Blood Debt (Touched Series Book 1) (16 page)

“
But
you just said
he can’t kill me.
”

Brent shook his head,
“It’s a negotiation.  I think Dad would promise him ne
arly anything not
to
lose you.
  If Mr. Richardson intended to carry out a death sentence, other
herds
would step in to protect you.
  It would mean war.
”

“Isn’t there a statute of limitations or something?  The person who owes the debt isn’t even alive anymore.”  I caught myself speaking callously of my mother and felt a rush of her envelop me.  Gretchen told me that my mother was still with me and
that
I could communicate with her.  I turned away from B
rent when I felt my mother
’s presence
.  I yelled into the darkness
, “Mom, you’d better have a plan because there is no stinkin’ way I’m going to owe that man a thing!”

I could smell my mother’s perfume
.  I felt warmth encompass me and saw the slightest outline of her face
appear in front of me.  She seemed to be saying something
,
but I couldn’t
understand
. 
It didn’t matter how hard I concentrated, I couldn’t make her image sharpen
,
and I wondered if maybe it was my imagination.

B
rent
started to say something
,
but I held my finger to my lips to quiet him
.  I concentrated on the outline of her face, hoping to bring her better into focus. 
I could see her figure desperately trying to tell me something, but
still no
sound.  I shook my head at her, “I can’t hear you.”

Her outline began to diminish
. 
I could still see her in the same spot but no long
er
with the vibrant colors from just
seconds
before.
  B
rent
held out his elbow
,
offering to escort me back. 
Since it was obvious that my psychic sensor was
still
malfunctioning
,
I decided to pump Brent for more information. 
We began a leisurely stroll back when he
advised
, “If you choose someone right away,
Mr. Richardson
won’t have a chance to force his son on you.”
  

Still reeling from having seen my mother’s ghost or spirit or whatever it was, I didn’t give B
rent
’s suggestion much weight.  I
was
in my own little world
when I realized he’d stopped walking and was staring at me
.  “Camille, did you hear me?”

Embarrassed at being lost
in thought
, I uttered,
“Uh, what? 
No,
I’m sorry
,
I wasn’t listening.”

“I said, if you choose someone soon, he won’t have a chance to make you marry his son.  He would have to accept a cash payment.”

“B
rent
, I’m not ready to marry anyone
, a
nd I don’t care who says I have to
. 
I’m f
or sure not
picking
someone I’ve never met
who
came out of the same
g
ene pool as Kyle Richardson.
 
F
or that matter, I’m not picking anyone.  Maybe I want to be like my mom and just live on my own.
”

We began walking again
,
and Brent’
s strides remained constant
.  H
e didn’t seem deterred in the slightest that I had no inten
t
ion of choosing someone quick
ly
. 
After about ten minutes of walking at a normal pace, I could see the lights of the party coming back into view.  B
rent
’s arm tensed and Bruce appeared out of thin air – I had to work on getting used to
Centaur
speed.  Bruce
was
seriously nervous, “Camille, Mr. Richardson thinks you took off with the guy you’re going to take as your husband.  He’s flaming mad.  If you pick someone right now, Dad’s pretty sure he’ll leave and not return.”

“Have you all lost your minds?  I can
’t
just throw a
dart
at a wall and pick some guy to be married to!”

“I get that it isn’t ideal, but if you don’t pick someone
,
you might get stuck with his son.  What’s worse? 
Choosing a
great guy you don’t know that well but
who
will treat you like a queen, or
be
ing
forced to
marry
into
the Richardson
herd
?
  C’mon, Camille, you met a bunch of guys tonight
.  P
ick one
,
and I’ll go get him and bring him here.
  Then the two of you can give your announcement directly
in front of
Mr. Richardson.
”

“That’ll never work.”   

Bruce must have believed that I was somehow considering his stupid idea. 
“I’ll go get whatever guy you tell me to. 
T
he t
wo of you can come back to the party as if you’d been planning this all day. 
You
can have a super
-
long engagement if you want to.
”

“What if during this super
-
long engagement I decide that I don’t like him
, th
at he’s not the right guy for me?” 
 

B
rent
and Bruce both froze
.  B
oth looked at each other, nearly dum
b
founded with my question.  Finally Bruce answered, “
You aren’t serious
?
”

“It’s called dating.  You’re supposed to test drive a few guys to make sure you pick the right model.  Believe it or not – it’s a pretty normal concept.  Try one on, if
he
isn’t right
,
you trade
him
in on a new model.” 

