The Billionaire And The Ice Queen (A Fantasy Romance)

#14 Ethan

The journey took longer than I liked. Majority of my time, it seemed, was stuck in traffic. I should move out of London and into the countryside. I snorted at the absurdity of the thought. However, the journey gave me time to regurgitate everything I have heard and seen.

When I parked the car in the underground garage, a haunting melody sounded in my car, making me jump. I searched my car until I spotted the mobile on the passenger seat. It must have dropped out of Ivy’s pocket. Its black cover blended with the black leather seat.

I picked it up and saw Paula’s name displayed on it.

“Hi Paula. Missed me already?”

“Mr Westfield?”

“The one and only.”

“Why do you have Ivy’s phone.” It sounded more like an accusation then a question.

“It must have dropped out of her pocket. I’ve already reached home so I can’t return it today.” Not that I wanted to, it would give me an excuse to see her. Not that it’ll stop me, even if I didn’t have it.

“Give me your number and I’ll ring you when I can bring it down.”

She agreed and rattled off her number. I saved it on my mobile and sent her a text message then got out of the car.

As soon as I opened the front door of my flat, Lily jumped out of know where.

“Finally! What took you so long?” Her hair was sticking up all over the place and she still wore her PJ’s. She took my arm and yanked me inside, leaning on the closed door.

“Did you just get up?”

“Did I…Did I just get up?” Her face turned a shade of red that made her resemble an Oompa Loompa. “I didn’t even sleep because of your brother.”

“He’s my brother now.”

“He stayed awake the whole night, hounding me. And you.” She jabbed me in the ribs. “Ran, leaving me with a person who needed his next fix.”

“I was dealing with something more serious than Merek.”

“What could be more serious? And don’t tell me industrial espionage or cyberespionage or whatever it is.”

“It’s worse than that. This effects everyone.”

This shut her up, as her mind tried to fathom what could be worse, but I knew it would not last long.

Turning, I headed to the reception room and flopped onto the chair, which I quickly regretted when my wet clothes plastered itself to my back.

“Well?” She stood in front of me with her hands on her hips. “I would like to know what could be worse, before I sprout wings.”

“An elemental.”

“No.” she gazed at me with disbelief, plonking her butt onto the coffee table. The table, thank god, was made completely out of oak and not glass.

 “If you are making this up Ethan….”

“It seems you don’t really know me, Lily, if that is what you believe.” Her brain must be addled if she thinks I would come up with such a thing just for the sake of it. “I only found out today. And that’s not the worst part, she doesn’t know about the others.” I put my hand up before she could ask the next obvious question. “No, she hasn’t got a handler.”

Lily leaned forward, believing me, and hadn’t picked up on the inconsistency of what I had said.

“Well if no one has found her all this time then we could deal with it.”

I ran my hand through my hair and let out an audible sigh. “We could have if she isn’t a suspect in a murder investigation.”

Her mouth dropped open. “Did she do it?”

“I don’t think so. The family of the murdered victim might make a fuss, though. Even if it doesn’t get into the papers someone might pick up on it and investigate.”

“You mean one of the others.”

I nodded. “We have to do something before this city becomes a war zone.”

Gazing at Lily, I pondered whether I should tell her the rest. I could keep it to myself, however, I knew it would eventually come out. Best to get it over with now, there were too many secrets as it is. “That’s not the worst of it.”

“What could be worse than what you just told me?”

“I proposed to her.”

She gazed at me dumbfounded. Not that I blamed her, I was still surprised I asked Ivy to marry me.

“I have idiots for brothers,” she finally said, when she got her mouth working.

I snapped my head up, hurt she would think such a thing of me. It wouldn’t have surprised me if she thought it about Merek. “I’m not stupid. It’s all Crystal’s fault.”

“Don’t lay this at her feet.” She stood up abruptly, staring daggers at me. “Crystal didn’t force you to do anything. If the spell was in the perfume it would affect those around her, amplifying how they feel for someone close by whether it be love, hate or l**t. And in your case, it was ten times worse because you have a sensitive nose. It would have worked a lot quicker and intensified your feeling for the elemental, which means she had to have been close at that time for it to happen. But it will not take away your free will. You can still walk away no matter what you are feeling for her. People have this misconception that witches can take that away from you but that is not true.”

It was my turn to gaze at her in astonishment. How would she know what they can and cannot do?

“These heightened feelings last for about 24 hours for you compared to someone with a less sensitive sniffer, unless you’re in contact with the perfume for a long period of time. If that happens, you’re a goner. “

I frowned. “I thought you said it doesn’t take away your free will.”

“It doesn’t, but when temptation is put in front of you every day you’re going to c***k. We are humans and witches understand this, that is why they are clever. It’s not about just making potions or spells. They have to think how it will affect the mind of the person. Crystal must have spied on Merek to get a better understanding of his psyche. Maybe it’s not desperation that made her douse herself in perfume and saw him every day.”

