Shrouded in Blackness

by Karlsson, Norma Jeanne

  Ian also got me a blow dryer so I set about drying my hair. It’s so long it takes forever to get dry, but once it does it lays flat, sleek and shiny from the conditioner, curling in soft rings at the end. I see a glimpse of the girl I used to be as I wipe the mirror clean. That girl is gone now, only her face remains.

  There’s a soft knock at the door.

  “Yes?”

  “Jack needs to go to the bathroom,” Kieran calls from the other side.

  “’Kay.”

  I scoop up my dirty clothes and open the door to be smacked in the face again with a shirtless Kieran Delaney. Good God, I’ll never get used to that sight. I quickly avert my eyes by looking down at Jack.

  “Hey, Baby. You go ahead,” I coo. Jack wraps his arms tightly around my waist before moving into the bathroom. I close the door and hear a soft click as he locks it. Good boy.

  “Thanks for…well…uh…thanks for helpin’ out,” I stutter and stumble with my words as I move around Kieran, keeping my gaze on the floor. I’ve turned into an idiot.

  “Jack’s a good kid. It’s not a problem.” Kieran moves to the bed and flops down, patting the spot next to him. I roll my eyes at his invitation. Sure, watch my son and I’ll hop into bed with you while he’s in the bathroom. I don’t think so. My son? Yeah, my son.

  “Quinn, I’m sorry about last night. I didn’t know you were tryin’ to get back to your kids. Ian didn’t tell me. I wouldn’t have been like that if I knew. I’m an asshole, but I’m not that bad,” Kieran says quietly, holding my eyes with his. This scary man is so gentle with me and the kids that it’s throwing me off my game. I know I can’t trust him. Kieran Delaney has a reputation that even I know. He’s a talented fighter and has a way of getting information about any-and-everything. It’s rumored he was a hit man for the same gang my mother’s family ran, but I don’t know for sure. I’ll not be asking.

  “I’m sorry, Kieran. You caught me at a bad moment. I’m not usually that stabby,” I lie. I am sorry, but I’m always that stabby. I let my eyes wander to some of the script running around his chiseled torso. Just beneath his heart is Dílseacht (“loyalty” in Irish) with a strange four-leaf clover that looks like a Celtic knot dotting the i.

  “Like what you see?” Kieran purrs. Yes. Who wouldn’t? Not telling him that though.

  “You speak Irish?” I avoid his come on.

  “Nah. My grandparents did, so I know a bit. Do you?” he asks, rubbing his palm over his chest and the dílseacht tattoo I was just admiring. I force myself not to watch his hand.

  I do speak Irish. Both of my parents were from Galway and spoke mostly Irish in the house. I’m definitely not telling Kieran that. Thankfully, Jack comes out of the bathroom before I have to lie.

  “Mommy, Connor ordered us pizza!” Jack exclaims, hopping up on the bed next to Kieran.

  “What kind of pizza did he order?” I ask with a smile on my face as Kieran sweeps an arm around Jack’s shoulder.

  “I don’t know. He said it was the best in the city. You think it’ll be good, Kieran?” He turns his big blue eyes up at Kieran’s rough face.

  “It’ll be awesome, bud.” Jack beams a smile at Kieran, puckering his dimple. Jack shifts his gaze back to me before announcing, “I got the prettiest mommy. Don’t you think, Kieran?” I feel a flash of red creeping up my cheeks as I quickly spin around and pretend to be busy sorting my dirty clothes.

  “She’s gorgeous, Jack.” The timbre of Kieran’s voice vibrates in my chest and makes my cheeks flame that much more.

  “I’m gonna go start some laundry. I’ll be right back,” I say quickly and flee from the room. That was fucking uncomfortable.

  I take my time loading the laundry and getting my face back to a normal color. No one has called me gorgeous in the last eight years who hasn’t wanted to rape me in an alley. It feels amazing to have a man say it just because he believes it’s true. I’ll take that compliment today. It feels good and I could use a boost right now. I’ll need every good feeling I’ve got to make my way through what I’m planning to do.

