He leads me out the way we came. I make note of the twists and turns as we head through the library to a study of some sort.
“So this is the cigar room.” Maybe that’s where the smoky scent is coming from. But no, the cigars have an earthier scent.
“Yes,” Gabriel leaves me standing in front of a large leather sofa and walks to the fireplace. A touch of a button and flames spring to life. “Would you like a cigar?”
“No thanks. They give me headaches.” Even with pot. I stick to edibles.
“Does the smoky scent bother you?”
“No. I find it comforting.” Some of the rich men my mother chased after smoked cigars. They weren’t all horrible assholes. Just most of them.
To the right of us is a bank of windows that overlooks a courtyard the size of half a football field.
“Were all medieval castles this big?” I ask.
“No. Nor was this one when I first conquered it, but I have done many renovations over the years.”
“You and your family? You said something about seven hundred years. I assumed you meant your ancestors…”
“No. I meant me.”
“I don’t understand.”
“There are many things that you need to know, and now it is time to tell you. Take a seat,” he points to the Chesterfield.
“You know what?” I prop a hand on my hip. “I don’t think so. I want to go now.”
“Sit down,” he orders. His voice is soft but the echo reverberates in my bones.
And I sit. He's got that authoritative voice, the same as Rafe. Rafe can give an order, and you want to obey. I never noticed it until Adele pointed out how she found it annoying as hell.
I glare up at Gabriel like a petulant toddler. “I'd like my phone back. I probably should call my friends.” I’d even call my mom.
“Ah, yes, your friends. That is part of what I wish to show you.” Gabriel touches another button beside the fireplace, and a fancy flat-screen TV descends from the ceiling. The screen blinks into a familiar view. A stone and timber lodge nestled on a snowy lawn with a pine forest and mountains behind.
I sit up straighter. “That's where Deke lives. Sadie's boyfriend. And Rafe and Channing. Do you have cameras on their house?” My voice bounces off the high ceiling.
Gabriel inclines his head. “I prefer to know where my self-proclaimed enemies reside.”
“Rafe is going to go ape shit.”
“Rafe Lightfoot, you mean.” He hits another button, and there's a picture of Rafe standing on his snow-covered back porch, talking on his cell. “He has yet to spot my falcon drone.” Gabriel smirks.
The door behind Rafe glides open, and Adele sticks her head out. Her hair is down and her face is makeup-free. I rarely see Adele like this, and she's my best friend. She's wearing an oversized pair of joggers that pool over her feet and a giant Henley. Rafe's clothes.
“Holy crap, they're together,” I gasp. “Is this live footage?”
Gabriel nods. I feel guilty being a voyeur.
Adele says something to Rafe from the door. He ends his call and heads into the house.
The footage changes.
“This is from last night,” Gabriel says. There they all are, sitting in the Blue Moon Grill. Deke and Sadie, Lance and Charlie. Charlie is sitting on Lance's lap, his hands are on her thickened belly. Adele and Rafe are both standing and talking to the group like the de facto leaders that they are.
“Stop,” I say tiredly. This is just wrong. I can't watch my friend's life like a soap opera. “I need to call them.”
“Don't you want to know their secrets? What they've been keeping from you?”
“Whatever it is, I'm sure they had a good reason,'' I say stubbornly. But now I’m confused and curious.
”You need to know the secrets they're keeping from you. All of them.”
“Stop playing these games. Just tell me what’s going on, Gabriel.”
He ignores me and hits another button, and there's the lodge at night.
“When was this taken?”
“The last full moon.”
A chill runs over my skin. The way Gabriel has invaded my friends' privacy is so creepy. I have to tell them. I have to escape.
“Watch,” he commands.
There are a few specks of snow swirling down from the sky. The sky is black velvet. A gray and white wolf comes into view, padding across the snowy lawn.
“Holy shit.” The wolf is huge. I’ve seen pictures, but it’s another thing to see it in a familiar space and realize how giant wolves are.
The wolf sniffs around the lawn. “So that’s their secret?” I roll my eyes. “They have a nature cam?”
The lodge door opens, spilling light over the snow. Out strides Rafe. He’s shirtless. No hat or gloves, not even a coat. Adele has talked about how the cold doesn't seem to touch him. She was always obsessed with Rafe, even though she wouldn’t admit it.