The Secret Society

Chapter 16

CHAPTER 16

HPOV

Walking around the back of the car, I was physically sick all over the ground.

“Told you so,” the paramedic called sarcastically.

I threw him the finger before walking around to the driver’s side of my car and climbing in.

Dead bodies were not the best thing to see, and burnt ones were even worse.

I put my foot down and sped away. I kept driving until I eventually came to a stop, realising I had no idea where I was. I pulled into the next garage and sat there in silence for ten minutes.

Then I banged my head against the steering wheel.

The tears began falling down my cheeks like a river, and they were not going to stop any time soon.

She’s dead.

The blonde locks had still been visible on the body, along with Lucy’s necklace. I couldn’t quite grasp the fact that she was gone.

How do I tell Ella that they really are dead?

Ella.

I quickly turned the car around and sped off, trying to find signs that told me where I was. Eventually, I found one and managed to reach Ella’s house within the hour.

I walked up to her front door, shaking slightly. Ella came running out and stopped an inch from my face when she noticed my red, blotchy eyes and the tears that simply would not stop.

“The police called me,” Ella started.

“I went to check the bodies, Ella.”

“Oh.”

That was all she said.

Oh?

“It was definitely Lucy,” I whispered.

“Come inside,” Ella called, taking my hand and pulling me inside with her.

She led us over to the sofa, and we both sat down in silence, shocked by what had happened.

“You do realise, Ella, that Evan and Lucy are dead?”

She seemed to be suppressing something.

“I came to terms with that all week, Henry. I know he is dead, and I am ashamed to admit that I am slightly relieved.”

She looked up at me slightly.

“Don’t get me wrong, Henry. I am also utterly horrified, but not as much as I think I should be.”

“Ella,” I said, turning my head to get a better look at her. “What is wrong with you?”

Ella shrugged her shoulders and lowered her head. I assumed she was ashamed.

“I have lived through seven months of hell because of him. I think that entitles me to some anger towards him. I think I have the right to be bloody furious about what he put me through, so don’t you sit there and judge me, Henry. Don’t you dare.”

I grabbed her by the arms and pulled her lips to mine, kissing her intensely before pulling away almost immediately.

“Henry?” Ella whispered, wondering what the hell I was doing.

Her face looked shocked that I had kissed her so passionately, only to pull away so abruptly while clearly being angry with her.

“I love you more than you will ever know, Ella. Truly, I do, but I have to go.”

I stood up straight away and bolted for the door.

Ella called out after me, but I was already in the car and speeding away within seconds.

I stopped around the corner and banged my head hard against the steering wheel again.

What the hell was I doing?

Was I going to ruin everything in my life? Was I really just going to run away from Ella like this?

Like hell I was.

I turned the car around and ran back up to the house within seconds. I flung open the door and saw Ella sitting there, crying hysterically.

Because of me.

“Ella,” I called, running over and pulling her into my arms, holding her as close to me as humanly possible. “I am so sorry, love. Really, I am.”

Ella could not compose herself, and I simply remained quiet as she sobbed into my shirt.

“We cannot be together, can we?” Ella asked, shocking me.

“Why not?” I questioned.

Like hell was she getting rid of me now.

“After all of this, what will people think? What will they say?”

“I don’t give a damn what people say or think, Ella. I was yours the minute you walked into Caius’s that first evening. The first time we made love was the night Lucy and I were over, and the first time I told you I loved you was the moment I stopped caring what anyone in the world thought or said about us.”

“Really?” Ella whispered, lifting her face to see the truth in my eyes and the smile on my face.

“Really,” I replied, bending my neck slightly and kissing her.

“So what now?” Ella asked.

“I think it would be wise to continue as we have for the next few months, love, out of respect for the families.”

Ella nodded in understanding.

“I have… no, no. I need to see you still, though.”

I did not want us to simply talk to each other. The truth was, I still needed her like I needed air.

“Good,” she whispered.

Her breath was becoming ragged, and I saw her breathe in my scent, which made me chuckle slightly.

“You are nothing short of amazing, Ella Jones.”

“And you, Mr Delacy, are nothing short of perfection.”

“Well, I am glad you think that, because I am your piece of perfection. There is no getting rid of me now,” I warned her.

Ella’s eyes began to glaze over again, and then I remembered Lucy.

That awful, stabbing pain returned to my chest.

“I have to go and see Lucy’s parents,” I quickly said.

They were not aware that Lucy and I had lived separately for the last few months. The truth was, we had not made love, and we barely spoke unless we were around other people.

We cared for one another. That was the truth.

And yes, on some level, we loved each other, but we were not in love. We were not really a couple anymore.

