by Sam Crescent
“Son, I want to give you a warning.”
I turned toward my dad. “Why?”
“What we’re discovering about Crane, it’s not good.”
My teeth clenched.
“We haven’t confirmed it, but there have been rumors circulating for some time of one of our men desiring our position.”
I’d heard of the rumors. “You think he’s trying to kill all four of you?”
“We’ve got evidence he may be the one who sent the MC.”
This made me pause. I hadn’t forgotten about the MC. Why would I? I looked back toward Emily.
“She didn’t know,” I said.
“I agree she didn’t know, but she’s his daughter.”
“You’ve seen the way he treats her. She’s nothing to him.”
Marshall clicked his tongue. It was then I noticed he held a glass of whiskey. “Never underestimate a woman’s value, Vadik. I have taught you better. He treats her like crap, but that doesn’t mean he believes in what he’s doing. She’s valuable.”
“No, her virginity is what is valuable.”
“Don’t hate me for telling you like it is. I’m being honest here. She is certainly causing a bit of a stir, isn’t she?”
“Dad, don’t kill her.”
“You know our rules. There’s a reason we keep them in place.”
“She hates her dad.”
“It’s tough.”
“What would you have done if Grandpa had threatened to kill Bethany?”
I hadn’t spoken to my dad about Daniel’s revelation. There was no reason to. He’d loved a woman and she’d died. They’d been able to overcome her death by working together. I got it, but at the same time, I couldn’t believe he was talking about killing the woman who now bound their sons even closer together.
Daniel may have the DNA for Caleb, but I knew all four of them saw Caleb as their son.
“Do not speak her name as if you know what it means to love.”
“But I do,” I said, getting to my feet as my father had already done so to leave. To him, this conversation is over.
“I love her.”
“You’re a fool.”
“Why? You fell in love. You were willing to leave this fucking place to start a family, but I’ve got to what, marry for the family? Turn my back on love?”
“Bethany was never a threat.”
“Neither is Emily. She killed that man. She’s not like her father. You cannot do this.”
Marshall grabbed my neck, and in the next second, I was pressed against the side of the house. To any onlooker, we were having a conversation, but I knew my father. This was no idle threat.
“Do not cross that line with me, Vadik. We as the Monsters will do what needs to be done. You are not the main demons here, we are.” He squeezed even tighter, but I didn’t beg. I didn’t even try to stop him.
He let me go.
I’d long ago realized that my dad wouldn’t kill me. Not his one and only son. I was the only person who could take his place, and keeping the Monsters together meant more to him than any kind of power play.
He turned on his heel and left.
Before I made my way to Emily and Ashley, I gained control of my breathing. The bruise around my neck would add to the list of ones I already possessed.
Stepping off the porch, I walked down to where Emily and Ashley were already packing away their textbooks.
“I have come to the conclusion, Vadik, that you are awesome.”
Ashley had thrown her arms around my neck and held me close in a hug. I was about to push her away when she let me go with a huge smile on her face. “Thank you for bringing me here. Your home is so beautiful.”
“Are you for real?” I asked.
“Hey, don’t be mean. She’s giving you a compliment about your house.”
“It’s not mine.” But I couldn’t deny how beautiful it was. This was my home.
“I need to go home. Mom’s already called. Dinner will be ready in twenty minutes.” She nibbled on her lip. “You don’t mind driving me?”
“It’s why I’m here,” I said.
I was willing to allow Emily to have some girl time with her new friend. After I dropped Ashley off, I’d get her all to myself, and that was what I wanted. Grabbing Emily’s hand, I pulled her close.
I’d need to talk to the guys about what my father had revealed. There was no doubt Bernard Crane had been caught. He was trying to kill my fathers and take over the Monsters, and there was no way they could let that kind of betrayal slide. Emily’s life was on a countdown unless the tycoon proved useful.
Our Emily was slipping through our fingers at a speed I couldn’t stand. We’d only just gotten her and already she was being taken away. I couldn’t accept it. I loved her. I had never loved anyone in my life, apart from my friends who I considered brothers, but that love was different from my feelings for Emily.
I opened the passenger door for Emily to climb in and let Ashley get in the back. She was still talking about my house. The features she loved the most. I didn’t mind her filling the silence.
Emily entertained her.
This happened during the drive toward Ashley’s house. We pulled up and I spotted a really nice car waiting in the driveway, which finally silenced Ashley.
“You okay?” Emily asked.
“Yeah, I’m fine. He’s here.”
“Does he scare you?” I asked. I didn’t care but I felt the need to ask.
“No. He’s a nice guy. I just, don’t like him. He’s … he’s a lot of things and even though my mom knew the score, every single time he leaves, which he does, always, she cries. She’s fallen in love with a man she can never have.”
Ashely climbed out of the car, but out of the corner of my eye, I’d seen Emily tense the moment she saw the car.
I waited.
“Call me if you can,” Ashley said. “We are so doing toenails tomorrow.” She slammed the door closed and headed indoors.
