by BA Tortuga
He wasn’t a rapist, he wasn’t a weakling, and he wasn’t going to let anyone run him off.
If they wanted him gone, they’d have to kill him.
Jim nodded once they got the posts set. “They got to dry now. You go on and get that looked at.” Jim took off his hat and slapped it against his legs. “Rotten motherfuckers. Ain’t a single one of them I didn’t take a chance on in some way. Someone out there hates you bad.”
“Yessir. And somehow I’m still not dead.”
“You must be the luckiest motherfucker alive.”
“Yessir.”
“Do you need a ride?” Jim studied him, chewing the inside of his cheek.
“Nossir.”
“I either want a doctor’s note saying you can come back, son, or I want you to take ’til Monday.”
Oh dammit.
Jim fixed him with a look. “I’m serious. You’re solid. You’re a good guy.” He paused, winked. “No matter what they said about you down at the jail.”
Dakota said a tiny prayer for contractors who didn’t ask so he didn’t have to tell. If Jim really knew what he’d been in for, it might be a different story, but he hoped he’d proven himself.
“Thanks, boss.”
“You’re sure you don’t need a ride?”
“No, sir.”
“Text me in the morning.”
“Yessir.” All Dakota wanted to do was go, get out of sight so he could lick his wounds.
Jim watched him all the way to his truck, and he managed to climb up in the cab, start the truck, and get to driving, because someone’d be there watching to do it again, sure as shit.
Christ, did he go home? It was a walk from the parking lot to the apartment. If he went to Jayden’s….
No.
No, Jayden would freak out, and they had the camping trip tomorrow. Besides, what would Jayden do? Call Adam Winchester? The man tolerated him but wouldn’t shed a tear if he died.
He’d find a busy Whataburger and nurse a Coke for a few hours, then head home or something. Maybe go to the barns and let the horses ease him. Sage wouldn’t judge him.
No, he thought Sage would understand. Didn’t he say someone had shot at him? The horses it was.
He’d get his Coke, text Sage, and put in his hours somewhere safe.
He would dare anyone to get the drop on him at the ranch. Right now they would have to surprise him again too. Dakota had rage, all balled up in his chest. He would kick ass and take names if they came at him again.
He was innocent, dammit, and if he went back in, it wouldn’t be for rape. It would be for tearing some guy a new asshole.
Chapter Seventeen
HIS OFFICE phone never rang at a convenient time. Seriously, Jayden was up to his neck in a complicated precedent file, scanning it for the case he needed to cite. Still, if it was his office, not his cell, it could be official.
“Patrick?” Right. He was delivering paperwork and picking them both up something from Texadelphia. “Dammit.”
He grabbed the handset and tried not to snarl. “Yes?”
“Jayden?”
“Yeah?” He knew the voice, but he couldn’t place it.
“Hey, it’s Win. Adam Winchester. Just got a call.”
“Fuck. Is he out? Henry Jenkins?” That was the last thing he needed right now. He just wanted to get this shit done so he could get the fuck out of town.
“No, this was from home. Dakota is at the ranch.”
He frowned. Dakota worked for Sage, right? For the truck? “Okay. He get done with the fence job early?”
“Well, he was meant to get off at five.” Something about Win’s tone raised the hair on his arms.
“Look. Don’t bullshit me. What the fuck is up?”
“Sage says broken ribs, broken nose, chipped tooth, lots of bruising in the kidney area.”
“What?” He stood, grabbing his wallet and keys. “Did he crack up his truck?”
“Some guys kicked his ass on the job.” Just like that. Like that happened, for fuck’s sake.
“I’m on my way.” He grabbed his cell. “Did he go to the doc?”
“I don’t think so. Sage said he got home to him sweating it out in the barns. Kid can work, that’s for sure. Told Sage not to call you, so he called Eric, and I called home.”
“Stubborn. Okay, switching to my cell. I’ll holler at you when I get there.”
“Good deal.” The line went dead, and he realized he was already halfway to the main office door.
He flicked off the phone and tossed it on Patrick’s desk. Good thing it was a wireless, huh? Jayden locked the front door, hopped in his truck, and gunned it, then put in his headset. “Call Patrick.”
