by A. A. Davies
“You’re under arrest for suspicion of kidnapping,” he barks into my ear and I can’t help but let out a laugh as I press my forehead against the dirty gravel.
The one thing that never crossed my mind that would happen, finally has.
I guess Carter was right.
Karma does love to kick me in the balls.
Epilogue
The loud scraping of chairs always makes me grit my teeth. I hate when the new fish arrive because they don’t ever know how to behave.
They think that by being the loudest, most raucous motherfuckers they can be, that it will set fear in the rest of us that have been here for a while.
I shake my head as I look down at the cards in my hand, pack them neatly together, and place them face down on the table.
“I fold,” I say to Benjiro who smirks and glances at me over the top of his cards.
“Are you ever going to play your fucking cards, Kenji? You fold every goddamn game.”
“I don’t like to lose,” I reply simply with a shrug.
“You must have lost at some point to end up here,” Akira says dryly.
I glance to my left at the young man with the bright bodysuit of tattoos peeking through his black jumper. In any other normal situation, I would have reached over and backhanded him, but Irongate isn’t a normal place and some behaviors have to be checked outside the prison walls.
“Touché,” I state as aloofly as I can.
Benjiro chuckles as he drops his cards on the table then looks at Akira expectantly who lets out a groan. He shows his hand which I could have honestly beat had I just played to the end, and the head of our little prison gang laughs as he rubs his hands together.
“That’s two weeks of laundry. Wanna go for another one?” he asks as he leans his forearms on the table and smirks at Akira.
“I still don’t know why the fuck it’s all me when he keeps folding,” he grumbles as he reaches for the cards and begins to shuffle them.
“Because he’s smart enough to know when he’s beat.”
I run a hand back through my hair as I lean back in my uncomfortable, white plastic chair and look over at the line of society’s latest fuckups being escorted to their pods.
If that were true, I would have let Snow go home when she asked me to, but I couldn’t. I felt too strongly for her and I had every reason to believe that she felt the same way about me.
I was wrong.
An assumption that I’ll be paying for, for the next five years of my life.
“Kenji tell me something,” Benjiro begins conversationally as he waits for Akira to deal our cards out.
“Yeah?” I ask, turning my attention back to him.
“Why did you let pussy bring you down? There is a hell of lot more things that could have sent you here; why a girl?”
I shrug, “She was special to me, man.”
“Was?” he asks as he arches an eyebrow and a knowing smile creases his lips.
Was.
I repeat the sentiment to myself and come to the realization that I’ve shaken off the feelings I had for Snow.
It only took six months into my sentence to do so, but it’s also six months of my life that I’ll never get back with another five years to go.
I can’t let her wander around confidently telling her lies to people, making them believe them, as she did with me when I’m the only one bearing the weight of our punishment.
She should be in here with me, or at the very least, a little cage of her own.
One where when bad little pups act up, they’re banished to until they’re ready to repent and do as their master commands.
“Yeah,” I confirm after a thoughtful moment of silence, “Was.”
Akira clears his throat loudly as he begins to deal out the cards. I look down at the ones being tossed at me and begin to gather them into my hands, thoughts of revenge burning through my mind.
“Hey,” Benjiro says, demanding my attention. I look up at him and see the look in his eyes that he first gave me when I arrived. The same one that they used to scope me out with and try to understand if I was one of them or just another wannabe.
When they realized that I was neither, they decided for me.
“Don’t let it go,” he tells me wisely. “Five years of a man’s life gone based on the lies of a bitch for no other reason than she was tired after going for a little walk is not forgivable.”
I nod because he’s right.
There’s nothing that Snow could say to me now or ever again that would make me forgive her or not seek some kind of recompense.
Sixty-six months is what the court gave me, and that was only because she refused to testify.
But once I explained to Benjiro why I was here and had the absolute bright idea to mention Hudson, he told me to wait. That he would bring him to me.
We had a quick meeting and I told him what needed to be done.
I told him about his fucking sister and about how she gave me up to the cops because of the lying cunt I kept in my house.
The one I provided for, loved like I had never loved anyone before in my life; the one that turned on me when the opportunity presented itself.
And when he left Irongate, he knew that he would have to fulfill his mission. He didn’t have a choice. Akira reminded him that there are many like “us” all over Los Angeles and if Snow hadn’t been dealt with within the year, he’d have to pay the price for her.
Sariah too.
As I glance at the cards in my hand, I suddenly feel my luck starting to change.
Fuck karma.
I have someone out there ready to get them both for me.
And until the moment comes that I can walk out of the gates and piss on their graves for doing this to me, I’ll wait with the fire of vengeance burning in my heart.
“I call,” I say to Benjiro with a big smile on my face.
Luck is on my side, even if time isn’t.
And if Hudson fails?
Well, I’ll have plenty of time with my new brothers here to figure out a way to get those bitches back myself.