I stared at her in confusion, I had no idea what she was talking about. Yet she spoke to me as if I should. What really bothered me was where she got her information. “You seem to know a lot about witches.”

“I have a friend at Uni who is a witch, I spoke to her last night.” She sat back down on the table, gazing at the floor. “Don’t worry, I didn’t mention Merek. I told her I knew someone who was under a witch’s influence and she explained it to me.”

 “What aren’t you telling me Lily?” Witches do not go around telling people their secrets. There was always a price to pay.

Her gaze stayed glued to the floor. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Why do I get the feeling you are not telling me everything.”

I kept on staring at her, knowing how much it made her feel uncomfortable. Yet she didn’t utter a word or even look up.

“There have been too many secrets. That’s why I haven’t hidden anything from you and told you everything. I will not mention anything to Merek until we get a better understanding of what’s going on with him, and more importantly what Crystal wants.”

My little speech didn't seem to affect her. Her head stayed down. I didn’t want to keep pleading, I wanted her to confide in me.

I did the only thing I could do, I carried on with my sermon. “Secrets break trust, hurts and when it’s lost it is not easy to gain back. People might forgive but they don’t forget. It is better to confide in someone trustworthy and has your best interest at heart.”

She finally gazed at me. “What? That’s you?”

If she wanted to hurt me than she achieved it. I had always looked after the family and been fair in my dealings with them.

“You wound me, lily.” I saw the flash of regret in her eyes before she gazed down at the coffee table.

“I’m sorry,” She whispered.

I couldn’t stay angry at her for long. Her lashing out at me meant she was scared, which meant her secret was big and something I wouldn’t be happy about.

Wouldn’t she be surprised if she knew my thoughts. I understood her better than she thought I did.

I rubbed the back of my neck, trying to release the tension. This was going nowhere. Unlike Merek who spaces out when I talk to him, Lily listens and its one of the reasons I ask for advice when it comes to people, who I am finding hard to deal with. I understood why she wanted to study psychology at university, and I believes she would be a brilliant councillor one day.

“You may be right, and I might not be the best person to talk too.”

“I’m always right,” She said with a smile.

There was the Lily I knew, back to her old self. Smiling, I raised my brow at her.

“You’ll never let me forget that will you? I didn’t know it was real diamonds, otherwise I wouldn’t have used a hammer on it.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“And anyway, dad payed for the damages and I got punished for it.” She scrunched her face like a prune. Her disliked for Catrina intensified after that.

“The one girl I liked, and you ruined it.”

“More likely, I saved you from a lifetime of misery.”

Frowning I sat up. “How did you figure that out?”

“She was making cows eyes at Merek instead of you.”

Not something I could forget in a long time. All the women it seemed preferred Merek to me. Catrina had really dented my pride when she told me I wasn’t for her.

However, I had the last laugh when Merek ignored her after that incident. Karma was a cow at times, but for me she was an angel.

“I wonder what happened to her?”

Lily stared at me, as if I asked her if I could borrow her clothes.

“How can you not know?”

What could I say? Catrina was not important to me after that, so I forgot all about her. So, I just shrugged my shoulders.

“She married Koji Ryu.”

The Alpha of Ipswich. My number one enemy. It seemed Karma was a cow after all.

I didn’t care if she married him, I had no feelings for her but someone I disliked. That just took the biscuit. Did she do it to get back at me? I shook my head. Merek was the one who rejected her not me.

“How do you know. I mean I heard he got married, two years ago but not to who and to be honest I didn’t care, but it does surprise me he would have chosen Catrina.”

“Why?”

He’s a traditionalist, I would have thought he would have married a Japanese woman. I got the impression that other women of different race were women he had fun with but not marry.”

“How would you know what he thinks?”

“Because he told me.”

“Wow. That must have been one deep conversation.”

If she thought I had forgotten what I originally asked her then she really did not know me at all. “You didn’t answer my question.”

“He sent you photos of his wedding.”

My brows creased. “I would have remembered if I saw such photos.”

“Merek intercepted them. He thought the envelope was for him since it had our surname with no forenames. Merek opened it and later discarded it. And I happened to be there when he opened the letter that’s how I know.”

“Why would he keep it from me?”

“Because you liked her and hated Koji. He didn’t want you to get upset.”

The i***t. I needed to talk to him about not keeping things from me no matter how bad the new was.

Which reminded me that we need to find him. “Okay enough talking, we need to go find the idiot.”

“I told you I have his phone how are we going to find him?”

“And I thought you were intelligent. You cannot be my sister.”

She stuck her tongue out at me.

“First let’s change.” Getting up, I headed to my room. “You have five minutes then I’ll leave without you.” She would take hours otherwise.

As soon as I dressed into dry clothes, I opened my laptop. Merek, if he was thinking with his brain, would have taken public transport to get to where he wanted to go.

