Hawke hadn’t said much as we’d stood there, other than to explain that he and Revay had spent most of their summer vacations playing in the lake and laying on the sand dreaming of what their future would hold. Matty had been uncharacteristically solemn and I’d nearly lost it when he’d moved around me to stand on Hawke’s other side so he could hold his hand too. Hawke and I had spent the rest of the night after Matty had gone to bed talking about our plans for the future and I’d been both worried and excited when he’d said he thought Seattle would be a good place for us to settle. I’d tried to tell him that we could make a life in Rocky Point after Matty’s treatment was finished, but he’d refused, saying that we needed a fresh start…all of us. His only request had been that I be okay with him not selling the property since it was where Revay was buried. And when I’d asked about his pursuit of Buck and Denny, he’d simply told me it was over and I’d left it at that.
We’d made love again that night, but unlike the other times we’d been together, it was unhurried and we spent more time just exploring each other in a way that wasn’t completely sexual. I’d discovered that for all his brawn and beauty, Hawke was supremely ticklish and Hawke had enjoyed finding every one of my erogenous zones and exploiting them. The next morning we’d ended up deciding on a spur of the moment trip to Yellowstone National Park which was just a couple of hours away. Matty had been in heaven as we’d explored the park both on foot and by car, but the highlight of the trip had been when we’d spotted a black bear and her two cubs crossing the road about a hundred yards from our car. We’d spent the night in a hotel and had spent the rest of today exploring before finally heading home.
Hence the exhaustion.
We’d just reached the porch when I heard Matty calling for me followed by a comment about him not being able to find the puppy.
“It’s okay, I’ll go,” I said to Hawke as he started to follow me. “Can you put the pizza in while I check on him?”
Hawke nodded. “Can you grab my phone from the truck on your way back? I need to charge it.”
“I told you not to show him those games on your phone,” I said with a chuckle.
“Yeah, you did,” Hawke acknowledged. “What can I say, the kid’s got me wrapped around his finger. How was I supposed to know he’d play them till the phone died?” Hawke groused as he climbed the porch stairs. “Besides, I’m not the one who forgot my phone all together.”
I shot him a dirty look and began walking towards the side of the house where I’d last seen Matty headed with the puppy. A twinge of concern went through me when I didn’t see him anywhere and I began walking across the field towards a large, run down barn that Hawke had warned Matty not to play around.
“Matty!”
The lack of a response had me picking up my pace. “Matty, you answer me right now!” I shouted. I knew I was likely overreacting, but the thought that Matty could have climbed up into the hayloft and fallen through a broken floorboard flashed through my mind and I began running. I called his name again, but there was still no answer. And when I saw the barn door partially opened, I was gutted with fear and I shouted for Hawke.
But when I slid the door open wide enough so that I could fit through it, I was nowhere near prepared for the sight that greeted me.
Because there standing just behind my son in the middle of the barn pressing a gun against Matty’s head, was Denny.
“Sorry, Daddy,” Matty said, his voice uneven, and I knew he was just seconds away from crying.
At some point he’d found Storm because he was holding the quiet puppy in his arms. “It’s okay, buddy. Just hold on to Storm and be real still and quiet while the grown-ups talk.”
Despite my warning not to move, Matty nodded, but that was all he did. I lifted my eyes to Denny and shook my head. “Denny, please. He’s just a kid. Just let him leave and you and I can talk.”
“You shouldn’t have taken him, Chrissy,” Denny said, his hand shaking as he held the gun. “Pops, he was…you just shouldn’t have taken him.”
I glanced around the barn as subtly as I could, but didn’t see Buck anywhere. But I knew without a shadow of a doubt that Denny wouldn’t have had the forethought to do this on his own. Denny’s eyes were wide and glassy and I suspected he was high or just coming down off of something. And that fact alone had sheer terror rolling through me. Because Denny was wholly unpredictable when he was in that condition.
