“What about you?” he questions, looking back at me.
I shrug a shoulder, not really caring that much. “I’ll have what she’s having,” I say, keeping it easy and knowing all too well that the simpler I keep my order, the quicker he’ll be back with his hands on my body.
Colton nods and pushes through to the private bar, keeping the door open so he can be a part of the conversation as he pours us some drinks.
I look up at Casey, studying the front of her book. “What are you reading?”
She peers up at me, her eyes all I see of her delicate face but the way they scrunch and the tops of her cheeks press up into them, I’m more than aware of the big ass grin taking over her face. “Oh, girl. This one is fucking good. It’s—”
The familiar buzz of the front gate sounds, cutting off Casey’s explanation as we both flick our gazes toward the small monitor behind me. My bows pinch. “Who’s that?” I ask, feeling a slight familiarity as I take in the guy waiting by the gates.
There’s a pissed-off scowl over his face and I try to think back to the many meetings I’ve seen Colton sitting through. The guy is older, but I don’t think he’s one of Colton’s business partners. I’ve seen them all, but this guy is … different. There’s something darker about him. Something dangerous that puts my nerves on edge.
The guy leans out of his expensive car and hits the buzzer again, holding it down so the loud buzz vibrates through the whole mansion, demanding our attention.
“Who the fuck is that?” Colton demands, coming out of the bar with no drinks in hand, walking straight over to the small monitor with an annoyed frown marring his perfect face. He grabs the monitor and spins it around so he can get a good look at the screen. “Fuck,” he curses, hitting accept on the gates so they peel open. “It’s Vincent DeCarlo.”
“Then why the hell did you let him in?” I demand as Casey sucks in a sharp breath, recognizing the name.
I watch in horror as Colton crosses the kitchen and presses his hand down on the scanner to unlock the little safe which holds all of the keys to his many cars. Only as the drawers full of keys pops out, he lifts it and curls his fingers around the sexiest, sleek gun I’ve ever seen.
“What the hell?” Casey demands, looking at her big brother with a gun, most likely the first time ever seeing a sight like that. While I've never exactly seen Colton with one myself, having guns around isn’t exactly something new.
I spy the monitor and watch as Vincent’s car shoots through and starts racing down the long drive.
Colton looks at his sister. “Get upstairs. Find Mom and Cora and take them to the panic room.” She nods and rushes away without another word as Colton looks at me. “Where’s your mom?”
“Pool house.”
“Good. She’ll be okay there.”
He starts making his way to the front door and as he disappears from the room, I find myself flying off the counter and following behind. “What are you going to do?” I question, panicking and not wanting him to do what I think it is he’s going to do.
He clenches his jaw and keeps walking, crossing the staff quarters and finding Harrison. “Get all the staff out of here. DeCarlo is on his way. You have thirty seconds tops.”
Harrison’s eyes go wide and although there’s nothing he wants more than to see Vincent go down for taking Maryne away from him, he has a job to do and he won’t risk any of the staff in the process. We don’t need a repeat of what happened here a few short weeks ago. This time, we have our wits about us.
Harrison nods and within seconds, he’s pressing an alarm that sounds throughout the house. The staff instantly fall in line and start racing toward Harrison, waiting on instructions. Once Colton sees his people are being taken care of, he moves ahead. This time he doesn’t stop on his way to the front door.
“Colton,” I say, attempting to get his attention but his stubborn nature has him intent to ignore me, knowing damn well that I'm about to try and stop him. “What are you doing? You could get hurt.”
He wordlessly reaches down and takes my hand, trying to ease my worry yet he doesn’t say a damn word, just keeps moving ahead until we reach the front door.
He tears it open and pulls me out before hitting the lock on the back of the door and closing it, making it harder for anyone to get back through it. He starts racing down the stairs, pulling me along with him, intent to get this bullshit as far from his home and family as possible.
Vincent’s car appears racing down the drive, and by the time we reach the bottom step, Vincent is skidding to a halt, leaving two thick rubber lines on the immaculate drive.
