I whip around as she opens her door.
She stands there, leaning over the edge of her door frame. “You could use a shower. I have plenty of those. Daddy’s home today, too, but only for a little while. Guess there’s some sort of... meeting happening today. Called by a Graven, no less.” She lifts a brow, pushes a button and the top to her convertible rolls down. She steps in, standing above the window. “What do you say, Brayshaw? You coming or not?”
I slide in the passenger seat, but before we can pull away, Royce is whipping in behind us, blocking our exit.
Captain throws his door open and jumps out, storming toward me.
He bends, getting in my face, anger radiating off every inch of him to the point his entire body is shaking.
“Never in my fucking life, would I turn my back on you. Never would I take from you, or step on your toes, or do any damn thing that would destroy who we are and the bonds we have. You’re my fucking brother, Maddoc. My brother.”
Captain clenches his teeth, plants his hands on the side of the Corvette and brings his eyes level with mine.
“I never. Fucking. Touched her.” He swallows, pushing off the car and walking backward. “Not fucking once.”
I spot his reflection in the window before I hear a sound, and my eyes fly to his.
“What are you thinking about?”
“How I never should have punched Victoria the day my mom showed that first time.”
Captain drops onto the free swing to my right, staring at me in the long slider at the back of the girls’ Bray house.
“If I hadn’t, I never would have moved into the house and put everyone on high alert.”
“It wouldn’t have changed anything, Raven,” he speaks quietly. “This was all meant to happen.”
I shake my head, looking to him. “All of it?”
He eyes me a minute, before looking away again. “I knew Donley wouldn’t turn down the idea of having a power couple who loved each other over Collins and a forced bride, so I put an impossible decision down, forced both your hands. Ultimately, this is all my fault.”
“I agreed, too, Cap.”
“But you didn’t.” He meets my stare. “You said no. You were braver than we were, stronger than we were when it mattered, and in front of everyone. In a room full of powerful men you’d never seen before, you said no.”
“And then I caved.”
He gives a sad scoff, shaking his head. “You didn’t cave, Raven,” he whispers with a scowl. “Maddoc told me what he did, how even after he talked to you, you wanted to say no.”
“I should have held my ground.”
“You did the most selfless thing any of us will ever witness, because you love him that much.”
I glare at the dirt road behind us. “I tried to tell him love is for the weak.”
“I lied to you,” he rushes out.
I frown, not quite understanding, but it doesn’t matter. “I trust you, Captain.”
“I know you do, but that doesn’t make this right.” He shakes his head, a heavy sigh leaving him. “I love you, you know that, just like you know it’s not the way Maddoc does,” he stresses. “But I asked you and Maddoc both to trust me for a reason.”
His eyes move between mine. “I had to make sure my family was safe, and that includes you, so I did what I could to make sure that happened, but in the back of my mind, this was always temporary until we found another way.”
I shift my feet in the dirt so the swing is facing him better. “Temporary.”
“I knew everyone was watching. Brayshaw High would believe it easy enough, but I knew Donley wouldn’t. He had to see the struggles, the slow growth and solo decisions on our part.”
“The bud of a real relationship.”
“Exactly.”
I eye him.
“I let you believe this was real.”
“You don’t have to do this.” I shake my head and his jaw tightens. “I’ve been with you every day, Captain. I saw you struggle with what we were doing, felt it just the same. You don’t have to justify this. You say you lied, well we both did. We lied to our damn selves, pretending we could ever be anything different considering. Neither of us wanted this to happen. I mean, that’s not even a question worth asking, but it did. Either way, Cap. We both knew the truth behind the mirror. I could never be yours for real, just like you could never be mine.”
His eyes pull, the muscles in his neck flexing against his skin. “What happened to you not dragging things out of me?” he teases lightly.
I squish my lips to the side in a halfhearted grin before I grow somber. “I would have never hurt you, though, packman. You know that, right?”
“Not on purpose, you wouldn’t have,” he replies, and my gut clenches. “Not that you had the power to in the way that you mean, but I could never risk it possibly getting there, if it even could. That’s what my just in case was for.”
“Just in case?” I frown.
He nods, a softness to his voice that gives him away. “Yeah, Raven. My just in case.”
I grip the metal chains tighter, cutting my eyes away. “You heard us.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” he whispers.
I shake my head, looking to the sky. “How the hell was I supposed to admit I never wanted to be a mother when I’d just promised to be your wife.” My eyes hit his and his features soften instantly.
He stands, pulling me off the swing with him.
He tilts my head up, looking me straight in the eye. “Zoey?”
I nod, gripping his fingers with mine. “She deserves better than I could ever give her.”
His jaw flexes and he smiles tightly. “You’d be surprised how easy she is to love. You wouldn’t even have to try. I have no doubt you will love her with all you are and for all she is,” he says quietly before adding. “Just like she’ll love you, and just like you’ll love your own baby when he or she gets here.”
“I fucked up, Cap. I told him and when he looked at me like I was a twisted bitch, I just... closed my mouth, let him tear himself apart on the inside.” A harsh huff leaves me. “I let him think it was yours.”
