by Penelope Sky
Alix kept a straight face, but it was obvious he was scared, judging by the way he didn’t have strength in his gaze anymore. There was no sinister smile, no confidence in his posture. His shoulders sagged, like he wanted to disappear.
Fender finally turned to look at me, to study my face. He must have seen the redness of my skin, the terror in my eyes, and deduced exactly what had happened. He turned back to Alix. “This has been going on a while, hasn’t it?”
I knew Fender was talking to me.
When I didn’t say anything, he turned to me again.
I kept my mouth shut.
Alix looked at me, like he knew I would throw him under the bus.
But I didn’t.
Fender turned back to Alix. “He’s not a snitch. Looks like it’s your lucky day, Alix.” He put his knife in his pocket. “I won’t pretend to understand my brother’s fascination with this unremarkable cunt, but as long as she is his, she’s off-limits. Do you understand?”
Alix nodded. “Yes, sir.”
“The only reason I won’t kill you is because Magnus stirred unrest in this camp. But you’re even now. Cross my brother again, and I won’t hesitate to kill you.” He turned behind him to see the guards on the porch of the cabin. “All of you.” He stepped away from Alix and looked at me. He pretended Raven didn’t exist, even though he’d just saved her from a kind of cruelty she would never recover from, and nodded in the direction of his cabin. Then he walked away.
Alix immediately walked off, likely afraid Fender would change his mind if he looked at him again. The guys went back into the cabin. I turned to Raven. “Go to the cabin. I’ll meet you there.”
Her disappointment was obvious, like she didn’t need a cabin, but me. “There’s no door…” Her eyes were still wet from her tears, cheeks red and puffy, and her fingers immediately reached out to my stomach because she wanted me to hold her.
There was nothing I wanted to do more. “No one will bother you. Wait for me there.”
Fender stopped walking and turned around. “Magnus.”
I wanted to cup her face and kiss her, but my brother was far more generous than I expected him to be, and kissing the woman who had destroyed his camp and humiliated us was not the smartest move. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.” I turned around and joined Fender, not turning back to look at her again because it was too hard. If I did…I wouldn’t be able to leave. I joined his side as we walked to his cabin.
Fender didn’t speak.
I didn’t either.
He preferred to speak in his cabin away from the ears of the guards. He didn’t trust anyone except me, and he treated everyone like they had a knife in their pocket aimed at his back…except when a pile of money was on the table.
Everything had happened so fast, I didn’t know how to process it. I was held down, helpless, and if Fender hadn’t made his surprise visit at that moment…I wouldn’t have saved her. Not only did he show up, but he did something about what was happening, which was a great surprise. He hated Raven and couldn’t care less about her existence.
We were silent as we walked into the cabin.
Fender went into his bedroom immediately to change out of the clothes he’d worn while riding horseback.
I poured two glasses of scotch and sat on the couch across from his usual seating place.
The door opened, and one of the guards delivered his dinner. He left quickly and didn’t speak a word.
Fender returned to the room in just his sweatpants. He took a seat across from me and went for the scotch first. He took a long drink like it was water instead of hard liquor then set it down, wiping his mouth with his thumb afterward. Then he stared at me.
We hadn’t spoken since that heavy conversation through text message. He was livid with me, telling the guards that my sins were forgotten when he’d never forgotten them. I held his gaze and stared back. “Thank you.”
He had no reaction to my gratitude.
“I know you probably did it for Melanie, but—”
“No.” He shook his head. “I did it for you.”
I inhaled a deep breath as I stared at my only relation in the world. There were no aunts, uncles, or cousins in different places around the globe. It was just him and me, and seeing those identical brown eyes made me feel less alone in this bleak world. “Then I appreciate it even more.”
“How long has this been going on?”
I shrugged in response. “You can’t expect them not to hate me…after what I did.”
“That didn’t answer my question.”
“Like you said, I’m not a snitch.”
He grabbed the bottle and refilled his glass.
“I earned their respect by not getting special treatment from you. I don’t want that to change now.”
“But was this today enough to return to normalcy?” He took a drink, his eyes looking at me over the rim.
“Hopefully.”
He set down the glass. “Because I will kill him, Magnus. I don’t care how irreplaceable these guards are.”
This side of him was shown so infrequently that I forgot the last time it happened. He did appalling things, but he was more than that, and I hoped Raven would realize that after what had happened this evening. “I have an idea…”
He nodded then cut into his steak and placed a large bite in his mouth.
“You didn’t bring Melanie.”
He shook his head as he chewed.
“Everything alright?”
“Just needed some space.” He cut into his meat again and took another bite.
I didn’t ask any more questions about her. “I wasn’t expecting you.”
“That was the point.”
“I thought you trusted me.”
“You aren’t the one I’m worried about.” He stabbed his fork into his potatoes and shoved the bite into his mouth, chewing the mouthful, bare-chested in front of me.
I watched him eat and let the silence continue.
“You leave in a few days.”
“Yes.”
