Boston Blood

Twenty

The car finally stopped after an hour or so. Frankie felt her body stiffen as they approached an extravagant country house at the end of a long drive which was littered with trees and expensive looking statues. The driver pulled the car into the garage attached to the massive house and turned off the engine.

"Wait here." Cillian ordered as he turned to face Frankie. She hadn't said a word since she the side of the road. Cillian got out of the car and walked over to Frankie's side. He ripped open the door and pulled her out by the elbow, roughly. He looked tense. Every move he made was rippled with anger and agitation. Frankie yanked herself from his grip and wiggled her hands, trying to wake them up. He pushed her shoulder, signalling for her to move towards a door that must have led into the house.

She stepped into what she could only describe as the most beautiful home she had ever seen. The place was huge and decorated in rich mahogany furniture and it had brilliant white marble floors which were partly covered in Persian rugs. It made her sick. She was led into the living room where the fire was roaring and pushed onto the black leather sofa. She sniffed and gathered herself, straightening up and waited.

Cillian took off his leather jacket and walked over the fully stocked bar beside the fireplace. He took out two glasses and poured large measures of Jameson in each. He knocked his back and poured another before taking both and placing one on the marble coffee table in front of Frankie. She hadn't met his gaze once since the she had tried to escape. She wanted to demand that he tell her where they were and what they were doing here but she knew it was pointless. Cillian was an absolute prick but she knew she shouldn't try to piss him off again. The look in his eye at the side of the road frightened her to her core. Although she was trying her best not to let him see.

She shifted in her seat, trying to get comfortable. Cillian sighed and sat on the table a foot away from her. He was wearing a black t-shirt that seemed two sizes too small for his muscular frame. She hadn't seen him without a jacket before and was now only noticing that his left arm was covered in tattoos and had a scar that was about five inches long on his right forearm. Cillian began to fidget ever so slightly when he saw Frankie's eyes focus on his arms.

"I'm going to take the cuffs off but if you try to pull any of that shit like you did back there, you won't be walking out of this house." Cillian's deep husky voice was low and threatening. Frankie wondered if he was just saying that to scare her because she knew she was still alive for a reason. She knew they needed her for something and she was terrified to find out what.

Frankie finally let her eyes meet Cillian's. His were wide and unreadable and hers were burning with pure loathing. He raised one eyebrow and nodded once before removing the key from his pocket and leaning over so that his left cheek touching Frankie's. His skin was hot and his rough beard scraped her as he undid the cuffs. The click of the metal sounded and Frankie released a puff of air from her full lips. Her wrists were worse than before. The skin that had been slightly torn was now fully open in some places and dried blood was caked into her pale palms. She winced as she touched the cuts and hadn't noticed that Cillian had gotten up to get her some ice and a towel. He handed them to her and the sat back on the chair a few feet away. Frankie placed the ice on her wrist, revelling in the immediate relief she felt. The ice melted quickly against her traumatised skin.

After a few minutes of this, Frankie placed the bloody towel on the table and grabbed her whiskey. She threw it back and sat back into the deep leather cushion, leaning her head back and closing her eyes. Her head was still spinning and the pain was becoming more intense but she tried not to focus on it. She looked calm on the outside, unbothered, but she was terrified of what was about to happen. After she had tried, miserably, to escape in the woods she knew then that Cillian was right. There was no way out of this. Whatever O'Shea wanted her to do she was going to have to do it. She had to keep Billy and Mary safe. What the fuck do they want form me? They must know I have nothing to fucking offer. Even if I did, am I strong enough to do it?