Shattered Love_Heart_Rending Love Story

by Ivy Rose

  We've all had the briefing, and everyone knows exactly where they are meant to be. We’ve gone over the blueprints to the compound and where they are holding my baby girl.

  They moved her to a more secluded area than she was staying in. She's been guarded by two men who only went to their post after the other men left, like they knew we were coming.

  Something feels fucking off, but the fact that Anderson told me separately that they were at a meeting about my baby girl means that they could have the devil himself guarding her and it wouldn’t stop me. I couldn't protect her mom, but nothing, not even dying, will stop me from taking revenge on those who bring harm to my girl.

  We roll to a stop.

  Anderson looks at us all. “Our Intel is there are eight men there, tops. Two are watching Miss Stone.”

  Everyone nods.

  “We are going to get as close as we can. Turn on your radios. We’re a mile out.”

  Everyone follows Anderson’s directions.

  The van pulls to a stop.

  “You’re from Sweets. The men are looking forward to some new club girls.”

  Everyone’s eyes widen. This wasn't the plan. They’re letting us drive right into the fucking compound?

  Anderson had heard they had been hiring anyone to up their numbers.

  Malik bangs the side of the van. “Fuck, man, these bitches are as sweet as fucking honey.”

  A few men smirk, shaking their heads at these dumb fuckers.

  Malik winds the window up. “They’ve let us drive right fucking in.”

  Anderson frowns.

  It’s all too fucking easy.

  The two at the gate pull the doors open, their eyes widening at the sight of us. They can't be older than sixteen or seventeen. Fuck, they’re just kids.

  We’re all in black, so it’s hard to tell who is who, but one of the men, I think it’s Ethan, ties the kids. There’s no way they can let them go. Even if they are just lap dogs for the Scorpions, they've seen too much. The scorpions will gut them alive. The worst thing you can be in this world is weak or a rat. Both will leave you dead, it’s just a case of how.

  Everyone except me puts their hands in the middle.

  “Focus. We’ll get this done.”

  Everyone nods at Mason’s words.

  Anderson opens the door. “Go, go, go.”

  I don't miss a beat. I’m out and running for the doors.

  “Stone, get your ass back here!” Anderson’s voice is like a whip through my earpiece.

  “Not fucking happening.”

  I hear Anderson curse.

  “Luke, cover his damn ass.”

  A man falls in step beside me. I expect him to be pissed, but instead he nods his head, grabbing my shoulder.

  A voice comes through the earpiece. “I’ve got the door.”

  And another. “I’ve got high.”

  Next, there’s a small boom before a large crack, as whoever is in front gets through the door.

  “In,” says another voice.

  “I have one.”

  Quickly followed by another. “Get your hands up. Get your hands up.”

  Luke and I race through the doors as we see men laying on the ground. Luke gives a slight nod before we take the corridor. Men race past us. As if in sync, they all kick the door in, shouting commands.

  “Three, I’ve got three.”

  Then it happens, the rain of bullets coming from the end of corridor.

  Luke pushes me to the wall, but I push him off.

  “Fuck, Stone, you got a death wish?”

  I hear a few of the men call me back but nothing is stopping me. I know my baby is at the end of corridor.

  I slam against the wall at the side of the door.

  Luke falls beside me, his breathing harsh. He shakes his head at me.

  He nods his head as I kick the door.

  Two wide eyes stare back at me, the gun visibly shaking in his hands.

  “Get down. Get down.”

  At Luke’s voice, the guy falls to the floor. He’s a kid, no older than eighteen.

  I hear a scream that has my blood running cold. I watch as a man walks toward me with a gun to Juliet head as he uses her as a shield.

  I can't lose her to the same fate as her mother.

  She's trying to tell me something. Her eyes dart to the right.

  I know she’s going to pull something. I nod and she elbows the man in the ribs, causing him to grunt. I pull the trigger not stopping until the man falls to his knees.

  As Juliet runs toward us, two shots ring.

  No, no, no.

