Awakening Book One of the Trust Series(89)

“Oh, Declan. How is anything at the moment okay?” She leaned into his touch. He could not ignore that electricity that moved between them at the contact. Declan’s heart began to race and hers did as well. He tipped up her chin to look at her. Before he did anything foolish, he pulled away abruptly. She needed comforting not more confusion. And he needed answers. That is what he was here for. Answers.

“I guess it wouldn’t be. What do you know about Garrett’s affiliation with the Cine Tofa?” He knew the Council trusted Garrett, but he had yet to be convinced. If his mentor could be a traitor, he found it difficult to place his trust in a man whose father was the head of the Cine Tofa.

Caitlyn sighed and said with confidence, “I know that he is not associated with them. Garrett has severe disdain with what the Cine Tofa represents, Declan. I’ve always known that with absolute certainty. And believe me, when I saw him with Lionel yesterday before he got hit, I saw the loathing in his eyes. Look-” Caitlyn’s hand touched his shoulder, “I know that Lionel betrayed you. I know it must have destroyed you the way it would have me if I found out you betrayed the Trust and lied to me. I understand your suspicion of Garrett, but trust me when I say it is unfounded. Am I hurt that he left such an important detail of his life out of our relationship? More than you could know. Despite that, I still trust him, and he is severely injured due to his loyalty of the Trust.”

Declan shook his head. He was going to break her. The little information the Council made him privy to was going to assure that. “How can you know that Caitlyn? What if Lionel just hates him?”

Caitlyn never broke eye contact. “Because I just know. I know him, Declan. Just the way that I know you. And I know you would never betray this organization.”

Declan sighed. “Caitlyn, you don’t. God, I don’t want to do this…”

Caitlyn stood up straighter. “What is it?”

“Garrett left his mother when he was sixteen to live and learn underneath his father for the Cine Tofa.”

Her face paled. “That… that’s not possible. It’s a lie. If that were true, he would not be here now.”

“Caitlyn, I promise, I will never, ever, lie to you. It is true. He came back at the age of nineteen, almost twenty. From what my father told me, Garrett decided that his father’s views were too extreme.” He did not want to continue, but he knew he must. “Do you know if Garrett was able to gather any intelligence about the Cine Tofa’s motives while he was on assignment? Did he ever mention anything?”

“Garrett did not disclose anything to me. But I knew that his assignments were top secret. I would never have put him in that position.”

Although it did not make Declan’s job easier, he respected that tremendously. He was surprised when Caitlyn asked her own question.

“How are you handling everything? This has not been an easy time for you either.” She placed her hand on his.

He closed his eyes for the moment. He was still reeling from the betrayal of Lionel. His own mentor. The man he put as much trust in as his father. And he betrayed him, lied to him. Lionel knew almost every secret about the Trust. He knew its strengths, its weaknesses. And Declan had played right into his hands. That is how the Cine Tofa was able to destroy so many of their spies. It’s easy enough when your own spy was practically the one deploying them.

He knew one thing. Lionel had sent a message by not killing Garrett; either that, or Nathaniel did not want him to kill him. Either way, Declan was hoping he could use this information to his advantage to exact revenge on Lionel.

When he had not answered her, she replied simply. “The time will come when you will get your vengeance. And when that time comes, if you need me, I will be there, with you.”

Her sincerity was overwhelming. He loved her more than he thought it was possible to love another person. But he could not tell her that. Not today. “Thank you.”

He asked a few more questions about Garrett, but it all came down to the fact that Garrett had kept some very important things from Caitlyn. She now had to be questioning her entire relationship with him. Declan did not want to say what he was about to, but he cared for her too much not to comfort her.

“I know that there are a lot of questions you have right now about your relationship. But there is one thing you should never question. Even though he may have kept certain things from you, I know he loves you. I saw it in his eyes whenever he looked at you. Nothing will ever change that. Just remember that.”