by Dark,A. A.
“West, look deep into my eyes. I need you to think. If we’re trying to escape Bram, what do we do? Where do we go?”
His lids closed while he took deep breaths. After a good minute, his fist rose to press against his temple.
“I can’t think. I …”
At the broken up exhale, I rubbed against his arm, trying to help him relax.
“It’s okay. We have a little time. I want you to think about it. Bram is going to be looking for us. We’ve escaped Whitlock. Let that sink in. Whitlock. We’re enemies of it now. They’ll all want us dead for fear that we’ll expose their secrets. We have to find a good place to hide. We need money. Do you have money?”
“Of course. I have lots of money. I’ve planned for this sort of thing. I …” He stared off into the distance and I nearly cursed when his features drew in, confused. “It’s … wait. My money …”
“Don’t push it too hard. Just let it come. If you had money to escape some sort of threat, what’s the first place that comes to mind when you think of somewhere to hide it?”
Seconds passed. “I … I have a cabin. It’s not in my real name. I forget the name.”
“The name is not important.” My anger had his eyes snapping up and the hurt he held at my tone left me stroking his arm again. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get upset with you. We don’t need the name. We need the money. Do you remember where this cabin is? When we drop off Jarrett can you drive us there? I’d drive, but I don’t know how. I don’t know where we are.”
West rubbed his hand over his eyes, glancing around the dark interior. “This is my car. Why are we in my car?”
I almost groaned. “We’ve escaped Whitlock, remember?”
“Of course I remember. I’m saying why are we in my car? He’ll have them looking for it the moment we get into Cheyenne.”
“The car is irrelevant,” Jarrett said, looking in the rear view mirror. “The cameras are up in the garage now. He would have seen any car we got into.”
Silence filled the sedan and I couldn’t help but stare behind us for some sign that we had been caught. Goosebumps were covering my arms. Bram would come and when he did, he’d bring all the hells of Whitlock with him. I couldn’t go back there. I couldn’t face him after everything between us. Our lovemaking had opened me up to things I didn’t want to feel. To things so dangerous that it was a death sentence just waiting to be carried out. His actions tonight proved that.
“Ninety miles from Cheyenne.”
“What?” I turned to look at West, who was staring into the night outside the window.
“My cabin. It’s ninety miles from Cheyenne. I have the address saved on my GPS. I …” He growled, repeatedly rubbing against his head. “I can’t fucking think. My head is killing me. Water. Fuck. I need water.”
Jarrett handed back a bottle and West grabbed at it greedily, spilling some on me as he hurriedly unscrewed the cap. Gulp after gulp he chugged it down with shaky hands. When he gasped and pulled it back, he only looked angrier.
“How long?”
His stare shot down to me and I tried to contain the fear that flamed against my insides. I was terrified of what West could become. I couldn’t deny that.
“Almost four weeks.”
“That’s it?” At my nod, he closed his eyes. “It felt like an eternity. I’m not right. I … know that. Everything is in … pieces in my mind. Nothing is clear. I don’t know what is real or not. You.” His eyes opened, cutting down to glare at me. “You did this?”
My head shook, frantically. “No. I had you in the other White Room, remember? The hall with all the cells. I didn’t know that one even existed.”
More silence.
“You love me, though?”
At his words, my fear faded the smallest amount. “Did I not leave Bram? Whitlock? Did I not make sure we got out together?”
“You did,” he said in a rushed breath. West pulled me into his arms, holding tightly. Over and over and I forced my breaths to slow. I had this. I was in control now. As long as I kept it that way, my plan would work. “What if this feeling doesn’t go away?” he continued. “What if I don’t get better?”
“We have each other. Isn’t that all that matters?”
“Well, yes. But what about …?” Again his eyes closed. “Jesus. Even as I say it, I know it’s not real. Yet, I mourn for a baby that doesn’t exist. It’s almost impossible for me to make myself believe it’s not true. Fucking Bram. Someday, I’m going to kill him. I’m going to make him suffer so great that he hurts like I do. God, I wanted my son. I saw him,” he said, looking down at me. “He was so real, Everleigh. Our life together, it was all so real. I want that. I want us to be that way.”