  I see the fear in her eyes, the single tear running down her cheek, the way her long dark hair is flying behind her.

  She lands against my chest and the force almost knocks me off my feet.

  Then I feel it, the way her body jolts, the pain that etches her beautiful face. I take my hand away and see red- blood, so fucking much blood. Where is it coming from? I rip at her clothes. My hands frantically race over her body.

  I need those eyes on me. I need to see them. Look at me. I scream her name, rubbing her hair out of her face. They can't take her away from me. I finally have everything I wanted, that I couldn't possibly dream of. And to take that away? We haven't had enough time. We need more fucking time!

  The blood falls from her lips.

  I see the life leave her. I scream like my voice, my touch, my love can save her.

  I pull her close, her breathing barely a whisper across my face. I pull her as close as I can and see her pain.

  Her eyes open and all that's there is the love she holds for me, the love that was never cruel or unkind. Instead, it’s warm, it makes me strong, it’s my reason.

  I beg her, I beg everyone that will listen as they gather around to help.

  I hold her face in my hands, spreading blood on her pale skin, her blood. My hands shake so badly as I tell her I’ve got her, I’ve always got her. We both know it’s a lie because we both know that we’re not going to get those plans and dreams. We’re not going to get the future we've dreamed of. This, right here, is our forever.

  I smile down at the woman who saved me, who never knew she was doing it. The woman who walked straight into the darkness to find me, who shined a light so brightly that it made me blinded to anyone who wasn't her. The woman who owns me completely. There isn’t an inch of me that doesn't live for her, the women who is my everything.

  I hold her tightly in my arms as she takes her last breath. I want to scream. I want to shout. I want to cry, but I can't do anything but hold her lifeless body in my arms, hoping she hears how sorry I am that I failed her. I give her words of love that I should have told her every day, but most of all, I beg her to not leave me because, for the first in my life, I’m scared.

  I’m scared to live in a world where she doesn’t exist, where I don't get to see that smile that feels like the summer sun, or hear her laughter that sounds like the sweetest melody, or look into those eyes that guide me home, always.

  I hear my name being called a small hand on my arm.

  “Daddy. Daddy.”

  I blink.

  “Daddy!”

  Her voice is louder now making me blink a few more times her face coming into focus. As past memories fade.

  Tears rolling down her cheeks. I search her, my eyes taking everything in. I grab her, pulling her close to my chest. Her heart beat racing She’s okay. She’s alive. We saved her!

  “We need to leave.”

  Luke’s voice has both our head snapping up.

  I grab Juliet’s hand as we race through the compound toward the black van.

  Anderson visibly relaxes when he sees us.

  Juliet doesn't let go of my hand. She holds it tight like I'm her lifeboat and she’s lost at sea. She lifts her head up, looking me straight in the eyes as tears roll down her cheeks, but there’s a soft smile on her lips.

  “Mom told me you were coming to chase my monsters away.”

&nbs
p; I suck in a breath. I feel the wetness on my cheek.

  Juliet lifts her thumb, wiping it away. “Thank you, Daddy, for chasing my monsters away, for coming after me, for loving me. for saving me.”

  Dominic

  A lot has changed in the last two weeks since everything went down and we got Juliet out. She had nothing but a few bruises. Inferno kept to his word and kept my daughter safe. I owed him everything.

  Juliet turned up at my door with her bags, saying this was her home, that we’re a team.

  I still can't believe I have her in my life. She like fucking sunshine.

  There is so much of Avery in her.

  Carter is taking the news that Molly, fucking Marilyn, whatever she wanted to call herself, killed Avery badly. His whole married life was a total lie, as well as his friendship with Mac. When he found out he completely fucking lost it.

  Carter has always been the light-hearted one, but now there is darkness in his eyes that will always be there.

  He told me he had his suspicions, not that it was Molly, but that there was a bad cop working in the station. That's why he had wanted me to drop the case. But the fact was, he had been sleeping with the enemy the whole time. He never forgave himself. Although, he holds no fault other than falling in love.

