Something flashed in Brody’s eyes, but it was gone in an instant. It wasn’t the first time that had happened. “What was that?”
“What?” His brows pulled down, and he leaned back in his chair, his hand still covering mine. “What was what?”
I made a circle with my finger at his face. “That. That looked you just did. It was like you were off somewhere else for a second and then came back when you remembered where you were.”
“I…” He opened his mouth and closed it when the waitress brought our food. “There are some things you don’t know about me,” he continued once she left.
My stomach dipped, my head swirling. This was it. This was the moment it all came crashing down. He’d tell me he wasn’t who he said he was or that Hut had put him up to this. I held my stomach, scared I was going to throw up at any second.
“Hey, hey.” His voice rang out, but I was too into my own head. “Lola, darlin'.” Hands cupped the side of my face and dipped my head down, bringing me face-to-face with Brody where he crouched in front of me. “Baby, just breathe. Breathe.” I pulled in a breath. “That’s it.” His voice was smooth, soft, gentle—a caress against my soul. “It wasn’t anything bad. I was just going to say that I have a past.” He paused and stared as I inhaled another breath. “What just happened?”
“I…” Now the shoe was on the other foot, and I had no idea what to say, so I went with the truth. “I thought you were going to tell me this wasn’t real.” I sniffled, willing the tears burning the back of my eyes to stay away.
“Baby.” He pressed his forehead against mine. “This is the realest thing I’ve ever had.” His fingers tensed. “You’re more to me than you think. You don’t know it right now, but there’ll be a time when you realize what I’m doing for you, and I just hope you don’t end up hating me.”
“I couldn’t hate you.” I covered his hands with my own. “Not when I feel the way I do.” It was on the tip of my tongue to tell him I loved him, but I stopped myself at the last second. Love had no boundaries, no rules, so I knew without a doubt he was it for me. He’d always have a place inside my heart.
“Remember that, Lola.” He puffed out a breath. “Remember the way you feel and the words you just said. Promise me, darlin’. Promise me you’ll remember.”
His voice was desperate, his body taut and tense. He didn’t need to beg me though because I was sure I’d never be able to forget the way he made me feel.
“I promise.”
Two words. Two words I vowed not to break, but sometimes it wasn’t so easy to keep a promise.
Chapter Sixteen
LOLA
Sometimes you’d get a feeling in the pit of your stomach when something bad was about to happen, but there were times when it didn’t appear, and that usually happened when I was stuck inside my head.
I was back at Brody’s place in my mind, relishing in the way he touched me after he’d taken me for midnight pancakes last night. I was imagining all the things he could do with his lips and hands, and I was unaware of what was going on around me.
I should have been more switched on as I walked home from the station after my day shift. I should have noticed there was no music and no cars on our street, and most importantly, Hut’s SUV was missing. But none of it registered because nothing could pierce my bubble of happiness.
Until I closed the front door behind me.
Hut was sitting on the sofa, his gaze focused intently on the door. I frowned and opened my mouth, about to ask him what was going on, but he beat me to it.
“Where were you last night?”
“I…” My breath stalled in my chest. “Where was I?” I rushed out.
He slowly stood, and I realized there was only him and me here. The atmosphere was intense, warning me of the danger swirling around us. The silence surrounding us more telling than the clenched fists at his sides and the redness spreading across his face.
“Yeah. Where were you?”
“I was at work.”
“Don’t fuckin' lie to me!”
“Jesus, Emerson.” My nails bit into the palm of my hand as I clenched my fists.
He took a step forward, a dark cloud seeming to cover him, threatening a storm ahead. I knew the kind of reaction I’d get from him using his first name, but I was tired. Tired of him. Tired of the life I lived in this house.
“How many times have I warned you?” he asked, his voice deceptively low.
“Warned me about what?” I was playing with fire, sure to get burned. He knew. He knew where I had been last night, but most importantly, who I was with.
