by Sam Crescent
“Loyalty means a great deal to you, doesn’t it?”
“Of course. Having loyal men means soldiers. My line of work, it’s not for the faint hearted. My life is at risk every single day.”
“Would you trade it?”
“No. Like I said, you think this is bad, but you don’t know what it was like before I took over. It was much, much worse.”
“How worse?”
“Human trafficking. Women being hurt. There was no order.”
“What about the cops?”
“I own them.”
“Wow,” she said.
“I’m a fair man, Ava. I can promise you that.”
“Logan, you don’t have to go making me promises.”
“I do.”
She stared at him, lips pressed together.
“If you’re pregnant, you’re going to marry me.”
“Wow,” she said, sitting up. “That is a huge topic change.” She lifted up the strap of her negligee. “Marriage? Wow.”
“You don’t want to get married?”
“Oh, I … I don’t know. I’ve not really thought about marriage.” She nibbled her lip. “I’m sorry. I’m all a little confused, you know.”
“I get it, I do.”
“I don’t think you do.”
He smiled. “You’ve got nothing to fear from me.”
“You threatened to kill me not too long ago.”
“And you’re very much alive. I’m not going to kill you, or hurt you in any way.” He held her hand again, locking their fingers together.
They were a perfect fit.
“What is going on right now?” she asked.
“We’re talking for the first time ever.” He looked into her eyes, and he wanted to take the pain and the fear away.
As he pulled her close, Ava moved toward him.
Cupping her cheek, he pressed a kiss to her lips. “I don’t want to lose you.”
“You’re not going to.”
“Not ever,” he said. “You belong to me, and I’m not willing to give you up for anything. I’ve already got people working on removing those videos so no one can ever find them.”
“You can do that?” she asked.
“I can do whatever the hell I want. Even if I don’t capture them all, being my woman, my wife, it will stop anyone from ever thinking they can hurt you.”
“No one can have that kind of power.”
“You’d be pleasantly surprised.” He tucked some hair behind her ear.
“I have no idea if this is a marriage proposal or not.”
“It’s whatever you want it to be.” He kissed her again. “I’m not going to give you up.”
“What does this mean?”
“It means, take a chance on me, Ava. I won’t let you down. I promise.”
“But you still don’t believe me.”
He averted his gaze and she pulled away from him, but he didn’t want her to.
Holding her close, he stared into her eyes. “Give me time.”
Chapter Twelve
“Give me time.”
Logan rolled up the sleeves of his white shirt, shaking his head.
Hunter had already called ahead to let him know he had the sheriff and would be arriving within the hour. He had everything set up for what he was going to need.
He didn’t like the sheriff and had planned to take him out. Anyone who liked hurting little boys or girls didn’t deserve the kind of power he had. He wondered how many kids had passed through the sheriff’s hands who had a story to tell.
Pushing those thoughts to the back of his mind, he didn’t want to even think about them right now. If he did, he’d end the sheriff too quickly, and that for him, wouldn’t do.
His men were silent. They knew that when he planned to hurt someone, they were not to interfere but to wait until he gave them an instruction. Nothing else.
Taking another deep breath, he felt calm and ready to deal with what he needed to.
There had been pregnancy tests waiting in the kitchen when he woke that morning. Hunter knew how to be efficient, but for Logan, there couldn’t be any other way.
Checking over his tools, he was satisfied the knife was sharp, as were the scissors. He didn’t need much to cause pain, or to get answers. He didn’t have any elaborate tools to electrocute or to maim. Just enough to harm.
Tapping his fingers on his thigh, he glanced at the time, and finally, the door to the warehouse was open.
The sheriff had a gag in his mouth, and Hunter marched him across the room.
One look at him and the sheriff started to wriggle and try to get away. Helping Hunter with the straps, Logan tied the man to the chair. The door had been closed by one of the guards nearest.
“I see we meet again, only this time, we’re in my world, not yours. Welcome,” Logan said. He grabbed a chair, dragging it across the cement floor and straddling it.
He reached out, pulling the gag down. “There, that is so much better, isn’t it? I can hear you now.”
“What is going on, Logan?” the sheriff asked. He looked like he was going to piss his pants.
“You and I, we have unfinished business.”
“I did everything you wanted. I looked the other way. No one asked about Ava. No one cared. You’re free to do what you want with her. You’re not going to be hurt from us.”
Logan laughed.
“I had no fear of being hurt by you, or by any of you.” He tutted. “This is such boring old bullshit, I tell you.” Logan stretched his neck from side to side.
He loved the fear. For him, it never got old. Unlike Luke, he never got off on hurting those weaker than he was. He would openly admit to being a bully, to hurting others, but he got off on taking down those who thought they were above him.
Like the sheriff in front of him.
He was supposed to be a man of the law, but they both knew he was anything but.
“Logan, please, I don’t understand.”
“I want you to tell me what happened twelve years ago,” Logan said.
“We have talked about this. I don’t know the point of going over old ground.”
“Tell me again.”
