Dropping my gun, I jump into the shallow water and dive underneath the surface to grab her and get her out. I wrap an arm around her and pull her to the surface. Getting to the edge of the pool, Félix and Bourn help me get Olivia out of the water. Félix rolls her to her back and starts CPR as I pull myself out of the pool. He’s yelling at her that she can’t leave him, to come back. I move in to assist him, and together we perform CPR. I’m terrified I’m going to break her ribs by how forcefully I’m applying compressions, but I’m doing as I’ve been taught. I’d rather have her alive with broken ribs than the alternative.
Finally, after what feels like forever, Olivia coughs, spits up water, and starts crying as she tries to form words. I pull her into my arms and hold her against me. “Just keep breathing. It’s all you have to worry about right now. Just keep fucking breathing, sweetheart. It’s all over. You hear me? It’s all over now.”
Chapter Eighteen
Olivia
“Everything looks good, all things considered.” The doctor shoots me an awkward smile, and I’m sure she’s trying her best to deal with my intense family. Finn isn’t here, but Sabine and Madelaine are. They rushed right over to the hospital and have been here with me the entire time. I was really lucky given everything that happened. Ended up breaking a rib, but I’ll deal with it.
“Thank you, doc,” I tell the woman, and she steps out of the private room I was able to obtain. I’m sure one of my brothers paid someone high up to get me in a room and to get me an overnight stay here, but for once, I don’t mind. Everything that transpired tonight scared the living hell out of me and I wanted to make sure I’m okay. Being drowned isn’t exactly something I go through every day, so being under a doctor’s supervision isn’t scary to me. If anything, it calms me down.
“So, what’s gonna happen next, you going to literally die?” Madelaine says, shaking her head, and Sabine glares at her.
“Relax, grumpy, I’m only throwing some dark humor her way.” Madelaine immediately defends herself, and I offer her a smile.
“Thanks for the joke, but, honestly I just want a normal life.”
“Normal? Ha!” Now Sabine is the one with the attitude.
“Normal isn’t something any of us will ever have, and you know it,” Madelaine adds, and I know she’s right. I’m not wrong for wishing, though.
Sabine’s cell starts ringing, and I keep an eye on her as she stands from her seat and answers it, but speaks in a low tone by the door. Madelaine notices it, too, and shrugs her shoulders. “I’m sure you’ve noticed her sneaky shit lately. It’s become quite frequent. I’m gonna start taking bets on who she’s talking to. Wanna join? We can have some fun with this shit.” Madelaine wiggles her eyebrows, and I do let out a laugh, but I wish I didn’t. The sharp pain in my side knocks the breath out of me, and Madelaine’s expression shifts to one of concern. “Fuck, are you okay?”
“Yeah, yeah. It’s just the rib,” I mutter, waving her off. It hurts like a bitch, but I’ll be fine. As long as Finn is handling Mason, I’ll be perfectly fucking fine.
The man who was guarding me . . . he was working with Ashton, obviously. Why else would he have been guarding the door to the pool? I have such a hard time wrapping my head around this bullshit. He’s the man who always had his eyes on me. I figured it was because he had a harmless crush, but now I think he wanted to hurt me.
Finn will make him suffer in ways he never thought was possible, and even though it won’t take away my pain, it’ll make me feel better. One thing I’m starting to realize is men like Mason don’t deserve to live. They need to be put in the ground, because it’s the one place they belong—where they can’t hurt anyone else.
Sabine hangs up the phone and walks over to Madelaine and me. She sits back down in her chair, and Madelaine, nosy Madelaine, immediately grills her. “So, who was on that call?”
Sabine locks eyes with Madelaine and the tension in the room immediately thickens. “How are you always like this?”
“Always like what?” Madelaine replies.
“So . . . intrusive.”
“Eh, it’s a god-given talent, I guess.” Madelaine shrugs, and I laugh, though quickly clench my side as the pain radiates through me.
