Frey (3 page)

“
Hello, Brother,” Rafael
answered. He regarded them all as his brothers, whether they were
brothers, cousins, or even if they weren’t related by blood at
all.

“
Evening, Rafe. I’m
sitting here at the manor, alone. Where are Jonathan and Priscilla?
This place is like a ghost town.”

“
Lorenzo’s new
housekeeper, Prudence, arrived today from Italy. She is Priscilla
and Jonathan’s niece, and they are over there now, helping her
settle in. What’s up?”

“
I wanted to talk to Kaya
about one of her cops. What time will y’all be home?” Frey was one
of the few Gargoyles who had adopted the southern style of
speaking. While he didn’t follow the “good ole boy” mentality, he
did talk with a drawl. He had lost his Italian accent a couple
hundred years earlier.

“
I was just going to call
you. I’m afraid we won’t be home anytime soon. We are headed to
Tennessee with Dane. Julian can fill you in, but shit has hit the
proverbial fan. Gregor and Dante are on an airplane headed to
Greece. I need you to take care of the patrol schedule until they
return.”

“
Ten-four. Do I need to
postpone our sword training?” Frey really hoped not, because he was
looking forward to sparring of a different sort.

“
No, please proceed. I
have a feeling it is more important than before. Listen, I need to
go; we have arrived at our destination. I’ll be in touch soon. Be
well, Frey.”

“
And you, my brother.” He
tossed his phone in the cup holder and started the Jeep. “What the
fuck is going on?” he asked the cosmos.

Chapter Two

Abbi’s last student left the dance room. It
was time to begin planning the fall festival, which meant longer
hours after school. Between the afternoon dance classes three days
a week and the festival, Abbi would be late getting home every
night. She couldn’t be happier. Abbi Quinn taught ballet at a local
community center. Her class was filled with children from mostly
lower income families who wanted nothing more than a babysitter.
There were some kids who were truly interested in dancing. Since
Abbi couldn’t have any children of her own, she relished her time
with the little ones, no matter the reason they spent their
afternoons with her.

The last child had been
picked up, and Abbi was taking advantage of the quiet time to work
on the festival. Most of the other classes had let out, so the
building was almost empty. Even though it was autumn, the committee
had chosen
The Nutcracker
for this year’s theme and had appointed Abbi as
chairperson. The door flew open and slammed against the wall,
startling her. Her husband Troy stalked into the room, his face was
furious.
Oh, God. What now?
Troy had a temper, and it was only getting worse.
It was all she could do to hide the bruises from her fellow
teachers.

Troy rared back and threw
a plastic case at Abbi, barely missing her face. She cringed,
knowing all too well what it was. “What the fuck, Abigail? You
wanna tell me why in the
fuck
I found birth control pills in your drawer?” She
stood abruptly as he rushed her. With her back to the wall, there
was nowhere for her to retreat. This was a no win situation. If she
kept quiet, he would be mad. If she told him the truth, he would be
enraged. “I asked you a fucking question!” he yelled.

Troy was in her space now. Toes touching,
she could see the fire in his eyes. This never boded well for her.
When he was this far gone, she knew it was going to hurt. “I can’t
do it again,” she whispered.

“
What was that? I didn’t
hear you.” His breath reeked of whiskey. It usually did when she
wasn’t home right after school to have his dinner on the table.
Some nights he ignored her. Some he didn’t bother coming home, and
Abbi knew he wasn’t spending that time alone. Too many nights he’d
come home smelling of someone else’s perfume. Those were the nights
she appreciated, because then he left her alone.

“
I can’t do it again,
Troy. I can’t go through the pain of losing another baby. I just
can’t!” Traitorous tears she had no control over slid down her
face.

“
You didn’t even ask me.
I’m your husband, and you didn’t ask me about going on the pill. I
want a kid. I don’t care if your body is too fucking weak to handle
it; we’re going to do this until you give me a son. That was the
deal, Abigail. You give me a goddamn kid, and I give you your life
back.”

