by J. E. Parker
“Ma-ma!” Lucca’s cry grew louder, more frantic.
Get up, Shelby! Get up and fucking fight!
Using all the strength I could muster, I pushed myself onto my elbows. Still gasping for breath, I tilted my head back and let my mouth hang open. The more air I sucked down, the quicker my vision seemed to return to normal.
Blinking rapidly, I looked up at the night sky.
Someone moved to my right. Taking one last breath, I turned my head, knowing exactly what—or rather who—I’d see standing beside me.
Time to face the monster.
Tilting my head back, I looked up at the dark figure next to me.
Damien…
When my eyes met his for the first time in almost two years, I expected the panic that resided deep in my chest to rise. I expected it to barrel forward like a freight train and rip my control and sanity from me in the blink of an eye, rendering me helpless and unable to defend myself and Lucca.
Surprisingly, it didn’t. Instead, another overwhelming emotion boiled beneath the surface of my heated skin.
That emotion? Red hot, murderous rage.
I welcomed it.
After glancing over at Lucca to make sure he was okay—he was—I stared up at the man who’d helped break my heart, scar my soul, and damage my psyche. With a smile on my face, I shot the sorry son of a bitch one hell of a scathing look and said, “I hope you’ve given your heart to Jesus, Damien, because your ass is mine.”
This. Ends. Now.
37
Shelby
Damien pointed a small revolver at my chest. “Get up.” He nodded toward an eerily silent Lucca. “Get over there with the kid.”
Pushing to my hands and knees, I stood. My eyes never left Damien’s as I moved toward Lucca and stood in front of him, shielding his body with my own.
“Pick our son up and walk that way, Shelby Ray,” he commanded, gesturing towards the woods with the gun. When I didn’t move, his face twisted in anger. “Don’t make me ask you again.” His eyes cut to Lucca. “It won’t be you that I punish if you disobey me.”
I had two choices.
I could either listen to Damien’s orders or I could grab Lucca and make a run for it. Both were dangerous, but at that point, one was more likely to end in our deaths. Even as fast as I was, I couldn’t outrun a bullet. In my mind, the only option I had was to remain obedient and wait for the opportunity to strike while simultaneously praying like hell that Anthony or Hendrix found us.
Deep in my heart, I knew Damien wouldn’t stand a chance against either of them. They’d both tear him apart with their bare hands if need be. Hendrix, much as I loved him, had a temper to rival my own. If he found us, his mind would blank, and he’d charge.
Anthony though? Anthony was more calculated. Yeah, he had a temper, but he was more of a ‘think then act’ man. I doubted he’d run at Damien head on. Knowing him, he’d probably covertly attack before eradicating the bastard.
I only hoped they’d find us in time.
I’d purposely left the sliding glass door open so they’d see it and come running. I just hoped someone would see it sooner rather than later. But until one of them reached us, I had to handle Damien myself.
You can do this, Shelby. Protect yourself. Protect Lucca!
Lifting my little man into my arms, I turned my back to the gun, making sure to block his body with mine. The gun that Damien was holding was a .38. Thought it was still powerful—I mean, it was a gun for Christ’s sake—it didn’t have the stopping power of the .45 I kept in my truck’s dash. If it came down to it, I could probably take a few hits—as long as they weren’t in the head or heart—without dying right away.
“Walk,” Damien barked, becoming more agitated with each passing second. “Now!”
Wrapping my arms around a still silent Lucca, I took a step. Then I took another. Running my fingers up and down my sweet boy’s spine, I rested my chin on top of his head. “It’s going to be okay, baby.” I squeezed him harder. “Just be a good boy and stay quiet for me, little man.”
Curling his little fingers into my tank top, Lucca pressed his face into my chest. He didn’t make a sound; not a single peep. It was a miracle but looking back I know he was silent because he was scared to death. At that point, I still didn’t know how Damien had gotten his hands on him. I also didn’t know where Liam and Declan were or if they’d been hurt.