Motherfuckers. Why hadn’t Dakota come to him? Why hadn’t Dakota called? Why had they done it?
“Hey, I’m almost there,” Patrick said when he answered.
“I have to head out. I probably won’t be back before Monday.”
“Is everything okay? Your folks?”
“Dakota got beat up at work.” Jesus. Why? What the hell had set them off? Was it—shit. “Call Hank Richards and have him look into the McCarthys. The parents of the girl. I mean, I need to know if they’re behind this.”
“Okay. The McCarthys? Is there a file?”
“Yeah, in the filing drawer in my desk. I don’t want anyone questioning them or anything, but see what you can see about the old man’s whereabouts the last couple of days.”
“I’m on it. Anything else?”
“Find me the nearest emergency clinic near Adam Winchester. I won’t be back for lunch, so take my stuff home for supper.”
“Adam Winchester—office or home address? Never mind, I’ll send both.” The man needed a raise. Two maybe.
“Thanks. I’ll holler in a bit.” He would check in after he got Dakota to the doctor. He knew he was speeding, but he couldn’t help it. Dakota was hurt. Someone had hurt him.
Then the idiot went to work at the barns.
Jesus.
This wasn’t prison anymore. Dakota didn’t have to take it and go back to work at the laundry. He should have called the cops, damn it, and gone to the ER.
He made it to Dripping Springs in record time and then zipped toward the ranch, his jaw twitching from the way he was grinding his teeth. His hands clenched on the steering wheel, the knuckles white. He sure hoped Win had called and warned Sage he was coming.
Sage’s truck was sitting beside that rust bucket that Dakota was so proud of, and shit, he wanted to scream. This wasn’t right, none of it, and Jayden was fucking tired.
He stopped by the house, tossing up gravel. Then he sat there a moment to breathe. Okay. Right. He needed to put on his lawyer face for right now. His calm, get-shit-done face. Jayden knew that was how he would get through the next fifteen, maybe twenty minutes with no meltdown.
Then he stepped down out of the truck and headed straight for the barn. Jayden needed to see Dakota with his own eyes and assess the damage. He wanted to touch, to make it better. Fuck, he wanted to…. Hell, who was he kidding? Jayden wanted Dakota in his sight, right now, breathing and whole.
“I will not shout,” Jayden murmured. “It will scare the horses.”
It was Sage who met him at the barn door, muddy eyes unhappy, the line of the cowboy’s mouth grim. “Hey, buddy.”
“Hey. Is he okay?” Jayden knew Dakota wasn’t, but he was suddenly terrified.
“He’ll be fine. There’s some bruising, couple broke ribs. Nothin’ too serious.”
Nothing too…. Christ. This was not how real life was supposed to work.
“Now, don’t get all mad.” Sage shook his head. “He can’t afford no ER.”
“I know.”
“He’s pretty pissed off, by the by.”
“Good. He needs to be.” Jayden stepped into the barn when Sage moved aside, his eyes taking a moment to adjust to the relative gloom.
“You better not be here to tell me I gotta do dick, J
ayden, because I’m not in the mood.”
“No?” Jayden studied Dakota, who was still flinging shit and straw around with a pitchfork. “What are you in the mood for?”
“Well, I’d say a fight, but I’ve already experienced all that can teach me today, and I’m not up for it. Really, I want a milkshake and a few dozen Tylenol.”
“Your liver wants two, maybe three Tylenol, but I’m not here to tell you that.”
“No. What are you here to tell me?” There was a hesitancy in Dakota’s voice that Jayden hated to hear.
“That you should have called me.” He tried for a smile. “Now, I probably would have tried to order you around, but only because I worry.”
“I wanted to.”
Okay, well that wasn’t exactly what he’d expected to hear. “Then why didn’t you?” He scooted closer, wanting to look at Dakota’s poor swollen face.
“I didn’t want them to follow me to you. I didn’t think I could protect you from them.”
Dakota’s eyes were damn near swollen shut, and Jayden swore he could hear his knuckles creak when he clenched his hands into fists. He might be a fucking lawyer, but God knew, Jayden was also a Texan, and his fighting side was up.