  Kieran

  Holy fucking shit! Quinn is a goddamn knockout. I thought she was before, but I know it for certain now. I don’t have the words or the appropriate amount of blood servicing my brain (because it’s in my cock) to describe how stunning she is. Her raven hair is smooth and shiny with little curls that skirt her waist. Her blue shirt is about two sizes too small based on the tight cling to her perfect tits. Who knew a girl that small could rock boobs that big? And those black pants sliding over her round hips and cupping her firm (I’m assuming) ass…I could die a happy man.

  Unfortunately, she seemed horrified that I noticed and ran out of here like her hair was on fire. She just gave birth, not that anyone could tell, and I’m eye-fucking her in front of her son. I am a class act all the way. Shannon would take my balls for doing something like that. Quinn’s not Shannon though. Quinn seems scared and vulnerable. I’ve never seen Shannon anything but rock solid and ready to blow someone’s head off. But both of these women have a fight in them that is sexy as hell.

  “Hey, Kieran?” Jack asks quietly, pulling me and my perverted dick back into reality.

  “Yeah?”

  “Would you teach me how to fight?” he asks, barely above a whisper.

  “You’re pretty little to learn how to fight, bud. Maybe in a few years.”

  His brow furrows and I see a spark of anger behind his icy blues. He is his mother’s son.

  “If I know how to fight, no one can hurt me again,” he says in a growl. Okay, now I’m pissed and feel like growling back. I’m not pissed at him, obviously, but I feel the need to pound on something.

  “I won’t let anyone hurt you again, Jack. I promise you that,” I say in a harsher tone that I wanted.

  “You can’t keep us safe,” he scoffs pushing away from my side and climbing off the bed to face me. “My mommy says we’re leavin’ and you’re not comin’ with us. She has to take care of Ashling now so I have to take care of her. That’s how it works.”

  “Jack—”

  “You don’t know how it is! If they find us they’ll hurt us and take Ashling. That’s what she told me!” Jack screams as tears stream down his face.

  “Hey,” I say calmly and reach toward him. He steps out of my reach and stumbles over a bag on the floor, crashing onto his ass as Ian enters the room. He pins me with a lethal gaze as he approaches Jack.

  “Jacky, you okay?” Ian soothes, crouching down to him. Jack heaves himself into Ian’s arms, almost knocking the old man on his ass. Ian’s too tough for that, though.

  “They’re gonna kill us!” Jack wails. Ian holds him tightly to his chest and stands up with him shushing and rocking back and forth.

  “It’s okay. You’re gonna be okay,” Ian soothes. Owen and Connor walk in, probably having heard Jack’s hysterics. They both glare at me like I’m the fucking cause. I return their stares and that brings that shit to a screeching halt.

  “Will you teach me how to fight?” Jack sobs to Ian. “If I can fight I can keep us safe this time.”

  I feel like I’m going to puke and, based on the looks on the guys’ faces, I’m not alone in that sensation. I swear to everything on this planet I’ll find out who hurt Jack and make him pay in the cruelest way I can imagine. Maybe I’ll call Shannon and let her work her magic on the motherfucker. That’s a fate worse than death in this world and she could use an outlet right about now.

  “Jacky, can you tell me who hurt you?” Ian asks the question that we all want answered.

  “No.”

  “Do you know who he is?”

  “Yes.”

  “But you can’t tell me?”

  “No.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because he’s a bad man. He’ll know if I tell and then he’ll hurt us again. I promised I wouldn’t tell.”

  Jack’s crying is under control now, but his slight body is still trembling. I can feel myself pumping my
fists and bouncing my knee. I need to hit something hard and soon.

  “Jacky, you’re safe here. I promise you that. I won’t let anything happen to you, your momma, or Ash. If you tell me who he is I can make sure he never bothers you again.” Ian’s tone is sweet, but the look on his face is murderous.

  “No, you can’t. I want my mommy,” Jacks says as he slides down Ian’s body and then runs from the room to find the only place he feels safe…his mother’s arms.

  “Goddamn it!” Ian roars and plunges his fist through the wall. Good man.

  We all sit in silence until Ian Brogan gets his wits about him. He may be pushing seventy but he’s not to be fucked with…ever.

  “I convinced Quinn to stay the weekend. It was like pullin’ teeth, but she agreed. That means you three got a little over a day to bring me the piece of shit that tortured that kid. If there’s some asshole out there tryin’ to find them you should be able to find him,” Ian growls.

