March 18
Andrew and Kaylee Early evening Aegis holding cell The results of her capture
He let her sit there and wonder for hours. When “Andrew” was the one to set foot in the room, the panic she had kept so admirably at bay really set in. The power manifesting itself earlier wasn’t there and all she felt was dread at what was to come next, but she figured that was what he wanted. He had her now, so why force her cooperation when he could have her fear? Wasn’t that what all monsters wanted?
Well, she wasn’t going to give him an easy time of it. She cringed away, backed herself into a corner. But there was only one direction from which he could approach and the second he was close enough, she would lash out. Maybe he didn’t know what she was. Maybe he hadn’t done his homework.
If it was Gabriel… Well, who was to say? She may have done some damage, but she was unarmed and touching him would have led to further infection. Andrew did know what Kaylee was and he knew what she would do, so she didn’t have the advantage she thought she did. He caught her arm as she swung and twisted it painfully, down then back, forcing her up against the wall with his own body. He took no pleasure in the whimper that left her, the way Gabriel would have, but he did an admirable job of selling it. He spoke harshly, breath hot against her ear.
“It was easy.” She shuddered, struggled, but he was ready for that too. He drew back only enough to shove her, hard, against the wall again and put more pressure on her arm. If he had to break it, it wouldn’t be the first time. “I had about two minutes, Kaylee, between word that you were stupidly deciding to run and planning to have Audric intercept you. Two minutes of planning, one witch and one fae hybrid, and both of you were incapacitated in seconds. You think you’re some goddamn little badass, Kaylee? Is this how you think a fucking adult acts, Kaylee?” He had never scolded her for being childish before, be he wasn’t holding back now. He’d had her abducted, thrown into a cell. After that, he had taken over the whole situation himself. He had better things to be doing with his time but Kaylee had a way of overtaking things.
It took a few moments before the meaning behind the words sunk in and she heard more than just the menacing tone, one that didn’t sound anything like the brother she had known her whole life. Her hero, her safe place…
Once she stopped struggling, he loosened his grip, but he didn’t let her go as she would have expected, and a sliver of that panic remained. Was this a game? One of Gabriel’s? Or a lesson?
”Let me go.”
“I don’t have to, do I? You think that’d help, Kaylee? Let me go? Please, Mr. Gabriel, leave me alone?” The mockery was probably overstepping in ways the physical contact was not. The best suggestion that it wasn’t Gabriel was that he was only hurting her. His hands did not violate her in any other sense of the word.
”Andrew. Let. Me. Go.” She wasn’t going to argue with him. Not like this. So she said the words as firmly as she could manage under the circumstances.
This time, he did, shoving her one last time and then pacing away, gesturing to her as he snapped loudly at her again. “What do you think, Kaylee? Why do you fucking think I lock you up? This isn’t grounding you for bad grades or sneaking out, this is to keep you safe. Are you ready to throw your life away to make a fucking point to me? To risk getting raped and tortured to death by him just to show my how independent you are?”
She turned sharply, watching his movements critically. She cradled her sore arm to her chest, glaring at him through a mess of colored hair. “I wouldn’t need protecting if you weren’t with her,” she spat back, still reeling from the rollercoaster of the day.
“Oh… Right. Mel.” He laughed humorlessly. “You’re right. At least partially right. If it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have run into him. But she is not up for debate, Kaylee. Look, if you don’t want to be a part of my life anymore, then after all this I will do everything I can to see those ties cut for you, but she’s not going anywhere. I’m not throwing away what I have with her because you can’t fucking deal.”
He seemed to mean it. If she didn’t want to be a part of his life. The words had shock value, but they were made worse by the fact that she didn’t think he was using them for that purpose. Her words were carefully bland, and harsher for it. “What is it you have, Andrew? The ultimate damsel in distress? Does she like that you get off on being there to save her, or does she just not get it? Innocent little Melisande, hiding behind her big, strong, human savior.”
That was enough to draw him close again, and she stood up straight, defiant, when she thought he would hit her. It wasn’t something he had ever done in anger, but the movements suggested a prelude to violence. He didn’t though, he just shouted again. “It isn’t your choice!”
He backed up, hands dragging back through his hair. “It isn’t your choice,” he repeated, softer this time. “But I loved her before I knew what she was. I wasn’t with her then, but she’d been a friend to me for years, Kaylee, and she’s been that to you too. Finding out didn’t change how I felt, so I don’t get why it changed anything for you. This isn’t about her needing me, it’s about us needing each other. After Liv you got it in your head that whoever I was with had to measure up to your standards. But I am done with that. And you know what, you’re right. You’re right, you are an adult. So when you leave this room, you listen to your escort and you let them keep you safe, or you tell them you don’t want them and they’ll let you go out there and you can live or die however you see fit. That’s your choice to make.”
He didn’t wait for her response. He turned to leave and he slammed that door behind himself. He was gambling that this scare would be enough to keep her in line throughout the rest of this, until some new arrangement could be made. And that was already in the works.
He didn't want to lose his baby sister, but he would rather lose her to distance than to Gabriel, and it looked like that was what it was coming down to.