  Mac has gone underground. Nobody knows where or when he left, but we later found out that he came from a pretty rough place. The life he led us to believe he lived was a complete lie. Maybe it was the one he dreamed of. Maybe he made it up so he could sleep better.

  Sharon, Avery’s mother came to see me. She promised me that they never held me responsible for Avery’s death and that to them I was family and always would be. She tells me that she promised Avery they would love me and she is keeping that promise.

  I apologized about missing Derek’s funeral and Sharon said that Derek never really recovered from Avery’s death. He was never the same man, she’s found some peace in knowing they are together again.

  Sharon also told us Cecilia was also having a hard time from Molly’s betrayal. They had been friends and kept in contact until only a few years ago. She is having a hard time dealing with the fact that we all had a dagger in our backs without any of us being suspicious of it.

  I find Juliet looking lost sometimes. I know she has her own demons now but they are different from mine. It seems as if she’s at war over something. I hear her crying at night. She’s going to the doctor soon, even if I have to drag her there, because she is making herself sick.

  I stand by the black stone, not taking my eyes off her name. Today marks twenty-two years without her.

  Instead of ending up at the bottom of a bottle, drinking until I black out, I go to the place I said I’d never return to—home.

  I can’t go back to our house because it’s just too much, but we pop in to see Sharon and have lunch with her. I stop dead in her hallway. It’s covered in photos of Avery, me, and Juliet. I take them all in—our dreams.

  Juliet’s first day at school, building sandcastles, her face covered in chocolate from making cakes, on a picnic, riding her pink bike and finally Juliet dressed in a tutu with Cooper dressed in a matching one. Cooper had stayed with them, too, and died only a few years back. He guarded my baby girl.

  “Hey, Mom. Thank you for loving me. Thank you for bringing Dad back to me. I knew you could do it.” Juliet kisses her fingertips before touching the stone as she lays sunflowers in front. She turns to me, her eyes taking everything in.

  “I’m okay, kid. I just need a word with your mom.”

  She walks back to the car, but not without checking over her shoulder first.

  Then I look down. “Hey, beautiful.”

  It’s silent.

  “She’s amazing. She’s also right, but never tell her that. I will never hear the end of it.” I trace the stone. “I know you brought her back to me. You gave me back the sunshine. Thank you, beautiful. I promise I’ll look after her and keep the monsters away. I’ll tell her something new about you every day! I love you, Avery Stone, so fucking much. I’ll wait for you in my dreams until we meet again.”

  Ever since that one night, she’s visited me in my dreams a few times, but never once spoke again.

  I learned later that I coded but came back with a start. I know it was Avery who sent me back.

  As I walk away, the breeze wraps around me and I smile. My beautiful.

  I get home and Juliet is looking out the window. She hasn’t even noticed I came in. She has been quiet all morning.

  “Baby girl.”

  She jumps at my voice. She turns her head, her eyes puffy and red.

  “I was scared, Dad, so scared. That place…” Her lip is trembling and she looks down at her cup. “I tried to be strong but they’re animals. In the compound, they’re not too bad, when Blaze is in charge. he’s the scariest man I’ve ever met. I swear, the devil looks back at you in his eyes. It’s like he’s already dead, just a carcass. I’ve never met someone so cold. He got called away on business and Rixs took it upon himself to be charge. No one will go against him because he’s crazy, like fucking loco. When he found out that Marilyn was dead, he was pissed.”

  She looks back up, disgusted. “Not because she was dead, but because he said she was a freak in bed and he could fuck her in any hole while she moaned like a whore.”

  Her whole body shudders. “He wanted me, Daddy. He wanted me. It would have killed me. Anything but that…”

  I race to her, anger alive in me. I stop inches from her. “Did he…” I can’t say the rest. I’m too scared to touch her. I’m shaking so much.