Vincent pours out of his expensive sports car and barrels toward me and Colton. My hand is instantly released and Colton forces me back a step, keeping me away from Vincent's reach but the way Vincent stares down Colton, it’s as though I'm not even here.
Vincent shoots his arms out, aiming for Colton’s neck but Colton evades him like some kind of MMA pro. In seconds, he has Vincent pinned to the side of his stupid car, his sleek gun pressed under his chin, exactly how his son had done to Maryne. I stare in surprise. I didn't know Colton was capable of that and damn, it's a massive turn on.
“Release me,” Vincent spits, knowing damn well that Colton won’t hesitate to pull the trigger, especially after the shit storm his sons rained down on this property.
Colton laughs. “Release you?” he questions. “Now why the fuck would I go and do something so stupid?” The gun presses harder against his chin, forcing Vincent's head up so that his eyes meet Colton’s. “You sent your sons to terrorize my home, my family. A woman who was the only motherly figure in my life was brutally murdered by Marco. I should kill you right fucking now.”
Vincent pushes against Colton, trying to get him away, but he doesn't budge. “You don’t have the balls.”
“Don’t I?” he questions with a sick smirk, showing me just how badly he wishes to do it. The gun flinches and Vincent jumps in fear, his eyes going wide as he realizes that his brain was nearly smeared all over his ridiculous car.
“You have a lot of nerve showing up here.”
“I know you’re behind it. You're the one putting my sons in prison.”
“Oh,” Colton laughs. “Did you think that was supposed to be some sort of secret? I told you clear as fucking day, your sons came into my home and I was going to make them pay one by fucking one, leaving you for last.” Colton leans into him, trailing the gun around Vincent’s face like some kind of sick killer. “But don’t you worry, I have something extra special planned for you.”
“You won’t get away with this.”
“But I already am. In fact,” he grins. “Maybe you should check in with your youngest tonight. I think you’ll find he’s about to get himself in a little bit of trouble.”
Vincent pushes at Colton's chest again, harder this time but still there’s no movement. He’s like a solid brick wall, impenetrable and it's the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen. “What did you do?” Vincent spits, the threat of his son’s impending doom enough to have him forgetting the gun that’s now jammed against his temple.
“Who me?” Colton questions. “I didn’t do a damn thing. Now, Alejandro, he's been a very naughty boy but you know all about it, don’t you?”
Vincent struggles against Colton’s hold but doesn’t get anywhere, proving just how strong Colton really is. “He didn’t do anything.”
“I think the dead, drugged hooker in his hotel room would say differently.”
“He didn’t do it. Leave Alejandro out of this. He's a good boy.”
“Is he?” he questions. “So, which one is it? Is he a good boy or a murderer? Talk him up all you want but he was there that day, waving his fucking gun around my staffs’ faces. He’s fucking guilty. He killed that hooker and you helped him cover it. You know it, I know it, and now the whole fucking world will know it. You and your boys are done. There’s nowhere you can go where I won't get you. You fucked with the wrong person.”
Vincent’s jaw clenches before his gaze flashes to me. He disregards me as though I'm trash before looking back at Colton. “You better watch yourself, boy. I’m not the only one with secrets. Someone like you doesn’t get where you are without them and I guarantee that I will find them and when I do, you’re going the fuck down.”
Colton smiles wickedly and steps in nice and close, sending chills sweeping through my body with how damn turned on I am right now. “I’ll let you in on a little secret,” he says, making Vincent’s jaw clench even harder. “I don’t have any. You’re mistaking me for my father. But you have my blessing. Go ahead and waste what little time you have left trying to take me down because it won’t work. I’m un-fucking-touchable.”
“No one is untouchable,” he snaps.
“I made a promise that I'd leave you till last. I want to watch as everything important to you is taken away. I already have three of your moronic sons. I’d really love to watch you lose the other two, but pulling this trigger right here, right now is very fucking tempting.”