“In all seriousness, do we need to postpone the wedding? I mean, how are you going to walk down the aisle in your condition?” Sabine asks me with concern lacing her voice.
Without hesitation, I reply, “I will crawl down the aisle if I fucking have to. No way are we postponing. I will marry Finn and I know it might be tough with my ribs, but we’ll damn well make it work.”
Madelaine gives me a nod and smirk that basically says ‘hell yeah’, while Sabine seems stressed. She’s never been able to understand my stubbornness, though she should. She’s the most bullheaded of all the DeLancy women.
Chapter Nineteen
Finn
Leaving Olivia at the hospital isn’t something I wanted to do, but it’s a necessity. There’s too much shit that needs to be done before prying eyes catch wind of what’s happened. I have to make sure to dispose of my brother’s body, and I need to do something with Mason.
Félix told me to follow him out to Emerald Isle after he made a call to the President of the Inferno’s Clutch MC. I know Chains, but not well. I only know of the man, if I’m being honest. Well, that and the fact his ol’ lady is Leo DeLuca’s cousin. He agreed to let us bring Ashton’s body to their boathouse on the bayou.
Pulling up at the gate, we’re let through immediately. I follow them further back until we park close to the building we’re going to go in.
Marc and Bourn drag Ashton’s body out of the bed of the truck, while Malcolm and Conor get Mason out of the other. He’s bound and gagged. I sneer at the douchebag as he screams through the cloth like a fuckin’ little girl who needs a pacifier stuck in her mouth.
As we walk up to the building we’re about to head into, Chains meets us and has several of his own guys alongside him. The one with the name ‘Fuse’ on his cut steps forward and addresses Félix. “Liv okay?”
“She’ll be okay. They’re monitoring her overnight at the hospital.” Félix nods.
“Good, tell her I’ll be there with Lyrica on Saturday,” he mutters and looks at me. “You’re the man marrying my cousin? You better treat her right.”
“Don’t have to worry about me. She’s a queen in my fucking world,” I grumble, wondering who this fucker thinks he is. He better shut the fuck up before I get a little too trigger-happy. Future family or not, I don’t take well to being insulted.
Nodding, Fuse steps back again.
“Boathouse is all yours. The place is soundproof, so no one will hear anything while you have your fun. Just make sure you give the treats to Bart,” Tyres, the VP of the club, says, nodding his head to the gator that’s off in the bayou outside of the club.
“You got a fuckin’ gator in here, dude?” Malcolm mutters.
“Yeah, ‘cause he’s a part of the club. Guess you can say Bart’s like an honorary member. He helps us out,” Chains chuckles.
I shake my head unable to stop my own laughter.
“Let’s get this over with. I wanna get back to Olivia before she wakes up,” I state, cracking my neck from side to side.
I would’ve preferred to take Mason back to Corpus Christi to use my own tools on him, but there just isn’t enough time for that. I scan the room and notice the members of the Inferno’s Clutch have quite a few of their own tools that’ll work.
But before I take care of him. I get Bourn to help me with Ashton’s body and place it in the meat grinder. No one speaks as I place my brother’s body in the grinder. I power on the damn thing and watch with sick fascination as my own blood is ground down to gator food. If he were a decent person, this wouldn’t be happening. I would’ve given him a funeral, buried him near our mother. But unfortunately, he wasn’t. The fact my brother turned out to be a psycho guts me.
I don’t regret pulling the trigg
er. I would do it again and again if it meant saving Olivia. Honestly, Ashton’s finally getting what he deserves for all the women he raped and murdered. What he did, all those things . . . they went on for far too long. I should’ve stopped him before now.
Sighing, I shake my head as the last bit of him goes through the machine.
I switch my focus from what was once my brother who should’ve been protected when we were kids, to the man who Malcolm and Conor have tied to a chair.
“Ungag him,” I command.
Conor steps forward and does what I ask.
Félix moves in closer, wanting in on taking care of this fuckhead.
“Why’d you help him?” I ask, keeping my cool, or at least attempting to.
