Page 20 of Claiming Liberty
Finally, Kingsley turns my way, shaking his head. “I’m sorry, I can’t take you to her.” He deflates. “You’ll have to wait for Peter.”
He stomps to the coffee table while Layan cleans up the mess on the rug. “I’m calling that son of a bitch right now.”
“No!” I rush to him, grabbing his wrist when he picks up the phone. “Not yet.Please.”
“You could still take her to see Naomi,” Layan says, coming up behind us. She stops a few feet away, and Kingsley doesn’t look at either of us. My hand never leaves his wrist, and his phone stays firmly in his grasp. “Digby goes to Chaffer’s a lot, right?” Layan continues. “No one would have to know what you were doing, and Liberty wouldn’t necessarily even need to speak to Naomi. It would be enough to see that she’s okay.” Layan’s eyes move to me. “Right?”
“Right.” My head bobs several times as I whip back to Kingsley. “I just need to know that she’s okay.”
Kingsley’s eyes close as he pulls in a deep inhale through his nose. His grip on the phone releases, and it clatters onto the table.
He nods slowly, then opens his eyes, finally turning to me. “Okay. I can see if he’s going to be at Chaffer’s tonight. He usually brings a slave…”
I wrap my arms around Kingsley’s neck and squeeze, pinching my lips together when a whimper escapes my mouth. “Thank you.”
He hesitantly hugs me back. “You’re welcome. You’ll need to pick a new name. And, Liberty, I need you to understand that if we get caught, it isn’t just our lives we’re risking.” I pull away to see him looking at Layan, so much fear in his pretty gray irises it makes me question myself for a moment.
“Hey,” I say, dragging his attention back to me. “I’ve never met anyone outside of the manor, and even when I was there, I was only a dancer. You said it yourself, there’s little chance anyone would recognize me or think anything of it even if they did, right?”
He doesn’t answer, so I continue. “The only two people who could see me and know what happened are Sawyer and Angel, and Angel has gotten me out of a hell of a lot of trouble before. I promise, if I somehow get caught, I won’t take you down with me. Either of you.”
I want to say more. I want to tell him Angel would protect Kingsley and Layan if I asked him to. I want to explain to them what an ally he can be, but I don’t. The skeptical look Kingsley gives me is enough to know he’d never believe it. I’m not sure which one of us would be wrong.
If Peter really does manage to dismantle the island … would that put Angel with us or against us?
I guess we’ll find out.
4
ANGEL
Sawyer stands, arms outstretched, but my focus is on the girl sitting on the couch. Her head is down, and she’s turned away, hunched forward with her arms wrapped around her stomach. Pink fingernails dig into her sides.
“Prudence, sweetheart, would you please see if Amari needs help stocking the bar?” Sawyer says, drawing my attention to him. His arms are at his sides now as he stares disapprovingly at the girl. Prudence, apparently.
She’s still clutching her stomach as she stands, her eyes downcast as she scurries to the door. Purple around her eye catches my attention, and I reach out to gently take her arm before she can pass. Wide, fearful eyes dart to me, and she rears back like she’s afraid I’m going to hit her. Up close, I can see for sure that she’s young. No older than twenty, probably even in her teens.
I frown at the bruise coloring her left eye, the lack of swelling telling me it isn’t recent. It isn’t the cause for her tears.
“Are you all right?” I ask, scanning her face.
She swallows, her body starting to tremble beneath my touch.
As soon as my hand falls away from her arm, she hurries to the door like she’s afraid I’ll come after her.
My frown remains, but I don’t know what to make of this. A woman being hesitant of me is not in the slightest bit unusual, so that isn’t what’s bothering me. Black eyes occasionally happen, as unfortunate as they may be. Crying is certainly common, especially with someone new.
It’s her age. I’ve never seen someone so young on the island.
Lib’s voice sounds in my head, chiding me for my naivety. I haven’t been able to get it out.
“Hey,” Sawyer says, coming over to me with a warm smile tugging his lips. He pats my shoulder before bringing me toward him for a quick half hug. “How are you?” He pulls back, creases forming around his eyes as he rocks back on his heels and crooks his thumbs into his pockets. “How’s your mother?”
“She’s…” I take a quick peek over my shoulder at the door Prudence went through. “She’s hanging on, but it won’t be much longer. I’ll need to leave again in no later than a few weeks.”
His head bobs. “Of course, of course.” He backpedals a few steps. “Thanks for coming back for now. I can hold down the fort, but I have to be honest with you, I’m drowning. With all the island shitandthe Massachusetts deal… It’s a little much, you know? I just got in last night, but someone is going to have to make another trip soon. The contractors have no idea what they’re doing.”
I scratch at my temple. “Sure, I’ll take care of it.” I glance over my shoulder. “Who was that girl?”