My head lowered to his chest while I hugged onto him. I may have appeared the caring wife, but I felt nothing. Nothing but the anxiousness to be out of Bram’s crosshairs.
“It will be. You’ve always talked of making me happy. The time has come. Now you have your chance.”
The arms that encircled me could have been anyone’s. My walls were high. Nothing was breaking through my armor ever again. Not lies, not emotions, not even love. If West was returning to me already, he may not be very nice for long. His demons might come back and if they did, I’d be ready for them. I’d be ready for everything this time. My plans were great—my calculations, flawless.
Chapter 30
West
Colors blurred transitioning into odd shapes as I tore my focus from the lighted skyline of Cheyenne. I knew that’s where we were, but even as it registered, it didn’t seem possible. How had Everleigh pulled off our escape? And with Jarrett, the High Leader? How? He was loyal to Whitlock. To Bram, over any of us. So … how? The question kept repeating as I glared at his stare in the rearview mirror. Something wasn’t right. Something had happened between them while I was locked away in the white. Question was, what?
Protectively, my arms tightened around Everleigh, pulling her more into my lap. I felt like I did all the times I’d ran around the cell on all-fours. Like a beast. Like a wild predator, ready to tear someone to shreds. Yes … hadn’t I used that expression with Bram? Was this the same night? I knew nothing. My face hurt. My brain hurt. But that didn’t matter. The only thing that did was the woman in my arms who was lying against me like I was her world. She’d finally accepted the truth. She loved me. There was no escaping fate. We were meant to be together.
I rubbed my sore nose against her cheek, still keeping my gaze on Jarrett’s. He kept looking back, watching us. Was he jealous of what I had? Did he want her for himself? Maybe he planned on killing me so he could have her. I would have. Hell, I thought I had with Bram.
“You smell so good.” More, my face nuzzled into hers and I couldn’t stop myself from kissing her skin. The spicy exoticness perfumed around me, leaving my mind even more in a fog. Instinct was all I knew and what I was certain of was that I wanted her. I wanted to taste her like the starving man I was. I wanted to be buried so deep inside of her that she never forgot the way I made her scream. Scream … yes. I would like to hear those piercing yells.
“West.” She paused, looking up at me, uncomfortably. “You have to wait. Now’s not the time.” The whisper left my teeth clenching. I look back up, nearly snarling at Jarrett as he took us in. The lights of the city drew closer and I bit my bottom lip trying to get myself to think. It was impossible with how hard my cock was. It had been too long and she was so close. But I couldn’t make her move. The thought was unfathomable. I’d never let go of her again. Even with hour or so we’d been in the car, it still wasn’t enough.
“I have to go to the restroom.”
Everleigh glanced up at me, but it was Jarrett I was addressing.
“You can’t hold it until we get to the cabin?”
I shook my head at Everleigh’s question.
“You have to pull over and let me out. I have to go.”
“We don’t have time, Master Harper. We really have to lose them
before they catch up. My car is on the other side of the city. Can you make it that far?”
My head shook and his lids narrowed back at me. The car shot over to the far lane, weaving between two others as we approached an exit. Everleigh tried to lean forward, but I held her tightly to me as the suspicion built. He wanted her. He was going to try to take her away from me. He didn’t have a car parked anywhere. He just wanted to get me out of the city so he could kill me before he took her to my cabin.
“You’re hurting me.”
The small cry that left Everleigh had my hands jerking. Every fear I held concerning hurting her resurfaced with flashes of white. For the briefest moment, I thought I was back in the small room. It rattled me, making me even more unstable. Moments went by while I tried to collect myself and wade through reality. Everleigh was talking but I barely heard her as I mumbled through constant apologies. And I was running my hands up and down her arms, not able to stop.
“It’s okay. It was an accident. Shh. Shh. It’s okay. You’re okay. Breathe.”