About Yolanda Olson
Yolanda Olson is a USA Today Bestselling and award-winning author. Born and raised in Bridgeport, CT where she currently resides, she usually spends her time watching her favorite channel, Investigation Discovery. Occasionally, she takes a break to write books and test the limits of her mind. Also an avid horror movie fan, she likes to incorporate dark elements into the majority of her books.
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More Books by Yolanda:
The Lies Between Us
Death Blooms
Scavengers
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Coterie
Ally Vance
Blurb
These desires that should tear us apart only draw us closer together. Blood binds, desire unites, and secrecy protects us. But what happens when the secrets become too much and the seams that hold them start to split? Our family is hanging by a thread, and at any moment it could snap. The consequences of my actions weigh heavily on my shoulders. It’s not just me who could get hurt, all three of us could suffer for my actions. The snowball is rolling and it’s gaining speed, and I’ve no way to stop it before it collides with our family. We can either adapt, endure, and survive, or be forever crushed by the avalanche.
Prologue
Aston
There’s a wrongness within me, something that can’t be cured or erased. It runs deeper than my skin and has spread like poison through my mind. Abandonment threw responsibility on my shoulders at an early age and love became warped with desire.
When I was eighteen, our dad went overseas on holiday and never came back, leaving me with my thirteen year old twin siblings, Sean and Sonea. He isn’t dead, he just didn’t care enough about his kids and was probably too busy fucking some woman he met over there to come home. I had to get a second job to support them because there was no way in hell I�
�d let them be taken from me. I was old enough, and I could take care of them. Besides, I love them too much. I couldn’t lose them to the system, just because our dad is a waste of fucking space who decided whatever he left behind wasn’t worth coming back to.
It’s been eight years since he turned his back on us, and in that time I’ve watched Sean and Sonea grow up in a way I’d never have seen if I hadn’t become their surrogate parent. I didn’t get to go to college, and every day I blame him for taking that choice away from me; however, when Sean and Sonea come home from their own schools, I know I wouldn’t change who I had to become. I gave up everything for them, but I’ll never regret keeping them when our wastrel father decided not to bother.
Chapter One
Sonea
Walking through the front door to the only place I’ll ever call home, the familiar scent of the house washes over me, and I inhale deeply. Aston isn’t home. His car is still in the drive but the alarm has been set. I shouldn’t be surprised he’s not here; I’m home a day earlier than I planned, and I didn’t tell him I was coming back today. The semester ended sooner than initially intended. Everyone in our class was ahead of schedule, and there was no point in starting anything new so close to the winter break, so we were allowed home.
Sean won’t be arriving for a couple more days, and I’m so excited to see him. It kills me to attend a different school than him, but he got a partial scholarship at one of the best engineering schools, and I was accepted elsewhere. I know it hurts him to be separated, but while we are still two halves of the same whole, we each had our own dreams to chase, and his led him over a thousand miles away from where mine took me.
It’s pretty late, and I don’t know when I can expect Aston to get home. I could text him, but that would ruin the surprise of me being home early, and it gives me the extra time alone to unpack and get settled. Heading into the kitchen, I grab a can of soda and shoulder my bag again before making my way upstairs. I need to wash off the train ride and freshen up. I let out a yawn and decide to surprise Aston in the morning instead.
As the water eases the long journey from my muscles, I relax and think about the upcoming holiday and how good it will be to have all my family here. I couldn’t make it home during the Thanksgiving break, so it’s been months since I saw either of them. Soaping up the body puff, I lather my skin, rubbing at every inch of my body. Eventually, I slow my vigorous scrubbing and reflect on the true reason why I didn’t make it home, not the excuse about too much schoolwork that I gave to Aston and Sean.
Over the years I’ve looked up to Aston, admiring him for being everything I ever needed when Sean and I were growing up. He never tried to hide what dad did, telling us the truth instead of lying like most people would. I’ve watched him work himself half to death to pay the bills and help in any way he could with our schoolwork. When it came to college applications, he supported us through the process, even though I could tell it hurt him to see us accepted, having had to shelve his own dreams to see us accomplish ours.
All I’ve ever wanted is to make Aston proud and happy. Shame burns in my belly and heat floods south when I think about one of the last times I saw him, shortly before I returned to college after the summer break. My fingers move unbidden to mingle with the juices pooling between my thighs.
Sometimes I wish we had a bigger house, I gripe mentally when I try the bathroom door and find that Sean is using the shower. Great. The only other bathroom with a shower is the en suite in Aston’s room, which is the bedroom that used to belong to our dad when he still lived here. Sighing, I make my way along the hallway to his room and walk into the empty bedroom. I dart across to the closed en suite door, and pulling it open, I halt in shock at the sight of Aston. He’s standing completely naked in the shower with water running down his bare back and with miles of tanned skin glistening under the ceiling spotlights.
My breath comes out in a soft gasp he doesn’t hear, and my heart thuds erratically in my chest when I stand there staring at him instead of turning tail and running. I’m rooted to the spot and unable to move as I stare at his body, drinking in the sight of him. I try to tell myself to stop, to leave and pretend I never saw him, but when he throws his head back and groans with his eyes pinched tightly closed and his teeth gritted as though in pain, I find myself moving closer to him.