  She shakes her head. “No, Inferno wouldn’t let him. They fought for me and Inferno won. After that, I became his. He protected me the only way he knew how. He kept me in his room most of the time but when I had to make an appearance, he never let me go.”

  I know all this, but she doesn't know I had been watching her the whole time. We had decided it was best that she only know what she needed to.

  She looks up at me. Those same big eyes as Avery. “He kept the monsters away, Daddy.”

  I close my eyes, nodding. I know what this means, and it looks like my baby has just worked it out.

  “You love him.” It’s not question. It’s a statement because I can see the answers in her eyes it’s the same look in her eyes that her mother once had for me.

  She nods. “Does that make me wrong? I can't stand it. I miss him. So much I hate myself for it I hate that I want him! Need him! He’s like a thief, he stole my heart.”

  I bring her in close to me. “No, baby. You aren’t wrong. Just like your mom told me once, your heart already sees what your eyes didn’t expect.”

  My burner phone rings. I'm surprised it’s still on.

  “Stone.”

  I hear someone swallow.

  “We need you to come into the office now. Bring Juliet and do not stop for anything!”

  The phone clicks off.

  We walk in the building. Luke is there to meet us.

  I narrow my eyes at him. I see the way he's looking at my daughter.

  His cheek reddens when he notices he's been caught.

  Yeah keep your eyes forward fucker!

  We walk in to the office.

  Juliet takes off running and throws her arms around someone. When she steps back, I see its Cecelia.

  She was always a beautiful woman in the classical Hollywood way. She has always been so sweet and shy. Avery loved Cecelia like a little sister.

  I didn’t know what she was doing her though why Anderson would call her in? A bad feeling washed over me.

  She looks like she has just stepped out of some fashion magazine dressed in smart dress her hair perfectly in place so put together. That’s until she looks up and I see her eyes are red and puffy, with mascara streaks down her cheeks and her lips trembling.

  “Dominic?” Her voice is so vulnerable. My name a whisper filled with disbelief, she walks closer to me, slowly, as if she is seeing a ghost.
When she is close enough to reach me, she surprises me by chucking her arms around my neck. “I have never forgotten you. I think of you and Avery always,” she whispers so only I can hear.

  I put my arms around her, nodding. “Thank you for keeping your promise for watching over our baby girl.”

  She pulls back a watery smile on her face. Cecilia is like a fairytale princess. She wears her heart on her sleeve and she loves those around her. I know Avery’s death affected her deeply. I can see it in those ice blue eyes.

  “I don't know why I'm here. They came to get me.” She frowns up at me as if I know the answers.

  “I don’t know. We were called in, the same as you.”

  The door opens and in walks Anderson.

  Look on his face isn’t good, he rubs his neck. Whatever the fuck is happening isn’t good.

  Cecelia steps toward Anderson her whole body shaking. “What’s going on?” Her voice is still shaky.

  “Please, Cecelia, take a seat. We need to talk,” Anderson tells her, and I know that tone of voice.

  That’s the tone he uses when he has to inform families of victims. My interest is piqued. What the hell is going on? How do Cecelia and Anderson know each other?

  “No, tell me!” Cecelia pleads with him, almost as if she knows what’s coming. He eyes are frantically searching for something.

  “Cecelia—” Anderson begins, but is cut off.

  “Tell me!” Cecelia screams. She’s on the edge. She’s breaking right in front of our eyes.

  I walk beside Cecelia staring Anderson down cant he see she fucking breaking like a glass mirror.

  “Someone fucking tell us what the hell is going on?” I demand. This fucking charade has gone on long enough. Someone had better fucking tell me what the fuck is happening.

  Anderson looks at Cecelia as his eyes glass. “Fuck. I’m sorry, Cecelia, We haven’t heard off him in forty –eight hours. They have him” Anderson tells her and I stumble back. Cecelia stand there frozen before covering her mouth racing for the door.

  Fuck. If I've put the pieces together, then this is worse than any of us think. Fuck how I had not put the pieces together sooner! I look to Juliet and see that she is confused.