Lily said that he was acting like someone who needed his next fix. So, most likely he would have taken one of my cars.

I stiffened as a horrid thought came to me. “He wouldn’t.”

I brought up the security camera that faced my cars in the garage. I fast forwarded it until Merek appeared on screen, and he did something no brother should do. He took my Lamborghini.

“I’m going to kill him!”

All my cars had trackers, so it was easy for me to find out where he had taken it.

“Who are you going to kill?” Lily walked in as she tried to put her unruly hair into a bun.

“Merek who else.”

I jumped up, took her arm and dragged her out of my flat.

“You know where he is?”

“Yes.”

“Are you going to tell me, or do I have to guess.”

“He took my baby.” I jabbed the button for the elevator like a five-year-old. I needed to get to the car before he took it again. “If he’s scratched her, he is going to die a horrible death.”

“Okay and where did he take her?” She ignored my comment on how I was going to kill Merek. Probably not believing I would do such a thing to my only brother.

“Outside your residence.” The lift opened revealing an empty cab. I walked in while Lily stood outside looking confused.

“What are you waiting for? Come on, get in.”

She shuffled in, as if someone clung to her leg.

I stared at her while she gazed at the floor. She knew something. But she couldn’t know who Crystal was, both I and Merek had mentioned her name and Lily didn’t even flinch in recognition.

I wanted to push her, but I knew she wouldn’t tell me if she didn’t want to. I left it for the time being and concentrated on how I was going to murder Merek.

We got into my car and took the back routes to get to the halls of residence, where Lily was staying for the duration of her study.

I couldn’t imagine Crystal living in one of the dorms, unless it wasn’t Crystal, Merek was here to see.

Parking the car close to the building, I searched for my Lamborghini and found it quickly. It stood out like a rich kid amongst the poor. A few guys were posing next to it.

There was no point checking it out yet, it’ll only raise my blood pressure. Better to see Merek first. The only problem was he could be anywhere, and I couldn’t pick up his sent either. I would have to check each building. With a plan in mind I headed towards Lily’s dorm first, we could get into hers since she had a pass key.

Once I was at her building, I turned around to take her card. She was a lot further behind than I expected and kept on dragging her feet like she was going to her doom.

I sniffed the air thinking it would be better for me to do something instead of losing my temper with Lily. And it was a good thing, I could just make out Merek’s distinct smell. He was here.

None of this made sense.

“Lily give me your key.”

“I don’t have it on me.”

She was lying.

Why?

I stared at her for a long while, not to intimidate or to think, but to get my anger under control.

My own sister was lying to me, and she knew I would know.

“Then let’s go to the office and get an emergency set.” I said in a low tone. A voice I only used on those I was not happy with. And it seemed Lily also recognised it for she didn’t argue and scurried to the accommodation office.

I waited outside for her, trying to keep my temper in check.

I failed miserably.

Anyone who locked eyes with me looked away quickly, but it did not stop people from staring or trying to get closer to me.

“Damn!”

What was taking Lily so long? Was she dithering?

I ground my teeth at the knowledge that she was hiding something and didn’t want me to see it. Which didn’t make any sense since we were going to see Merek not her room. What could she be hiding?

The number of people started to grow into a crowd, and I’d had enough. I took a step towards the door when it opened, and Lily stepped out with a key clutched in her hand.

She walked past me and scurried to her resident as if hounds were stalking her. I was not far behind and neither were my entourage. My anger was radiating out pulling people closer to me and I couldn’t stop it.

Lily had entered the huge building and let the door close. I caught it before it shut completely. She wasn’t going to get rid of me that easily. The people that were following were locked outside, thank god.

Lily didn’t have a sensitive nose like I did, but in that moment, it looked like she did. Merek’s sent was a lot stronger in here. Not a huge surprise there was no ventilation, it mingled with perfume, disinfectant, food, sweat and the distinct smell of females. His was not hard to recognise, he was my brother after all, I could pick out his scent anywhere.

I didn’t say anything and followed Lily until she stood outside a door, staring at it. The one next to it was hers.

Merek scent was overpowering at the door she stood in front of.

How did she know he was in that particular room?

If she knew Crystal was here, she would have gone herself and wouldn’t have bothered phoning me. There was more to this then just Merek.

“Knock.” I ordered.

She stood there like a statue. The stench of fear, frustration and anger reached my nose.

 My temper was at boiling point, so I grabbed the handle, twisted it and shoved it until I heard a c***k. If it wasn’t for my super strength, I wouldn’t have been able to open it, otherwise.

No sound came from inside the room, but the sickening smell of death hit me hard, making my eyes water as it rushed out into the corridor. I opened the door further, ignoring Lily, I stepped inside and made a quick study of the bedroom. It was like any other in this dorm. It had a bed, table, chair, and cupboard.

Merek stood in the centre of the room with his back to us, gazing at the floor, transfixed on the dead female at his feet.