“I’m having an event. Napoleon will be there.”
I held my tongue this time.
His eyes were down, but he felt my mood. “Feel him out again.”
“I doubt my impression will change.”
“It won’t if you continue to be arrogant.”
“I’m not arrogant. Sometimes you can’t see straight when it comes to money.”
“And you’re less greedy?” He lifted his gaze, still eating.
“Just more level-headed.”
He cut into his steak and put another piece in his mouth, along with a stalk of asparagus. “We’ll see how he conducts himself.”
“Black tie?”
“Always.”
“I want to bring Raven.”
A pause ensued as he took a few more bites of his meal, his eyes trained on me. “I heard Stasia is old news.”
“Where did you hear that?”
“Does it matter?”
I drank from my scotch.
“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but Raven doesn’t hold a candle to Stasia, so I have to ask…what’s wrong with your dick?”
Nothing. It’d never been better. “I don’t think Melanie is as remarkable as you claim.”
He grinned slightly, like he didn’t believe me.
“We’ll just have to agree to disagree.”
He ate again. “I don’t think prisoners go to fancy parties.”
“Melanie would be happy to see her.”
He gave a slight nod. “True.”
I could go alone, but I’d rather bring her along, give her a chance to talk to Melanie.
“Do whatever you want.”
I looked into my glass before I took a drink and listened to him finish his dinner. I waited until he was completely done, full and comfortable, before I said something I wouldn’t have dared to say before. “I will pay for Raven…if you let her go.”
He was about to grab his drin
k, but my words made him pull back his hand, made him sit forward with his hands together between his thighs. He stared me down with that stony face, like a slab of concrete that didn’t have a story to tell. “No.”
“I will pay you whatever you want—”
“No.”
“She would still be a prisoner, but she would be my prisoner. When I’m here, she’ll stay in my home until I return.”
He rubbed his palms together as he studied me. “What part of no don’t you understand?”
I kept my anger in check so my previous gratitude wouldn’t be forgotten. He had already done more for me than he should. He should have killed me for releasing Raven in the first place, but he didn’t. He should have denied my request to take her with me every time I left the camp, but he didn’t. He should have let Alix do whatever he wanted and continued on his way…but he didn’t.
“I can’t let her go, Magnus. Not after what she did. I’ve been lenient with her because she pleases you, but her freedom is something I will never allow. Her punishment is to work in this camp until she dies. She must fulfill her debt. You said you don’t want the guards to see special treatment, but if I let her go—after she killed their comrades—that would be the biggest display of special treatment ever seen. And more importantly, I don’t want to let her leave. I want her to serve her punishment for what she did to me. She wormed her way into my brother’s bed and turned him soft. Not only did she spite my authority by leaving, but she had the nerve to come back and burn this place…this place that I built with my bare hands. If she wanted to be free, she shouldn’t have returned. But she did return, and now she’ll never leave. She made her decision—she has to live with it.”
The door was on the ground because Alix had chopped it down with a fucking ax.
There were holes from the blade where he’d chopped it free, shards of wood protruding. I couldn’t return it to the hinges because it would serve no purpose. When I looked through the open doorway, I saw her sitting on the bed, still in my shirt, her knees to her chest and her eyes still afraid.
I stepped inside and approached the bed.
The second she looked at me, her expression changed, like she’d never been so happy to see me.
I moved to the bed beside her and leaned against the wall.
She moved into my side and cuddled close, her arm curving around my neck so she could bury her face in my shoulder.
My arm circled her waist, and I brought her close to me, holding her against me, my chin on top of her head, feeling her chest rise and fall from the deep breaths she took. I could feel the tremors of her body, feel the invisible scars that added another layer over her heart. “It’s over,” I whispered. “And it’ll never happen again.”
She nodded against my body like she believed me. “What did they do to you?” She knew the only reason I hadn’t been there to save her was because something had held me back…and that unflinching faith meant the world to me.
“Three guys held me down in the cabin. All I could do was lie there and listen to you scream.” It was the first time I’d felt raw fear since I was young. The last time was when I sprinted down the wet sidewalk while gunshots rang out into the night. But this was a different level of pain, listening to someone you cared about suffer like that…scream your name for rescue.
“God…” She pulled away and looked into my face, her eyes heavy and watery. Her fingers cupped my face, comforting me as if I’d suffered the way she had suffered. Her fingers brushed over the coarse hair of my stubble, her eyes on mine, like she could read my feelings so easily. “I’m sorry.”
I stared at her, amazed that she knew how much that had hurt me, how much it had killed me to lie there and listen to her and feel like I’d failed her. My hand moved to her cheek then slid into her hair, pulling it from her face and holding it there, just looking at her, watching her regard me like I was the only man in the world whom she wanted to protect her.
“Is Melanie here?”
I shook my head.
“So, he did that for you.”
I nodded.
“I was surprised.”
