Page 73 of Hellfire

When Arnauld’s footsteps stopped, I halted and turned to him. A deep crease marred between his brows, and his lips were set in a tight line. “I must confess that I urged your mother to stay. She wanted to escape—you get that strength from her, by the way—but I talked her into staying.”

“Why?” Resentment gathered and burned in my veins.

“You have to understand, Hallie; I couldn’t have protected her if she wasn’t under Johannes’s roof. And furthermore, I couldn’t have protected you when you eventually turned up. Because everyone knew it was only a matter of time. All we had to do was wait, and it didn’t matter if Johannes was waiting a week or a decade, you would have shown up at some point.”

“You’re right, I would have. I wish it was sooner. And I just wish entering his house had been on my terms, not on his. Or yours. You held my legs and helped carry me inside, Arnauld. You restrained me when I tried to run. How do you call that protecting me?”

Reciprocated indignation flashed through his eyes. “Would you rather I left you in Mandla’s hands? Or Bayron’s? I trusted Lethabo with your mother’s care, but I never trusted either of those two. Arno on the other hand; I’m surprised that he aided Mandla’s assault. I’m sorry you endured that. It turns my gut and sickens me still. I couldn’t tell your mom either; it would have broken her.”

“It did,” I whispered. “I told her about it...”

“Christ.” The single curse came out wretched.

Some of the animosity I had for Arnauld slid away, and when his hand made contact on my forearm, I didn’t jerk or recoil like I previously would have.

“I’m sorry you went through Hell, Hallie. Trude was so lost without you, and I know she feels responsible for what happened.”

“It’s not her fault,” I mumbled.

His hand left my arm without my request, and he gave a sad smile. “I hope someday you will be at peace with me being here with your mom. I love her dearly, but I don’t want that to compromise your relationship with her.”

When my reply didn’t come, he started walking again, inviting me to join him with a subtle sweep of his arm. We circled the lawn another time and passed the deck where Avery and Mom watched on, and it wasn’t until we’d almost completed our fourth loop that I put my thoughts into words.

“Arnauld?”

He stopped and looked at me expectantly. “Yes?”

A lump burned in my throat. “When you locked me in the guest room and went to see my father, did you know Mandla was waiting when you brought me down to the study?”

“I did not.”

“Do you have any idea how terrifying it was to walk into a windowless room with three men, none of whom I trusted, and the door sealed closed?”

Arnauld rocked on the balls of his feet—the movement showing his unease. “Not from your perspective, but I had concerns, obviously.”

I shifted closer. “And what would you have done if Mandla assaulted me again?”

“Killed him like your father should have without involving you. No woman, captive or not, should be subjected to such treatment. End of story.”

I smiled despite feeling anything but elated. “That’s what I needed to know. I appreciate your honesty, so I know you’ll appreciate mine; while I’m glad Mom is happy, if you ever hurt her, you’ll come to the same fate as Arno and Mandla, with these hands and nothing more.” I held up my palms and wiggled my fingers at him.

He smirked a little. “Thank you.”

My eyebrows lifted. “For what?”

A chuckle came as we turned around and made our way to the deck. “For talking with me.”

“I’m sure it will be the first of many.”

“No doubt,” he agreed, then shifted his attention to Avery. “He’s looking after you?”

While replying to Arnauld, I smiled up at Avery when he stood and offered his hand to me. “Yeah, he is. But you just focus on looking after my mom, so I don’t need to hunt you down too.”

Epilogue

Avery

—Two Months Later—

---