Her heart belonged to Evan, and mine belonged to Ella.

If the truth were told, if there was someone in the world Lucy would have wanted to die with, I believed she would have been happy to go with the one she loved.

None other than Evan White himself.

God rest his soul.

“I understand,” Ella called while breathing heavily against my neck.

Damn, it felt good.

“I won’t say I like the idea, but I understand.”

“You cannot be serious, Ella.”

Was she seriously wanting to make love at this moment in time, after we had just found out that Evan and Lucy had died?

“I told you before, I have come to terms with his death all week. I have grieved for him, for his family’s loss, and then I learned to become angry about what he had done to me. I suppress upsetting things quite easily, Henry. Truly, I do. It is part of who I am. I am sorry if you don’t like or understand that.”

Bloody hell.

I would understand it all year long if it meant she was mine.

I simply nodded with a slight smile and stood up.

“I really must go,” I said, bending down and kissing her forehead. “I will come back around tonight,” I promised before heading towards the car.

Pulling up to the house, I could see Lucy’s parents were still there. I still called them Mr and Mrs Denali because it was how I had been raised. Until I had been married to Lucy, that would never change.

“Henry,” Mr Denali called. “What has happened?”

I sat with them and explained what I had witnessed.

Mrs Denali, as expected, became hysterical. I could only offer my condolences, hugs and anything else she needed from me.

I tried to come to terms with the fact that it was not my fault, but in a way, it was.

Had I not realised how to get out of the society, she would still be alive.

But would she have met up with Evan as soon as we returned from holiday?

Had I explained to her that she could not see him until we had spoken to Caius, would she still be alive?

Lucy should have known this automatically and should not have relied upon me to tell her.

I loved my more sympathetic side. It always talked sense.

I should have told her about Nathaniel and warned her to stay away from Evan until everything had been dealt with.

I had no comeback for that.

I should have told her. She would have stayed clear of Evan, she would be alive, and that was what made me realise she was dead because of me.

No.

No, you did not force her to secretly meet Evan. She got herself into this mess. No one loves anyone as much as I love Ella, and we refrained from meeting because we did not want the other person hurt.

My sensible side had returned.

This was Evan and Lucy’s fault. They had been warned before. They had even been given a beating. Lucy should have known this was a possibility before speaking to Caius.

I was not taking the blame for this.

I would not let it ruin my future with Ella.

I loved her too much for that.

We were a team, and we would be together.

After Mr and Mrs Denali left, I decided it was time to pay Claire a visit.

She opened the door slowly after I had knocked for nearly ten minutes. She looked haggard.

“Can I come in?” I asked harshly.

She nodded and walked into the living room, where I followed closely behind.

“Would you like coffee?” she asked, trying to take things slowly.

“Let’s cut to the chase, Claire. You lied to me. You lied for him.”

“He was my husband, Henry. Show some respect.”

“You loathed the ground he walked upon. You would have happily sent him to hell for simply looking in your direction, and you lied because Evan and Lucy have been found dead today.”

Claire’s face turned a sickly shade of white.

Bingo.

She knew they had been killed.

“He asked me not to tell you,” she cried.

“Oh, okay. That’s fine, then,” I called sarcastically.

I jumped out of my seat.

“Ten days, Claire. I have spent ten days believing she was alive and living happily somewhere, only to have my entire world fall apart today. Why didn’t you just tell me?”

I was at boiling point.

“HE ASKED ME NOT TO!”

“Oh, bloody brilliant.”

“He is one lucky son of a b***h, because I would have skinned him alive if he were still breathing.”

Claire shot up from her chair and began screaming at me.

I decided not to listen to a word of it and blocked her out.

Caius had been right. She was a nagging nightmare who simply went on and on.

“You done?” I asked when the room finally went quiet.

“I haven’t started, you arrogant bastard!”

Ouch.

“I just wanted you to admit that Caius was the one who killed her. Now I feel relieved that he received his rightful punishment.”

I stormed off.

I felt Claire throw something that struck my back, but I simply kept walking.

Bloody hell, Caius had actually been a saint for putting up with her for so long.

“Look after yourself, Claire,” I called while turning around at the door.

It was the last time I ever saw her face.

The next few days were unbearable as we waited for the post-mortem results. I was still secretly hoping that the dental records would prove it was not Lucy.

Somewhere deep inside, I did not want to give up hope.

But when the dental records came back, they confirmed that it was, in fact, Lucy.

Everyone was in deep shock.

Everyone except Ella.

Did she really suppress things that well?

Did she know something I did not?

The following few days were even worse as we arranged the funeral. Mrs Denali was not in any state to organise it. She could barely make it out of bed each day.