“Is this about Ava? She is lying. It’s all she knows how to do.”
He grabbed one of the sharpest blades and embedded it in the man’s thigh.
His screams rang out. The warehouse was empty, so his voice echoed off the walls, and to Logan, it was the sweetest music. He loved to hear the sound and would gladly listen to it all day.
Pulling out the blade, he gently laid it back on the tray.
“I’ve got a feeling in my gut, Sheriff. It has been festering for some time, and I don’t like it. It’s the feeling you’re fucking lying to me. So, convince me. Tell me which one of you is the liar.”
“She is. She came to me. She told me how you hurt her in the locker room. She’d gone for a swim, and she was hurting and she—” He was cut off by his screams.
Logan had pierced the other leg. He leaned in close. “The report I read said about the classroom, Sheriff.” He waited, letting the words sink in.
Within a few minutes he’d already caught the sheriff in a lie. He looked over toward Hunter. The other man wasn’t saying a word. There was no reason to.
“Yes, yes, of course. I’m sorry. It was twelve years ago. You know how the mind plays tricks and well, forgets.”
“Really?” Logan said.
“Yes. It’s a long time. A lifetime.” The sheriff laughed.
Logan was laughing. He wasn’t even faintly amused.
Staring at the man in front of him, he was disgusted, sickened, and wanted nothing more than to hurt him. He kept on watching him, feeling the minutes tick by. Ava was waiting for him back at the bar, but he didn’t need to be in any kind of rush.
This was a long time coming. He couldn’t believe he’d left the town without even dealing with this little problem.
The sheriff was a monster and needed to be deal
t with.
“So you’re telling me, the first serious case, a rape one, in the entire history of your residency as sheriff, and you can’t remember the finer details. This was a big case for you.” Now looking back, Logan stared at him.
He’d been so caught up in his own bullshit and the lies surrounding him, he’d not cared about what happened back at the town. Why would he care about a town he wasn’t going back to unless it was to take out his revenge on Ava?
“What did you do?” he asked.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Logan got up, kicking the chair out of his way and wrapped his fingers around the man’s throat. “I’m getting tired of all these games. I know, Sheriff.” He spat the words in the man’s face. “I know about Luke. Now tell me to my face what the fuck happened or the next thing to cut off will be your precious dick.” He brought the knife toward his dick, ready to slice it off with the single flick of the wrist. He’d gladly do it.
“Fine! Fine! They paid me. Luke’s parents, they knew he was a problem and he was always getting into trouble. They wanted me to look out for him, and the moment Ava Marshall came in and told me what happened, I called them. I needed to know what they wanted me to do.”
“It’s all true?” Logan asked. He held onto the knife even tighter.
“Yes. They told me that Luke couldn’t go down for it, and I had to pick a name.”
“And you picked me?”
“No, I didn’t pick you. I couldn’t pick you. I didn’t pick anyone.” The sheriff was crying now.
He had the knife pressed hard to his crotch, and he wanted to slice the dick right off.
“Who picked me then? Did you put all of our names in a hat?”
“Luke picked you. He told me you’d take the fall. His parents agreed and set it up.”
“What did you get out of it?”
“They knew what I liked. They set it up so I could have them any time I wanted.”
“Them?”
“Boys. All of them. Whenever I wanted.”
He stared at the man who’d arrested him, who had made him feel worthless.
“Ava never mentioned me?”
“Only as Luke’s best friend. She said you had nothing to do with it. I tried to get her to change her story. She was determined to name Luke.”
“So in place of all the Lukes you put my name and changed it. Settled for me pleading guilty.”
“You used Luke’s parents’ lawyer if you remember. Your family’s lawyer didn’t have the practice or knowledge in criminal law.”
He’d handed over his name and future to the bastard who did this to him.
“With the right contacts and money, they could do whatever they wanted, and they did. You were just caught in the crossfire, Logan.” The sheriff cried out. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
“Did you laugh at her?”
“What?”
“When Ava came to tell you the truth, did you laugh at her?”
“Yes. Of course. Luke could have anyone. Why would he want to be with her? It was stupid. She should have been grateful anyone wanted to look her way.”
He shoved the blade into the man’s dick. Without reason why, he started to hack at the man’s cock, slashing him.
Blood soaked through the fabric, coating the chair, spilling down onto the floor. There was nothing left of his dick, and once he was done, his thirst for blood wasn’t over.
His screams flowed out like sweet music, and he loved it, relished it.
All this time, he’d been living a lie. Helping the bastard who had brought him to this life and letting him live for free. Even paying the bastard for raping his woman.
Ava.
He stopped.
The sheriff wasn’t dead yet.
“Logan, you okay?” Hunter asked.
He’d put Ava in harm’s away. It was so fucking clear now. Her fear. Luke had gone to her room back at Crow Valley, had hurt her, and he’d done nothing.
“Logan?”
He ignored Hunter. Stepping back, he wiped the back of his nose. The sheriff was gasping for breath. The fucker deserved to hurt so much more.