My pants slowed as I nodded. “I don’t want to hurt you. I don’t want you to leave me.”
“I’m not going anywhere. Look at me,” she said, holding to the sides of my neck. “You have me. We’re together, yes?”
Again, I nodded.
“That’s right. You’re my husband and we’ve had very bad times, but we’re better now. We’re finally together. What happened between us in the past, it means nothing. We learned. We’re not going to hurt each other anymore.”
“No. Never again.”
“That’s right.” She leaned in, pressing her lips to mine. The pain from the cut had me jumping from shock. Bram’s beating came back. Yes, I’d been in the white and Everleigh wasn’t mad at me anymore. She hadn’t been before when she’d left me after Bram kissed her. And she’d come back tonight, defending me. She had told him to stop the torture and he saw her love for me. He got mad and hit me. And kept hitting me. But … then, nothing.
I blinked fast, for the first time, really focusing on Everleigh’s face. With the city lights illuminating us, I could barely control the emotion that exploded within me.
“He hit you? Bram hit you?”
My finger ran over the length of her red nose, and then across the darkening of her swollen cheek. Any worries that she and Bram may have had something going on was gone. He wouldn’t have hit her if that was the case. What he fed me were lies. All lies.
“I tried to stop him from hurting you. He—” Tears welled and her head turned away from me. Gently, I brought her face back.
“You never married him?”
“Of course not. It was all part of his torture. He told you what he thought would hurt you the most.”
My lids closed and I knew if I didn’t get out of the car soon, I was going to lose it. I was teetering on the edge of doing something I couldn’t even begin to comprehend. I was a ticking time bomb just waiting to go off.
“Someday, he’ll pay. I. Fuck. The store!” I roared.
“Almost there, Master Harper.”
Trembling shook me and it took everything I had to nudge Everleigh over away from me.
“I have to get out. I h-have … I n-need …” My teeth chattered as if I were cold and my entire body jolted. I looked down, pausing through the need to unleash something, only to realize I was dressed in a guard’s uniform. When? How? Fuck! I wiggled my toes, not feeling shoes or socks.
“Tell me what I can do.”
Everleigh’s arm outstretched, only to withdraw as she seemed to realize not to touch me.
“Just. Need. Out!”
Like a flash, my hand shot to the door handle. I jerked, panicking even more when it didn’t open. Headlights caught me head-on and the white light locked up my limbs. Horror like I’d never felt before had me pushing back into the seat with every ounce of strength I held.
“It’s okay. Calm, husband, we’re here. Shh. We’re here. Jarrett, hurry!”
We were turning into an older looking convenience store and Jarrett moved to the side of it, slamming on the brakes. It was enough for me to get the smallest ounce of control as he dove out. I leaned toward Everleigh, grabbing her arms as I met her wide eyes. “Wait for me. I’ll be right back. Don’t leave this car.”
Hesitation only lasted for a moment before she nodded.
The door opened and I stood, immediately almost falling. Jarrett’s irritation was obvious as he caught me and glanced toward the back of the building. Every step, I tuned into his movements. Every breath he took, I saw his chest rise from the corner of my eye. He wasn’t meant to be here. His involvement made no sense. He wanted my wife. He’d always wanted my wife. Even before I became Main Master. He helped her when she stayed in the Cradle. He met with her for meetings I knew nothing about. Yet, I brought him in to be my High Leader and he betrayed me. Betrayed me like everyone did. All for what? To leave Whitlock? No. It all went back to Everleigh. My Everleigh. My wife.
“Did you make her fuck you before you offered your help?”
“What?”
I had his gun in my hand and under his chin so fast even I wasn’t aware I could move so quickly.
“I asked you if you fucked my wife. Or maybe you’ve been fucking her this entire time.”
“Are you kidding me?”
The click of the hammer had him shifting against me. His jaw tightened and he jerked in my grasp. I was stronger than I allowed him to believe. My mind may have not been right, but I could fight if I had to. Fighting was all I’d known my entire life.