“I was more surprised.” My fingers gently shifted in her hair, feeling its softness. “His hatred for you is unmistakable, but his love for me…is greater.” Raven trusted me to be there for her through the best and the worst of times. That was exactly how I felt about my brother because he would always be there for me…no matter what. If I let her go, I wasn’t sure if my brother really would make good on his threat and kill me, but our relationship would never be the same. He might ostracize me and tell everyone else I was dead…because I would be dead to him.
She studied my gaze, seeing the emotions on my face. “I can’t even imagine the conflict you must feel.”
I felt it every day. I knew Fender as my loyal brother, but I also knew him as the man who did all these terrible things. I still remembered the day he conjured the idea to steal innocent women, put them in the camp, and work them until they died. The Red Snow came later. I had other suggestions that left innocent people out of it, and when he dismissed those ideas, I still tried to talk him out of it. But nothing worked. It was hell, not only to live in this world, but to participate in it…and damn myself to hell.
I tied the rope around Eric’s wrists then pushed him to the ground.
He landed with a thud, directly beside Nathan, groaning at the impact against his chest.
I did the same to Karl then shoved him to the ground.
A wooden pole stood erect in the dirt. Alix had his hands tied above his head, and he was standing there shirtless, the first one to go.
Fender stood at the edge of the clearing, looking at Alix. Then he turned to me. “Have fun.” He took a seat in the chair the men had brought for him, one ankle resting on the opposite knee, waiting for the show to begin.
I was tired of granting mercy.
Alix had had a lot of chances to do the right thing—but he never did.
I stared at him, ready to beat the shit out of him.
Alix held my stare and refused to show fear, refused to look weak in front of the other guards.
This seemed too easy, to just stand there and take a beating.
I pulled off my shirt and tossed it to my brother.
He caught it without even looking at it.
I pulled a blade out of my pocket and walked toward Alix.
Alix immediately flinched at the sight of the blade.
I stood in front of him and let him squirm, let him stare at the blade that could carve him like a roast on Christmas Day. Pain wasn’t a sufficient punishment, not when there were worse things. I moved behind him and cut the ropes.
He dropped his hands and massaged his wrists, immediately turning around so his back wasn’t to me.
Fender raised an eyebrow in curiosity but didn’t question me.
I threw the knife down into the soil, the hilt sticking up. “Fight me.”
Alix backed up, glancing at the guards that stood behind Fender and had come to watch the sport.
“You beat me, and I don’t move on to Eric. If you don’t, I fight Eric. If he doesn’t beat me, I move on to the next…and then the next. So, you can either end the punishment now…or you can lose. Admit defeat, or I will beat you to death.”
Fender gave a slight nod in satisfaction. “This should be interesting. Let’s begin.”
I rushed Alix immediately, ready to turn my knuckles bloody beating the shit out of this motherfucker.
He quickly dodged to the left, his eyes wide and full of fright because he hadn’t expected this. There was an audience to witness the showdown, and he already knew how our previous fights had ended—even when he was armed and I wasn’t.
I followed him, cornering him at the edge of the clearing. “You afraid of me, asshole?” I grinned because we both knew exactly how this was going to end. I would beat his fucking ass, and he would have to ask for mercy in front of everyone—or die. He was a fucking coward so I kn
ew what his answer would be, and I would enjoy every second leading up to it, savor his shame as he chose life over his reputation.
That enticed him to swing.
I took the opening and punched him so hard in the face he fell back.
I was the best fighter in this whole fucking camp, but I also had rage on my side. I was fucking furious, hearing her screams in my head as she called out to me for help. He’d touched her when he had no right to. He had no right to touch what was mine. “Get up, bitch.” I spat on him.
He climbed to his feet then sprinted at me.
I kicked him in the face.
He fell down again, blood coming from his broken nose.
“Is that all you got? Come on. Look, I’ll give you a chance.” I raised my arms and beckoned him to me. “Hit me.”
With his hands in the dirt, he looked at me, blood dripping down his lips. He growled then got to his feet.
“Give me your best shot.”
He pulled his arm back and punched me, making my head turn.
I took the hit and reacted quickly, slamming my fists into his stomach, his chest, his face, driving him backward because I was too fast and he was too stupid. Even after a fist to the face, I was still quicker than him, striking blow after blow.
He threw his fist back and missed because I dodged out of the way and ducked, anticipating every move before he made it because he was careless. Then I slammed my fist up and hit him under the chin, making him fall back on his ass.
I got on top of him and hit him.
Again.
And again.
Blood covered his face and splashed onto my skin with every impact of my fists against his body. I beat him hard, barely giving him a chance to breathe, punishing him with both pain and shame. I kept going, knowing he would ask for mercy in seconds, knowing he would rather live in humiliation than die.
He finally got the words out. “Okay…okay.”
I pulled my fists back and straightened. “Okay, what?”
“You win.”
“Bitch, I didn’t hear you.” I slapped him across the face. “Speak up.”
Alix was in too much pain to give me a furious look, and even if he could have, his face was too bloody to show a visible reaction. He raised his voice even though it made him wince in pain. “You win.”