by Stormy Glenn
Rourke gritted his teeth when Billy shook his head again until he spotted Seamus just beyond Billy’s shoulder. His brother was slowly making his way toward Billy’s position from behind. Rourke needed to distract Billy. He moved closer, watching Billy’s entire body tense as if he was preparing to run.
“Billy, why did you leave a note on my truck?” Rourke pulled the note out of his pocket and opened it up. He was a little surprised at the words and totally shocked by their meaning.
Beware of Clem.
He means you harm.
“Is this meant for me, Billy?” Rourke asked as he held the note up.
Billy nodded.
“Why?” Billy shrugged, but he dropped his eyes, so Rourke knew there was more to his answer than he was giving. “You’ve never tried to warn me before, Billy. Why this time? Why not when Clem tried to burn down the barn?”
“I’m sorry.”
They were the first whispered words out of Billy’s mouth since he’d run away in the forest earlier in the day. Rourke thought he might finally be getting through to the man. He held out his hand.
“Come on, Billy, come out of there so we can talk. I promise no one here will hurt you.”
Billy bit his lip, watching Rourke intently, as if measuring his words for their truthfulness. He started to move forward when Rourke saw Seamus reach for him.
“No!” Rourke shouted, but it was too late.
Seamus grabbed Billy’s leg and jerked him out from under the table. Billy went wild, fighting like a madman. Rourke jumped up and ran around the end of the table. He dropped to his knees and tried to help his brothers pin Billy to the floor.
He was unnerved by how ferociously Billy fought considering not a single sound came out of his mouth, not even a whimper. There was something wrong with that, unnatural. Billy should be screaming bloody murder with how hard he was fighting. It sent a chill down Rourke’s spine.
They finally got Billy pinned to the floor, Rourke holding his hands down. Seamus and Quaid each held down one of Billy’s legs. Surprisingly, it took all three of them to hold Billy still. He was a fighter.
“Holy mother of hell,” Seamus gasped. “Rourke.”
Rourke glanced back at his brother, surprised by the swear words coming out of his mouth, only to find Seamus looking down at Billy. Rourke followed his gaze to Billy’s back. His blood ran cold the second he spotted the swollen and bleeding abrasions that had been hidden under Billy’s shirt.
Rourke’s hand trembled as he reached down and gently lifted Billy’s shirt. His swift inhale echoed that of his brothers as they all got a look at the damage done to Billy’s back. Someone had beaten him so badly that his back looked like one big open wound.
Long slash marks went from Billy’s shoulders all the way down his back and under the edge of his pants. The back of Billy’s shirt was soaked with blood. Not even Billy’s arms had escaped the carnage. They had deep, bleeding lacerations on them as well.
“Damn, Billy.” Rourke could barely whisper the words as an overwhelming anger filled him. He had the sudden deep need to kill someone, rip them limb from limb. It warred with his need to cradle Billy’s abused body to him and protect the man from everything. “Who did this to you?”
Chapter 3
Billy shuddered, pain shooting through his body when someone’s finger gently touched one of the cuts on his back. Even the smallest contact hurt. Billy’s entire body hurt. Clem had really done a job on him.
It wasn’t the first beating he’d received at the hands of his older brother, and Billy doubted that it would be the last. Clem could be pretty vicious when he was angry, and right now, Clem was livid.
Somehow, Clem had seen him and Rourke kiss. It probably wouldn’t have been so bad if Rourke had just kissed him, but Billy had kissed Rourke back, and that made him bad in Clem’s eyes, which was unacceptable to his brother.
Billy had to pay for his actions, and Clem made sure he did. The whipping itself had been intense, but Clem didn’t stop there. After whipping Billy until he was a bloody mess, Clem proceeded to beat Billy with his fists and feet, kicking and hitting him until he lost consciousness.
Clem was gone when Billy woke up. Billy had crawled to the edge of the creek and cleaned himself up as best he could. He was pretty sure that he had at least a couple of cracked ribs, if not some broken ones. He’d already spit out one tooth.
“Seamus, go get Ma and Da.”