Please let them be okay.
When we made it a hundred or so yards past the tree line, Damien’s footsteps quickened. Within seconds he was standing directly behind me. I flinched when he jabbed the barrel of the gun into my lower back. “Turn around.”
Defiant, I pushed back. “Put the gun down, Damien.” It was probably stupid to demand anything from him, but I wasn’t about to turn around and put Lucca in the line of fire.
The gun dug deeper into my spine.
Damien’s hot breath ghosted over the back of my neck, and I had to force myself to remain still, his chest pressed against my shoulder blades and his free arm slipped around my belly. He spread his fingers, allowing his long digits to rest atop my scars.
The same scars he’d enjoyed inflicting.
Memories of the past threatened to rise, but I pushed them back.
Squaring my shoulders, I straightened my spine.
I will not freeze. I will not panic. I will NOT fucking cower.
His chuckled before pressing his lips to the back of my neck. “What did I tell you about disobeying me?” My stomach rolled, and bile rose into my throat at the slight contact. At one time I loved when he kissed me gently but not now. Now, all I wanted to do was slowly peel his lips away with a razor blade before poking his eyes out with a fork and setting his face on fire. “Seems to me, you’ve forgotten your place, my little pet.” Another kiss. “Seems you’ve forgotten all the rules.” His tongue peeked out, tasting my skin. I barely held back a gag. “Seems you’ve forgotten what it feels like to be punished by me.”
“No,” I replied, my voice quiet but steady. “I didn’t forget.”
The truth was, I doubted I’d ever forget. Even though I’d made progress the memory, the fear and the feelings of weakness would always be there, lurking beneath the surface. That didn’t mean I had to allow them to rule my life though.
Hugging Lucca tighter, I closed my eyes and said a silent prayer.
Please, let us survive this. If not me, please let my son live.
“How could I forget when my body still carries your scars?” He smiled against my neck. “Trust me, Damien”—I paused and took a breath; one which could quite possibly be my last—“I haven’t forgotten what a vile, disgusting monster you are.” His muscular chest tensed against my back and his arm tightened around my belly. “Just like I have forgotten what a cowardly bastard you are.”
Damien’s breathing escalated and I waited for the hit that I knew was likely coming.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three—
Wrapping my ponytail around his meaty fist, Damien jerked my head back, exposing my neck. Lucca cried out in fear as my entire body tensed. “You always were a mouthy little bitch. I thought I broke you of that little habit, but I see that I was wrong.” His teeth sank into my neck, and I clenched my jaw to keep from screaming out in pain. I flat out refused to give him the satisfaction of knowing that he’d hurt me. “Or maybe it’s from all that time you’ve been spending fucking that damn guinea.” Another bite, this time harder. I felt my skin break, and I inhaled in an effort to fight the pain. “Tell me, Shelby, how does it feel to know that you’ve turned into a whore just like your mother?” He chuckled, low and deep. “How does it feel to know you’re the carbon copy of the person you hate most?”
My entire body began to shake. “I am nothing like her.”
“Yeah,” he said, licking the drops of blood dribbling down my neck. “How do you figure?”
My anger—my fucking rage—grew with each second that passed. �
��Because I would never willingly put my child in harm’s way.” I pressed my back into his chest; his fingers lightly traced over my belly in return. “And I would kill any person that ever tried to hurt them.”
Be brave, Shelby. Don’t cower!
“Just like I’m going to kill you.”
Damien stilled. “Just for that, I’m going to make this extra painful, beautiful.” He unwound his arm from my body, shifted his weight and pulled something out of his pants. My eyes slammed shut as the sound of a switchblade clicking open reached my ears.
No! Not again!
The blade pressed into the side of my throat.
“Ma-ma!” Lucca cried out.
Damien flicked the blade down, nicking my skin. The warmth of my blood slid down my flesh. “Make him shut up.” Another flick; more blood. “Or else I’ll slit his fucking throat.”
