Page 96 of Into The Darkness

When the storm of my emotions ebbed, I gently pulled away from Rain, hastily wiping away the remnants of my tears. It was as if I thought that by erasing the evidence of my vulnerability, I could somehow erase the memory of breaking down in his arms. But even as I sought to regain my composure, a sense of gratitude enveloped me—the assurance that I wasn’t alone in this ordeal, that there was someone willing to stand by me, just as I had for him.

“I think I need to go for a drive,” I said, wiping away any final remnant of wetness from my cheeks.

“Are you sure that is safe?” Rain pointed out.

“Tomorrow is the bonfire. Tonight, we are all good.”

“Really?” Rain pointed out.

“They never have tried to get me this early.” It was still considered neutral territory until tomorrow at midnight, so I wasn’t worried.

“Yeah . . . just be safe,” Rain whispered as he turned around to leave. His voice left a tone of disbelief, but I didn’t give a fuck. This place was suffocating and all-consuming. I needed to get out of here immediately.

“Hey, Rain?” I called out as he was about to head down the steps.

“Yeah?”

“Take good care of her.” Rain gave me a confused look, so I added, “If anything happens, I need you to promise you’ll look after her.”

“What are you talking about? I’ll see you tomorrow.” I gave him a soft smile.

“Oh yeah, forgot about that.” I laughed absentmindedly.

“You love her, right?” Rain asked, and I just nodded.

“She’ll come back,” he whispered. I huffed because he had no idea the look she gave me when she left. How absolutely broken and upset she was when she walked out of this house.

He had no idea the finality in her voice. The way she looked at me in disgust after knowing the truth about our relationship. Once Rain went down the hall, I grabbed my bag, placed a bottle of vodka in it, then grabbed the keys before heading outside to the blacked-out Jeep parked in the driveway.

Downing a hearty swig, I couldn’t care less about the impending drive. The solitude of being alone was all I needed. A maniacal laugh escaped my lips as the car came into clear view.

It was the car that started it all with Ember. It reminded me so much of her and even still fucking smelled like her beautiful pure scent. I was such an asshole for tainting her. I covered her in the darkness and exposed her to the truth when she was perfectly fine living in her bubble.

“Why did I have to fall in love with you, Ember?” I said as I jumped into the car and pulled out of the driveway.

I knew exactly where I was headed, a familiar path I’d trodden countless times. Yet this journey felt different without Ember beside me. She was my equilibrium, my anchor, and her absence left an aching void that gnawed at my core.

The weight of regret bore down on me, the weight of knowing that my future was intricately tied to an empire, the cartel, beyond Isles. A world that told me when I could eat, who I could be friends with, what my job would be and most important, who I needed to end up with as a partner. It sure as fuck would never be Ember. I would be forced to marry some girl for political gain between the families. People would demand I produce children with her, but the thought sent a trill down my spine even thinking about touching another woman aside from Ember. There was no one else, and there never would be.

What good was power and control if I couldn’t secure the happiness that Ember had embodied in my life? The prospect of leadership lost its luster when measured against the haunting emptiness of her absence.

I kept driving down the path toward the rock I had gone to countless times over the last few years. The one place I felt a tiny glimpse of freedom.

Reaching over to the passenger side, my mind settling on the memory of Ember’s legs that I used to hold onto as I drove, but reality sunk in. There was nothing there but a bottle of booze. I grabbed it and brought it to my lips just as I exited Isles.

Fuck tomorrow. Fuck this bonfire. Fuck the traditions of our family.

I pressed on the accelerator, and the bottle went flying into the backseat.

“Fuck,” I murmured, mostly upset it wasn’t within arm’s reach. No problem, I’d get it when I got to the rock. I sped up more through the windy roads. It was only a few more miles out.

I kept thinking about the time I first brought Ember here and how much of a lovesick idiot I looked like with the picnic that ended up being the best idea I had ever had. I remembered how I drove out here in the middle of winter, pitched a tent on a fucking rock, and decorated the inside so it looked frilly and pretty for her.

I couldn’t stop thinking about the way her lips tasted against mine. The way her sweet cunt felt as I ate it up like a man starved. The way her mouth pursed around the head of my cock. The way her back arched when she took me in her pretty little pussy. There was so much more than sex though.

Her giggles.

Her smile.

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