Chapter 5 - THE VIBRATION
Josie tilted her head. She looked at the blood dripping from Rafferty's jaw.
Fay tried to pull her daughter back, terrified of the violence that had just invaded their sanctuary. But Josie resisted. The little girl slipped out of the bed and walked slowly toward the terrifying man.
“Josie, no,” Fay whispered, her voice cracking.
Rafferty raised a hand to stop Fay. “Let her,” he said, his voice surprisingly gentle.
Josie stopped inches from Rafferty. She reached into her pajama pocket and pulled out a small tissue. With absolute innocence, she pressed it against his bleeding jaw.
Rafferty’s breath caught in his throat. No one had touched him with gentleness in twenty years.
“Thank you,” he whispered.
Josie watched his lips move, but her brow furrowed. She couldn't hear the words clearly. She raised her small, warm palm and pressed it flat against Rafferty’s uninjured cheek.
Fay gasped.
Rafferty froze, his eyes darting to Fay in confusion.
“She… she feels the vibrations,” Fay explained, tears sliding down her face. “She’s listening to you.”
Rafferty looked back at the little girl. He swallowed hard. He placed his own massive hand over hers, holding it against his face. He lowered his voice, creating a deep, resonant hum in his chest.
“I promise you,” Rafferty said, ensuring every syllable vibrated against her skin. “No one will ever hurt you again. I am going to keep you safe.”
Josie smiled. She nodded slowly, feeling the truth in the steady rumble of his voice. She turned, ran back to her little bedside table, and picked up the blue paper boat she and Fay had folded that morning.
She walked back and held it out to Rafferty.
Rafferty took it, his hands trembling slightly. He looked at Fay, the realization solidifying between them. The girl who had saved him in the dark was now a mother, fighting in the dark for her own child.
A groan came from the living room.
Rafferty’s tenderness vanished. He stood up, shielding Fay and Josie from the doorway.
The thug was trying to crawl toward the door. Rafferty walked over, grabbed the man by the collar, and hauled him to his feet. He reached into the man’s coat pocket and pulled out a heavy silver pocket watch.
Rafferty flipped it open. Engraved on the inside was the Vanderpool family crest.
The thug spat a mouthful of blood onto the floor. “Vanderpool says the surgery is officially canceled, Cain. He shredded the file. Nobody operates in this state without his say-so.”
Rafferty didn't hit him again. He didn't need to. He dropped the man like garbage.
“Tell Arthur Vanderpool,” Rafferty said, his voice dropping to a lethal whisper, “that he just started a war he cannot afford to finish.”
Rafferty turned back to Fay. The apartment was compromised. The lock was broken. The Vanderpools knew where she lived.
“Pack a bag,” Rafferty commanded, wiping the blood from his neck.
“What? No, I can’t—”
“They sent a man with a knife to a room where your child sleeps, Fay. Do you think they will stop here?” Rafferty’s eyes burned with a fierce, protective fire. “You are moving into the estate. Tonight, I take their empire.”
Fay looked around her tiny, broken home, and then at Josie, who was safely holding onto Rafferty’s pant leg.
She nodded.
An hour later, they were in the back of the SUV, pulling through the massive iron gates of the Cain Estate. The mansion, previously a symbol of cold isolation, now looked like a fortress.
Silvano was waiting on the steps. When he saw Josie, his hardened face softened slightly.
“Put them in the South Wing,” Rafferty told Silvano. “Double the guards. No one enters or leaves without my permission.”
Fay carried a sleeping Josie up the grand staircase. Silvano opened the door to a massive suite. Fay laid Josie on the plush mattress, pulling the silk covers over her.
As Fay walked out into the adjoining sitting room, she noticed a door slightly ajar down the hall. A faint light spilled from it. Curiosity overriding her exhaustion, she walked toward it and pushed it open.
She gasped, covering her mouth.
It was a nursery. But not a new one. It was filled with vintage toys, rocking horses, and classic children’s books. It looked as though it had been maintained for years, waiting for a child that had never arrived.
“I started buying them ten years ago,” Rafferty’s voice came from the shadows behind her.
Fay turned. He had changed into a clean shirt, a bandage over his jaw.
“Why?” she asked softly.
“Because I grew up with nothing,” Rafferty stepped into the light. “And I thought… if I built the safest place in the world, maybe I would finally deserve a family to put in it.” He looked at her. “I just didn't know I was building it for the girl who gave me a paper boat.”
Before Fay could respond, the heavy thud of boots echoed down the hall.
May you like
Silvano sprinted toward them, his face pale—something Fay had never seen before.
“Rafferty,” Silvano breathed heavily. “The Vanderpools didn't just cancel the surgery. They bribed child services. The police are at the front gate right now. They have a warrant to take Josie away.”
