Tribulation and Truths

by L A Cotton

“So, what now? What happens to him?”

  “He serves out his time. It will give him time to reflect on his behavior. Time to decide what kind of man he wants to become. There will always be a place for him in this family, and he knows that. It just might not be the place he thought.”

  No, I thought to myself. Braiden would never take his rightful place in the family because Jackson had it.

  Chapter 18

  ~ JACKSON ~

  Marcus finally dismissed us, and Ana and I left the house. I was relieved to get outside, taking a deep breath to let the sting of the cold air fill my lungs and lift the some of the tension. Dinner had been surreal. Marcus' attempt to play happy family, Briony trying to hook her claws into Ana, the news about Braiden. I still didn’t know what to make of it all.

  My relationship with Braiden was over. It had been for a long time, but I couldn’t help that small part of me that still cared. For all of his sick and twisted ways, Braiden had still turned up at Reibeckitt that night, when Landon took Ana. He might not have come for her, or even for me, but he came, and part of me still wanted to believe he had some good in him. That the need for revenge wasn’t what purely drove his actions that night.

  The house disappeared in the mirror as we drove down the winding road to the main road. Ana was quiet. Contemplative. Something had been on her mind for the last couple of days, but we’d barely managed ten minutes together between classes, practice, and my usual runs for Marcus.

  “Want to tell me what’s going on in that head of yours?”

  She sighed, before twisting her body around to me. I couldn’t take my eyes off the road, not with how poorly lit they were, but I still risked a sideways glance at her. Ana looked weary.

  “I spoke to Sarah.”

  “Librarian Sarah?”

  Ana nodded.

  “And?” I asked not really sure where she was going with this.

  “She knows stuff, Jackson. About your dad, Marcus, Patrick. You never told me about him.”

  “Patrick Donohue? Braiden’s grandpa?”

  “Yes.”

  Confused, I replied, “I only met him a few times. He died when we were boys. The year before Dad, I think.” A strange sensation took root in my stomach. That fact had never seemed relevant before now.

  “Sarah’s grandpa was friends with him. Kind of.”

  “Kind of? Ana, what’s going on?”

  “She said that before Marcus, things were different. Yes, Patrick was still involved in illegal activity, but he was well liked and respected in the town. He helped businesses and families in exchange for their silence. Her grandpa was in business with him. When he got sick, Marcus started taking over and running things, with your dad I guess. He brought the drugs into the town. People were scared of him. They still are.”

  Ana wasn’t really telling me anything I didn’t already know. I’d heard the stories about Patrick and Marcus disagreeing on how they should handle business in Chastity Falls. Growing up, Otis had many good things to say about Patrick, but there was definitely no love lost between him and Marcus. I didn’t know about the link between Sarah’s grandpa and Patrick, but then I guessed most families in the town had links with the Donohues in one way or another. It was a small town and everyone knew everyone, and the Donohue’s history in the town went back a century.

  “Ana, I don’t understand. I know all of this because I grew up in their family. They own this town and everyone in it. One way or another, most families have ties or business arrangements with Marcus.”

  “Sarah said after she realized I was seeing you, she did some digging. She found something, Jackson. Something that proves Marcus killed your father.”

  ~

  I was numb.

  Proof.

  Ana said Sarah had proof.

  This was what I had been waiting for, and yet, I couldn’t move. I couldn’t do anything. My head was finally catching up to what my heart already knew—Marcus really was somehow responsible for my father’s death.

  “Jackson, are you okay?”

  I blinked at Ana who was staring down at me. We’d driven back to the house in silence. I couldn’t even remember leaving the car and entering the house, I was so locked in my own thoughts. But now she was watching me, waiting for me to respond. React.

  “I, I don’t know what I feel. I mean I knew it deep down after you told me, but a part of me still wanted hard proof. I need proof, Ana.”

  Ana dropped down in front of me and encased me in her arms. “I know you do.”

  The urge to cry took hold. It came from nowhere, blindsiding me. Ana must have felt the change in me because she held me tighter whispering soothing noises into my ear.