Hunter stepped forward, snapping his fingers. “Look at me, Logan.”
He stared at his friend.
“Are you okay?”
He shook his head.
“Leave us,” Hunter said, calling out to the guards.
Get your shit together. You’re the boss. No one else.
Shaking his mind from the fog, he realized they were alone, and the sheriff, his life was fading slowly.
“What’s going on?”
“All this time, I’ve helped him, Hunter. I was there for him because I believed he was there for me.”
“Luke hates your fucking guts,” the sheriff said. “He said you were a fucking prick, losing bastard. He doesn’t want you to have anything. It’s why he threw you under a bus and no one else. You’re nothing to him. Never have been and never will be. You’re nothing.”
Logan stared at the sheriff, and it was like his life flashed before his eyes. The moment he’d always mistaken as friendship and banter, turned and changed as he realized his “best friend” despised him.
“You’re right, but seeing as you’re into fucking little kids, I think I’m going to have some fun with you before you get the chance to leave.”
****
The nightclub was amazing. Ava loved the music, the atmosphere. She smiled as couples ground together to the heavy beat of the music, and it made her think of Logan. This club was entirely legal; he’d told her before leaving her all on her lonesome.
Glancing over at the clock, she saw he’d been gone several hours and didn’t want to think of what he was doing or who he was doing it with. It didn’t matter.
She was having fun.
Admittedly, she hadn’t gone down to dance or party. There was a guard on the door who could escort her, but if there was a person she wanted to go with, it was Logan, not his guard.
Sipping at the alcoholic drink brought her, she smiled. The little umbrella was a nice touch.
She drank a little more down, tapping her foot and watching everything below.
Logan had told her no one could see her up here. If she wanted, she’d be able to walk around completely naked, but that was never, ever going to happen. She rather liked being able to watch people without them seeing her.
Putting her drink back on the desk, she rested her chin on her hands and stared out over the crowd.
This place was all Logan.
The energy was incredible. She thought about the fight she’d seen. The violence. This was another side to him, and she really liked it. Tapping her foot on the floor, she wondered what it was like for Logan. How he was able to put aside any fear to fight and kill.
This was a whole other world than anything she’d ever known. Growing up in Crow Valley, there was nothing else.
Flicking her hair off her shoulder, she wondered if he ever thought about her.
Of course he thought about you. He planned all of this. Coming and getting you. Hurting you. This was his big plan for revenge.
Logan wanted to hurt her, and Luke, like always, got away with it.
Ava stood as she heard the doors to the office open. She hoped to see Logan. What she didn’t expect to see was her nightmare standing right in front of her.
“Well, I didn’t expect to see you here.”
“This is Logan’s office. What are you doing here?”
“Is that any way to talk to me?” Luke asked.
She stood up. There was no way she was going to allow herself to be in any kind of vulnerable position.
“You’re not supposed to be here.”
“I can do whatever the hell I want.”
“I wonder if Logan has any idea of the hatred you have for him.” She had to get out of the room, but Luke flicked the lock into place. “What have you done to the guards?”
“I haven’t done anythin
g. I know I couldn’t take them. I let them know Logan informed me they could go.”
“You’re not the one who should give that order. Logan wouldn’t have told them.”
“People are stupid. They like to think they know people, but look at Logan. He doesn’t even realize I can have this place wrapped around my little finger and he doesn’t have to do anything but tell people to make me happy. That’s all they do, make me happy. They never get in my way, and I can do whatever the fuck I want. Like tonight, I went to pay a little visit to the slut who ran her mouth, only to find she is protected. Logan’s stupid. He doesn’t want to believe the truth right in front of him.”
“What did you do to the other woman?”
“Oh, she’s safe for now. I’ll handle her. The way I handle everyone. You see, Ava, you were my first.”
“What?”
“Your nice, tight, dry pussy, wrapped around my dick. I was right all along. I didn’t have to force any chick. I could have who I wanted, whenever I wanted. Just the click of my fingers, showing off a couple of bucks, and you wouldn’t believe the kind of ass I’d get.”
She hated this man. The way he talked, it sickened her.
“What I could get them to do. Um! It was a fucking dream, I tell you. Don’t get me wrong. Some of them played hard to get. As they should, you know. But all it took was a couple hundred bucks and their ass was mine.” He grabbed his crotch, and she felt her stomach turn.
This couldn’t be happening.
“You though, you were like magic. I didn’t even know what I was fucking missing until I held you down and took from you what you didn’t want taken.”
“You need to leave.”
“I got a taste for it, and it has been so easy. No one believes a desperate woman. Not when you wire money into her bank account.”
“You’re a monster.”
“And Logan, I mean it was a stroke of genius when the sheriff called. My parents were pissed, but I already figured out who I’d stitch up. Back then, I was the most powerful. I could have anyone do whatever I wanted. My parents were rich, and after I raped you, I knew I’d get him to take the fall. After all, I’d seen the way he looked at you. How he touched you. And I knew, he would do anything to kill you once you told those lies.”