Seeking Our Destiny : Nelson Brothers'

by Liberty Parker

  “Slow your roll, woman,” he snaps at her when she loses her footing. Luckily, the bar was there for her to catch herself with before she went tumbling down to the ground.

  “Atticus, I’ve been walking on my own for years. I don’t need you standing behind me as a cushion,” she snaps at him.

  “Apparently you do,” he retorts as he points at where her hands are currently holding herself upright.

  “Careful what you say next. Especially if you want to keep your balls intact.” Instinctively, my hand comes out and protects my manhood.

  “You love my balls. Just the other night—” he begins to say. Her hand comes up and covers his mouth. I swear I hear a growl leave her, which has the room chuckling. I’m glad she covered my baby brother’s big mouth. I don’t even want to know how that sentence was going to go down,

  “Fuck, I’ve lost my appetite,” Jonas grumbles as Raven lovingly pats his shoulder in commiseration.

  “I think we all have,” I admit.

  “Pussies. You’re all a bunch of damn girls. You can torture a man, clean up blood and guts, but you can’t hear about what I do to your brother’s balls?” Piper rolls her eyes at us. But fuck, don’t no one wanna hear about Atticus’s nuts.

  “What do you do with Uncle Atticus’s nuts?” Damien asks, chomping on a French fry. I hear Raven’s indrawn breath then an ‘oomph’ as Piper elbows Atticus when he starts laughing like a loon.

  “They’re talking about grown-up things, little man,” I state when no one else moves to answer Damien.

  “Oh. Can I have more ketchup?” he asks. Raven sends me a grateful look and I nod as I go to the fridge to grab the bottle of ketchup. “Where’s Aunt Destiny?” he questions, popping a chicken nugget in his mouth.

  “Don’t talk with your mouth full,” Raven utters.

  “She’s sleeping, Damien.” I reply to his earlier question.

  “Can I have her nuggets?” I chuckle because he could eat nuggets for every meal.

  “I’ll fix her something if she wakes up and is hungry,” I say. “You eat what you want.”

  “Can Scooby have some?”

  “Chicken nuggets aren’t good for puppies,” Raven replies. “They need to eat puppy food, not human food.”

  “I bet he’d like them,” Damien grumbles as he continues to eat. I bet he would too if his tongue lolling out of his mouth as he sits at Damien’s feet is any indication.

  “So, we ready to go to work?” Atticus asks, clapping his hands.

  “I’m anxious to get some answers,” I mutter. “Need to figure out what the fuck is going on so we can shut it down.”

  “You guys do what you need to do, we’ll take care of Destiny,” Raven states, easing my worry. But I knew that they’d take care of her while I did what I have to do to ensure her safety.

  “Thanks,” I say to them as I gather up my trash and toss it in the can. Walking down the stairs, I hear my brother following closely behind. Jonas is heading to his Batcave to see if he can learn anything from the shit that Rex and the girls planted last night.

  “How are we going to do this? Are we playing good cop, bad cop? Or are we going in with both barrels blazing?” Atticus asks.

  “Figured we’d play it by ear,” I reply. I want my pound of flesh, of course, but I’m in the mood to draw it out a little — for research purposes.

  “Just what I like to hear, no game plan and I don’t have to pretend to be a good guy. I hate that motherfucking role,” he huffs. “I have an idea, Silas. There’s something I’ve wanted to do to this fucker ever since learning he’s a Dom.”

  “What’s that, little brother?” I inquire, not sure if I really wanna know or not.

  “Doms like to collar their submissives, right?”

  “Yeah,” I hesitantly answer.

  “What if, now hear me out, what if we give him his own marking, declaring he’s ours?”

  “Shit, you need to explain this to me before we enter the room.” I stand in front of the door and cross my arms over my chest.

  “I had this idea that’s been floating around in my mind since I learned what he does for a living. Anyway, I have this branding iron.”

  “Stop. I’ve heard enough. I can’t wait to mark his flesh with a big ole ‘N’ to brand him as our bitch.” Atticus and I walk into the room in full-blown laughter. Tony’s head raises and he shifts his eyes from me to my brother, then back to me.

  “Tony. Tony. Tony.” Atticus shakes his head and clicks his tongue. “You’ve been a bad boy.”