  Pulling back suddenly, I rushed out, “Can we go and see her? Will she tell me what she told you? Or show me? I need to know.”

  I needed to hear it with my own ears, see it with my own two eyes.

  “Sarah will meet you but not tonight. There’s something she needs to do first.”

  Disappointment flooded me, frustration riding in close behind. I wanted answers, the truth. A tear slipped from the corner of my eye and Ana swiped it away with her thumb, quickly replacing it with her lips, but I moved before she could make contact, capturing her mouth with my own.

  I needed something. If I couldn’t get answers tonight, then I needed her.

  Always.

  “Jackson,” she murmured into my parted lips. “Jax, come on, maybe we should talk about thi-”

  “No talking.” I swept my tongue into her mouth, and she melted into me. I slid down off the couch so that we both knelt on the floor and I could be closer to her.

  Pulling Ana flush to my body, I felt her heart pounding in her chest. Even after all of this time, it still beat for me, and I never wanted that to change. She was my salvation. She would have argued that I was hers, but Ana had saved me in ways she could never imagine.

  “Make me feel, Ana. I need you to make me feel.”

  Ana’s hand slipped underneath my jersey and trailed along my stomach sending my heart into double speed. Her fingers found the hem of my shirt and she pulled it up over my head, letting it fall to the floor. Soft lips found my chest and Ana sucked gently at the skin along my collarbone. A low groan formed in the back of my throat as my dick strained against my jeans.

  “Ana…” my voice rasped.

  “Shh, let me love you,” she whispered against my skin timidly.

  I tugged her hand away from my skin and tilted her chin forcing her to look me in the eye. “You never have to feel uncomfortable with me.”

  “I’m not uncomfortable.” Her eyes fluttered away from me, but I palmed her cheek holding her in place. “It’s just, I, well, I worry we do this instead of talking about things.”

  “Do what?” I smirked, playing with her.

  Ana batted my chest and sighed. “This, sex. Things get rough, and we end up naked, Jackson.”

  “And that’s a bad thing?”

  “Stop joking around. I'm serious. We use it as a coping mechanism.”

  “Ana, there is nothing wrong with turning to the person you love for comfort. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to forget, just for a moment.”

  Worry shined in her blue eyes. Ana wasn’t convinced.

  “Love comforteth like sunshine after rain.”

  “Venus and Adonis, really?” She shot me a questioning look.

  “What? I thought it was fitting.”

  Ana went to smack me again, but I caught her hand and pulled her forward. Our bodies collided, and this time, I wasn’t letting go. The way Ana’s hands gripped onto me suggested she wasn’t either. We became a tangle of limbs as our lips crashed together, and I managed to maneuver us to the rug in front of the fireplace. My hands swept under Ana’s tee shirt and pulled it up over her head before unclipping her bra and letting it drop between us. Next, I found her zipper and dragged it down slowly, inching her jeans off her legs. It took some work, but eventually my eyes were raking over her
milky skin. I reached out and brushed my fingers across the curve of her tits and her whole body shuddered. Ana clothed was beautiful, but naked, she was perfect. Every inch of skin, every scar and blemish, all of it. Perfect.

  I laid Ana back on the thick rug and covered her body with my own. She stared up at me as if I was the most important thing in the whole world and the sentiment choked me a little. We’d come so far in two years, withstood so much.

  Too much.

  “I love you.”

  Ana smiled, looping her arms around my neck to draw me down. I pressed into her, letting her feel her effect on me, and she moaned into my mouth. Her hands unbuckled my belt between our bodies. She popped the buttons before helping me shrug my pants down my legs, as I kicked them off and closed the space between us.

  The house was quiet around us, just the sound of the fire crackling and the wind howling outside. No interruptions and no distractions—just the two of us and the sound of our hearts beating. My fingers trailed down Ana’s side and hooked underneath the edge of her panties, slipping inside of her. Her whole body arched into me as the pad of my thumb circled her center. Heat radiated between us, our kisses growing more and more desperate. I continued working her with my fingers feeling her tense around me, panting into my mouth.

