Bonds That Break (The Havoc Chronicles Book 3) (5 page)

For effect, I ‘zerked and took a step closer.

Austin looked me up and down – rather creepy, but I took comfort in knowing he couldn’t see much more than my silhouette while I was glowing.

“The girl Berserker, huh? I’ve heard of her.” He lowered his gun. “Who’s the guy?”

“I’m her father,” my dad said, before Rhys had a chance to speak. “And the Binder council is expecting us.” He paused significantly. “All of us.” I found it interesting that he didn’t mention anything about being a Berserker for three hundred and fifty years, or being married to a Binder. But if Dad didn’t want to bring it up, I wasn’t going to either.

“Interesting. We don’t get many chaperones here,” he said and turned around, clearly dismissing my dad as no one of consequence. “Follow me.”

The muscles in Dad’s jaw flexed as he ground his teeth. It wasn’t often that I saw such obvious signs of irritation from my dad. Austin clearly got under his skin. I couldn’t blame him. The over-the-top tough-guy attitude made the Berserker in me want to smack him upside the head just to see what he would do. I did give myself a moment to consider the option and relish the thought of how fun that would be, before choosing the more prudent, but infinitely-less-entertaining option of letting it go.

I stopped ‘zerking and we followed Austin behind the house to where several strange vehicles were parked. They looked like muddy army jeeps or trucks with six wheels. The back didn’t have a roof, just thick canvass pulled tightly over roll bars. The sides of the canvas were rolled up and tied leaving the sides open.

“What are those?” I asked Rhys.

“Swiss Pinzgauer,” he replied. “Good for rough terrain.”

Another man, maybe a little older than Austin, sat at a table under a shelter playing a game of solitaire with an actual deck of cards. I didn’t think I had ever actually seen someone do that before. Why bother when you could do it electronically so much easier?

“Five for the top, Will,” Austin said to man. Will jumped to attention, knocking several cards off the table.

“Yes, sir,” he said. He practically ran to one of Pinzgauer and started it up. From Will’s panicked reaction, clearly Austin had him cowed.

Austin opened the tailgate for the vehicle, placed a muddy stool on the ground, and motioned for us to climb in. We climbed in the back of the Pinzgauer. On either side were two long metal benches. We slid down to make room for everyone, and I noticed the conspicuous lack of seatbelts.

Once we were in, Austin gave Will a thumbs up, and the Pinzgauer roared to life and jerked into motion. I wasn’t sure which was worse, the obnoxiously loud revving of the engine, or the bone jarring rattle as the vehicle drove over the uneven terrain.

I gripped the support posts and tried not to fly out of my seat. Will didn’t seem to understand the concept of slowing down for a big hole or rock – he simply plowed over them at top speed and we had to hang on.

The Pinzgauer drove back and forth up steep switchbacks as we progressed up the mountain. The view was nothing short of breath taking – palm trees, blue ocean, and white sand. It looked like something out of a post card, which once I thought about it, was probably exactly what it was.

We soon turned inland and the trees became so thick around us that we could no longer see the ocean. The road became even steeper and the Pinzgauer slowed down while traversing the increased incline.

Rhys kept his arm around me and felt very solid and steady. Clearly he had ridden in these things before and knew what to expect. It was his confidence that kept me in my seat. If it weren’t for him, I would have ‘zerked and simply run along behind.

Our final turn brought us into view of a massive stone building – a cross between a mansion and a castle – built on a large flat bluff surrounded by trees. A number of other smaller buildings were scattered around the grounds and connected by covered stone walkways.

The architecture of the main building itself looked old, but everything was impeccably maintained. The grounds were immaculate and landscaped with brightly colored flowers and elaborately shaped topiaries.

“Wow,” I said. “It’s beautiful.”

Rhys nodded in agreement. “I remember when they were building it and thinking how beautiful it would be.”

“And when was that?” I asked.

Rhys narrowed his eyes in mock anger. “Long enough,” he said. “No old jokes.”

I squeezed his arm.