  “On it, boss,” Connor answers and ambles out of the room with Owen at his side.

  “I don’t know her story, Kieran. It’s not good. No, it’s probably fucked up beyond belief, but I love that girl. I’ve been watchin’ out for her for almost eight years now and I’ll be damned if some motherfucker out there will hurt her. You pull every fuckin’ string you’ve got and I’ll owe you.”

  “Ian, you won’t owe me shit. I’m glad you put your fist through the wall before I did. I need to go at the heavy bag…now. I’ll call every low-life contact I’ve got and I’ll find the guy. Why’d she only agree to the weekend?” I ask, standing up and moving to the therapy room.

  I start wrapping my hands so I don’t fuck them up too much. I’m hoping I can ruin them on some dude’s face sooner than later.

  “She doesn’t feel safe in the gym when the fighters are here. I don’t feel safe, either. She’s too goddamned pretty for them to leave her alone. You know how those assholes are. Even if I gave a standing rule for her to be left alone, some dickhead would still try to get at her,” Ian says in a snort.

  “So put her up somewhere else.”

  “Quinn won’t do it. Plus, I don’t want her on her own with those kids. The baby’s sick. She’s got jaundice based on the shit Owen read on the Internet. I need ’em safe and this is the only place I can manage that on my own.”

  “I’ll take ’em with me.” The words are out of my mouth before I really think them through. Did I really just offer to take a young woman and her kids home with me? Sure the fuck did.

  “Thanks for the offer, but I don’t see Quinn agreein’ to that,” Ian grumbles.

  “I don’t give a shit what she agrees to. I’ll strap her down and tote her ass with me. Jack is fuckin’ scared outta his mind. Quinn’s good with a knife on her own, but with Jack and a newborn…no way. She’s not goin’ anywhere alone.”

  I finish wrapping my hands and Ian slides some MMA gloves over my hands. I move into the gym to find Connor and Owen grappling on the mats. Apparently we all needed an outlet. I stalk past them and heave my fists into the heavy bag, causing it to take a wide swing. Ian grabs the bag and steadies it with his body as I go to work. I imagine the face of the sick fuck I’m about to hunt and allow my fury to unleash. If he hurt Jack, that means he hurt Quinn too, because there’s no way in hell she would she let harm come to her son. That fuels me even further into the zone of untapped violence.

  When my arms are like limp noodles I finally stop. I’m dripping with sweat and my stab wound feels torn wide open. I accept the pain. I find peace in this type of pain. As I step back from the bag I feel a small body leap onto my back as a blade is pressed to my neck.

  “What did you do to my son?” Quinn seethes in my ear. “If you hurt him I swear I’ll fuckin’ gut you.”

  “Quinn,” Ian warns, but he makes no move to intercede.

  “I didn’t hurt Jack. He asked me to teach him to fight so he could protect you. He got upset when I told him he was a little young to learn to fight,” I explain softly.

  Quinn’s whole body is shaking and her breath is ragged. She’s hanging on by a thread at this point. She’s probably hormonal, too. Never a good time to piss a woman off.

  “You didn’t hurt him?” she asks with tears in her voice. Ah, fuck, if she starts crying I’m done for.

  “I didn’t hurt him,” I soothe and run my hand along hers until she releases the knife to me. She slides off my back as I hand the weapon over to Ian.

  I turn to face her and she collapses into my chest and sobs. I scoop her tiny body off the ground and carry her up to Ian’s office. I’m guessing the kids are in the bedroom and they don’t need to see their mother have a breakdown. Once we’re in the office, I sit down on the world’s oldest black leather couch and hold Quinn in my lap. She’s still crying and has her arms wrapped tightly around my neck. I pull her closer to me—not that it’s possible, since she’s in my lap—and shush her while stroking her hair.

  “There is no anguish of soul until one has children,” she murmurs into my neck. An old Irish proverb I’ve heard more than once from my mother.

  “Quinn, you’re safe here. No harm will come to you or your kids. I promise you,” I soothe into her raven hair.

  She tips her head back, her ice blue eyes glistening from the tears. I rub my thumb across her cheeks to wipe away the stains. She looks terrified, just like Jack did earlier. I feel my inner caveman coming to life. I feel a primal need to take care of this woman and her children even though she clearly doesn’t need me to. I think that’s the most amazing part. I hate needy, clingy, weak women. I want a woman that can stand on her own and do her own dirty work, but lets me do it for her. I want Quinn to let me do this for her.