  “Jax, Jackson, I’m going to-”

  I swallowed her moans as she came undone. Before she had a chance to drift back to reality, I slid off her panties, freed my dick, and wrapped a hand around it to guide it inside of her. Hitching Ana’s legs up around my waist, I pulled back slightly before thrusting forward. We both moaned into the quiet room. Beads of sweet salty moisture lingered on Ana’s skin and my lips traced the dips and hollows of her collarbone. Her body arched to meet mine with every thrust until we were moving as one. Ana was right; we might have pulled away when it came to talking, but like this, our bodies were in perfect symmetry.

  They were home.

  ~

  My reprieve lasted a night. One night wrapped up in Ana, pushing everything out of my head. But with the sunrise came reality and four text messages that I didn’t want to see. Two from V with news about Otis, one from Perkins informing me the next trip would be a week Saturday, and another from Dennis updating me about the situation with Benson Lamont. Ana was still sleeping soundly curled into my side. Rolling her gently away from me, I freed my arm and hit a text out to Dennis to meet me on the field. Things were happening too quickly, and I needed to get him up to speed but not via text. Next, I replied to Perkins with a simple ‘okay,’ before inching my way out of the bed and grabbing my jersey. Ana didn’t stir as I moved around the bedroom getting ready. We had early practice, but if I hurried, I could meet Dennis before the rest of the team arrived. I grabbed a juice carton from the fridge then left the house and headed to the stadium.

  Dennis caught up with me just before we reached the entrance to the locker rooms.

  “You’re up early.”

  “Got a lot on my mind.”

  “I’m all ears.”

  As we changed, I filled Dennis in on the developments with Marcus and Sarah. He never once interrupted me until I got to the part about Ana’s conversation with Sarah.

  “So, what proof does she have exactly?”

  “I don’t know. She wouldn’t tell Ana, just said that she needed some time and then she would meet with us.”

  Dennis leaned back against the cage. “And if it does prove Marcus was responsible for your dad’s death?”

  “I’m taking him down. One way or another. Landon said he thinks Marcus is undercutting O’Connor, Maconey too. If that’s the case, then it could all be linked to Dad. I’ve seen the pictures; they looked tight back then. Something changed. I think Marcus is suspicious.”

  Dennis’ eyes hardened and he straightened off the cage. “What do you mean?”

  “Think about it. Why now? Why introduce me into the fold now. Why not back when Braiden was around? Marcus knew I wanted to walk away and probably didn’t expect me to go back on my decision, but when I did, he saw his opportunity and took it. Bring me into the fold; let me meet the big players, names, face, the whole inner workings…”

  I let the words linger giving Dennis time to play catch up. His eyes narrowed and I knew he was trying to connect the dots. “Wait.” Realization dawned on his face. “You think this is all leverage. He knows that if you know too much you’ll never be able to walk away.”

  I nodded.

  “But that doesn’t make much sense. You knew things before, things about Marcus and Maconey. You were still a liability. What’s different now?”

  “I think Marcus thought I was loyal for life, but everything changed when I met Ana. He knew I’d be prepared to risk everything for her because I think he knows that deep down I’m like my father.”

  “Wait, what?” Confusion crossed Dennis’ face.

  “I think Dad wanted out and Marcus found out.”

  Dennis blew out a long breath. “Shit.”

  “Dad looked up to Marcus, no doubt about it, but he was always the voice of reason. It’s how their relationship worked.”

  “Just like you and Braiden,” Dennis added.

  “Exactly. We’re loyal, but we have a line. I think Marcus crossed the line, and Dad didn’t like it.”

  “But how does Braiden feature in all of this?”

  “Braiden was out of control. Someone was going to end up hurt or dead. Look at Cole. Now that I know about the links with Seattle and O’Connor, it makes sense that Marcus needed to rein Braiden in. Too much noise draws attention. Unwanted attention. Marcus isn’t the boss; he’s just a pawn. And the pawns have to keep their king happy.”