“You know who that car belongs to, don’t you?”
“Yep.” She popped out the p.
“Who?”
“My dad.” She rolled her head toward me. “That’s who.”
“Oh.”
“Yep. This is news to me. I’m not surprised.”
“Do you hate her?”
“Ashley?”
I nodded.
“Hell, no. She doesn’t know who my dad is and besides, other than a few greetings, he has nothing to do with her. I do find it interesting, though. You guys looked into her, and not once did you tell me my dad was the one to pay for her.”
“His name isn’t on the documents.”
“No, my driver is, isn’t he?”
“Yes.”
She blew out a breath. “Whatever. Come on, take me home.”
I had no interest in taking her home.
Putting my foot down to the floor, I drove us out of Crude Hill.
“Vadik, what are you doing?”
“You don’t need to go home. Not tonight.” I was breaking all the rules and I didn’t care.
Emily wasn’t going home.
Bernard Crane had a lot to answer to, and I’d be damned if Emily paid the price. I should have killed that bastard myself and made it look like an accident. I could do it, no doubt about it. I kept on driving until I saw the sign for a hotel. I had the money. The red glow called to me.
After pulling into the parking lot, I turned off the engine. We’d been driving long enough for the sun to set.
“You okay?” I asked.
“Yeah.”
“If you want me to take you home, just say the word.”
“No. I don’t want to go home.” She unbuckled her seatbelt.
We got out of the car and headed toward the main reception where I booked us a room for the night. We didn’t encounter any trouble.
The room itself was nice and clean, which was more than I could ask for.
Emily stepped inside and lowered hersel
f to the edge of the bed, checking it. “It feels soft, I think.”
I laughed. “Don’t be nervous. I’m not going to pounce on you or anything.”
“I didn’t think you were.” She pushed her hair out of her eyes and it was there that I caught the tears.
Going to my knees, I took her hands within mine. “Don’t cry. Please don’t cry.”
“I’m not.”
I reach up, swiping the non-tears.
She brushed her face. “I won’t cry. I refuse to cry.”
“Talk to me.”
She pressed her lips together and shook her head. “No, I can’t.”
“Talk to me, Emily.” I wasn’t going to give up.
“I’m just, I’m so angry.” She pulled her hands from mine and covered her face. “I hate him so much and he can go around and do whatever the hell he wants. It’s not fair. I want him to suffer. To feel pain. To know what it’s like to be afraid.” Her hands clenched into fists.
“I’m here for you.”
She dropped her hands away from her face. “You’ve been so good to me. All of you.”
“We’re not good people.”
“I know that as well.”
“But … we all love you, Emily.”
“Vadik, please.”
“No,” I said. I wasn’t going to tell her that I loved her. Caleb and Gael had admitted they’d told her. I wasn’t going to follow in their footsteps as I didn’t think it was right, but now, with everything hanging over our head, there was no choice. She didn’t know we were against the clock. Our time together was coming to an end, and I couldn’t stand it. “I love you, Emily. I’ve loved you for a long time. Even with your silly drawings, and your need to constantly have your back against a wall. How cold you are. I love it all. I’m getting to know you and rather than find fault, I see a beautiful, desirable woman. Someone I want more than anything. You’re all I could want.”
“Vadik?”
I kissed her, knowing she would own my heart for the rest of my life, and I’d gladly give her everything.
****
Emily
My bedroom window overlooked the main drive.
I’d gotten away with spending the night with Vadik as my father hadn’t returned home. He hadn’t come home for three days, and I took full advantage by being with the four Monsters. The only time I felt alive was when I was with them.
River sat on the hood of his car right now, waiting for me.
I pulled my hair back into a ponytail then grabbed my bag. My driver had lost all control and power over me. He didn’t take me anywhere, nor did he do anything. One of my guys did.
Opening my bedside drawer, I paused as I caught sight of the knife tip. I’d been careless of late. I sat on the edge of the bed and pulled out the knife, holding it up to look at it. This piece of steel had made me feel like I could take from my dad. The tip would pierce my flesh and I’d be free.
The real truth was there was no freedom in taking my life.
My dad could go and do what he pleased, to hell with the consequences, but me, I had to follow all the rules and do as I was told. I hated him just for that reason.
Death wasn’t an easy outcome.
I wanted to hurt my dad in every way that mattered.
Rather than put the blade into my drawer, I slid it into my bag and got to my feet.
I was about to leave my room when I caught sight of the man himself in my doorway.
His hands were clenched into fists.
There were so many times over the years that I’d been filled with fear.
Not today.
Not ever again.
He wasn’t going to take another moment from me.
“I heard you stayed out overnight,” he said.
I stayed silent, looking at him. What woman would fall in love with him? He was evil. I wouldn’t even grace him with the title of monster. He wasn’t even close to that.
“Tonight, you will come straight home. The doctor will be waiting.”
“No,” I said.
“Excuse me?”
