held out a hand for L’s
passport. L passed it over, receiving a “Thank you, ma’am,” in return. The man
opened the passport, his smile instantly dropping, a look of confusion taking
over. He looked back up at L, his cheeks reddening. “Ah, I’m sorry, Mr.
Davies.”

“It’s all right,” L said, feeling bad
that he’d embarrassed the man. People always thought he was female, his long
hair adding to their confusion. It was orange, with golden highlights, which
he’d added to tone down his naturally bright hair. He also had feminine
features and preferred to wear androgynous clothes, the tight red leather pants
and long flowing cloak accentuating his petite physique.

The man stamped his passport, then
indicated for L to pass through, probably thinking L was a transvestite. But he
wasn’t—he was intersex. He had a mixture of male and female parts, such as his
breasts. When his chest had started to develop in his mid-teens his mother had
taken him to a doctor, who’d put him through a plethora of tests. That was when
he’d found out he wasn’t fully male, which made sense, since he’d never felt
like he was. The doctor had asked whether he wanted gender reassignment surgery,
which he’d declined, the thought terrifying him. He liked both his cock and
breasts, and wasn’t sure he wanted to give up either of them. Though, if he ever
fell for a guy again, he might consider getting it done, especially since his
cock was too small to please a woman, that one time with a female rock-star
humiliating. However, he wasn’t sure whether he could have sex with a male
either. He breathed out, pushing down the memory of what Ant Torres had done to
him ten years ago, something he didn’t want to remember—or ever have to relive
again.

He headed through the sliding doors,
veering towards the women’s restroom. He preferred using the female facilities
over the men’s, especially since men either told him to leave or stared at his
tiny dick when he pulled it out for the urinals, making him feel deeply
uncomfortable. It also reminded him of what Ant Torres had done to him in the
boys’ toilets at school, the fear never going away, even after all these years.

L breathed out, Ant constantly coming to
mind, the memories he’d suppressed for so long returning. Willing himself not
to think of his rapist, he entered the women’s restroom, moving to the back of
the line. When a stall became available, he quickly went to the toilet, not
wanting to make Jade wait. Once finished, he washed his hands, then pulled out
a brush from his bag to tidy his orange and gold mane of hair, the colour
making his hazel-green eyes stand out even more. He looked just like his sister
now, though her chest was smaller than his, the thought making him smile,
something that was a sore point for his sister. He was looking forward to
seeing her again, her last visit having been three months ago.

He put the brush into his bag, smiling
at the little girl staring up at him.

“You’re beautiful,” she said, her face
doll-like. “Are you a model?”

“No, but you must be, because you’re
much more beautiful than me.”

The girl giggled, appearing ecstatic
over his words. Her mother took her hand, giving L a smile as she moved her
daughter out of his way. Waving at the little girl, L dragged his suitcase out
of the restroom, his carry bag balancing on top of it. His smile disappeared as
he walked down the airport corridor, feeling uncomfortable as men looked his
way, a few openly staring at him. It was why he rarely travelled—or left home.
Instead, he preferred to put down tracks in the studio his uncle had built for
him on the farm, which was how he made a living. His albums were mostly
instrumental compilations, with a few songs thrown in when he felt like
singing. He also did some instrumental work for music producers, which was how
he’d met the female rock-star, their relationship fizzling out fast after their
disastrous romp.

A hand grazed his butt as he walked
through the arrivals. He glanced back to find a man following him. The man was
attractive in a gruff, hardened manner, not to mention really tall. Even with
L’s platform boots the man towered over him, which wasn’t a surprise,
considering L was only five-foot-four, another thing that made people think he
was female.

The man reached for L’s suitcase. “Let
me help you with that, love.”

L jerked the handle away from him. “No,
I’m fine thank you.”

The man smiled wider. “You have a lovely
accent. Are you Irish?”

“No, Welsh.”

“Well, it’s very sexy. Where are you
heading to? Maybe we could catch a taxi together.”

“I don’t—” Someone shouted his name,
cutting him off. He turned, spotting his friend waving at him by a partition.
Relieved to see Jade, L turned back to the tall man. “I’m sorry, but my
boyfriend’s giving me a lift,” he lied.

Looking disappointed, the man walked
away. Before L could breathe, Jade bowled through everyone, launching himself
at L, giving him the biggest hug.

L laughed. “It’s nice to see you too,
Jade.”

Jade pulled back, giving L’s arms a
squeeze. “You’re looking even more gorgeous than the last time I saw you. I
wish you’d let me sign you to your own record deal.”

“I’m already signed to your company.”

“No, I meant as a singer. You’d sell
millions with your gorgeous face and hair.”

“Until they find out I have a dick.”

“Andrej Pejic is doing well as a model,
and you’re just as, or even more, beautiful than he is.”

L patted Jade’s arm. “Ever the charmer.”

Jade smiled wide, the man the true
beauty, his black hair and Korean features picture perfect. L was usually
attracted to males like Jade, pretty and safe, not the type that could hurt
him. But Jade preferred masculine men, no, he preferred rough men, the type
that threw a person onto the bed and tore their clothes off. L shuddered
internally, the thought of someone touching him like that absolutely
terrifying. He clamped down on his nerves, willing himself not to think about
Ant—
again
.

