the while hidden from the players in the act. At the same time I felt like I was at the center of it all and that nothing could continue without me.
I began to wonder if what I was experiencing truly was calm, or if it was nothing more than confusion. Of course, blithering insanity was always an option as well, and I can’t say that it was all that unattractive at the moment because this particular reality had been doing its best to kill me.
I briefly considered trying to find my voice; but after a half-hearted search, I decided it was hidden too well. My head didn’t seem overly interested in moving either, so I was unable to even look toward my friend to acknowledge hearing his question. Of course, none of these things really mattered to me. Be it calm, confusion, or flat out insanity that had come over me, I was comfortable for the first time in two weeks, and right now I saw no compelling reason to disturb that feeling. Taking the easy way out, I simply remained focused on Austin.
With no response coming from me for several beats, my brother-in-law drew his own hasty conclusion and cast his eyes toward Ben as he proceeded to gloat. “Aye, the bastard’s got nothing he can say to that.”
It was obvious from the tone of his voice that he was clearly delighted with himself over what he saw as a victory. Since he was still cuffed, he glanced back in my direction and thrust his chin out sharply, directing his next comment to me personally. “Do you, then, Rowan?”
His belligerence had no effect. My tongue continued to lie dormant, and waited. But, it didn’t matter because for some reason I didn’t feel the need to respond. Not to him, anyway.
“Rowan?” Constance made her own attempt to return my attention to the room. Her words fell into the same scrap bucket as everyone else’s, instantly disregarded even as they were heard. It wasn’t until she reached out and laid her hand on my arm that my two worlds once again fully merged.
I suddenly found myself looking down at her hand, regarding the appendage with mild curiosity. As the seconds ticked by, I eventually brought my gaze back up to her face.
“Yeah,” I finally said, finding my voice once again, though I’m certain it would have preferred to remain hidden.
“Don’t listen to him,” she offered.
“I’m not,” I told her.
“You go Twilight Zone, white man?” Ben called out.
“I honestly don’t know,” I said.
Constance continued, “Rowan, I’m sure Felicity didn’t write any such letters.”
“She did!” Austin insisted.
“No, she didn’t,” I announced calmly, rotating my head to bring my unblinking eyes back to bear on him.
“I’ve seen them,” he countered.
“Them,” I repeated. “As in more than one?”
“Aye. I saw them with my own eyes.”
“Yes, I’m sure you did,” I replied with a nod, still keeping my voice even. “But, let me ask you a question. Are you just drunk, or did you suddenly get stupid too?”
“Fek tu, ” he snipped bitterly.
“I’m serious, Austin,” I said, ignoring his insult entirely. “You know your sister well enough to realize she isn’t going to be forced into anything against her will.”
“Aye, but if…”
“No,” I cut him off. “There is no but if. They don’t come any more stubborn than Felicity and you know it.”
“That doesn’t mean anything,” he objected. “You found a way to coerce her.”
“Row…” Ben interjected hesitantly. “Just drop it. You’re just wastin’ your breath on ‘im.”
“No,” I replied. “He needs to understand that he’s the only one being coerced here and that it’s not being done by me.”
“Talk all you want, Rowan,” Austin huffed. “I won’t be believin’ your lies anymore.”
I thought about that for a moment. Both of the men were probably correct. Everything I’d been saying was for all intents and purposes being wasted on someone who had already made up his mind that whatever came out of my mouth was one hundred-eighty degrees opposite of the truth.
Of course, I also knew that most of Austin’s attitude, if not all of it, had to be the alcohol talking. He really was a level headed and logical man; right up until a bottle of whisky took hold of his senses. I could only surmise that Shamus had been firmly behind his state of inebriation, effectively putting him into the necessary frame of mind to sway him with the bogus letters. Whether or not it was my father-in-law’s intention for him to come over here and attack me, well that was a matter for debate. While in one sense it wouldn’t surprise me, in another I’m not so certain he would want his hand tipped in my direction just yet.
I finally shook my head and shrugged.
“Yeah, probably not,” I agreed, then looked down and regarded the wet, blood stained towel in my hand. Tossing it onto an end table, I continued to look at my hand for a moment before looking back to my brother-in-law and continuing. “But, do me a favor, Austin. When you dry out, I’ve got a couple of things for you to think over. First, your parents are twenty minutes away. If Felicity really wanted to get away from me, why didn’t she just call them? Or better yet, go over there? Why bother sending letters?”
“If she…”
“Shut up,” I ordered, though my voice remained unruffled. “I’m not finished. You’ve said plenty. It’s my turn.” I paused, and when he didn’t object again I continued. “Now, second, and believe me this is the big one. In fact, this right here is the huge fucking enigma that’s been making my brain hurt ever since you said it. You’re telling me that Felicity sent several letters. Correct?”
“Aye.”
“And I’m guessing since there were several, Shamus got these over a period of time? Weeks? Months? I don’t know, years?”
“Over some time, aye.”
“Why did he wait until now to show them to you?”
He started to reply but didn’t. I could see in his eyes that I’d already set his brain into motion, and what I’d just offered was only a minor point.
“Yeah. Makes you go ‘huh’, doesn’t it?” I said. “In all the times you’ve stood up for me whenever he’s started putting me down or berating me, don’t you think maybe he would have pulled out those letters and proven to you what an evil bastard I am?”
He remained silent, but the look on his face told me I was getting through.
“But, you know, that’s not even the real kicker. Give this one some serious thought and come up with an answer for me, because my evil, coercive brain just can’t wrap itself around the concept. Why is it Shamus didn’t haul his ass over here to rescue his daughter from me the minute he got that very first letter? Hell, from what you’re saying, apparently she asked him to do just that. What was he waiting for?
“I know if I had a daughter, and I had proof that she was in danger, I really don’t think there’s all that much that could stop me from going to her. And, before you say anything, even if he didn’t feel that he wanted a confrontation with me, why didn’t he take the letters to the police? I mean, according to you ‘sacrifices’ were mentioned. Sounds like evidence of illegal activities to me.”
“Yeah, me too,” Ben agreed.
Austin opened his mouth as if to object but once again stuttered to a stop, never fully forming a single word. Now he was really starting to sober up, and while the passage of time and physical exertion had gone a good way toward that end, I knew my questions had played a large part in yanking him back into reality.
The peal of the telephone suddenly issued from across the room, filling the empty wake that had been left behind my words. While the ringer didn’t physically sound any different than any other time, there somehow seemed to be a particular urgency about it that I just couldn’t explain. Even so, I didn’t bother to turn; I simply continued to stare at my brother-in-law. The second ring echoed through the room and still I didn’t move.
“Do you want me to answer that, Rowan?” Constance asked.
My first inclination was to tell her to let the machine get it. After all, it could very well be Shamus, or even the mystery caller who liked hanging up as opposed to talking. However, that odd feeling of urgency tickled the back of my brain and set me wondering just who might be at the other end of the line.
“Yeah,” I replied, never breaking my gaze.