“Do I need to hire Win again?” he teased.
“Nope. He’d just as soon let us lowlifes fight it out. One less rapist on the loose.” Dakota looked past him, obviously hunting for Sage. “I shouldn’t’ve said that out loud. Sage is damn good to me.”
“Hey, Win called me to let me know. He wasn’t gonna let you bleed to death in the barn.” Jayden looked at Dakota’s hands and arms. Defensive wounds.
“I ain’t gonna bleed to death. Just be real sore and have to get a tooth fixed at some point.” The way Dakota held himself belied his words, Jayden figured, no matter how sure he sounded. “You looking forward to tomorrow?”
“We still going?” Jayden knew he was a giant weenie, but he couldn’t imagine camping with a broken tooth.
“I’m going to be there with bells on. I got your birthday present at the apartment.”
“Mmm… presents.” It took everything in him not to bark, not to beg Dakota to go to the doctor. “You want to stop at the emergency clinic first?”
“What are they gonna say that I don’t know? I really just want…. Hell, I want to have seen them coming.” Dakota’s grimace spoke volumes, and Jayden would bet no one ever got the drop on Dakota again.
“I get that. Can I touch you, honey? I don’t want to hurt you, but I need to touch, to make sure you’re real.” Jayden needed a lot of things, but this wasn’t about him. This was about Dakota, and as tough as it was to hold back, Dakota was an adult who had to make his own decisions.
“Yeah, if you don’t mind the sweat and the blood. Squeeze easy. There’s a couple bones in the middle floating.”
Oh God. He swallowed hard, then put one hand on the small of Dakota’s back, pulling in almost as if they were dancing. Jayden moved super careful, not wanting to press too hard against those ribs. He’d broken a rib once in school, fooling around playing high wire on a stair rail. Jayden knew how just breathing became a bitch.
“Maybe Win can tape you up. I know he did some basic medic stuff.”
“Yeah. Maybe. If he will, I’d let him.” Dakota grinned at him. “Been a shit day. If they’re going to kill me, it should be the day after vacation, not the day before.”
“Right! I mean, do it after we have all the fun.” Not that Jayden would be having the kind of fun he’d hoped for. Not with Dakota all tore up. Damn it, why did assholes have to be such… assholes. Yeah, real coherent.
“I want to have all the fun with you.” Dakota leaned in, sighed softly. “Have you noticed the irony here? Aren’t I supposed to be dealing with gay bashings?”
“Only if you go to the Village Inn. We favor Denny’s just for that reason.” He sighed. “I feel like I ought to get you an ice pack, at least. Your poor face, honey.”
“Yeah. We could probably go inside. Sage would let us.”
“I bet he would. He’s a good guy.” Jayden took Dakota’s hand. “You’re just riling the horses up, smelling like blood and all.”
“Yeah.”
It spoke volumes, how Dakota let him lead them inside. It was all he could do not to gasp when he got Dakota into the sunlight, could see the damage. He didn’t, though. Dakota was a grown man, dammit, and people had fucking stolen his choices his entire life.
This was his choice now. Jayden wasn’t going to push and pull. Even if he thought it was a mistake not to report this. His law background… well, he could at least take some pictures while Sage helped Dakota ice down. That way he’d have a photo record of the attack. If Dakota’s boss had made a record of the fight too, then Jayden would have something to introduce as evidence later on.
Sage opened the door for them, a huge glass of ice water and two Advil in hand. “I ain’t got Tylenol, but this’ll help. You want a shower?”
“Please. I got shorts here still.” Dakota took the glass and the pills, hand shaking badly. “Thank you.”
“Go on.” Sage got Dakota moving, and Jayden wanted to follow, more than anything he’d ever wanted before in his life. Sage shot him a look, then tilted his head. Jayden didn’t think he’d ever get used to seeing the man without a hat on. “You too, huh?”
“What?”
“Ask him.”
“Ask him what?” What the fuck was Sage on about?
“Whether he needs you, needs help. Not for fuckin’, but for… what only you can give him.”
But what was that exactly? He didn’t want to mess this up.
