Page 112 of Beyond Rosy Irish Twilight

JADE

The first thing I did when I got up was find my purse. The second thing I did was take the anxiety medication I took from my mother’s purse. As I was taking it, I briefly thought that maybe I should just talk to Asher and tell him I needed help. But with the mounting pressure on him from my father, I just couldn’t lay one more problem at his feet, especially since that would mean leaving the house to find a doctor. We’d already been attacked too many times. I wasn’t sure I was even strong enough to leave the house without flipping out on the way to the doctor.

I stared at the bottle in my hand and shoved it back into my purse. I would just have to push through until Asher found out who was attacking us. Then I would tell him I needed help. That would at least take the pressure off him for a while.

A knock at the door startled me and I spun around, pressing a hand to my chest. “Asher,” I breathed out. “You startled me.”

He eyed my purse warily for a moment. “Didn’t mean to interrupt you.”

I shook my head. “You didn’t. I was just checking for my mother’s necklace, but I must have left it at her house the other day.”

That seemed to appease him momentarily. I set my purse down as he walked over to me. “Lock’s team is back. They want to help us take down your father.”

That really surprised me. “Why? I don’t understand why they would do that?”

“Chase called them. After we were hit the other day, I told him I wanted this to end. We can’t keep going on the way we are.”

I knew he meant because of me; because I was losing my shit left and right. He didn’t want me constantly freaking out on him. And even though I knew that was the reason why, I couldn’t help but feel a little bit of relief that it was going to end.

“And my father? What will happen with him?”

He watched me carefully before responding. “We don’t have a choice in the matter. He has to be taken out.”

My eyes drifted from his as I waited to feel something like remorse or heartache, but all I felt was relief. He would be gone from my life, and I could finally live free of fear. And that made me a terrible daughter, but he had been a horrible father.

“When are you going to do it?”

“As soon as we can put a plan in place,” he answered. “You said you wanted to meet the man in the basement. Are you sure about that?”

My gaze snapped up to his. “Yes. Why?”

“We think we can use him, but we don’t know who he is. If you could take a look, maybe—”

“I’ll do it.”

“You’re sure? I don’t want to ask you to take part in us killing your father.”

“He’s a horrible man. I wish I could say that I feel bad about what’s happening, but…I want him gone.”

“Then I need you to get dressed so we can go downstairs.”

I nodded and rushed around the room, pulling out what I wanted to wear. It crossed my mind for a moment that going down there might cause me to freak out, but I didn’t have time to take a pill without Asher seeing, and I wouldn’t have time for it to kick in. So, I distracted myself by staring at Asher, trying to use him to alleviate the anxiety already swirling inside me.

As if Asher knew what I was doing, he walked over and took my hand as soon as I slipped on my shoes. “I’ll be right beside you the whole time.”

I nodded and swallowed my fears. It was only going to be for a few minutes tops. Then I would leave and spend the rest of the day outside. At least out there I would have the fresh air to keep me calm.

By the time Asher led me through the house to a hallway I had never seen before, my nerves were really kicking in. I was squeezing Asher’s hand so tight that it hurt me. But he didn’t say a word. Instead, when we got outside the dark looming door, he kissed me on the cheek and pulled me into a hug.

“If you need to leave, you just say the word.”

I nodded, but I felt like I was about to throw up. I didn’t want to do this, but I had to. It briefly crossed my mind that they could have just taken a picture of him and showed me, but now that I was here, I was practically daring myself to go through with it. I had to prove to myself that I was strong enough, that a basement would send me into a catatonic state. If I couldn’t get past this, I might never live a normal life again, and I just couldn’t handle the thought of that.

He pulled the door open and I stepped onto the top stair with him at my side. He flicked on the lights and we descended together. My heart raced in my chest, but I continued on. When we reached the bottom of the stairs, it was like I was at a turning point in my life. I wasn’t the prisoner. I had a strong man by my side that would lead me through to the light. A man like Asher would never put me in a cage. He would protect me and take care of me.

“Ready?”

I nodded as he placed his hand on my back and guided me over to the corner. It was dark in this area, but there was a noticeable lump in the corner. I couldn’t tell anything right now. He was basically a dark image. But then I heard what sounded like a chuckle and my spine stiffened painfully.

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