“I had to, Denny. You know what Buck would have done to him. What he would have turned him into.”
Denny pulled the gun away from Matty’s head so he could wipe his brow with his arm. A sliver of relief went through me when he lowered the gun to his side instead of putting it back to Matty’s head. But he still had his other hand clamped down on Matty’s shoulder.
“Things didn’t go well for me when he got home and found the kid gone,” Denny said accusingly.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t think about that when I took him.”
Denny grew more agitated as he shook his head. “I told that stupid bitch to stay away.”
I dropped my eyes to Matty as Denny seemed to get lost in himself and I gave my son what I hoped was a reassuring smile and a brief nod. Matty was clearly terrified, but he managed a small nod.
Denny was still ranting and I could tell he was getting more and more frustrated so I said, “Denny, talk to me. Who are you talking about?”
My brother looked as me as if he’d just now noticed my presence and I was surprised to see his face actually fall. “I really loved her, you know?”
“Who?”
“She was supposed to be the one. We were gonna be a family. You remember that, don’t you Chrissy?” Denny said, his voice actually sounding dejected.
If the circumstances had been any different, I actually might have felt sorry for him.
“Daddy’s name is Tate,” Matty suddenly interjected, but instead of putting the gun back to Matty’s head, Denny actually looked down at Matty strangely and then turned him and knelt down in front of him.
“He’s not your daddy, Matthew,” Denny said as he reached up with the hand that was holding the gun and tried to stroke Matty’s face. Matty flinched and pulled his face away before Denny could make contact.
“Denny,” I said desperately and I took several steps forward to get Denny’s attention. The move worked and Denny jumped up and pointed his gun at me. “Talk to me, Denny,” I ordered as I held out my hands.
“Fuck!” Denny bit out and he lowered the gun again. “This is all your fault! I could have convinced Buck not to…”
Denny started shaking his head and then he slammed his closed fist against his chest. It was a move I’d seen him do countless times when he was pissed and trying to get control of himself.
“Convinced Buck not to what?” I asked when Denny settled again.
“No loose ends, remember?”
I stilled at that and looked down at Matty. I shook my head in disbelief. “No,” slipped from my lips as my father’s motto rang in my ear.
“He was a three-year-old kid, Denny!” I nearly shouted.
“No loose ends,” Denny repeated. “But I couldn’t fucking do it. Not to my own kid.”
I didn’t correct Denny that he wasn’t Matty’s father because I knew it was the only thing of value I had. But his statement was telling and based on what he’d said earlier, he’d cared about Matty’s mother.
“Who is she?” I asked.
Denny had quieted again and he solemnly said, “Jenna DuCane.”
“Where is she, Denny?”
“Gone,” was all Denny said.
“Gone where?”
“She came to the house that day looking for a fix. I'd told her never to come there.”
“What happened to her?”
“She started yelling at me that if I didn’t start helping her support the kid, she’d tell her dad who I was. She wanted cash and drugs. Then Buck came home and she started screaming that her dad was a cop.”
I swallowed hard as I realized where Denny was headed. “She was only fourteen when she and I…she kept saying it was rape and her dad was going to put us all in jail. Buck hit her.” Denny shook his head sadly. “I begged Buck to let me talk to her. I told him I could get her to come around. But he said she was a loose end. Him too,” Denny said as he pointed to Matty.
“He put Jenna in his truck and told me to take the kid somewhere and get rid of him. But I couldn’t.”
Denny once again lowered himself to Matty’s level. “He looks like me, huh?” he asked and then he reached for the baseball cap Matty was wearing and pushed it off his head. My brother’s face went from strangely paternal to one of pure shock as he took in Matty’s bald head. His eyes jumped to me. “He’s sick?”
I nodded. “Leukemia.”
Denny’s horrified gaze settled on Matty again and this time when he lifted his hand – the one not holding the gun – to stroke Matty’s face, Matty held still. I saw an opportunity that I hadn’t expected. “Denny, just let him go. You can keep me…I’ll tell Buck that Matty is staying with friends.”