“I hope your trip was good,” Jade said,
still smiling wide.

“It was okay.”

Jade patted L’s arm. “You never did like
flying.”

L looked around the terminal, knowing
that wasn’t the reason, the men throwing interested glances at him behind it.
His mother had taken him to a psychiatrist to help him get over his deep-seated
fear of men, which had helped considerably. In the past, he used to run or
tremble uncontrollably when a man came near him, but now he could have a normal
conversation with them—as long as they didn’t touch him. Though, Jade was one
of the very few exceptions to the rule, someone he felt completely safe
with—along with Ash—the only man L would sell his soul for.

Jade placed an arm around L’s shoulders.
“Let’s get you to your new home for the next few months.”

“You don’t have to do this, Jade, I can
get a hotel.”

“I wouldn’t hear of it, plus my house is
plenty big enough. You can take the room next to Dante’s. I can’t wait to
introduce you to him.”

L nodded, not letting on that he’d
already met Dante. Though, he doubted Ash’s younger brother would remember him,
especially since he’d changed considerably in ten years. Dante had also been thirteen
at the time, three years longer than L.

“Let’s go,” Jade said, taking the
luggage off L.

L followed him out of the terminal,
heading across a large car park, the sky above an intense blue. L had forgotten
how bright the skies were in New Zealand, the colour stunning. Again, he was
reminded of how beautiful the country was—only his experiences ugly.

They stopped next to a red Ferrari. Ever
the gentleman, Jade held open the door for L to get in. L slipped into the
front passenger seat, waiting for Jade to finish squeezing his luggage—with
difficulty, into the back.

Once done, Jade hopped into the driver’s
seat and started the engine, heading for the automated checkpoint. He clipped a
paper card through the machine, then drove out of Auckland International
Airport, turning left at the main intersection further down the road.

“Just one warning about Dante,” Jade
said, keeping his eyes on the road. “He had a nervous breakdown recently, so be
gentle on my poor baby.”

“Oh ... is he all right now?”

“I guess so; otherwise the psychiatrist
wouldn’t allow him to come home.”

“Why? Where was he?”

“At a psyche unit for a couple of
weeks.”

“He’s not dangerous, is he?” L said, now
concerned.

“Only to himself. He was abused by some
nasty criminals. I thought he was handling things, but two weeks ago one of his
girlfriends told him she was pregnant and he just lost it. He took a knife out
of the kitchen drawer and started cutting himself.”

L’s eyes widened. “He tried to commit
suicide?”

“No, he was cutting his legs. Luckily, I
managed to get the knife off him before he could do any serious damage.”

“And you want me in the house?”

Jade glanced at L. “Trust me, Llewellyn,
he’s not dangerous to anyone, other than himself.”

“Still, it’s not exactly something I
want to be around.”

Jade patted L’s leg. “Don’t worry; they
wouldn’t have let him out if they thought he’d do it again. Plus, I was hoping
we could distract him with work. I want to get an album out as soon as
possible. I wrote a few songs for him, he’s even got a couple of his own, one in
particular a potential hit.”

L remained silent as Jade continued to
talk about Dante’s song, upset that Ash’s brother was still being abused after
all these years, what Dante had told him ten years ago still fresh in his mind.
L turned his head towards the window so Jade couldn’t see his tears. He wiped
his eyes, willing the tears to stop.

Jade patted L’s leg again. “Don’t worry;
he’s a sweetheart, albeit a rude-mouthed one. It’s those women that are the
problem. The tramps are always fighting over him. It’s any wonder he didn’t
lose it sooner. Well, at least I got that hellcat Kara off his back for the meantime,
but Beth...” He sighed.

L glanced at Jade. “What about her?”

“She’s the one he got pregnant. Even
worse, he slept with the other one right before he found out he was going to be
a father.”

“Oh,” L said, “I thought he was your
boyfriend.”

“He is. I should’ve said exes, because
they’re on their way out.”

“But what about the pregnant one?”

“I don’t think he wants to be with her,
otherwise he wouldn’t have taken the news so badly. Also, he wouldn’t have
slept with the other one if he truly loved Beth.”

“You’re confusing me. If he’s your
boyfriend, he shouldn’t be sleeping with anyone but you.”

“It wasn’t an exclusive relationship,
although I’m hoping it will be once he arrives home. I just wished I didn’t
have to get Beth to pick him up. I couldn’t get hold of his brother, and my
assistant was busy running errands. I really didn’t have much choice. Still, I
shouldn’t be worried about Beth. Like I said, if Dante was truly happy with
her, he wouldn’t have hurt himself. It’s the other one I’m concerned about.
Kara is relentless. I even had to put a restraining order on her to stop her
from turning up at my house. She wouldn’t stop harassing me, trying to find out
where Dante went.”

Jade continued to talk about Dante, not
letting up until he stopped in his driveway, the man obviously head over heels
in love with Ash’s brother. L got out of the car and went to get his luggage.
Jade darted around the back of the Ferrari, stopping L from getting it out.