Forbidden Desires {Ziall AU}

Chapter 20: there's something wrong in the village

chapter title from The Village by Wrabel

I'm so sorry for the slow updates, I've been kind of avoiding this fic and I honestly have no idea why, probably just the lovely joy of procrastination. I'm trying out a new way of writing and using focus times to write so hopefully I manage to get this fic done by the end of the year.

Thank you to everyone who follows this fic and leaves their lovely comments, it really makes my day.

There are some trigger warnings for this chapter, please read before continuing

TRIGGER WARNINGS: toxic relationships, domestic abuse (only implied, a character appears with bruises), verbal degradation, major age gap

Liam meets me out the front of the warehouse with a sympathetic look, and I give him the biggest smile I can muster. Which is dismal. I walk through the winding paths past all the 'workers', if you could even call them that. They don't recognise me the same way they had before. They used stare, not discretely either. They would whisper to each other so quietly I was never sure how they could hear each other. They would straighten, looking like identical robots. I hated it. Now, there's something off in the way they glance up at me. They're whispering to the people around them like I'm the hottest gossip. I look at Liam, but he doesn't seem to notice. Something is wrong... something is very wrong.

"How did it go?" Liam asks, keeping his voice low to not attract the attention of the vultures (workers) lurking around the halls.

I glance at him, "The best." I smile.

He gives me a small grin in return, and we push our way through the ornate doors to be greeted by a table of my father and his closest colleagues. What I could only assume was the sound of bustling chatter stills when the room seems to stare at our frames. "My son," he greets from the head of the table, looking cold as always. "so good to see you,"

I manage to stifle a laugh, instead painting my face with a pleasant smile. "Pleasure as always, father."

He gives an equally forced smile. "There's someone I would like you to meet," he smirks, and as if on queue a girl who couldn't be any older than me perches herself down next to my father. She meets my eyes, and all I can see through them is raw fear. The thought of what he could have done to her makes my heart drop. "This is Tori, she's been dying to meet you." She produces a timid wave, pulling her hair back from the side of her face enough to let me see the bruise forming high on her cheekbone. A sense of realisation washes over me while I share a look with Liam, confirming he saw it too.

Her gentle voice breaks through the thick silence, "I've heard so much about you, sir." I almost grit my teeth at the title, sharing a pointed glace with my father. He looks pleased with himself, and for a moment I consider what it would be like to wipe the look clean off his face.

"Come son, sit with us," he gestures, pointing to the strategically placed chairs next to Tori. One for me, one for Liam. I don't have to guess which one is which.

When we settle ourselves in our seats I place a hand on Tori's leg to try and let her know we're not like them. Her gaze settles on me, and I send her a reassuring smile, she nods, her eyes softening a little. "It's lovely to meet you," I smile.

Dinner is shortly served and the conversation picks up, yet I can't help but notice the sly implications my father keeps making about Tori. "She doesn't talk back," "She knows respect," I see her sink into herself deeper and deeper every time my father opens his mouth. Biting my tongue is the only thing keeping me from making a scene.

My father slips an arm around Tori's shoulder, making her jolt. "You're both around the same age, aren't you?" he asks, an air of false innocence coating his drawl.

She glances at me, then back to the table, "Yes sir," she mumbles. I cringe, looking at her side profile.

"You two should get along well then," my father leans forward, giving me a look that could spell a thousand words. He's trying to set me up with her.

Without warning, Tori pushes her chair out, walking out without so much as a word. She glances back at me, sporting a look that could only be as pure pleading.

I turn to my father, the bottled-up rage spilling over my features. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" I burst, slamming my hand on the table. The room is quickly filled with a strained silence, the table watching on without shame. So much for not making a scene.

He shrugs, taking a spit from his fancy ass wine glass. "She would be good for you, you know. You need a girl," A girl, someone I can control. He looms over me with the unwavering darkness in his eye.

I stand, our faces barely inches apart now. "You're fucking insane," If he thinks that I am even going to consider controlling an innocent person, he is in for a harsh reality check. The thought almost startles me, the person I was not too long ago would have gone along with what my father is implying. It disgusts me how not so long ago I would have been a monster to her. But it's about time I earn some fucking independence. Blond hair and blue eyes definitely don't come to mind.

My father looks me dead in the eye with an unwavering gaze, "And you're unnatural."

My eyes go wide, and a devilish smirk adorns his face. He knows what he did. The table fills with murmurs, looking at me through a new light. Before I can say something I'll come to regret, Liam pulls on my arm, walking me out the door. My ears are filled with white noise, blocking out whatever Liam is saying. When we make it outside, I can finally breathe. The cold air burns it's way through my lungs, but it centres me all the same. Liam pulls me into a hug, and I curl myself around him, "He just-"

"I know," he murmurs, "it'll be alright, we'll work it out."

I can't do anything but cling to him for dear life.