Changing Affection

Chapter Twenty-Three

Ezra continued to drive further into the mountains. Mr. Hallquist had given him directions to a large cabin that used to belong to his wife's family. He followed the directions up narrow, windy roads as the sun started to set on the mountains. The trees above them caused the world to be darker than it truly was. He needed to turn on his headlights to be able to see in front of him. 

His grip on the steering wheel tightened as his knuckles turned white. Jearon was still alive. Ezra had watched two men pull Jearon up the stairs and through a door. Ezra had tried to follow them but kept getting stuck. He didn't know where that door led. Aubrey wasn't safe until that bastard was dead. It was Ezra's job to kill him, and he failed. He didn't just fail her father, but he failed Aubrey. 

Ezra looked through the rearview mirror at Aubrey and gave a small smile when he saw her asleep against her father. Right now, she was safe. She was with him, and he wasn't going to let her out of his sight ever again. Until he figured out a way to kill Jearon he wasn't going to let her out of his sight. He needed to figure out where he was. He knew that he would be taken away from the warehouse but wouldn't be taken back to his own house. He wouldn't risk dirtying that house up. Ezra couldn't think of anywhere else that he would be taken to, but he knew there had to be somewhere that he had hidden from him. Just like how he had hidden the hunting cabin from Jearon. 

How he was able to find the hunting cabin, Ezra would never know. He had to figure it out, for Aubrey. He must have had help from the police. Because Jearon controlled them, he could get them to do whatever he wanted. Ezra didn't have that luxury. 

A couple of hours later, they pulled up to a hidden gate and Ezra rolled down his window. The rain had started to lightly fall through the trees causing a slight mist to hover over the ground. Asher got out of the passenger seat and walked over to the gate, pushing it open. Once Ezra had pulled the van through and let Asher back into the van after locking the gate back, he drove up the long driveway.

He pulled up to the front door and stopped the van. The rest of the men got out of the van and proceeded to walk around the house and property to make sure there wasn't anywhere there waiting for them. Ezra climbed out of the van and looked around, palming his gun. The forest was even fuller here than it was at his cabin. The rain fell lightly on his head and the ground around him. He started to stretch his limbs as he looked around. 

Mr. Hallquist opened up the sliding door and stepped out with Aubrey right behind him. He gave Ezra a disapproving look before handing Aubrey's hand over to him. "I'll be right back, Aubrey. I'm going to make sure that everything we need is in the house." Asher followed up the steps after him. 

Once Mr. Hallquist was gone, Aubrey wrapped her arms around his waist. He pulled her as close as she could get to him. She was safe. She was safe. Right now, in his arms, she was safe.

"Don't ever let me go, Ezra," Aubrey choked. She had her face buried in his chest, making her voice muffled.

He leaned down and whispered in her ear. "I'm never letting you go again." He knew that Mr. Hallquist had wanted him gone after rescuing his daughter and he thought that maybe he'd be able to do it, but he can't. He can't leave. Especially knowing that Jearon is still alive, he can't leave her. He just hoped that Mr. Hallquist would understand.

Aubrey looked up at him. He smiled at her as he rubbed her tears away with his thumb. He bent down and placed a long, sweet kiss on her lips. His hand moved to the back of her neck, pushing the kiss deeper. He pulled away after a couple of moments and looked up at the house behind them. 

The house was huge. Its brick was greying with vines growing all over it. Large windows were evenly spaced along with the brick. A large red, double door sat in the middle. Ezra liked that color. He thought that it added a bit of character to the house.

"I didn't know we had this," Aubrey spoke up next to him.

He wrapped his arm around her and lead her around the van and closer to the house. "Your father said that it had once belonged to your mother's family." He took another look around before looking back down at her. Her eyes were slightly swollen. His heart hurt at thinking about how much she had cried, and he wasn't there to help her. "It's beautiful." He wasn't just talking about the house. 

She looked up at him and smiled. "Yes, it is."

The door opened suddenly causing Aubrey to jump closer to him. Mr. Hallquist walked out with Asher behind him. They stopped in front of them.

"The house is secure," Asher spoke up roughly.

"Yes," Mr. Hallquist nodded. "Aubrey, Asher will take you to your room." He held out his hand towards hers. Ezra relinquished her hand and took a small step away.

Ezra watched as Aubrey walked into the house before turning to Mr. Hallquist. "Sir, we need to talk."

"Yes, we do." He crossed his arms and turned to face him. "I want you to stay here."

Ezra furrowed his eyebrows. "Sir?"

"Jearon's not dead," Mr. Hallquist reminded him. "I want you here to protect my daughter until that bastard is dead. Do you understand?"

Ezra nodded. He worked hard to not show him the excitement that he was feeling over being able to stay. 

"I know you would do anything to protect my daughter," Mr. Hallquist started. "Prove it to me." He turned around and started to walk towards the house. "Come on, I'll show you to your room."

Hasn't he already proved how much he loved and cared for her? He risked his life to save her, but he guessed that Mr. Hallquist didn't see that as much proof. He glared at his back as he followed her father up the stairs and into the house.