“And he got his ass punched in the jaw for suggesting it.”
I can’t help it, a laugh bubbles out of me and I drop my forehead to Cap’s chest.
Wait.
I pull away. “He knows?”
“He knows. Only one move to make now.”
“Run?” I joke and this time Captain laughs, and damn if it doesn’t feel good to hear it. “How is he not standing here right now?”
“You think he has any fuckin’ clue what to say to you?”
My shoulders fall. “What the hell do we do, Cap?”
“Since when do you stop and think, Raven?”
My eyes move to his, narrowing. “If I fly off the fucking rocker, Cap, I’m busting balls the entire way down.”
“Good thing we wear cups.”
I push closer. “Tell me now if there is even the slightest concern over Zoey.”
“No one will ever touch my daughter and anyone who threatens to...”
I nod, fire creeping into my soul.
Cap’s forehead tightens as he gives me a hard look. “Donley called a meeting today.”
“Why would he do that? They meet in two days.”
“Someone told him I was shot and in the hospital. Coma.”
“Well, you’re not.”
“But he doesn’t know that.”
I eye him. “You leaked this?”
“I had help.”
“Help?”
He nods. “He’s been fishing since you ran him off anyway. This way he thinks I’m still out of it, giving him the advantage.”
“Advantage to what exactly?”
“We agreed to be Graven, you told him we got married. If I’m out of commission, who does that leave in lead of this town?”
“Me,” I snap instantly.
Captain chuckles, shaking his head. “In your mind, yea
h. We’re talking Donley and the rest of the men on that council.”
My brows pull in. “Him.”
“Exactly.”
“How much time do we have?”
Cap eyes me. “Couple hours.”
I step away, taking a deep breath. “I’m gonna need a shower. And Chloe.”
“Chloe,” he deadpans.
I shrug my shoulders. “Can’t be a queen in Kmart clothes.”
Captain’s smile is tender as he reaches out, placing his palms on my face. “You could be queen in trash bags and no one would dare question you.”
A full shot of air fills my lungs for the first time in weeks and I stand tall, nodding.
“Thanks, Cap, but let’s catch them all off guard in every way we can. Your dad said this place is the best of both worlds, grit and glamour. Let’s give it to them. Question is, are we walking in as husband and wife?”
“We walk in as Brayshaw.”
My smirk is instant. “Damn straight we do.”
The squeak of the slider door draws our attention, and Victoria steps from the back of the Bray house, her bag slung over her shoulder.
She eyes us a moment before I wave her over, meeting her halfway.
She stares, and when I reach for the borrowed duffle, she rolls her eyes with a slight tip of her lips. “Last thing you need is to carry this beast.”
“I’m not a fucking flower. I can carry a bag.”
“You wanna know what I told him?” she suddenly offers, referring to hers and Maddoc’s conversation.
“I told you I trust you. Get it through your head already.”
She shakes her head, faux disappointment on her face. “Again, with that dirty little word.”
I shove her and she laughs lightly. “Go, I’ll be there by the time you’re out of the shower.” Her eyes fly over my shoulder to Captain.
I eye her, backing away. “All right.”
I turn to Cap, who brings his eyes to mine.
“I’ll call them, we’ll be ready,” he assures me.
“Cap...”
He’d walk away if he felt like it, but I can always make her leave, so he doesn’t have to.
He shakes his head. “I’m good, girl. Go.”
“Do you like her?”
His eyes cut to mine, narrowing.
“I mean, I know I’m your wife and all, but you can tell me,” I joke.
With a chuckle, he gently nudges me away, so I go without another word.
I walk back the way I came, down the dirt road I used to stare at, wondering where it could possibly lead, and into the house I never imagined I’d be a part of, the home I haven’t set foot in in weeks.
Rolland jumps from the barstool the second I enter, rushing for me. “Raven.”
“We’re ready to end this. Are you with us?”
He looks behind me, a frown pulling at his brows when the door doesn’t open behind me.
“They’ll be here. All of them.”
He nods. “And I’ll be with you, too.”
“I need a shower.”
He understands what I’m asking, I told him to take my room and make it Zoey’s after all, so I’m not sure I have a right to walk up those stairs.
He holds a hand out, leading me the opposite way of the house, back behind the pool table and down the hall where the gym once sat, his office not far from it.
I enter, finding a brand-new bed, a California king with a large, dark grey headboard that almost meets the ceiling, plush pillows covered in royal purple lay atop of a stark white comforter. A matching grey dresser sits across from it, a rocking chair with cushions the same color perched beneath the window.
Something catches my eye on the nightstand beside it, so I head that way, finding a small double frame.
With shaky hands, I pick it up.
My sonogram cased behind the delicate glass, my mother’s right beside it.
I bite into my cheek.
“I thought the purple would work well for you, too,” he admits quietly, having noticed the color of the writing on my mother’s image.
I set it back down, turning to meet his eyes.