Abbi wasn’t stupid. She knew he’d never let
her go even if she gave him a child. She was stuck with him
forever. He’d told her as much after high school. He was crazy if
he thought she’d hand over her baby to him and walk away. As much
as it broke her heart each time, losing those three babies had been
a blessing. She could not bring a child into this world to be
raised by an abusive monster.

“
Hey, Abs, I need to
talk…” Her younger brother Matt chose that moment to walk in the
door. “What’s going on?” He stopped in the doorway, his fists
clenched by his side. Abbi tried her best to shield Matt from Troy.
Her brother had yet to fill out. He was seventeen, tall, and
skinny. Troy was built like a tank compared to Matt.

“
Nothing, Son. Your sister
and I were having a private discussion. What did you want to talk
to her about?” Troy turned so he was between Abbi and Matthew. She
peered around Troy’s shoulder and shook her head, warning him to
keep his mouth shut. The rage coming off Matt was tangible. He
hated when Troy called him Son, because he was no kind of
father.

When their aunt died, Troy wanted Matt to go
live with someone else, and he didn’t hide how he felt. As a matter
of fact, Troy was extremely vocal on how much of a burden having
him around was. Abbi did her best to reassure her brother she
didn’t feel that way. Matt knew she wanted away from Troy, but with
him being a cop, it was easier said than done.

“
It can wait. You two are
busy. Sorry I interrupted.” Matthew wouldn’t go far. He would stand
outside and listen as he always did. As long as Troy was yelling,
he would stay put. If her husband laid a hand on her, Matthew would
step in and take the punishment himself.

“
What was that about? Are
you two keeping secrets from me? You do know I’m smarter than you
both, right? I’m a cop. I will have you followed if I think you’re
hiding something.” Troy was back in her face, both hands against
the wall on either side of her head.

“
I honestly don’t know,
probably something to do with school. It usually is.” Abbi was
telling the truth. The only thing Matthew talked to her about was
school. Her brother had no real life outside of that and his
job.

“
You better not be lying.
Now get your ass home. I want dinner.” Troy moved away from Abbi
and bent down to retrieve the plastic container of birth control.
He slid it in the front pocket of his uniform shirt. “I’ll be
keeping these,” he snarled. The leer in his eyes let Abbi know what
to expect from her husband when they went to bed.

Please, someone, help
me.
She silently sent a prayer to a god
she no longer relied on. Where was the Almighty when her husband
was yelling at her, hitting her, abusing her brother? She continued
to pray anyway. Packing up her things, she hoped Matthew could find
somewhere else to sleep.

She locked up the building and was walking
to her car when the gravel behind her crunched. Whipping around,
she held her mace up and aimed. “Jesus, Matt, I could have sprayed
you!” she scolded her brother whose arms were up in the
defensive.

“
Sorry, Abs. I just wanted
to make sure you’re okay. Did he hurt you?” Matt cocked his head to
the side, daring her to lie.

“
No, he didn’t touch me.
But tonight’s going to be rough. Do you think you can…”

Matt cut her off, “No. I’m not staying away.
Not tonight. Abs, please. You have to find a way to get out from
under him. I know he’s a cop, but there has to be someone who can
help you.”

Abbi had spent the last five years of her
life beating herself up for marrying Troy. When her parents died,
her aunt had taken control of her and Matthew’s inheritance. What
Judy didn’t spend on drugs, she lost gambling. Abbi had gotten into
college on a scholarship. Graduating Valedictorian from New Atlanta
High School meant something. At least she’d had the good sense to
get her degree and become a teacher. Her dream of becoming a
professional dancer died along with her parents. Troy didn’t attend
the same college, but he made sure his buddies who did followed her
everywhere she went. Once he joined the Academy and became a
policeman, Abbi saw a change in him. For just a little while, Troy
was calmer and more responsible. He made her flowery promises about
love and family. She finally gave in and married him. The ink
hadn’t dried before he began trying to control every aspect of her
life, including her bank account.