“You think I care if you end me? That’s where you have me wrong. Fucking pull the trigger if you want to. It doesn’t mean shit.”
A booming laugh tears from deep within Colton’s stomach. “You see, that would be too fucking easy. When I come for you—which I will—I will have already destroyed you and you’ll be on your fucking knees begging for me to end it, begging for me to take out your pathetic existence, and just when you can’t take it anymore, I’m going to put a bullet right through the top of your spine, paralyzing you so that every fucking day for the rest of your life, you’re going to wish you were dead. You’ll be a fucking vegetable, unable to wipe your own fucking ass, completely dependant on the people around you. But that’s just the thing, you won’t have anyone around you because all five of your good for nothing sons will be locked up. They’re going to die behind bars. They’re going to rot, and once the last of them are gone, the DeCarlo name will cease to exist.”
Vincent looks up at Colton who towers over him and fear begins seeping into his eyes knowing damn well that Colton has the resources to come through on every tiny promise that he’s made.
BANG!
I jump as a bullet slams into the polished concrete of the driveway, sending broken fragments showering around us. I throw my hands up, masking myself from the sharp pieces while listening as they ricochet against Vicent’s car.
Colton’s gun remains pointed down at the ground and as I look down, I find the bullet an inch away from Vincent’s foot.
The bastard jumps in fear and Colton steps away from him. “I suggest you get the fuck off my property before I show you what else this gun can do.”
Vincent looks up in hesitation but decided to use his brain instead, diving back into his car. He hits the gas and takes off like a rocket, and as we watch his car disappear down the drive, I hold my hand out. “Gun,” I demand.
Colton’s brows furrow but he hands it over without hesitation and watches as I raise the gun and concentrate with everything I have.
I pull the trigger and the gun rings out loudly, making me flinch, but I don't dare move as I hear the loud POP of the bullet hitting Vincent’s rear tire.
Colton howls with laughter as his car swerves, the back tires swinging around and hitting the manicured lawn. Vincent works hard to right his car, but in doing that, tears up the grass in a big way.
“Fuck, sorry. I didn't think that through,” I say, watching as Vincent finally disappears.
Colton’s hand falls on top of mine and he takes the gun off me before I can shoot at anything else. “It’s more than alright,” he tells me. “Knowing that he's going to have to pull that piece of shit over on the side of the road and wait hours for anyone to come and help him is worth it. Besides, Enrique is a fucking pro when it comes to fixing the lawn. He’ll have it fixed in no time, along with the mess that Nic made the other day.”
I smile up at him as he puts his arm over my shoulder and leads us back to the stairs of the mansion. “How the hell did you learn to shoot like that?”
“You don’t grow up in Breakers Flats and not learn a thing or two about shooting,” I explain. “And … I also had Kairo who thinks spending hours in a shooting range is fun.”
“No shit.”
“Mmhmm. So, you better be careful, Carrington.”
“Look who’s talking,” he says. “I don’t see you running after hearing how fucked up my plan is.”
I look up and meet his hazel eyes. “To be honest, your plan kinda turned me on.”
His brow arches as his eyes begin to sparkle with excitement. “If I didn’t have to go and release my sisters and Mom from the panic room, I’d be fucking you right here on these steps.”
A low groan pulls from deep within me and if I didn’t have to go and explain what the hell was going on to my mother, I’d be stripping off my clothes right now and begging him to do it.
“I’ll tell you what,” he says. “Why don’t you hold onto that thought and I’ll meet you back in the formal dining room in fifteen?”
“Dining room?”
“Every time I see that fucking big ass table, all I can think about is laying you over it and spreading those perfect legs. Baby, I’m going to eat your sweet pussy until you’re drenched and screaming my name and there’s not a damn thing you can do to convince me otherwise.”
I grin up at him. “Only if you promise to bend me over the table and fuck me until I’m seeing stars afterward.”
“You’ve got yourself a deal, Jade.”