“I said no. You’re not used to hearing that word, but no. No more beatings. No more exams.” I shook my head at him and smiled. “You really are something.”
He advanced toward me as if to strike me and I lift my head, refusing to back down. I didn’t even flinch as he raised his hand.
“Hit me, I dare you,” I said. “You know the rules.”
The strike didn’t come.
“I see you,” I said. “I see the real you, and you’re weak. They all know what you’re really like. The precious Bernard Crane. The minion. The side story. Does it give you power to move a woman and her daughter here?”
I’d surprised him. Good.
“You think you can talk to me like that? The only reason you’re talking back to me is because you believe you can because you’ve got those assholes.”
“Be careful, Dad, those assholes keep you busy.” I squared my shoulders. “Tell me, do you beat that woman’s teenage daughter?”
His gaze never wavered.
I offered him a smile. “You know, the one interesting thing about you paying for another girl is that she came to that school needing friends, and guess who stepped up for her.”
“You will stay away from Ashley.”
“What are you doing to try to do, Dad? Fuck the mother until you can groom the daughter into needing you?”
His fingers slid around my neck.
I wished I had the blade in my hand.
“River’s right outside.” I croaked the words out and he loosened his grip.
“They won’t be around forever.”
“Until they aren’t, you’ve got to learn to be a good boy. They’re watching you,” I said. This wasn’t a warning to make him stop, more like a threat I hoped would play out. “And whatever bad deeds you’ve got going down, they will find out.”
Without another backward glance, I left my bedroom. There was nothing inside the room I had to worry about. My neck felt a little tight, but other than that, I was strangely composed.
River stared at me as I climbed into the car.
“What happened?” he asked.
“Nothing.”
“That doesn’t look like nothing.” He saw right through the mask.
“I think I just … I just threatened my dad.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. I couldn’t hold it back and he pissed me off.”
River took off, heading toward the school. I stared out at the town as we passed each house, the streets, and I hated it.
The moment he arrived at campus, I didn’t want to go inside. I saw Ashley up ahead, but after confronting my dad, her face was the last I wanted to see.
“Can we get out of here?” I asked, looking at River.
“Sure thing.” He hadn’t turned the ignition off and in a matter of seconds, we were out of the school and on the road.
“Where do you want to go?” he asked.
“Anywhere that’s just not here.”
“No destination planned?”
“None.”
“Okay.”
He didn’t stop driving as he pulled out his cell phone and started to text. I didn’t complain to him since I wanted this.
When River drove, it was one of the rare occasions he didn’t have his knives on him.
“The guys miss you.”
“It’s still pretty surreal.”
“What is?”
“The past few months. I didn’t even think you guys knew I existed.”
“We knew you existed.” He tapped his fingers on the steering wheel.
“I knew you guys did as well. How could I not? You guys were known for keeping order in our school.”
He laughed. “Yeah, we have to keep shit together, otherwise, everything crumbles. It’s the way it goes.” He hummed to himself, a tune I didn’t recognize. “What did your dad do for you to confront him?”
“His smug face.
I’ve never let what he does bother me. I get it. He’s a guy and all that, but, I don’t know. Ashley seems nice and the thought that he brought another woman and her daughter close to us… He makes me so angry.”
“Does it make you want to kill?”
I turn to him. “I … that’s an odd question.”
“I’m an odd kind of guy.”
“How many people have you killed?” I asked.
“Do you really want to know the answer to that?”
I paused, contemplating his question, then finally nodded.
“Yeah, I do.”
“Then you’re an idiot.”
“Wow, you really think this is going to get me to warm to you?”
“Emily, I’ve had your pussy in my mouth. I’ve got to be pretty fucking special to get a girl like you. I’m just saying.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “Wanting to know about the people you killed doesn’t make me an idiot.”
“I know you think you can take it. How you’re some tough woman, but believe me, you’re not. You’re not even close.” He took a deep breath and I watched him. “My first kill, I cried, okay? It affected me. I thought about the life I’d taken. What I’d done. I wasn’t ready.”
“And now?”
“Now, I kill because I have to. The objective is my main focus.”
“And you think that bothers me?”
“Yeah, I do.”
“River, I … I didn’t cry over that biker guy I killed.” I snorted. “I haven’t even thought about him. This, right here, right now, this is my very first thought.” I shrugged. “What does that make me?”
He glanced at me. “I don’t know.”
“I think about death.” I didn’t know why the hell I was telling him this. It wouldn’t do. Our lives weren’t the same. We were way too different. I was a girl, he was a guy. He stood to inherit an empire built on pain and fear, while I was probably expected to spit out kids like it was a hobby. We weren’t alike at all.
“What do you mean?” he asked.
“Death. Dead. No longer breathing.”
“You think about killing people?”
“No. I think about … dying.” I looked toward him. “I think about what it would be like to end it all.” I pressed my lips together. I promised myself I’d never tell a single soul about what I thought about. The knife in my drawer wasn’t a prop but an actual chance to take myself out of the game.
“You think about suicide?”