Billy pressed his lips together to keep from whimpering when he heard Seamus get up and run out of the room. He just wanted to go curl up in some dark hole and heal like he normally did.
He didn’t want Mrs. Blaecleah to come and see what Clem had done to him. Clem always swore he’d kill him if Billy ever said anything to anyone. Billy knew he would. He had enough experience with his brother’s temperament to know Clem meant the threats he made.
“Billy,” Rourke asked softly, “is anything broken?”
Billy had no idea. He just shrugged then winced when pain shot through his back.
“Okay, we’re going to let you go and roll you over.” Rourke gently patted Billy’s shoulder. “Please don’t run. I don’t want you to do any more damage than has already been done.”
Billy held his breath as he was gently rolled onto his back. Every movement hurt, and he couldn’t keep the small cry in his throat from breaking free. Billy thought he would be laid back on the floor or at the least put in a chair. He was surprised when Rourke’s arms wrapped around him and he was lifted up, Rourke cradling Billy on his lap.
“I am so sorry, Billy,” Rourke whispered against the top of his head. “This never should have happened to you.”
Billy just didn’t have anything to say to that. He didn’t exactly understand why Rourke was so upset. Billy had been beaten up before, granted never this bad, but that didn’t change the fact that it would probably happen again.
“Tell me who did this, Billy,” Rourke said. “I’ll make sure it never happens again.”
Billy could only muster half a snort, but a snort none the less. He didn’t believe Rourke. No matter what Rourke promised, Billy would have to go home at some point, and then Clem would go at him again.
Maybe it was just better if he left now before any more damage could be done. Billy had done what he came to do. He had warned Rourke. He needed to leave before Clem found out he was here. He might not survive the beating he’d get if that happened.
Billy tried to sit up, to push away from Rourke, but the man’s arms were like steel bands around him. “Please,” Billy whispered desperately, “I need to go before Clem finds out.”
“Clem?” Rourke’s arms tightened around Billy. “Billy, did Clem do this to you?”
Billy closed his eyes, wishing he’d kept his mouth shut. He knew he shouldn’t talk. It always got him into trouble.
“Billy, answer me,” Rourke demanded so harshly that Billy cringed. “Did Clem do this to you?”
“Rourke,” came another voice, a stern voice, “don’t you dare talk to that boy like that.”
Billy opened his eyes and looked across the room to see Mrs. Blaecleah standing in the doorway, her husband right behind her. He groaned and turned his head, burying it in Rourke’s chest. Things just kept getting better.
“Now, I want to know what is going on in here.”
“Someone beat Billy, Ma,” Rourke said.
“Well, it damn well better not have been one of you.”
“No, ma’am,” all three brothers answered after a moment of silence.
Billy used Rourke’s momentary distraction with his ma’s swearing to push away from the man. Rourke tried to grab at him, but Billy was faster, scooting across the floor until he could climb to his feet.
“Billy!”
Billy wasn’t stupid. If Rourke got a hold of him again, he’d never get free.
“Billy,” Mrs. Blaecleah said softly, clasping her hands calmly together in front of her, “no one in this house will hurt you. You h
ave my word on that. You are perfectly safe here.”
Billy desperately wanted to believe Mrs. Blaecleah, she seemed so sincere. He just didn’t know if he should. “I got to go before Clem finds out I’m here. I just wanted to warn Rourke that Clem is coming for him.”
“Your brother is coming here?”
Billy shrugged. He didn’t know what Clem had planned, but his brother had shouted at him enough about what he wanted to do to Rourke that Billy had a pretty good idea. Clem wanted Rourke dead.
“Boys, I want you to go out and make sure the ranch is locked down,” Mr. Blaecleah said from behind his wife. “Rourke, you run over to Lachlan’s house and warn him and Asa to be on the lookout for anything suspicious.”
Seamus and Quaid hurried out of the room as their da ordered. A moment later, the front door slammed shut. Rourke just stood there looking across the room at Billy. He didn’t seem to be in a hurry to leave.
“Rourke, did you hear me?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Then get going.”