“Fuck you,” Mason sneers. “Let me go, or I swear you will all regret it.”
“Look around, asshole, you’re the one tied to a chair,” Chains calls out from where he’s standing, leaning against the wall. “If it were me handlin’ your fuckin’ ass, I’d string you up over the gators that’re outside and let them snap at you as your blood drips into the water.”
Damn, that’s a good idea. No wonder Leo likes his cousin’s man.
“Go ahead and try it. You’re all dead anyway. I can promise you that,” Mason snickers, his gaze scanning the room. “How’s Nora? Did that bitch do a number on her like she planned?”
The air in the room fills with more tension than it already holds.
“What the fuck did you say?”a guy who has his hair up in a man bun says. Scanning his cut, I see his name’s Breaker.
“You heard me. Haven’t you learned yet? Even in death, Deanna’s work isn’t done,” Mason full-on laughs before his eyes lock on Félix. “Did you think you really got all the men who fucked your sister? Are you sure you and your fuckin’ brothers got them all? Nope, I can tell you your sister has one delicious pussy. I can remember her screams and cries for more. I remember how good her pussy felt around my cock.”
It’s all I can do to keep myself in check. I’m sure Félix is barely hanging on at this point as well, but we both need him to keep talking.
“Fire squad?” Bourn murmurs quietly for only Félix and me to hear. I tilt my head to look at him, then my best friend and soon-to-be brother-in-law. We lock eyes and nod at the same time.
“Target practice,” I mutter, pulling out my gun and pulling the trigger, hitting Mason in the shin. “Tell me, why did you help Ashton?” I yell over his screams of intense agony.
Someone in the back calls Mason a pussy.
He doesn’t answer, so Félix takes out his other shin. We take turns shooting parts of him in places we know won’t kill him right away. This fucker can bleed, and he can bleed until we’re done with him.
“Why?” I demand.
“Because Ashton was Deanna’s lover and promised he’d make sure if anything happened to her, he’d go to war with the DeLancys. He’d end them all, then he was coming after Chains,” he screams.
No one in the room is able to speak further.
There’s no fucking way.
Ashton’s never been in a relationship with anyone. I stop my thoughts right there and I remember several years back, he was slightly different.
Fuck me. This isn’t good.
Lifting my gun, I don’t wait for another word to be said. I fire, and the room fills with others who also pull the trigger. Mason’s body jerks on impact as each bullet hits him.
Needing air, I hand my gun to Bourn and leave the boathouse. My thoughts swarm with the past and what Mason said about Olivia. It makes me wonder if Félix and his brothers did get the rest of them.
Nope, I can’t go there.
Sighing, I make my way to my car and climb in. I drive out of the club’s parking lot and go back to the hotel. Once inside our room, I shower and trash my clothes. I then pack the rest of Olivia’s and my stuff and take it to a little bed and breakfast. There’s no way I’m taking Olivia back to the hotel where my brother tried to kill her.
Epilogue
Finn
Two Months Later . . .
After marrying Olivia, I took her on a three-week honeymoon down in the Bahamas. For the most part, my wife stayed in a skimpy bikini the entire time and it was the best part of the trip. Best part besides the sex.
Olivia asked me about my brother once after we arrived in the Bahamas, wanting to know if I was okay with ending my brother’s life. I took her in my arms and told her if it meant his life or hers, I would always choose hers. My brother died years ago, and I selfishly didn’t want to kill the memory of him yet. It was a hard thing to explain, the dynamic of our relationship and all, but I think Olivia understood.
Every day since Olivia became mine and she accepted her place in my life, it’s been blissful. She even comes to the office with me several times a week just to find something to do. Olivia befriended Dallas, and at least three times a week, the two of them go to lunch together. Mainly when I have meetings. Whenever I don’t, I make sure to tag along with the two ladies.
Since she lives in Corpus Christi with me, I make sure Olivia gets back to New Orleans whenever she wants. She’s close with all of her brothers and sisters, and I don’t want to drive a wedge between them. I don’t ever want her to think I’ll keep her from her family. Not if I can help it.