“Go on,” Sage murmured, actually giving him a little shove, and he stumbled forward a step before his boots led him to the little door in the hallway, where he knocked. “Dakota?”
“Yeah?”
“You need help?”
It took a second, and then the doorknob turned, unlocked. “Yeah.”
Jayden breathed a sigh of relief and stepped into the bathroom. “What do you need, honey?”
“I don’t think I can do this without passing out, and I don’t want to fall and make it worse.” Dakota looked at him with those poor swollen eyes. “There were four of them. I didn’t see it coming. Stupid, huh? I used to pay attention better.”
“You shouldn’t have to pay attention, honey. I know they think you did it, but even if you had, you’d have done your time. That’s hard enough.” Jayden stripped off his shirt, then opened the shower curtain. “The water might shock you a little at first.”
“Yeah.” Dakota had managed to get his jeans off but not his T-shirt, so Jayden eased it off him, hating each little sharp intake of breath. The bruises rose already, lurid patterns that made Jayden curse.
“Damn it. This is—”
Dakota touched his hand. “I just want to wash up.”
“You…. Okay. Yeah. You’ll let me help you. I promise I won’t be pervy.”
“Damn.” He thought Dakota tried to wink at him, but he wasn’t sure. “I’ll let you help me. I trust you, you know. You’re a good guy.”
“I want to be.” Jayden didn’t feel so angelic sometimes, but right now he was purely on a mission of mercy. He eased Dakota under the water. “Too hot?”
“No. No, it’s….” Dakota grabbed his arm and held on, the man’s grip surprising in its strength as Dakota used him for balance. “It’s good.”
“Yay.” Jayden chuckled. He let Dakota get his balance, then grabbed the soap and a cloth Sage had left out. “You stay upright, and I’ll get all the blood off, okay?”
“Works for me.” Dakota leaned a little against the tile and closed his eyes, that measure of trust enough to make Jayden hurt deep inside.
He lathered the cloth, then started working, staring at Dakota’s face, where blood had poured out of his nose. God, that pissed him off. Not at Dakota. Never that.
“I can’t wait to get to the lake, you know? Spend some downtime.”
Ye
ah, sleep on cots with broken ribs. How could that be good? They would have to find Dakota an egg foam thing. Or a memory doolie. A pad for the cot. Jayden soaped up Dakota’s shoulders, making notes.
“I am too. I bought hamburger meat and hot dogs and a bunch of lunch meat. Eggs and bacon and tortillas. Coffee.” Jayden listed things just to take up conversational space.
“Marshmallows?” Dakota asked.
“God, yes. Hershey bars. The great big ones.”
“Rock on. I’m ready. I just need to grab my bag at the apartment.”
“We can do that tomorrow, yeah? I think you could use a night in Sage’s guest bed. So comfy.”
“If it’s okay.”
“If it’s not, you can come stay in mine, huh? Just for a night.” He wasn’t leaving Dakota alone, not for love or money.
“That’d be a fine thing.” Dakota laughed, the sound like rocks over a grater. “I’d rather not have to ride anywhere until the pills kick in.”
“That’s fair.” He lathered Dakota up, keeping at it until the pink suds went white again.
Better. So much better. The bruises taunted him, but Jayden knew he’d never find out exactly who did this, and even if he did, what was he gonna do?
“I’m sorry you had to see this. It sucks.”
“I’m a big boy, Dakota. I just hate it for you.” He turned Dakota gently, checking his back for cuts or abrasions.
The bruises here were vicious, and worse were the scars, so many fucking scars, and he had to force himself to keep washing, keep touching. He couldn’t fix this. He couldn’t fix shit, but he didn’t have to pretend it wasn’t there. Dakota deserved that, deserved to be heard.
Dakota shook a little when Jayden rinsed his legs, but Jayden thought it was sheer exhaustion, not fear.
“Can I tuck you into bed, honey? Just for a few minutes?” Until Win got home and they could stabilize those ribs, anyway.
“Prob’ly ought to dry me first.”
“Well, yeah. Sage would kick my ass for dripping.” Jayden turned off the water, then grabbed towels for them both. His jeans would have to go in the dryer.