Billy watched Rourke slowly back out of the room. He could feel the man’s eyes on him until he disappeared from sight. A moment later, the front door opened then slammed closed. Billy instantly turned his attention to the last two people in the room.
“Can I go now?”
“Billy, you can leave anytime you like. You’re not a prisoner here, but I wish you’d stay. I’d like to get a look at your injuries and get you cleaned up a bit.” Mrs. Blaecleah smiled. “I can even offer you something to eat. We have a lot of leftovers from the wedding.”
“It was a real nice wedding, Mrs. Blaecleah. Lachlan and Asa looked real happy.”
“Did you…” Mrs. Blaecleah glanced over her shoulder at her husband for a moment then back at Billy, “see the wedding?”
Billy felt his face pale as he realized what he said. He really needed to learn to keep his mouth shut. “I kind of watched from the woods between our farms, but I didn’t do anything, I swear. I just watched.”
“I never said you did, Billy.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You have nothing to be sorry about, Billy.” Mrs. Blaecleah gestured to one of the dining room chairs. “Why don’t you have a seat? I can take a look at your back while Da makes you some tea. It will make you feel better.”
Billy didn’t know what to do. He didn’t want to offend Mrs. Blaecleah, but he was nervous about staying, too. The longer he stayed, the more chances of Clem finding out he was here. “I need to go.”
“I understand that, Billy, but I would feel a whole lot better if you would let me look at your back first.”
Billy knew there was no way to get out of it. Mrs. Blaecleah was going to get her way whether he liked it or not. Besides, the faster the woman looked at him, the faster he could leave. Billy walked over and straddled one of the chairs. He crossed his arms over the back and rested his head on them, waiting.
“Donnell, would you go get me my medical kit?”
Billy winced when someone turned up the light in the room. He heard a soft inhale behind him and turned to see Mrs. Blaecleah staring at his back. “It’s not that bad,” he hastened to assure her. “It will heal in a few days.”
“Billy, how many times have you been beat up?”
Billy turned back around, his face suddenly feeling hot when he spotted both Mr. Blaecleah standing just inside the dining room doorway, staring at his back. “A few times.”
“Can you get your shirt off?”
Billy nodded and reached down to grab the hem of his cotton shirt. He hissed in pain as he raised his arms over his shoulders then pulled the shirt off over his head. Billy was careful to fold the shirt and put it on his lap, not on Mrs. Blaecleah’s table. He didn’t want to leave a mess.
“This might hurt a bit, Billy.”
Billy braced himself even though he knew not much else could hurt after getting beat by Clem. Still, he inhaled sharply and jerked when warm water was poured down his back. He gripped the back of the hard wooden seat to keep from crying out.
“I’m so sorry, Billy,” Mrs. Blaecleah said. “I know this must hurt like the dickens. I’m just trying to get all of the blood cleaned off so I can see what we’re dealing with here.”
“I was whipped.”
“Whipped?”
Billy could hear the horror lacing Mrs. Blaecleah’s voice and cringed. He shouldn’t have said that. He slapped his hand over his mouth to keep from saying anything else. He just dug himself a bigger hole every time he did.
Mrs. Blaecleah must have felt his panic because she didn’t say anything else or ask any more questions. She just cleaned up Billy’s back, put some sort of cream on it, and then wrapped a bandage all the way around Billy’s chest.
A few minutes later, Mr. Blaecleah came back into the room carrying a clean shirt and a cup of hot tea. He set both on the table in front of Billy before leaning down closer to him. “You might want to put on a clean shirt, otherwise you’ll upset Ma.”
Billy nodded and pulled the shirt over his head as quickly as he could. He grabbed the cup of tea and took a hesitant sip, groaning when the sweet flavor of chamomile crossed over his tongue. It tasted really good.
“Thank you, Mrs. Blaecleah.”
“You’re more than welcome, Billy,” she said as she sat down across from him.
“Billy?”
Billy turned to look at Mr. Blaecleah. “Yes, sir?”
“I know this is hard for you to talk about, but can you tell me what happened?” Mr. Blaecleah asked. He made a small gesture with his hand toward Billy’s back. “Who beat you up?”