  “What’s the plan? What do you need from me?”

  “I’m going with Perkins next weekend. I’m going to ask around, talk about Dad, and see what kind of response I get. O’Connor is the key; I just know it. If I can get him on my side, then maybe I can cut a deal. I don't know.”

  Dennis barked a laugh. “You don’t make deals with someone like Frankie O’Connor. He’s mob, Jackson.”

  He might have been mob, but he was my only shot at making it out of this thing.

  “It’s my best shot. Only one of us is walking away from this and right now my upper hand is that Marcus thinks it will be him.”

  Dennis stepped off the cage and blew out a long breath. “She doesn’t know, does she?”

  “No. It’s for the best. Ana thinks we’re planning how we move forward on this together.”

  Over the last couple of weeks, the pieces of the puzzle had slowly been slotting into place, and more and more, I was realizing it was something set into motion a long time ago.

  “If shit goes south, then I need to know you’ll protect her. Even if it means getting her out of Chastity Falls. She’d never leave if I asked her to; she’s stubborn and she thinks we’re in this together.”

  I hated lying to Ana, but it was better for her to draw her own conclusions than for me to admit that only one of us could walk away from this—Marcus or me. It would crush her. I couldn’t do it to her. To us.

  “You know I will, but does it have to go down like this?” Dennis’ Adam’s apple bobbed and the desperation in his voice caught me off guard. “Is there no other way? Maybe we could go to someone for help?”

  Scrubbing a hand through my hair, I leaned back against the lockers and I said, “This is the only way. We both know it. This is exactly the way Marcus planned it.”

  The door swung open and the rest of the team filed in. I threw Dennis a look that I hope conveyed my gratitude. I owed him my life.

  I just hoped I didn’t have to pay up.

  Chapter 19

  ~ ANA ~

  Since telling Jackson that Sarah had proof of Marcus’ involvement in the death of his father, things had felt different. It wasn’t something I could put my finger on, but Jackson seemed to touch me more than usual. A graze of his finger across the driver’s stick or a chaste kiss when I wasn’t expecti
ng it. He was constantly reminding himself that I was there. Right by his side.

  It had been the same on the twenty-minute drive over to the Blacks. V had called a couple of days ago with some news. Otis had finally agreed to treatment, but he wanted to see us first.

  When Jackson had told me, relief swarmed through me, filling the cracks, renewing my hope. But now that we were almost at Tillamook, I couldn’t help but wonder what the old man wanted.

  Almost a year ago, I had questioned Otis about Michael Pierce’s death. Like me, he also had his suspicions, but we decided it wasn’t the right time to tell Jackson. Otis was convinced he wasn’t ready to hear it. So much had happened since then, and I never told Jackson about that conversation.

  It seemed irrelevant now. Jackson knew about his father. About Marcus. Did it really matter that he had no idea about Otis’ suspicions for all these years? If it didn’t, then why was guilt coiling itself around my veins the closer we drew to their house?

  “You’re quiet.” Jackson’s voice pulled me from my thoughts.

  I smiled over at him. “I’m okay. How are you?”

  “Sore. Practice was rough. I have to go out of town next weekend.”

  “With Perkins.” It wasn’t a question because I already knew the answer.

  Jackson pursed his lips and nodded. “Hopefully, it’s another meeting in Seattle, and I can do some digging. A couple of the guys knew Dad.”

  There was more—I could see it on his face and hear it in the strain of his voice. Jackson was holding back, still keeping things from me.

  We were both still keeping secrets.

  ~

  “So good to see you, honey.” V drew me into her huge frame and held me tight. “I don’t know what you said to the old fool, but he’s going to have the treatment, Ana. Thank you.” Her voice cracked with emotion, and I felt myself choke up.

  “I told him that he has too many people relying on him to fight this thing.”

  V held me at arm’s length and smiled sadly then her eyes lifted over my shoulder and she called, “Jax, get over here and give your two favorite girls a hug.”