Denny glanced at me and then looked back at Matty longingly. He finally nodded his head and reached down for the baseball cap and settled it gently back on Matty’s head.
“Matty,” I said carefully. “Go take Storm and hide in the woods, okay? You stay there until you either see Hawke or police officers, do you hear me?”
“Yes, Daddy,” Matty whispered.
Relief went through me as Matty stepped away from Denny and Denny let him go. I put my hand on Matty’s shoulder as he slowly walked past me. “Run really fast, okay?”
Matty nodded. “Love you lots.”
I managed a shaky nod and said, “Forever and ever.”
I kept my eyes on him until he disappeared out the barn door and then I turned my focus on Denny.
“Tate,” Denny murmured. “I didn’t think you’d remember it.”
“Remember what?” I asked.
“That name. You were so little when Pops changed it.”
I stared at him in disbelief. “My real name actually is Tate?”
Denny nodded. “Pops always hated it so he used your middle name. He used to joke that Mom was high on something when she came up with that name.”
“You remember our mother?”
“Yeah,” Denny murmured. “She was real nice,” he said thoughtfully. “Pops used to tell me that she hadn’t wanted us anymore so she’d dumped us on him. But I never believed him.”
Overwhelmed, I whispered, “Do you know where she is…is she still alive?”
“Don’t know.”
The lack of affect in Denny’s tone was frightening, but my need for answers was too great so I barreled on and actually ended up stepping so close to Denny that I could have reached out to touch him.
“Denny, do you remember her name?”
“Layla,” Denny said. “She used to play that song all the time.”
“What about her last name? Was it Buckley?”
Denny shook his head. “Don’t think so.”
“So this is how you tie up loose ends?” I heard from behind me. I would have recognized who it was even if I hadn’t turned around. And the second I did, I regretted it because as my father stepped into the dark barn, I saw him pulling my son behind him, the puppy still clutched in his arms. Tears were streaking down Matty’s face.
“I couldn’t run fast enough, Daddy,” Matty cried.
I began striding towards Buck and Matty, not caring what the man did to me, but like Denny, he pulled out a gun and pointed it at Matty and I stopped in my tracks.
“Hello, Son,” Buck sniped as he kept walking forward, forcing me back towards Denny.
“It’s okay, Matty. You did real good,” I said gently as Matty began to cry in earnest.
“Pops-” Denny began.
“Shut the fuck up,” Buck snapped and then he turned his attention on me as he walked around me until he was facing the doorway, presumably so he could see anyone coming. Even though it had been only minutes since I’d entered the barn looking for Matty, it had felt like hours. But I had no doubt that Hawke would be coming to check on us any minute now and I just needed to keep Buck and Denny talking until then.
But even before I finished the thought, I heard a gunshot ring through the air. A few seconds later, there was another one.
“You hear that?” Buck said with a smile. “That’s called a double-tap.”
Terror rolled through me as I realized the shots had come from the house.
“Now those Mexicans, they know something about how not to leave loose ends,” Buck said with a chuckle.
I felt tears stinging the backs of my eyes, but I forced myself not to think about Hawke.
“I’ll do anything you want,” I said to Buck. “Just let Matty go. He’s not a part of this.”
Buck laughed. “You think this is about you, you little faggot?”
My eyes fell to Matty and I shook my head. “He’s just a kid, Pops.” I hated referring to him in any way as my father, but I knew better than to piss him off by calling him Buck, a name I as his son wasn’t permitted to use since he considered it a display of disrespect.
“You want to know the ironic part?” Buck said, ignoring my plea. “I was all prepared to let you keep this little shit” – Buck jerked Matty back and forth several times – “Until you and your fudge packer boyfriend showed up in Lulling asking questions.”
“Who told you?” I asked, hoping to stall Buck long enough until I could figure out what to do. “The sheriff?”