I pulled Lucca’s face into my chest, shielding his eyes from what was happening. “Shh, baby.”
Behind us, I heard the glass patio door that I’d exited from slide open. “Shelby!” Hendrix’s loud shout echoed off the trees surrounding us. “Shelby, damn it!” He continued to yell. “Where the hell are you?”
Damien tensed again before shoving me forward. I stumbled and unable to right my footing, fell to my knees. Lucca cried out, but I held him tight.
“Is that your boyfriend, Shelby?” Damien asked. “The one that I’m going to blow a hole through before the night is over with.”
My mouth twisted into a sadistic smile. “No,” I replied. “That’s my big brother. When he finds you, he’s going to rip you to pieces.” It was the truth. “That’s if Anthony doesn’t reach you first.”
Damien didn’t respond as his breathing grew more erratic.
Knowing that there were people—men—looking for me, he was beginning to panic. I wasn’t joking when I told Anthony that Damien wouldn’t stand up to another man. He’d never go toe to toe with someone who stood a fighting chance against him.
Like D-Boy, Damien was a pussy who preyed on vulnerable women.
Gathering all my courage, I pressed a single kiss to Lucca’s head. With Damien distracted and looking behind him, I gently laid Lucca on the ground. Pressing a finger to my lips, I beckoned for him to be quiet.
His chin wobbled, but he didn’t cry.
Looking back, I know it was a miracle. He should’ve been crying, should’ve been screaming, but he wasn’t. Placing my hand over his heart, I let its mighty beat wash through me. At that moment, there wasn’t a thing I wouldn’t do to ensure that it kept beating.
With tears in my eyes, I forced a smile. “I love you, sweet boy,” I whispered so quietly that only he could hear. “From now until forever, I love you, Lucca. Please don’t ever forget that.”
More shouting sounded from behind us. “Shelby!”
Anthony.
Lucca’s chin wobbled again. “Toe, Mama.”
“He’s coming, baby.” The first tear slipped free. “Toe is coming.”
“Shelby!” Maddie. “Please answer!” A second passed before she spoke again. Her panicked voice was like a shot of adrenaline straight to my heart. “Oh God!” she cried. “What if he took her?”
Her voice was louder, clearer than Hendrix and Anthony’s had been.
They’re getting closer.
Like the idiot that he was, Damien kept looking in the direction of the approaching voices. I looked over my shoulder and watched him. Needing to figure out the best way to attack, I studied his body position. The hand that held the small revolver was raised in the air, pointing toward the back of Grandmama’s house. His other hand, the one holding the switchblade, hung limply at his side.
“Sunshine!”
A twig snapped, leaves crunched.
At the sound, Damien pulled back the hammer on the revolver.
A second later, Maddie’s beautiful face came into view. Her sparkling green eyes locked on mine. “Shelby?” She asked in a questioning tone before moving her gaze to the left and finding Damien. She instantly blanched at the sight of him. Wide-eyed, she opened her mouth to scream but no sound came out.
Damien moved his arm and aimed the gun at her chest. His finger hovered over the trigger. I couldn’t see his face, but I knew he was smiling.
Maddie’s chin wobbled as she instinctively wrapped her arms around her swollen belly. Every protective instinct inside of me roared to life at the sight of her protecting her unborn child.
No! No way in hell will I allow him to hurt her.
It had been almost two years since Maddie found me—broken and bleeding—on of a country road in rural Alabama. She and Evan were on their way back to Toluca after attending a Domestic Violence conference in Mobile. After taking a wrong turn, they got lost thanks to the faulty GPS on Evan’s phone.
They hadn’t seen a house nor another car for ten minutes when they found me, six months pregnant and covered in blood, stumbling down the middle of the road.
Maddie didn’t have to stop that night. She didn’t have to stay with me at the hospital as the doctors stitched me up, and she didn’t have to bring me back home with her and help me heal—physically, emotionally, and mentally.
