Rituals (Cainsville 5)

"Uh, no, but Lloergan will fit behind the Spyder's seats fine, and I don't need to put anything in the trunk--"

"I'll switch cars now," he said, taking my keys from the rack. "I'll bring Lloergan back with me. That should give you time to pack a bag. Three days' worth. Casual clothing, the sort for hiking and whatnot."

"Umm..."

"Yes, I know. You've pointed out that I lack such clothing myself. However, I have rectified that. It's at my condo, which we'll need to stop by on the way."

"On the way where exactly?"

"It's a surprise. Put my coffee into a travel mug, please. We'll stop by that place you like in the city and get you a mocha for the drive."

And with that, he strode through the parlor and out the front door before I could say another word.

--

We'd stopped at Gabriel's condo for his bag, which was already packed, suggesting this wasn't a spur-of-the-moment trip. After we got my mocha, he finally explained that this was why he'd asked me to keep the weekend free--he'd planned a weekend getaway. A surprise for me, because I'd been working so hard lately.

Under any other circumstances, I'd have been thrilled. But as it was, I sat in the passenger seat, my mocha untouched, Lloergan in the back seat giving the occasional whimper, as if picking up my unease.

"I'm not running away from her," Gabriel said when we were outside the city.

"Even if you were, I wouldn't blame--"

"I'd already made plans."

"I know."

"What I'm doing, Olivia, is ensuring Seanna does not interfere with my plans. I had no appointments tomorrow that could not be easily rescheduled, so I am beginning our trip early, knowing that if I stay, this situation will deteriorate and come tomorrow night, when we were supposed to leave, we won't be able to get away." His hands tightened on the steering wheel. "You need a break. We both need a break." He paused. "I want this."

He blurted the last part, as if getting the words out before he could decide against them.

I want this.

Three words that most people have no problem saying. Gabriel himself practically lives by those words.

No, that's not true. He's lived by the words "I need this." I require this, first for survival and then for security, a series of goals he needed to achieve to relax, secure in the knowledge that nothing could send him back where he'd been.

In the six months I'd been at the law firm, I'd gone on two vacations with Ricky. Gabriel rarely took a day off, and I suspect he's never actually been on a holiday. I know he doesn't own a passport. Maybe now, seeing me take vacations, he thought, You know, I could do with some of that. But one of the reasons I suspect he'd never done it before was that he had no one to travel with. So now, having decided he'd like a weekend trip, he framed it as a surprise getaway for me. This wasn't Gabriel fleeing Seanna--it was Gabriel safeguarding his weekend away.

"You're right," I said. "I could use a break. Rest and refocus."

"Exactly."

He drove another couple of miles in silence and then said, "That shot to the leg doesn't seem to have slowed Seanna down."

"So should I aim higher next time?"

He chuckled and relaxed his grip on the wheel. "No. I was only raising the subject to say that, while I'm not averse to the thought of her being shot, I'd rather you didn't do it again. She'll be quick to press charges next time, and I don't want you dealing with that."

"I won't. She just pissed me off."

"Something she said?"

I made a noise in my throat.

"She insulted you?"

"Not--" I stopped myself, but it was too late. He'd laid the trap and I'd fallen straight into it.