  “Fuck you,” Tony garbles out.

  “No thanks. That’s more your scene than mine. I have a woman, don’t need cock to make my dick stand on end,” Atticus retorts.

  “I hear you like to fuck anything with a hole, Tony,” I state.

  “Holes all work the same.” His response was just what I was hoping for.

  “So, anyone will do then?” I draw up my eyebrows waiting on a response. “Is that why you’re taking men as well as women?”

  “I’m not taking shit,” he spits.

  “Really? That’s not what we’ve heard,” Atticus inserts. “You get your jollies off on unwilling men and women? Can’t get hard unless you’re fucking with someone’s life?”

  “That’s not how it is. You two really suck at research. But then again, just because you have brawn doesn't mean you have brains,” Tony chuckles.

  “Is that what you think?” I ask. “That just because I have muscles means my brain doesn’t function correctly?”

  “Facts are facts, Silas. You use your little brain and not the one up top. I’ve heard all about you and the fact that you and Atticus here are all muscles. Jonas is the one with brains.”

  Atticus bellows out in laughter, clutching his stomach with his arms. “You really are pathetically clueless, aren’t you, Tony? Since you’re not going to walk out of these doors, let me tell ya something about the two of us. It’s share time, Tony boy. My big brother, the one you accuse of having no brains, well, he led a troop of fifty men. Guess what he did? Go ahead, take a wild guess.”

  “Fuck off, Atticus, I don’t give a damn what Silas did in his glory days.” Tony has the gall to roll his eyes. Nothing pisses off my little brother more than the disrespect Tony is bestowing upon him. Swiftly, Atticus brings his fist up and slams it down on Tony’s jaw. I hear something snap, guess Atticus did some damage on the man’s jawbone. Hopefully, Tony can still talk because we need fucking answers.

  “Don’t you dare fucking act like you’re better than us, you pussy. We don’t have to kidnap people to get our nut off. We have women willing to grace our beds without being drugged to do so. You are a weak, pathetic excuse of a human being, Tony. Now, do you want me to finish my story, or shall we get down to the good stuff?”

  “Do your worst, motherfucker, I’ll never tell you a goddamn thing. I’ll go to my grave satisfied that you’re still stumped. You’ll never be able to find out who holds your balls in their hands.” His laughter is menacing, and if I wasn’t a stronger man, I’d believe he may have all the cards in his hands. Oh, he’ll go to his grave, alright, he’s a dead man talking. He may think he can use his intel against us, but I don’t give a damn about how many secrets he spills, he’s going to fucking bleed before the night is over with.

  “Enough playing around. This fucker doesn’t understand what his fate holds for him. Let’s show him exactly what that is, little brother.” I walk over to our table and grab the paddle that we modified with tacks. Moving back over to where Tony is trussed up, I draw my arm back and slam it down on the top of his thigh, causing his leg to bounce up. Thankfully, I anticipated that happening so I didn’t catch a foot to my nuts. I watch as the tiny holes fill with blood and see Tony’s wince as the pain makes itself known. He won’t bleed out, not by a long shot, but he will feel every tiny hole, especially once we douse him with bleach water.

  “Here, let me clean that up for you,” Atticus says, coming over with the bottle and
spraying it across Tony’s thigh. The high-pitched squeal that emanates from our captive’s mouth is music to my ears. “Is that better now?” Atticus asks, grinning viciously and triumphantly at Tony.

  “Fuck you,” Tony spits out. This fucker thinks he’s got brass balls, but I’m fixing to show him what happens when he talks out of his ass.

  “Again, you don’t have my preferred equipment.” I chuckle dryly because Atticus tends to be brutal in his comments. I pull my hand back, hitting Tony in the chest this time, right above his nipple. He screeches in pain and I watch disinterestedly as blood pools and begins to drip down his chest.

  “I’ll never tell you anything. She’s scarier than the two of you combined!” he bellows as blood prickles his exposed skin.

  “She? Who is she, Tony?” I interrogate.

  “Come on, Tony. Don’t give in that easily. We have more ways to play,” Atticus whines.