His hand whipped out, and his fingers curled around my wrist. “For starters, you should know better than to call me anything but Hut.”
I’d been good at calling him Hut, both out loud and in my mind, but the rebel inside me had wanted to push that button—the only button I knew I could press. I’d lived in his shadow for so many years I was practically hidden in the darkness, but a fight had battled its way throughout me, the last boost needed in the form of Brody. I was finally showing the backbone I always knew I had. I refused to bow down to Hut and treat him like the king he thought he was.
“Your name is Em—”
He slapped me like I was an annoying little fly.
I sucked in a breath, trying to control the rage that was building in me like the flight an airplane would take. “How dare you.” I tried to wrench away from him, pulling my arm, but his grip was too tight. His fingers bit into my skin, and a part of me relished in the pain because it fueled my anger even more.
“What do you think is gonna happen here, Lola?” Hut raised his brow, his mouth quirking at the corner, mocking me. He thought this was a game—he thought everything was a game. “You thought you could fuck one of my crew and get away with it?” He pushed his face closer to mine. “You broke the fuckin' rules.”
“Let go.” I stared into his eyes, the same eyes that had welcomed me into this house seven years ago. The same eyes I once looked at in safety. But all I could see was hatred. Hatred for who he was, and what he represented. He knew I had no one. He knew he was the only one left in my life that was considered family. What he didn’t understand was that I’d save myself a thousand times over before letting him dictate my life.
“And what if I don’t?” He stepped closer, and I shuffled back a step, cursing the wall that my back hit.
“Hut,” I ground out, finally giving him the name he’d obviously earned. “Let go.”
He laughed, the echo of it screaming of how unhinged he’d become. He was losing his damn mind right in front of me. “Was that meant to be your version of a threat, dear sister?”
Tears burned at the back of my eyes. There was no one else here. Not one person to step in if things got really bad. They were all out on jobs, most probably at Hut’s request. We were in this house alone. Something I dreaded when he was sober, never mind high.
“Please,” I whispered, trying to appeal to the boy who had once lived inside his heart.
He groaned and pressed his body against mine. “I do love it when you beg.”
My hand twitched by my side, and there was nothing I could do to stop my instincts to protect myself. There’d been a time a year ago where I’d never have dared to slam my hand on his chest and push him away from me, but that was before.
Before he’d held a knife to my throat and pinned me on my bed.
Before he’d strangled me in a house full of people.
Before he’d used me to get what he wanted.
Before Brody.
My palm connected with his chest, and I put all my weight into it, managing to break his connection on my wrist and for him to stumble back. I was as shocked as he was, and that was the only reason it took my body crucial seconds to catch up with my brain and to run.
“What the fuck?” His roar hurt my ears as I scrambled across the living room and made it to the stairs. My soles pounded on the steps, but I only made it halfway up when his
body tackled mine from behind.
“Who the fuck do you think you are?” he sneered, pressing his weight into my back and pushing his fingers into my hair.
He pulled my head back, and I caught sight of his wild eyes for a second. Then he shoved my head forward, smacking my chin off the carpet. My teeth sank into my bottom lip, a copper tang filling my mouth and wetness dripping down my chin.
I stared in fascination as a drop of blood pooled on the carpet, closely followed by another one. And then he repeated the action. This time I was more aware and curled my lips over my teeth.
“Don’t.” He slammed my face into the edge of the stair, and pain exploded over my eye. “You.” He yanked me back, and I screamed at the agony. “Ever.” His other hand squirmed between me and the stairs, his fingers wrapping around my throat. “Touch.” I felt his body lift off me slightly, and for a second, I thought he’d let go, but then his boot appeared next to my face, and I realized in horror that he was finding leverage so he could manufacture more pain. “Me.”
“Please, Hut.” I scraped my nails down his arm attached to the hand around my throat. “Please, you’re scaring me.” I hated admitting it to him, but a small part of me hoped he’d listen and it’d make him open his eyes to see what he was doing.