The other day, I spoke with my cousin, Ezekiel, after not seeing him since we were kids. My aunt and uncle had died when he and his sister were small, and my father never took them in. Instead, they went into foster care. Ezekiel had gone into the military when he could and afterward ended up working for some security company in Virginia. He told me his sister started dating someone who would eventually need me to agree to a marriage if it goes the way he thinks it will. He also told me what my cousin endured, and knowing what my own wife went through, I have no problem with this decision. Especially considering I know who the man is and think of him as a friend.
“What are you thinking of?” Olivia murmurs quietly, placing her hand on my thigh under the table.
I inwardly shake my head and meet her gaze with a grin. We came to New Orleans for the weekend. Though we stay at my place in Port Sulphur when we’re here, we spend a lot of time here in the city.
Tonight we’re having dinner with Félix, Madelaine, Nicholas, and Rémy at Fournier’s, the restaurant they partially own.
“I’m not thinking of anything good to speak about with two of your brothers sitting at the table with us,” I murmur loud enough for only her to hear me.
Olivia giggles and shakes her head. She knows just how much I love being inside her. Just yesterday, while at my office, I took her on my desk, on the couch, and in the en suite bathroom. When it comes to her, I’m insatiable.
The rest of dinner flies through dessert.
“I have something to tell you,” she whispers.
“What is it?” I ask, giving her my full attention.
“I’m pregnant.” My chest tightens and my throat feels like it’s being squeezed.
“Are you sure?” This is something I’ve thought about since I first made the decision she’s the one I wanted out of all of the DeLancy sisters.
“Yes, I went to the doctor this morning while you and Félix were meeting,” she says, pulling her clutch purse to her and opens it. Olivia pulls something out and hands it to me.
I take it from her hand. My own hands are shaking as I look at what she’d given me. There in my hands is the proof of my child. Olivia’s and my child.
Lifting my gaze from the picture, I meet hers. “Thank you,” I whisper, not worried about anyone seeing as I pull her into my arms and kissing the daylights out of her.
Breaking my mouth from hers, I press my forehead to hers. “Love you, Olivia DeLancy Brisbane.”
“Love you, too, Finn Brisbane,” she murmurs quietly.
“Can you two quit the gushy shit? You’re making me want to puke,” Rémy grumbles.
I shake my head chuckling, and let Olivia sit back in her
seat but pull her closer to me.
“It’ll be your turn soon enough,” Madelaine giggles.
“Not fuckin’ likely,” he snorts. “Anyway, I need to get to Diamond Dancers. The new dancer starts soon, and I want to make sure the schedule is ready.”
“We have to get back to the house soon ourselves,” Félix says, standing from his chair to help Madelaine up. The moment she’s standing, my friend brings his woman into his arms and holds her close. You can see in the protective way he holds her to him that she means the world to him.
Standing, I do the same with Olivia only as I hold her to my side, I place a hand on her stomach.
Nicholas, like Rémy, makes gagging noises while we all make our way out of the restaurant onto the sidewalk.
At the sound of men yelling, Félix, Rémy, Nicholas, and I all look to see what the commotion is.
“What the hell?” Nicholas mutters, narrowing his gaze. “Why are three of Marco’s men chasing a woman?”
Good question.
Marco is one of the drug dealers in the area. I remember him from Félix telling me about him. He’s trying to make a name for himself now that Richie was killed.
“Get the fuck back here, you little bitch,” one of the men shouts.
The woman looks back behind her and doesn’t see where she’s going. When she does look forward again, we all get a good look at her face right before she plows into Nicholas.
“I . . . I . . . so sorry,” she murmurs frantically and goes around him, taking off again before any of us can stop her.
“Did you see that?” Madelaine asks apprehensively.
“She looked just like you, Madelaine,” Olivia mutters. “I thought you said you were an only child.”
“I did. I am. At least I think I am.”
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