“That lazy SOB always did like an easy payday. All he had to do was run your plates,” Buck responded and I realized he meant the license plates on Hawke’s truck which would have led to Hawke’s address. Buck’s eyes shifted to Denny. “Finish it,” he suddenly said and then motioned to me with his gun.
Denny was standing next to me, but his gun was hanging loosely by his side. “Pops, maybe we should just let ‘em go. The kid’s sick-”
“The kid wouldn’t be here if you’d just done what I told you to do two years ago.”
“He’s my son…” Denny said desperately and I almost felt a sliver of pity for him.
“He’s not yours,” I said to Denny as I flashed him a glance.
“What?” Denny asked.
“He’s not yours, Denny,” I said again, though I kept my eyes on Buck. “I’m thinking Pops here wanted you to tie up his loose end, not yours.”
“No,” Denny whispered and I looked at him to see that his eyes were on Buck whose snide smile had disappeared. “You promised me,” Denny murmured. “You promised me you weren’t with Jenna like that.”
“Shut up and do as I say, boy!” Buck snarled.
“I told you I loved her! You promised me I wouldn’t have to share her!”
Denny’s rage was palpable and I saw Matty close his eyes as even he sensed the rising tension between the two men. Thankfully, Buck’s gun wasn’t aimed at Matty’s head, though the hand holding the weapon was on Matty’s shoulder.
“And I told you what would happen if she told her father about you.”
“Not me!” Denny screamed. “You! She loved me! She never would have told him about us, but you! Did you fucking rape her you sick fuck?”
“Enough!” Buck roared and Denny actually fell silent, though I could feel his fury wafting off of him as he stood next to me. Buck’s rage filled eyes shifted to me and then he aimed his gun at me.
Panic went through me as I realized I had nothing left to delay the inevitable and I looked down at Matty and whispered, “Close your eyes, buddy.” I was glad when Matty did as I said and when the gunshot rang out a second later, I tried to call up an image of him and Hawke from earlier in the day to mind.
A weight hit me hard and knocked me to the ground and it took me a second to realize it hadn’t been a bullet tearing through my flesh that had been the cause. I heard a terrible gasping sound and I scrambled
to my knees as my fear for Matty overruled everything else. But it wasn’t Matty who’d been shot either.
It was Denny who was lying next to me, a bloom of bright red blood staining the front of his shirt. Shock tore through me as I realized my brother had pushed me out of the way, putting himself in the path of the bullet that had been meant for me.
“Denny?!” I shouted and then my instincts took over and I pressed my hands down on his chest. I looked up at Buck in disbelief and saw that he actually seemed to be in a state of shock himself. Matty still had his eyes squeezed shut.
“Denny, hold on, okay?” I said desperately as blood seeped through my fingers. Denny’s shocked eyes held mine as he struggled to breathe.
“I’m sorry,” he choked out.
I shook my head. “It’s okay, just hang on.”
“Should have protected you,” Denny managed to say, though his last words faded out as his pupils grew larger and then he lowered his head to the floor and his body jerked several times before finally stilling beneath my hands.
I pulled my bloody hands from Denny’s chest and stared at them for several long seconds before wiping them on my pants. “Why?” I asked, though I wasn’t expecting an answer. When I turned my attention to Buck, I saw that his gun was once again pointed at me.
“Put it down.”
The sound of Hawke’s voice behind me went through me like a wave and I actually let out a sob when I heard it. I wanted so badly to look over my shoulder at him, but I didn’t dare move because the second Hawke spoke, Buck’s gun went from me to Matty.
“Daddy?” Matty whispered, his eyes still closed.
“I’m here, buddy,” I managed to get out as I kept my eyes trained on my son. The puppy who’d been quiet throughout the entire ordeal began to lick Matty’s chin. “Just keep holding onto Storm, okay? It’s going to be over soon.”
Retribution (The Protectors, Book 3) Page 22