  “Come home with me. Let me take care of you and the kids. Ian said you won’t stay at the gym past the weekend and I can’t bear the thought of you and those babies out in the streets. Please, for me. Come home with me,” I plead. I fucking plead with a chick who has tried to kill me three times in one day to come home with me like my life depends on it. I’ve turned into some kind of pod person.

  “I just threatened to kill you and you want me to be your roommate? Are you insane?” she asks, disbelieving. Not that I blame her, because I sound nuts.

  She moves to slide off my lap, but I constrict my arms to hold her in place. She slants her stunning eyes at me for a moment until she realizes I’m just holding her. I’m not going to hurt her. Then her face goes soft.

  “It’s because you tried to kill me three times in the last day that I want to you to come home with me. I don’t want you to feel like that. I can’t explain why, but I feel a primal fuckin’ need to keep you safe. If you’re in the streets it’ll make that harder on me, but I’ll still do it. I’m not a good man, Quinn. I’m guessin’ you know this based on how you treat me and that’s okay. Most things you hear about me are true. I’ve beaten and killed men. I’ve hurt people for money. I’ve done plenty of other shit that I’ll share with you if you wanna know. But I’ve never hurt a woman or a child and I’d die before I ever would.

  “I met a girl like you a long time ago and she didn’t need anyone to keep her safe, either. My cousin and his friends found her in a fucked up position and inserted themselves in her life. It got better once she allowed them to take care of her…to free her of that burden of shouldering it alone. I know I can be that for you if you’ll let me, Quinn. Let me.”

  She studies my face for a long time before responding.

  “Do you still know that girl?” she whispers.

  “Yeah.”

  “Is she safe now?”

  “That’s a loaded question, sweetheart. But I’ll tell you this. She’s never alone in this world that’s tried to chew her up and spit her out more times than any one person deserves.”

  “You love her,” she says appreciatively.

  “Like my own flesh and blood.”

  “Okay,” she whispers, cuddling into my chest and nuzzling her face into my neck. I feel
my whole body relax. Thank fuck.

  Knock, knock.

  “Sorry to interrupt but Ash’s screamin’ like a wild woman down there,” Owen says sheepishly as he eyes our position.

  “Shit! Sorry, Owen,” Quinn calls, jumping out of my lap. She gives me a sad smile and then sprints down the stairs.

  “That looked cozy,” Owen snarks.

  “Fuck you, man. She needed some comfort.”

  “Didn’t know your dick was comfortable. Mind if I try it out?”

  “You’re a sick fuck. Stay away from my junk,” I say, standing up and cupping my crotch. “It’s more than you can handle.”

  “I’ll take your word for it. You get her straightened out? I thought she was gonna cut your head off,” he mutters, rubbing his blond head.

  “Me, too. She’s movin’ in with me so I guess shit’s straightened out,” I say nonchalantly.

  “She’s movin’ in with you?”

  “Yeah.”

  “She’s movin’ in with you?”

  “Fuck, is there an echo in here? Yeah, Quinn’s movin’ in with me.”

  “Willingly?”

  “Jesus. Yes. I didn’t hold her at knifepoint, remember? I told her about Shannon and she seemed to open up to the idea of lettin’ someone else take care of her.”

  “You told Quinn about Shannon? They’re pretty fuckin’ different, Kieran. Shannon’s…well, Shannon. Quinn needs something more than what Shannon needs. You know that, right? Just because the girl’s got mad knife skills doesn’t make her the lethal wonder woman that Shannon is,” Owen says sternly.

  “I know what Shannon is, asshole, and no, Quinn’s not her. But she’s got the same fight. And she needs someone to take care of her for a while.”

  “And Kieran Delaney is gonna be that man? You’re not Brian O’Sullivan.”

  “Fuck, thanks for the vote of confidence. I know I’m not my cousin. I’m not claimin’ to have a clue of what I’m doin’. I told Quinn who I am and she didn’t bat an eye. She comes from our world, Owen. It doesn’t scare her. You don’t think I’m up for the job why don’t you offer your services?”