“I’m going to ask you once again, then I’m going to blow out your fucking brains. Have you touched my wife?”
“No,” he ground out. “I have not.”
“Do you want to? Are you planning on killing me to make her yours?”
His eyes rose to look up into mine. I was a good three to four inches taller and a hell of a lot stronger. “No.”
Pain stabbed into the back of my neck and I froze.
“Husband, put down the gun. You’re not thinking straight. He means us no harm. Jarrett just wants to get back to his own family, that’s all. I promised him no harm would come to him if he helped me. I’d like to keep my word.”
“Wife? Kids? What did he tell you?”
Silence. “He’s unmarried, but he has twins.”
I laughed. “I wish you could keep your word, wife, but you see, I happen to know this man has no kids. He had a vasectomy over ten years ago. I’d like to think I learned after Eli. I looked into you,” I said between clenched teeth. “You lied to my wife and I know why. You had no intention of letting me live. You want her. Maybe even love her.”
A grunt sounded as I pushed the barrel deeper under his chin.
“Is this true?” Pain laced Everleigh’s words and she removed the knife, walking around to face us. Still, she held the blade only inches away between me and Jarrett. But her stare was on him and I knew betrayal when I saw it. “I asked you a question. Is it true? Did you lie to me about having twins?”
“No one knows they’re mine. They’re—”
“Your sisters,” I said, cutting him off. “And you’re either a sick bastard or a liar. Neither of which I’m letting live.”
“Everleigh,” he rushed out. “Don’t let him do this. Have I not helped you? Have I not saved you from him more than once? You needed to get out. I saw that. I’m risking everything, here. End this once and for all. Turn that knife the other way. He’s only going to hurt you, again. We both know that.” He swallowed hard and I felt his fear as the gun moved at the action. “We know where his money is now. We can find it on our own. Let’s take it and go.”
A laugh left me and I threw her a glance. There was confliction, but also something else. Pain? Hurt? No … something else.
“I trusted you. From the beginning, I told you not to lie to me. You knew how I felt about children and you used it against me.”
“And you let me. You’re smarter than that. You
knew I was lying.”
Out of nowhere, she smiled. “Yes, I did.”
She barely finished before the knife was plunging up next to the artery in his neck. Gurgling sounded and with the drop of his weight, I let go, letting him hit the ground.
“Liar. All men are fucking liars,” she mumbled, staring down. Her eyes rose and the disgust and rage within them was completely amazing to me. Her mask was lifted with her kill. Things were starting to make more sense and I could finally see her. The real her.
“Hurry husband, we have to go. Can you drive? I can if you show me what to do. I—”
My lips crushed into Everleigh’s and the jerk of her shoulders only had me holding around her tighter. It made the true West thrive and come to life. I felt the need to push her patience. To feel her squirm. The small voice that whispered of consequences—of losing her—had me letting go like I had been branded. It brought out the broken man. Just a new version.
“I’ll drive, but we need to ditch the car. Even messed up, I’m not that stupid. I’ll get us a new one. Baby, I’ll get us everything.”
Chapter 31
Bram
“Lock the bastards in the White Room until I can deal with them. I know those guards were causing a distraction to help their former Main Master and High Leader escape. I’m not stupid. I watched the fucking tapes. Five guards don’t leave their post and head in the opposite direction all at the same time. That’s bullshit! They know to call back-up. They cost us almost an hour of time I can’t get back. Now, out! Out! Out!”
With each word and each thrust of my pointed finger, I grew louder. The men scattered out of the door and I couldn’t believe what was happening. Worse, I couldn’t believe what I saw on the footage. How had that happened with me in control? This was unheard of. An escape, on my watch? And Everleigh, West, and Jarrett, at that? I couldn’t believe it. I wouldn’t believe it. I had been outsmarted, again. Everleigh … committing the ultimate betrayal? No, something wasn’t right. Why hadn’t I ran for her when I’d read the fucking poem? She told me never to underestimate her and I had.