He let go of my hair, but I daren’t take a breath, not when he still held my throat in the palm of his hand. “You should have listened to me, Lola.” His voice was softer now as his free hand moved to my hip. He spun me around and pushed me down, the stairs biting into my back. He loomed over me like the grim reaper as he waited for the dying to take their last breath.
His fingers gripped my throat harder, squeezing with a strength I didn’t know he had. “You should have adhered to the rules, because now you’re going to get your punishment, and so will Brody.” He shook his head and dipped his hand into his pocket, the glint of the metal shining like a beacon. “No one touches what is mine.”
I wanted to scream in his face, tell him I was never his and never will be. But I had to bide my time. “Hut.” I bucked my hips, my fight kicking in for what felt like the millionth time as he brought the knife closer.
“You know why that is, Lola?” The cold metal tip touched my cheek, and I shivered. He dipped it into the blood flowing from my eye, and I blinked. “You know why you’re mine?” He pushed the metal between my lips, his nostrils flaring at the action. “Because you’ve belonged to me from the moment your dad moved you into this house.” He pulled the knife back, flicked it closed, and pocketed it. “You’ll never get away from me, no matter where you go or who you’re with.”
He squeezed my neck harder still, testing my limits, and then he grinned. “You’re the property of Hut, and no one messes with what’s mine. Least of all you.”
I choked out a cough, my hands desperately clawing at his arm. He finally let go, and I still felt like I couldn’t breathe. His words had punctured me more than any knife ever could. His threat was loud and clear.
My vision was hazy, tears leaking from my eyes and down my face, mixing in with the blood, so I didn’t see the fist coming toward me, but I felt his knuckles ripping the already broken skin of my eye even more, and I was thankful. Thankful he’d taken me out of my head because darkness greeted me and I was safe.
If only for a little while…
BRODY
Ford pulled up outside the house, his grin overtaking his face. Spending time with him alone had made me realize he wasn’t like all the other guys in the crew. He wasn’t taking drugs at every opportunity and partying until the sun rose. He wasn’t looking to be a “bad guy.” He was trying to protect his cousin from Hut, and was doing what he had to so he could achieve that. I admired him for doing whatever he could to protect his family.
We’d been talking shit about Ted and Jace for the last fifteen minutes as we drove back from a pickup. Once a week, all of the dealers would meet us in one place, and we’d collect all the money. It was a tedious job that Hut usually sent Quinn on, but apparently, we’d been given the task this week. A task I hated almost as much as being in Hut’s presence.
I pushed out of the car with Ford following me. “Thought Hut was having a party tonight?” I asked Ford.
His grin dropped, replaced by a frown. “I never know what he’s doing lately. All this Carson stuff has sent him into a tailspin.”
I nodded in agreement and sauntered up to the house, jumping all the steps at once. The screen door was open, but the main door was closed. My gut was screaming at me that something was wrong, and I moved my arm, ready to pull out my weapon at a second’s notice if I needed to.
I pushed open the door, stepping inside slowly, and scanning the living room. No one was around, and I moved farther inside, Ford at my back. “Where’s—” I cut myself off as my gaze landed on something on the stairs. “What the fuck.”
My legs carried me before my brain could catch up, and I sprinted over to the steps, seeing legs sprawled out. My gaze tracked up the legs, realizing it was Lola. Her face was a bloody mess. Red coated every inch of the skin I could see underneath that purple bruising.
“Fuck!” My legs gave out, my knees hitting the steps as I reached for her. “Lola?” I drifted my hands above her body, too scared to touch her. “Darlin'?”
“Oh shit,” Ford said from behind me.
Lola groaned, her head moving to the side, and one of her eyes opened. The other was so swollen she couldn’t move it at all. “Brody?”
“Yeah, darlin’, it’s me.”
She choked out a sob, her arms lifting, her hands trying to make contact with me. “Help me.”