Needless to say, I could barely look her in the eyes.

Guilt.

Alice and Richard were constantly at my house. Richard tried to joke around and cheer me up, while Alice simply enjoyed being a royal pain in the backside.

But I still loved her deeply.

She was a unique sister.

It was not until a week after the funeral that things began to become even stranger than normal.

I started receiving calls, but as soon as I answered, the caller would hang up.

Then I began receiving blank letters with nothing written on them.

I received a bouquet of flowers with the words:

“My sincerest apologies.”

I called the florist to ask who had placed the order, but I was told the information was confidential and that she could not help me any further.

I had not seen Ella in over a week, and tonight was the first night we were going to see each other.

I had mixed feelings.

Mainly, I was ecstatic. I was practically jumping with excitement, but there was also a nagging feeling in my chest telling me I was an absolute i***t for doing this.

I told that side of myself to shut up.

Ella was mine to keep.

I ran up the steps to Ella’s house, making sure no one was around to witness me going inside. I hurried into the house as Ella had instructed, and there she was, sitting on the sofa with a huge smile on her face.

“Mr Delacy,” Ella laughed.

“Well, well, Miss Jones. What do we have here?” I called while walking over to the sofa and taking hold of the dressing gown she was wearing.

“It is a little cold in here, Henry,” Ella called, winking at me.

“Mmm,” I replied. “Nothing better than body heat to warm you up.”

I winked back at her.

“Indeed,” Ella giggled.

Ella slowly stood up and opened her dressing gown, revealing the red underwear she was wearing.

She slipped the dressing gown from her shoulders, leaving me completely speechless.

She looked incredible.

“Make love to me, Henry,” Ella whispered. “Please.”

That woke me up more than it should have.

If I had heard correctly, Ella had just pleaded with me to make love to her, as though I had not been craving her body more desperately than I craved air.

Ella’s hands moved to my chest, her delicate fingers fumbling with the buttons on my shirt.

I grabbed her beneath the arms and lifted her up. She instinctively wrapped her legs around my waist, and I practically ran to the spare bedroom.

I sat on the edge of the bed while Ella remained straddling me, still undoing the buttons on my shirt.

After a little awkward manoeuvring, we managed to get out of our clothes. I pulled Ella back onto my lap, and she wrapped her arms tightly around my back.

We stared into each other’s eyes.

“All night,” Ella whispered, causing us both to smile.

Ella tilted her pelvis, positioning herself over me, and slowly lowered herself down. Her need was as urgent as mine.

She began slowly, gradually moving faster while gripping my shoulders tighter. Her breathing became erratic, and I pulled her closer, kissing her hard and fast with as much passion as I could give her.

I traced my tongue along her bottom lip, and she slightly parted her lips for me. I could taste the mint as soon as she opened her mouth.

I quickly stood up and pressed Ella’s back against the wall. She moaned as my movements became more urgent.

I grabbed her left leg with my right arm and raised it slightly, giving me better leverage.

“Oh God,” Ella called out.

I began kissing up her neck, stopping at her earlobe while gently teasing it with my lips.

“I love you,” I breathed into her ear.

Those words were enough to push Ella over the edge, and I felt her body respond as she reached her climax. The intensity of the moment carried me with her.

“Damn,” I groaned, because nothing felt better than being close to her.

Ella began laughing while resting the back of her head against the wall.

“Amazing,” she giggled.

I spun Ella around and laid her flat on the bed, kissing up her stomach, across her chest and along her neck.

“Ella,” I called.

“Mmm,” was her reply, sending shivers through my body.

“Has anything unusual happened to you over the last week?”

I realised immediately that it was not the most appropriate time to bring this up, but the thought had suddenly entered my mind.

Ella shuffled slightly up the bed, trying to sit up. I raised myself to give her room.

“Why do you ask?” Her voice sounded guarded.

“It’s just that a few strange things have happened. I’ve been getting calls, but the callers hang up as soon as I answer. I’ve received letters with nothing written on them, and I even got a bunch of flowers.”

That was when I noticed the shock on Ella’s face.

“You have too?” I asked.

“I didn’t want to say anything. I didn’t know what to think.” Ella shook her head slightly from side to side while closing her eyes.

“My letter had writing on it, Henry,” she replied.

I stared at her.

“I received it today,” she continued.

“Tell me,” I demanded.

“It only had two words on it, Henry.”

I was beginning to lose patience. I widened my eyes to let her know I needed an answer.

Ella jumped out of bed and disappeared for no longer than a minute.

When she returned, she placed the letter on my lap.

I quickly opened it.

It simply read:

BE PREPARED.