  “Fuck you, assholes.” Tony’s whining is grating on my last nerve. If I didn’t need him alive and talking, I’d duct tape his mouth closed just to give my ears some much-needed reprieve.

  I motion Atticus away and murmur, “Think we need to enact your plan.”

  “The brand? Fuck yeah. We never used it when we ordered it after playing with Marcus Sr. and Jr. I have been waiting to use it on a foul-mouthed motherfucker like this. Ever since learning of his kinks, I’ve thought he’d be the perfect specimen to try it out on. You like collaring women, Tony? Guess what, I’m gonna claim you for the world to see.” I grimace because it’s not a small brand and it’s gonna fucking hurt like a bitch. I contemplate where we could place it to cause the most damage and inflict the most pain imaginable. Before I can offer my opinion, Atticus answers my silent question, “The back. Yep, that way, we’ll always be behind you.” Jesus fucking Christ, sometimes my brother scares the fuck out of me and I don’t cower to any man.

  “W-what do you mean?” Tony asks. For the first time, I see fear in his eyes that supersedes whoever the woman is that he is allegedly scared to death of betraying.

  “I have this big ole branding iron holding a big ole fat letter ‘N’. You’ll be our bitch once I’m through with you.” Atticus says, whistling a tune only he knows as he goes over to the table and turns on his blowtorch to start heating the brand. “See?” he questions, turning to show Tony. I see Tony’s face blanch when he gets a look at what Atticus is holding.

  “Y-you can’t do that.” Suddenly, suave Tony is a gibbering mess and I chuckle. Does he really think he has any room to dictate what we can and can’t do when it comes to him? He’s no longer the man in charge, we are.

  “We sure the fuck can,” I state. “You don’t want to give us anything we can use and we’re the type of men who will force that issue. This is, in essence, your own damn fault.”

  “How the hell do you figure that?” Tony asks.

  “Well... if you’d tell us what we want to know, we wouldn’t have to do this, but I like Atticus to be happy so, I let his inner demon out to play,” I counter, standing back with my arms crossed over my chest. I know I can be intimidating as hell and I am going to capitalize on that right now. “Fuck, Atticus, he pissed himself,” I mutter. “Damn, that stinks, let’s stop that from happening further.” A gleam enters Atticus’ eyes at my declaration.

  “Ah hell no, ain’t got time for that. Hang on, Silas. I got it,” Atticus says, putting the torch and brand down. He grabs the super glue and walks over to Tony and before I can say anything further, he pulls his pants down and squeezes out some glue along the slit in Tony’s dick. I barely hold back my grimace because Atticus wasn’t gentle in his ministrations.

  “Fuck!” Tony hollers out. “It burns!”

  “Well, I’m not gonna blow on it to make it feel better,” I inform him.

  “Yeah, me either. Hell, where’s that C-clamp?” Atticus inquires, looking over his shoulder at me.

  “It’s in the toolbox,” I state, gesturing to it with my head.

  “Grab it for me, will you?” Atticus asks, causing me to shudder from the twinkle in his eyes. These are the only times my brother gets away with ordering me around. I sigh and walk to where the toolbox is sitting, then grab the C-clamp. When I hand it over, he nods and I step back, content to let Atticus run this show. For now. I’d prefer him to be the one to touch Tony’s balls and dick. Not really my thing, I’d rather be the one to burn his flesh from his bones, pour honey on his skin and let ants crawl all over him. Insert needles into his skin, pry off one fingernail at a time. Those are my sort of torture techniques. Other men’s genitals, nah, I’ll leave that one to my brother.

  “What the fuck?” Tony screams as Atticus puts the C-clamp on his balls. Yeah, that’s gonna leave a mark. Atticus tightens it slightly and I watch as sweat forms on Tony’s body. The fear emanating from him is an essence that’s only beat by my woman when she’s writhing beneath me.

  “There, that should do it,” Atticus states, standing and going back to the brand and blowtorch. Once again, he starts the process of heating the iron while Tony watches, his eyes so wide that he looks like one of those cartoon characters.

  “Y’know, Tony, you can tell us what information you have and all of this stops,” I say, conversationally, as if we’re not in the middle of torturing him, but instead are sitting at a bar, feet kicked up having a good time and enjoying a few beers with our friends.