I nodded, a lump forming in my throat, and I pushed my arms under her legs and back. “I will,” I promised, standing up and cringing at the way she winced.
“Take her to her room,” Ford demanded. I wanted to scream at him that she wasn’t safe here, that she should be going to the hospital, but I knew it wasn’t an option, not when Hut was involved. I had to bide my time and make sure I could get her out safely, no matter how much I wanted to whisk her away right now.
“She’s not safe,” I growled.
Ford swiped his hand through his hair and let out a sharp breath. “She has a lock on her door.”
“A…” I whipped my head around to face him and frowned, wondering how he knew she had a lock on her door. “A lock on her door?”
Ford nodded, but tilted his head at the top of the stairs, signaling for me to move, so I did, needing to get her to safety. Her body went limp in my arms, but her chest moved on each breath. I needed her to be awake. I needed to know who had done this to her and what had happened.
I pushed into her room and placed her on the bed, feeling absolutely helpless. I was always the guy who knew exactly what to do in any situation, but when it came to Lola, I couldn’t stand seeing her hurt.
“Here,” Ford announced, handing me a first aid kit. He walked into the room and closed the door behind him, clicking the lock into place as he did.
“Why do I have a feeling there’s more here than I know?” I asked Ford.
“Because you’d be right.” He huffed out a breath and stared at Lola, who was coming around again. “I installed the lock on her door last year after I caught Hut holding a knife to her throat.” He leaned against the wall. “I’d heard of him hurting her from other crew members, but I hadn’t seen it until that day.”
My nostrils flared, my anger taking over every inch of my body. I was gonna find him and tear him limb from limb.
“I can hear your thoughts from here,” Ford said and shook his head. “But you won’t achieve anything. You have to play his game. Plus, she needs you right now.”
I flicked my gaze over to Lola and dropped the first aid kit, reaching for her as she tried to push herself up into a sitting position. “He knows,” she whispered. “He knows we were together last night.”
“Who?” I asked, sitting on the edge of her bed. Every part of her looked broken, but her eye showcased
steel and fight.
“Hut.” Tears streamed down her face. “Hut did this.”
“I’m gonna kill him,” I fumed, but she reached out to me, her palm connecting with my arm.
“Help me get cleaned up.” She glanced over at Ford, and we both understood her silent gaze. She wanted to talk to me alone.
“I’ll leave you to it,” he said, pulling open the door. “I’ll be downstairs if you need me.”
She waited until his footsteps echoed down the stairs, then she pulled in a deep breath. “We have to deny it to him.”
I gripped her shaking hand inside mine. “Fuck that.”
Her shoulders slumped. “No, Brody, listen to me.”
I gathered the first aid kit off the floor and opened it. I couldn’t keep looking at her face coated in blood and tears, and I needed to do something with my hands to distract myself. Otherwise, I’d end up rushing out of here and snapping Hut’s neck.
“I’m listening,” I grunted.
“He needs to think he was wrong. It’s the only way I can get out.” She paused as I poured some solution onto a cotton ball and pressed it against her swollen eye. She hissed at the contact, but continued, “If he thinks we’re in this together, then I’ll never get away. But if we prove him wrong, I can slip away without him even noticing.”
“I don’t like this.” I gritted my teeth and started to wipe her cheeks, hating the winces thrown my way.
“I know.” She gripped my arm, halting my movements. “But it’s the only way. Ford’s right, we have to play him at his own game to win.”
I knew what she was saying made sense, but I hated the idea of her being here with him and me denying how I felt about her. She was in more danger than she realized, but I understood when she got out, she wanted that to be it. She didn’t want him to be able to find her once she’d left.
I huffed out a breath and placed my hand gently on the side of her neck. “I’ll help you get out. I’ll do what I have to do.”
Fallen Duet: Brody & Lola: Free Fall & Down Fall (Easton Family Duet Boxsets Book 1) Page 18