Bruce looked at me and said,
“Camille, I can’t tell if you have a warped sense of humor or if you’re being serious.
”

“I didn’t ask to be whisked away from the conversation
I was having with Kyle
.  That Drake guy just swooped in and took off with me.  D
id it ever occur to
anyone
that what I was saying was important?
  I didn’t ask to be rescued
,
and I’ll be damned if
I’m going to marry a guy
who
I can put up with
just to keep Kyle from forcing his son on me.  When I find the right guy, it’ll be natural, it’ll be for love
-
it won’t be selection by
the
lesser of two evils.”

Another blur appeared out of nowhere.  “There you guys are! Holy crap
,
do you know they’re tearing the place apart?”
  Beau had now joined us as well.

Shocked, I asked,
“Who’s tearing the place apart?”

“
Kyle Richardson thinks
Dad
’
s hiding you
.  H
e’s already done a room-to-room search of the
house
and guest quarters
.  T
hey’re searching the woods now.”

I felt my resolve growing ever stronger.  “I guess I’d better pick up the pace. 
I’
ll go back and I tell him he’s nutso again.”

Bruce was nearly pleading with his eyes when he said,
“Camille . . . don’t.”  We continued our progression forward
. 
I could feel B
rent,
Bruce
and Beau
getting
more
apprehensive
with each stride. 

As
we approached the clearing to the back yard
,
I saw Hannah pacing under the canopy of trees.  Bruce watched her with nothing but love in
his
eyes.  The selfish part of me realized I’d tarnished her wedding whether that had been my inten
t
ion or not.  Trying to be more sensitive and realizing this was absolutely not the right time to throw a tantrum no matter how justified I felt, I said, “Bruce, I’m so sorry.  I hope Hannah isn’t
mad.
”

Bruce stopped me in my tracks, put both hands on my shoulders and pulled me into a hug, “She
’
s upset, but not with you.  None of this is your fault.  We handle this as a family
.  S
he’s as much a part of our family now as you are
,
and she won’t stand for Richardson’s games any more than the rest of us.”

“You should go to her.  Tell her I’m really sorry . . . and Bruce?”  His dark eyes looked fully into mine, “Thanks for coming to look for
me
.  It means a lot.”

He bobbed his head slightly, acknowledging me without making me feel like some girl
who
needed protecting.  Brent slipped his arm around me
,
and Beau walked a few strides ahead of us.  As the three of us came fully into view, I noticed that Bruce and Hannah were walking behind us, still in her wedding dress and he in his
t
ux.   Two blurs arrived on either side of Brent and
me
, Ben to my left and Bart to Brent’s right.  The emotion of the moment was not lost on me.  My five brothers and my new sister
-in-law
surrounded me as we walked the last few steps to the driveway. 

The music quieted and a hush fell over the guests.  Gretchen and Will stood on the porch while Kyle Richardson stood to their
side
.  They watched as the seven of us made our last few steps in their direction.  Just before we
were
at
an
arm’s distance from Mr. Richardson, I saw a silvery shimmering light come into focus, standing at his side.  Gretchen’s eyes watched the shimmering figure
,
and
she glanced my way to see if I could see it
,
too.  I nodded to her my silent answer
. 
I could feel the strength from the figure, the warmth that emanated from it.  It was
M
om.

I could see her, really see her
,
not just her outline
as
she stood tall beside Mr. Richardson.  Whatever she had tried to tell me in the woods was no longer a priority for her.  She wasn’t trying to say anything to me
;
she simply stood next to Mr. Richardson.  She had always been protective of me, so I expected her to be glaring at him – she wasn’t. 
She seemed to be looking at him in an affectionate way. 
I was thrilled to have her there with me
;
maybe she had just positioned herself there to give me strength, to let me see her.

Chapter 13

I wasn’t sure what to expect
. 
I felt like Beau was going to march right up to him and start swinging.  He didn’t.  Beau stopped short just feet before the shimmering light.  The men all seemed oblivious to it
,
but Hannah, Gretchen and I could see it. 

Mr. Richardson spat out his
words
, fury seething through his pores, “I don’t w
ant my
son to meet you, not yet.  However, I refuse to let my
blood line
perish, as your mother nearly extinguished it
twenty-
eight
years ago.  My son, Gage
,
is
twenty-four
.  I
f he is not betrothed by his
twenty-ninth
birthday, I will summon you
,
and you will marry him.  You will not t
ake a husband before his
twenty-ninth
birthday
.  I
f he should become married before that date, no debt will be owed
to my family
.  If it is you he marries, your debt will be repaid by your wedding vows.  Do you understand my terms?”