Will stopped the Pinzgauer in front of the main building. As we exited the vehicle, we were greeted by a long staircase leading to oversized double doors with a rounded top and elaborate stone arch.

Dad looked up at the old building, with an expression I couldn’t quite place, like a mixture between longing and resignation.

He took in a deep breath. “I never thought I would see this place again,” he said. He reached over and put an arm around me. “Or have you with me when I did.”

We climbed the stairs and were met at the top by a beautiful woman with long dark hair, perfectly sculpted eyebrows, and makeup that looked so effortless it had to have taken hours to put on. She wore black heels and a dark pantsuit with a dark red ruffled shirt underneath. In her hand was a tablet computer – it looked like an iPad – in a black leather protective case.

The woman flashed us a broad practiced-looking smile. “Aloha. Welcome to the Manor House.”

Everything about this woman screamed fake. It was like someone had taken a real person and carved a bit here, rounded out – a lot – there, until they created this plastic robot that was designed to elicit a pre-determined reaction from men in general.

I glanced down at the t-shirt, shorts, and flip-flops I was wearing. I suddenly felt very self-conscious. What happened to Hawaii being all laid back like everyone told me? This woman looked like she belonged in a corporate boardroom. Wasn’t that suit too hot for Hawaii?

When I looked back up, I saw the woman’s eyes locked on Rhys, her fake smile replaced with a flirty grin.

All thoughts about her suit disappeared.

“Rhys!” she said, and reached out to give him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. “It’s been too long.”

A kiss!

To Rhys’ credit, he didn’t hug her back and he quickly pulled away, a terrified look on his face.

“Uh, Nicole,” he said and looked back at me. What he saw in my eyes must not have reassured him, because he seemed even more panicked afterwards. “I – I thought you had taken another job,” he said. “And, uh, left the island.”

“I did leave for a few months,” Nicole said, “but Sunee recruited me back.” She brushed her hair back with a flip of her hand. “The new girl just didn’t have what it took to run the Manor House and they realized they couldn’t live without me.”

I gritted my teeth and tried not to let my anger show. I wanted to do something – like lifting her above my head and throwing her off the mountain – to give her the signal that I was with Rhys and she should back off, but I couldn’t. We had all discussed this before we came and agreed that Rhys and I needed to keep our relationship hidden for now. Berserker-Binder relationships were still a taboo, and if the Binder council found out, they would do everything in their power to separate us.

Dad coughed politely, and Nicole started.

“Oh, my,” she said, and put a hand to her chest.

I rolled my eyes. Were we really supposed to believe that she didn’t notice us standing there?

“Where are my manners?” she continued in an overly apologetic voice. “I was so excited to see an old friend, that I completely forgot myself.”

I wished I could forget her, too. 

She held out a hand to my father, who took it politely and shook it. “Nicole Cushing,” she said.

“Bruce Montgomery. And this is my daughter, Madison.” He gestured to me.

Nicole gave me the visual once-over no doubt assessing my clothes, hair, and make-up.

Kind of like I had just done to her.

Darn it. I hated when my conscience got in the way of my snap judgments.

“Hi, Nicole,” I said, doing my very best to keep any trace of irritation out of my voice. “It’s nice to meet you.”

Nicole raised one of those perfectly sculpted eyebrows. “Madison Montgomery? I’ve heard a lot about you,” she said.

I really wasn’t sure how I was supposed to react to that. Before I could think of an adequate reply, she had turned to Shing and given him the same hug and kiss on the cheek that she had given Rhys.

I guessed that was a good sign. Except that she did it without the flirty smile she had given Rhys moments earlier.

Unfair or not, I still didn’t like her. Maybe that made me a bad person, but Nicole definitely triggered something primal and defensive in me.

After she pulled back from Shing, Nicole motioned to three large Polynesian men standing a respectful distance away. None of them were as large as Aata had been, but they looked strong.

“Take their bags to their rooms.” She flipped open the case on her iPad and made a few quick taps and swipes. “They’re staying in the East wing. Their room assignments are in the reservation system.”

The three men came forward and took our bags from the limo and disappeared inside with them.