This is wrong; I shouldn’t be in here. I should leave, but something’s pulling me toward him, and when I notice the hard, angry length of his cock jutting out from the V of his hips and his hand wrapped firmly around it, my mouth waters at what I’m seeing. Water is streaming down his body, and my eyes track the paths of the droplets as they move over the dips, ridges, and curves of his muscular back and toned ass. My mind has blanked, and all sane thought has left my body. I’ve seen a naked man before, and I’ve had sex and loved every moment, but nothing has incited as much desire in me as the man standing in front of me right now.
Absently, I press my finger to my clit through my jeans, attempting to alleviate some of the ache that’s building there. Aston lets out a long, low moan, fisting the base of his cock, and as he rhythmically moves his hand again, swiping his thumb over the head with every pass, I rub faster. I’m lost in the moment, forgetting that I shouldn’t be in here, forgetting that the man in front of me isn’t a stranger, and forgetting that at any moment he could turn around and catch me.
A tingle of pleasure ripples through me at the sounds leaving his mouth, pairing with the sensations my fingers are creating at my own touch. Frustration builds the longer I stand there, trapped by a crushing need I can’t seem to snap out of; impatience drives my desire. I’ve been possessed by something far stronger than my own will, and I've become a slave to it. I one-handedly undo my jeans while maintaining my rhythm until I’m able to touch my own bare skin.
Licking my lips, my mouth feels dry, but as I slide my fingers into my panties, I feel the wetness that has gathered there. Now with slick fingers, I resume my ministrations until a buzzing sensation floods through me and I let out a soft moan.
I must be louder than I thought because Aston’s eyes fly open as he lets out a guttural shout, “Sonea!”
Thick ribbons of cum spurt from the end of his cock, coating the water splattered glass between us, and I shudder through my own orgasm at the sight. Still floating in the post orgasmic haze, I barely realize Aston has switched the shower off and wrapped a towel around his waist until he’s standing directly in front of me, his furious expression telling me I’ve really fucked up. But as I withdraw my hand from my jeans, I feel his shallow breaths on my face and see the warring emotions in his eyes. Love, anger, confusion...and fear.
I look away but I’m still frozen in place, this time too scared to move, to face him and see the raging conflict on his face. The juices from my pussy are drying on my fingers, and I quickly wipe my hands on my jeans, embarrassment heating my cheeks at what I’ve done; Aston’s my brother, and I’ve just got myself off to the sight of him masturbating in the shower!
Surprise fills my chest and warmth spreads through me when I feel his large, damp hand under my chin, tilting my head back, so I’m facing him.
I close my eyes, too terrified to do anything else, and whisper, “I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me.”
Soft, warm lips press against my forehead, and when his husky voice washes over me in the familiar blanket of comfort I’ve come to rely on, I feel the tears I was holding back slip free.
“Don’t do that again, Sonea. I’m not meant for you, sweetheart. Wash up. Dinner will be here soon.”
Confusion spreads through me at the calm tenor of his voice. I expected him to shout, to yell that I was disgusting, and a part of me wonders exactly what he’s thinking right now. But he doesn’t linger, instead he leaves me alone in his bathroom with my shame and the remains of his cum still soaking the glass wall of his shower.
I’ve thought a lot about that day, far more than I should, and I’m stuck in a tortuous purgatory
where I want more but know I shouldn’t. Every fantasy I’ve masturbated to since then, Aston’s starred in, and each time, I’ve finished with his name on my lips, juices soaking my hand, and thinking of him. I’m disgusted at myself, yet I can’t bring myself to stop this terrible need plaguing my fantasies.
I skipped Thanksgiving, but I can’t miss sharing another holiday with my family. I don’t know how to face either of my brothers, though, when I have this sickness in my mind, spreading through me like poison. I’m wanting things I should never desire and will never have, and I’m feeding it with every new fantasy and every single touch.
Chapter Two
Aston
Sonea should be home tomorrow, and Sean will be here a few days after. His semester finishes after Sonea’s, and he also has farther to travel. I sip at the same drink I’ve been nursing since I got here over an hour ago. Downing it, I grit my teeth and order a shot. I was restless and needed something to do, but in this town not much is open late at night apart from the local rock bar and a few restaurants. I’d already eaten at home, so I opted for the bar.
Nerves are attacking my gut at the thought of seeing the twins again. I saw Sean at Thanksgiving, but I haven’t seen Sonea since the summer, and I’m still not sure how to handle what occurred that day in my room. I was too stunned to do anything other than speak a few words to her; not while the aftershocks of my orgasm were still vibrating through my body and the scent of her arousal surrounded me when I approached her. I almost gave in to the desperation that was written across her flushed features, but someone has to be the responsible one, and even with my thoughts swirling in an endorphin-ridden blur, I wasn’t about to completely ruin the relationship we have and destroy everything I’ve worked so hard to build for my family.