Page 20 of The Preachers' Promise
As we file past, he sticks his foot out, tripping Mal, who falls to his knees. I suck in a sharp breath. I know Malachi and his anger well, but it seems he’s got the same locked-down focus as Cain and I.Save Ophelia,because nothing else matters. He doesn’t react, simply stands and brushes some gravel chips from his pantlegs.
“Clumsy.” The guard chuckles to himself as we walk by.
When we’re past them, Mal turns to me and Cain. “If I ever get the opportunity, I’m cutting his balls off.”
I roll my eyes but can’t help the smile twitching at my lips. He would, too.
When we reach the door, I raise my hand to ring the bell, but it swings open.
“Mr. Sinclair,” Cain says as he steps forward, moving past me to lead the way. “It’s Cain Lockwood, sir.”
Ophelia’s father is in his fifties and well built. His blue eyes are the same color as Ophelia’s darkest eye, and his hair is thick and white. Even at home, during this troubling time, he’s wearing a suit. Only the way his tie has been loosened and the top button has been undone indicates there’s anything wrong.
He narrows his eyes at Cain, but doesn’t move to invite him in. “Cain Lockwood,” he echoes. “You’ve grown.”
“It’s been a few years since we last saw each other.”
On the drive, Cain filled us in on exactly what happened the last time he met Ophelia’s parents. They hadn’t parted on the best of terms. Ophelia’s mother had screamed at him for constantly asking about Ophelia, and her father had thrown him off their land and told him not to come back. I wonder how Cain is feeling now. Does he feel like that young boy again, like he’s been transported back in time?
“Yes, it has, and a lot has happened since then.” Mr. Sinclair’s gaze drifts past Cain to focus on us. “And who have you brought with you?”
“These are my friends from Verona Falls. Roman Johansen and Malachi Knox. Their families are in the same business.”
Mr. Sinclair jerks his chin at me. “The Johansen family from Scandinavia?”
“Yes, sir. At least, our ancestors were. We’ve been living in Winsconsin for a couple of generations now.”
He turns his attention to Malachi. “I’m not familiar with your family.”
“We’re from Montana, sir. Nowhere near these parts. There’s no reason you’d have needed to deal with them, but my family hold a lot of ground in Helena”
Cain clears his throat. “We all got to know Ophelia better while she was at college, and we’re concerned about her. We’d hoped for a few moments of your time.”
Mr. Sinclair hesitates, as though he’s deciding whether to throw us all out or invite us in. I wait, my heart thudding, wondering what we’ll do if he tells us to beat it, but then he steps back.
“I guess you’d better come in, then.” He watches us all closely as we file into his house. “Go through to the living room. It’s the first door on your right, but perhaps you remember that, Cain?”
Cain doesn’t reply but offers him a tight smile. Does Ophelia’s father know Cain had often been in the house during his childhood? That he slipped into Ophelia’s room at night and slept, curled up, on the bedroom floor?
The hallway is elegant, and the house decor has a peaceful style to it, but you can sense the tension simmering in the air. I follow Cain to the door of the living room and pause at the threshold.
A woman, who I assume to be Ophelia’s mother, is perched on an overstuffed occasional chair in the window. She looks terrible. Her face is pale, but her nose and upper cheeks areblotchy with red splatters, and her eyes are swollen. She’s been crying. A lot.
Shit.
“Where’s Ophelia?” I blurt the question out, all our planning out of the window the moment I observe her mother’s distress. Why would she be crying if Ophelia was safe under her roof? My instinct tells me she’s not here, so all of Cain’s planned speeches will be for nothing.
“Safe,” her father replies.
“But not here?” I push.
“No, not here.” He looks me up and down. “Not that it has anything to do with you.”
“Motherfucker,” Malachi mutters.
“What did you say?” Her father turns to him, his blue eyes sharp and full of disdain.
“Sir, we don’t believe Ophelia is safe.” Cain drags her father’s attention from Malachi. “Not here, and not wherever you’ve taken her. She was safe at the college. I totally understand wanting her under your roof … or being guarded by your men somewhere, but she’s safer with us.”