“I know the Binder Council wants to meet with you later this afternoon,” she said. “So let’s get you settled in and give you a chance to clean up before then.” Her gaze lingered on me as she said this. Then she grabbed Rhys’ arm and pulled him through the door.

Oh, it was game on.

***

The Manor House, as the massive building was called, had recently been modernized and was set up very much like a hotel. The locks were all electronic and Nicole gave each of us a wristband that had a chip in it that would unlock the door to our room, and any other public door. Outside of each room, was a small touch screen that listed the name of the person assigned to stay in that room.

The touch screen also allowed you to pull up a map of the building and find where other people were staying as well as the location of any room you knew the name of.

The inside of my room was nothing short of jaw-dropping. The door opened to a large living room with leather couches, antique looking stand lamps, an oak desk in the corner, and a giant flat screen TV mounted to the wall. The room was decorated in rich, dark colors and the windows were framed with expensive custom drapery that gave the room just the right accent of color. When I walked in, the carpet was so thick and plush that I sank down a half-inch with each step.

The bathroom had a sunken tub big enough to hold half a dozen people and a separate bedroom contained a king bed with the most comfortable mattress I had ever laid on.

I took my time soaking in the tub. Airplane travel always made me feel gross and nasty, so I was glad to get rid of that feeling. I even fell asleep for a few minutes. After hopping so many time zones over the past few weeks, my body had no idea what time it really was.

I tried not to think about Rhys and Nicole, but that was harder than I thought it would be. There was something that she said that didn’t register at first, but sank in as I replayed the conversation back again.

She had called him an old friend.

You don’t get that excited to see an “old friend” without some sort of history there. The question was, what kind of history was it?

Rhys had been alive for a lot of years. Surely I wasn’t the first girl he had any interest in since his fiancé Anwyn. I had kind of assumed that, but now that I really thought about it, the idea seemed rather naïve.

But Nicole?

The thought of good, kind Rhys being with that plastic woman made me want to punch something.

Or someone.

***

By the time Rhys knocked on my door, my bad mood had grown to epic proportions. I didn’t have any proof, but I was pretty sure something had gone on with him and Nicole. With enough time dwelling on the worst possibility, you can’t help but start to believe it.

I yanked open the door and glared at Rhys who appeared very startled.

“Woah,” he said, eyes opening wide. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” I said through gritted teeth. Which was about as big of a lie as I had ever told. Everything was wrong.

Or at least it felt that way.

“Really?” asked Rhys. “This is you being happy?”

I sighed and flopped down on the couch. Rhys followed and sat next to me.

In the back of my mind, I knew I was being ridiculous. Whatever relationship Rhys may have had with Nicole in the past was just that – in the past. We were together now. But for whatever reason – stress, exhaustion, or insecurity – I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I finally decided it was better if I just faced it head on. “What’s going on with you and Nicole?” I asked. “Did you used to go out?”

Rhys cocked his head to the side, his mouth turned down in a cute frown. His blue eyes stared into mine. “That’s what this is about?” he asked.

I nodded. “It’s ok if you did,” I said, following up my previous record lie with one even bigger. “I just need to know.”

Rhys let out a breath. Not a good sign. That was the sound people made before telling you bad news – you have six months to live, or your parents were killed by stampeding water buffalo. No one ever made that sound before telling good news.

“Do you really think I’m the type of guy who would be interested in her?”

“I don’t know,” I said, all my fears and worry spilling out despite my clearly futile efforts at being rational. “I didn’t think so, but she said you were an ‘old friend’ and the way she reacted when she saw you made that seem like a euphemism for something much more serious.”

Rhys shook his head. “I can tell you with absolute honesty that there never was and never will be anything between Nicole and me.”

“Nothing?” I said. “Are you sure? She clearly feels something for you.”

Rhys took my hand and held it gently between his. His hands were cool and slightly roughened with calluses from our frequent varé practices. I felt a thrill every time we touched. “What she feels about me is irrelevant. You are the one I love. I have not seen her or had any communication with her since I was last here several years ago.”