Three months later, she didn’t have to hold my hand through thirty-four hours of labor and the terrifying c-section that followed. She didn’t have to carry me through the darkness of postpartum depression, and she didn’t have to love my son like he was her own.
Yet, she’d done all of those things.
You have to protect her. Protect her baby!
Steeling my spine, my gaze met hers.
My moment had come… It was time to pay Maddie back for saving me. Now, it was my turn to save her. Screwing my lips up into a smile, I mouthed the words, I’ve got this.
My eyes moved back to Damien. Still looking at Maddie, he didn’t have a clue what was about to happen. “Hey there, princess,” he said to Maddie. “Looks like you showed up at the wrong—”
Without wasting another second, I charged.
Digging my feet into the soft ground, I pushed forward, gathering as much momentum as I possibly could. Just like I’d done with D-Boy, I braced my arms in front of me and prepared for the collision that I knew was coming.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
Four seconds.
Dropping my right shoulder, I leaned forward and slammed myself into Damien’s lower back.
Boom!
My shoulder popped on impact, and I flipped head over ass before coming to a sliding stop on the grass-covered ground. Something sharp dug into my side, and I groaned in agony as I rolled over to see what it was.
Gasping for breath, I slid my hand over my rib cage. Slipping my fingers through the torn material of my tank top, I tenderly touched my freshly torn flesh. Brows furrowed, I lifted my hand in front of me and stared at my blood coated fingers.
Oh, God!
“You fucking bitch!” Damien yelled, climbing to his feet. My eyes immediately flew to his hands, searching for any sign of the gun or switchblade.
Both of his hands were empty.
Pushing myself to my knees, I tried to get up. As my chest hovered over the grass, a flash of silver on the ground caught my eye. I smiled as I lowered my hand and wrapped my blood covered fingers around the handle of the knife I’d grabbed from Grandmama’s kitchen. I didn’t even stop to question how it’d gotten to where it was. I didn’t know if Damien had picked it up when I dropped it earlier and then dropped it again when I tackled him or what. Didn’t care either. The only thing that mattered was that I had something to defend myself with.
Lucca began to scream in fright as Damien made his way toward me. His face was red, and his hands were clenched into fists at his sides. “You fucking whore, you’re going to—”
“Hendrix!” Maddie screamed again. “Anthony!” Running to Lucca, she scooped him up in her arms and stumbled backward before disappearing into the darkness that the woods provid
ed.
Heavy footsteps sounded from behind me, and I knew help was on the way. Though I doubted they’d be able to find me right away. Damien and I were standing in a gulley, next to the creek. Maddie finding us had most likely been pure luck.
Once again, my angel came to the rescue.
Knowing that he was running out of time, Damien moved faster. With only five feet separating me from him, he cocked his arm back in preparation to punch me. His fist shook in anger and his face twisted into a mask of rage.
I will not run. I will not hide. I will not fucking cower!
Tightening my fingers around the handle of the knife, I released a blood-curdling scream. Damien, in turn, roared as he lunged at me. Raising my arm in the air, I swung the knife toward him with every ounce of force I could muster.
The blade met the soft flesh of Damien’s gut and sunk deep.
Wild-eyed, Damien dropped his arm and stumbled backward. Wrapping his hands around the handle of the knife, he coughed, before pulling it out and dropping it to the ground by his side.
“Shelby!” Anthony screamed. “Answer me!”
Damien’s eyes darkened until his pupils looked solid black. A drop of drool slid from the corner of his mouth as he stood there, completely silent, staring at me.
Finish this!
Spotting his gun out of the corner of my eye, I took a quick breath, pushed to my feet and lunged for it. Unstable and lightheaded from barreling into Damien, I fell to my knees before reaching it. Lying down on my belly, I stretched my arms out—ignoring the searing pain in my shoulder—and raked the gun toward me using the tips of my fingers. Catching a second wind, Damien started to move behind him. His footsteps weren’t as quick as before, but he was still coming for me.