He walks over to the closet, pulling it open. My clothes hang on one side, while the other holds nothing.
“This is mine? You did this for me?”
“This is your home, Raven, more so than anyone else’s. This is where you will live, Graven be damned,” he says, leaving no room for query. Strong, final.
My eyes move back to the closet, and Rolland steps into my view, blocking the emptiness.
He gives a slight smile. “I thought I’d leave this side open, just in case.”
My jaw muscles tighten, and I glance around once more.
There’s a flashlight on the nightstand, see-through purple curtains draped over the window, the sun shining through them perfectly. I slip my fingers through the sheer material, running them across the windowsill – it’s lower than the one in the room upstairs. My fingers pause when they meet a groove in the wood and I step closer.
I need some R and R, is carved directly into the white paint.
My eyes pull in when I notice the grading at the edge of it, and I slip my knife from my pocket, flicking it open.
I run my fingers over the middle of the blade, then look to the window again.
My eyes snap to Rolland, who smiles meekly.
My mind takes me back to the night he gave it to me, and the careful words spoken.
“The words inscribed are true. You don’t have to accept your life just because you were born into it. Family is a choice, Raven. Not a burden of birth. It’s up to you to find the feeling and remember, never settle for less than what you want.”
With a frown in place, I plant my feet directly in front of his.
Never settle.
He wanted me to fight back?
It’s on the tip of my tongue to ask about that day in my trailer. To ask how he knows all these little things about me, about the knife, and the room, and the meaning of the words my mom carved here, but I don’t.
For the first time he reads me right, that or I dropped the shield enough for him to see. He offers a tight nod. “You’re welcome, Raven. It is the very least I could do.”
With that, he walks away, and I stand there a moment, thankful for the first time, for the fucked-up path that led me right here.
When I step from the shower, Victoria is perched at the head of my bed, glaring across the room. I step farther in, finding Chloe hanging dress after dress across some sort of changing contraption, something you see in the small Chinese restaurants in Stockton – a three-piece wood-like shield of sort that the owner’s kids would hang out behind.
Chloe’s eyes snap to mine, lighting up. She claps. “Okay, show me my canvas.”
My hand pulls back and I look to Victoria who rolls her eyes, popping a grape in her mouth. “She wants you to strip down for her.”
“You’re lucky I took underwear and a bra in there with me.” I toss the towel on the bed and she shrieks, rushing to pick it up.
She glares at me. “Do you have any idea how much a duvet like this costs?” She runs her pink painted nails across the bed.
“No, Chloe, I don’t, and you’re getting on my nerves already.” I cross my arms.
She ignores that, instead saying, “Think of how much you spent on all of your punk-chic, J-lo from the 90s clothes, or whatever you consider them—”
“Ghetto,” I offer with a grin. “You can say it.”
“And add the price of a Ford Focus to that.”
My wide eyes snap to Victoria’s right as she meets mine, and she freezes, looking from her boots to the blanket, or duvet as Chloe called it.
Slowly, she kicks them off, making me laugh, while Chloe makes a show of hanging my towel on a small hook just inside the bathroom door.
She spins back with an exasperated sigh, but as her eyes travel over me, they slowly lose their confident, queen bee gleam, and her lips flatten.
“I’m sorry,” she breathes, shaking her head.
“For what? You didn’t cause any of this.” I hold my arms out, letting my hands smack against my thighs when they fall.
“If anyone touched me like that, Daddy would strangle them with his bare hands, and it keeps happening to you. How are they still alive?”
“You think they should run around killing everyone who touches me?”
“People come here for a reason, Raven. They disappear for less.”
“People also do stupid things for stupid reasons.” I shrug, walking toward one of the dresses that catches my eye. I reach out, running my hands over the black rhinestone material trailing the bottom. “Most of them are driven by something else, rarely is it ever a solo thought people run on.”
“And that permits harm without retaliation?” she quips.
“No.” I shake my head, tugging the dress from its hanger, ignoring the gasp from Chloe when I do so. I fold it over my arms and turn to her. “But where there’re questions to be asked, there’re answers to be found.”
Her brows lift, and she scrunches her lips. “I don’t get it.”
“Vienna wanted security, who offered it to her? Leo wanted to feel important in a world where he was nothing, who was going to give it to him? My mother wanted revenge, who hurt her so bad she felt she needed it? Collins was searching for his identity, who stole it from him? A girl was sold to a pedophile, by who?”
Chloe’s temples crinkle as she lowers herself onto my bed.
“A rich, mean girl who took pleasure in making people feel worthless and small changes her tune, why?”
Chloe’s shoulders settle as a smile takes over her lips. She shakes her head, and it only widens, her perfect teeth gleaming at me. She glances to Victoria, who stares at me with reverent eyes, and Chloe’s fly back to mine.
“Man.” She looks me up and down, leaning forward. “I never stood a chance against you. This town won’t know what hit them.”
I unfold the dress, holding it up to get another look only for Chloe to reach out and take it from me.
Reign of Brayshaw (Brayshaw High #3) Page 26