Judy died of a drug overdose when Matthew
had just started his sophomore year. What little money was left in
the bank, Troy took as payment for allowing her brother to move in
with them. Her parents’ house wasn’t worth anything after Judy had
lived there and trashed it. Matt got a job as soon as he was old
enough, never asking Abbi for money for anything: not school stuff,
not clothes, not games. Nothing. She was so proud of the man he was
becoming. As he took a step into the light, Abbi saw the marks on
his face. “Matty, what happened?” She tentatively touched his
cheek, noticing the small bandage.

He jerked his head away from her touch. “Got
punched. No big deal. Listen, Abs, I want to join the gym, but I
need your permission. Will you please go to Lion Hart’s tomorrow
and sign the permission slip?”

“
There’s a gym at the high
school. Why don’t you use it?” Something was up. Matt had never
shown an interest in working out.

“
You know the jocks have
the run of the gym at school. Besides, I want to take a class.
Please? I’ll pay for it, so don’t worry about that.” Matt’s bottom
lip stuck out slightly, giving him a sad, innocent look.

Abbi laughed. “You do that on purpose. Of
course I’ll sign for you as long as it doesn’t interfere with work
or school.”

Matt bounced up and down on the balls of his
feet. “It won’t interfere. The gym opens early and closes late.
Thanks, Abs. I love you.” He crushed her in a hug and kissed her
cheek. “I’ll see you at home.” He jogged off to his junker. It
wasn’t much to look at, but it was dependable, and he’d bought it
himself. He really was a good kid.

She thought back to the bruise on her
brother’s face. “Oh, Troy. What have you done?” Stalling only put
off the inevitable, so Abbi got in her car and headed home. When
she arrived, the house was dark except for one room. The light from
the television flickered through the window of the living room.
Their house was a small three bedroom rancher in a fairly nice
neighborhood. Abbi parked in the driveway and entered the house
through the side door. She turned on the kitchen light and placed
her purse on the kitchen table.

She normally heated up leftovers on the
nights she had dance class. If she cooked a meal, it would take a
while. The longer it took, the more Troy would drink. One of two
things would happen. Either he would get so wasted he’d pass out,
or he’d remember why he was pissed at her in the first place and be
rougher than usual. Tonight, she would take her chances with him
passing out. She chose meatloaf. Between prep and cooking time, it
would give her over an hour.

She was mixing the hamburger meat with the
various ingredients when Troy came into the kitchen. He walked by
her to get to the liquor bottles. Without saying a word, he grabbed
her hair and yanked her head back. His black eyes squinted, staring
into hers. He crashed his mouth down on hers in a bruising kiss.
His teeth grabbed her bottom lip and he bit down. Abbi
instinctively jerked back, causing more damage to her lip. She knew
better than to say anything. Instead she closed her eyes, fighting
back the tears. She should have reheated leftovers.

Thankfully, Troy waited until after supper
was over and the table cleared before dragging Abbi to their
bedroom where she now stared at the ceiling. Matt was in his room,
hopefully asleep. The only noise was the sound of Troy’s snoring
coming from the other side of the bed. He had gotten what he wanted
before passing out. Abbi knew better than to get up before he was
deep in sleep. Now that he was out, she eased off her side of the
bed and slipped into the hall bathroom. She would make too much
noise in the one attached to their bedroom. She closed the door and
slid to the floor in front of the toilet. No longer did she have to
force herself to throw-up to empty her stomach of the dinner mixed
with the come Troy had shot down her throat. His mission to get her
pregnant had been forgotten in his alcohol infused lust for
revenge.

In the dark, Abbi rinsed her mouth with
water before sipping mouthwash from the bottle. She never turned on
the light. She didn’t want to see her reflection in the mirror. The
once bright face of a teenage girl filled with so much hope for the
future was gone. All that was left was the haggard face of a young
woman who felt anything but young. Quietly, she padded back to the
bedroom and slid underneath the covers. She hadn’t noticed that
Troy was no longer snoring.

“
Where the fuck have you
been?” he asked her as he flipped back the bedding. He was still
naked from earlier, and he was stroking his erection.