Billy swallowed hard and set his teacup back on the table. His hands were shaking, and he was afraid he might drop the cup, and wouldn’t that make a great impression on Mrs. Blaecleah?
“Clem.”
“Why would your brother beat you up?”
Billy started fidgeting with the white tablecloth covering the table, drawing little circles with his finger. “He got mad because I snuck over to watch the wedding.”
“Billy, you know you could have come to the wedding if you had wanted to,” Mrs. Blaecleah said. “All you had to do was ask.”
“Naw, Clem wouldn’t have liked that.” Billy took a deep breath even though it made his chest and back hurt then let it out slowly. “Clem doesn’t like me being over here. He gets angry every time he finds out I’ve been here.”
“Do you come here often, Billy?”
“Not often, no, but sometimes I need to make sure you all are okay.” Billy frowned as he tried to put his thoughts into words that they might understand. “Clem gets real angry sometimes, and I’m afraid of what he might do. And I just like knowing he hasn’t hurt you all.”
When the silence in the room became so thick that Billy could barely breathe, he glanced up to see Mr. and Mrs. Blaecleah staring at him. “I never come on to the property. I’m not trespassing. I just come to the edge of the trees.”
“You’re more than welcome to come visit us anytime you wish to, Billy.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Blaecleah, but I don’t think I will be coming back over anymore. It just makes Clem angry and…” Billy suddenly remembered what had happened in the woods with Rourke, how the man had humiliated him. He dropped his hands down under the table to his lap and clenched them, digging his nails into the palm of his hands to give him something else to think about. “I think it’s just best if I just stay away.”
“Billy, do you know anything about the barn burning down?”
“I’m real sorry about that, Mr. Blaecleah. I tried to stop Clem, but he just gets so mad. I was going to come warn you, but Clem locked me in the cellar so I couldn’t tell. I feel real bad about what happened to Lachlan and Asa. I never wanted them hurt.”
“Didn’t you and Clem get into a fight with Asa?” Mrs. Blaecleah asked. “Didn’t the two of you try to beat him up?”
Billy felt his face flush and glanced down at his teacup. “It weren’t not
hing. Clem saw Asa at the café in town. Betty was putting the moves on him, and he didn’t do anything. Clem said that made Asa a fag and—”
“Billy, we don’t use that word around here,” Mrs. Blaecleah said sternly.
“No, ma’am. Sorry, ma’am.”
“Just don’t use it again.” She waved her hand as if dismissing Billy’s use of a word she found unacceptable. “Now, go on, you were telling us why you tried to beat up Asa.”
“I wasn’t trying to beat Asa up exactly. You just don’t say no to Clem when he’s got his teeth into something. He really has a thing against fa—” Billy flushed again. “I mean gay people. He said that Asa was gay and needed to be taught a lesson so he’d leave town and never come back.”
“And what about when Lachlan and Asa went into town? Did you have anything to do with that?”
“You mean back before they got engaged?” Billy shook his head. “No, Clem got mad at me because I let Lachlan chase us off when he was hitting Asa. I was still at home recovering. Clem don’t let me go out after he’s lost his temper. He doesn’t like people looking at me, says people might not understand.”
“I’d say he’s right, Billy,” Mr. Blaecleah said. “What Clem is doing to you is wrong. You need to report it to Sheriff Riley.”
“Why should he believe me? The old sheriff didn’t.” Billy snickered. “I’m a Thornton. I guess that kind of says it all.”
“You’ve reported this to the sheriff?”
“I reported it once to Sheriff Miller after Clem broke my arm. But Clem was really angry that time. He didn’t mean to break my arm. He doesn’t usually get that mad.”
“And tonight? Was he really angry tonight?”
Billy shrugged. He wasn’t about to tell Mr. and Mrs. Blaecleah that Clem had caught him kissing their son. That might get him into deeper trouble than he was already in. Billy glanced across the room then toward the front of the house. He needed to go.
He stood to his feet, wincing when his sore muscles pulled. He grabbed his cup and carried it into the kitchen, rinsing it off before setting it in the dish drain. Taking a deep breath for courage, Billy walked back into the dining room.