I grin up at him as we reach the top of the stairs. Colton unlocks the door and as he releases his hold on me and starts walking toward the grand staircase that leads up to the panic room, he stops and turns back to me with lust in his eyes. “You know what?” he murmurs, his voice low and filled with need. “Make it ten.”
“You got it.”
With that, he skips up the stairs two at a time and I find myself walking through the mansion. I know I should be looking for mom but I find myself standing in front of Charles’ wine cellar door instead.
I must be insane to be standing here right now but for some reason, my hand latches onto the handle and I push the door open wide. I step into the darkness then watch as the sensor lights come to light, filling the room with a clinical brightness.
I make my way down the few steep steps and head through the rows of wine bottles until I finally find it.
The door that holds Colton’s biggest secret.
I guess it’s my biggest secret now too. It’s all of ours—me, Colton, Spencer, and now Charlie.
Maybe I’m a glutton for punishment or maybe seeing Colton face his demons so epically gave me what little encouragement I needed to finally end this. Hell, maybe it has a little something to do with the empowerment I felt after firing that gun at the douchebag's car. Either way, I'm here now and I won’t ever be here again.
This ends tonight.
From now on, Jude Carter will not reside rent-free in my mind. He does not win, I do.
I pull the heavy metal lock and hear that same loud BANG that I'd heard the first time I walked in here. I slowly push open the door, still kinda terrified of what I might find inside, despite knowing exactly what it is.
The smell hits me first and it’s clear that this trash has been living in his own filth, too fucking scum to bother getting up and using the fucking toilet like the rest of the human population.
Dried blood lines the room and I have no doubt that it’s adding toward the stench but I try to see through it and put it to the back of my mind. I'm here for one job and one job only.
Jude sits in the corner of the room, his hands still bound with heavy chains. He looks up at me, squinting against the light that floods the room. “Come to finish the job?” he questions.
I ignore him, knowing that I need to keep my control. If I allow him to get inside my mind, I’m going to lose myself and without Colton here to stop me, I don't think I
'll have the strength to walk out of here with my soul still attached.
“I’ve come to tell you that this is it. You don’t own me anymore. You don’t consume me, you don’t scare me. You don’t hold that kind of power, not anymore. You thought you won by touching me, by taking what wasn't yours, but you didn’t. You’re hardly even a blip on the radar and all you managed to do was fuck yourself in the ass.”
“Quit lying to yourself,” he grumbles, not putting any energy into fighting because he knows that I've won and there is no longer a point of even trying.
“You’re scum, Carter. You always will be, always have been and in fact, I’m fucking thrilled because had you not decided to do what you did, I never would have had the opportunity to destroy you.”
“You can’t destroy me,” he scoffs. “No one can.”
I smile sweetly. “You see, that’s where you’re wrong,” I tell him, slipping my phone out of my back pocket. “I can do just that.”
I press a few buttons and hold the phone up against my ear, keeping my eyes on Jude as I listen to the phone ring.
“O, what’s wrong? Are you okay?”
“Nic,” I say, watching as Jude’s eyes widen in horror, knowing exactly who the Widows are. “We found Jude. He’s locked in the back part of Charles’ wine cellar.”
Jude shakes his head. “No,” he panics. “Don’t do that.”
“I’m getting the boys now,” Nic says. “We’ll handle it.”
“NO,” Jude yells in fear, rattling against his chains and desperately trying to get to his feet.
I smile at Jude while letting out a deep breath. “I know you will,” I tell Nic before ending the call and turning on my heel. I walk out of the dungeon and slam the door with a loud BANG knowing damn well that I will never have to see Jude Carter again.
Chapter 23
“How did this even happen?” Mom demands, standing in the full-length mirror of my bedroom while sliding my borrowed earrings into place.
I stand behind her in the mirror, watching as she gets ready for the ballet that she was so lucky to win tickets to, despite not entering a competition for it. In fact, there was no competition at all.
Barbie B*tch: A Dark High School Bully Romance (Rejects Paradise Book 3) Page 22