  “I can’t tell you,” Tony insists. “Mrs. W. will kill me if I say anything.”

  “Well, we’re gonna kill you if you don’t,” Atticus replies. “So, since you’re here with us and not with her, I’d say we’re your biggest problem right now.”

  “Ledger. I keep a detailed book about all things regarding her. I won’t tell you, but you can read all about it,” he deadpans.

  “Right, and where would we locate this book of previous and future acts of violence against the innocent?” I lean over him as I ask this.

  “It’s in a secret panel behind my desk. But you need my thumbprint to open it.” If he thinks he’ll be escaping this room and escorting us to his office, he has another thing coming.

  “Chop off his thumb, Atticus. Both of them, let’s not take any chances. We’ve got dry ice down here and a cooler so we should be good.”

  “Then, can I end him?” Atticus pleads. “I’m sick of hearing his condescending voice. It makes my skin crawl every time he opens his mouth and speaks.”

  “Thinking we should keep him around in case he’s lying to us,” I advise my eager brother.

  “Fuck. That just ruined my good mood, Silas.”

  “You’ll get over it, Atticus.”

  “You’re no fun anymore, big brother.” Fun? Is that really what we’re doing here?

  “Then I guess I’ll end him and take that glorious task away from you.” I watch as his bottom lip sticks out as it did when he was younger and wanted to get his way.

  “You wouldn’t do that to me, would you, Silas?”

  “Abso-fucking-lutely.”

  “Fine, I’ll cut off his thumbs and cauterize the skin so he doesn’t bleed out, yet.” Atticus sulks as I walk out of the room. I sometimes wonder if he’s got some rocks loose in his skull. It wouldn’t surprise me if he wasn’t firing on all cylinders. There’s always been something dark residing inside of him.

  Destiny

  I wake to someone soothing me. It’s Piper, I’d know her scent and hands anywhere. “It’s okay, Destiny. Just a dream, go back to sleep. No monsters are going to get you while I’m around.” Until Silas, Piper was the only one who could soothe me. I relax under her calming touch.

  “Piper. Where’s Silas?”

  “Putting an end to the demons that plague us all, Destiny. He’s fine, go back to sleep. I’ll be here when you wake.” I curl into my pillow as her hands continue to stroke my back. I can feel the lull of sleep calling me, but I’m still feeling a bit unsettled.

  “Promise?” I feel like a weak, scared kitten. No wonder Silas calls me
that, I’m always gonna need someone to stand beside me through life. Like a kitten who’s been abandoned by her mother.

  “You aren’t weak, Destiny. You’re one of the strongest women I know.” Her calm voice helps ease some of my tension.

  “Tired,” I slur.

  “Then sleep. I’ll be right beside you the entire time your eyes are closed. Trust me, Destiny. I’m not going anywhere.”

  “Always there,” I mumble.

  “Always.”

  8

  Silas

  The club is wrapped in caution tape. Since it’s a crime scene, Atticus and I have to be stealthy in the way we enter so as not to disturb anything. “This place is freaky as fuck with no one here,” Atticus whispers.

  “We’ve been in worse,” I remind him.

  “Yeah, but knowing what went down here, and what’s happened in the past, it has an eerie feel about it. It’s as if its past victims’ souls are still attached to this place.”

  “Fucker, let’s just get this done and over with. I want to get home to Destiny. It’s not as if Casper is gonna come out of the woodwork and attack us.”

  “If we see Casper, friendly ghost or not, I’m gone,” Atticus mutters. If he keeps this up, I’ll gift wrap him and personally deliver him to the friendly ghost.

  We get to Tony’s office door and Atticus slips on a pair of gloves before grabbing the thumb he has in a small insulated cooler. I grin because he grabbed one that has smiley faces on it; kind of morbid in a way, but if we can get to the bottom of this, we’ll have those grins. Maybe.

  A few seconds later, we’re in Tony’s office and I head to the hidden panel that’s on the back wall. Atticus takes the thumb and puts it against the sensor. When the light flashes green, he opens the safe door and we see the infamous ledger. “Get it and let’s get the fuck outta here,” I whisper. My gut is roiling and I know that whatever’s in that book is going to implode on us all. My goal? Damage control and protection.