Chapter 27
Chapter Twenty-Seven
MADISON
SEVEN HOURS AGO
H e has my mom. It’s the only thought running through my brain since Thomas’s lackeys showed me that picture. My mom looked terrified with her arms bound with rope and a piece of tape over her mouth. I’ve never felt this kind of rage before.
How dare he!
Isn’t it bad enough to do what he’s done to me but now he escalates the torture by going after my mother. I’m complying for the time being. My only goal is to set my mom free before I get even. Enough is enough. I’m tired of being afraid. I’m tired of having this monster lurking in the shadows of my life. I don’t think I have it in me to actually kill him, but I’m picking up the nearest object and turning it into a weapon.
I will make him hurt physically because the man is too psychotic to have emotions.
Walking out of the hospital with Baldy and Musty close by, they lead me to an SUV.
Seriously, this guy doesn’t believe in deodorant. He’s as ripe as a damn onion and my eyes water any time he gets too close to me. The other really needs to invest in some hair plugs or just shave his head. He looks ridiculous.
Baldy gets into the driver’s seat while Musty gets in the back with me. I scoot all the way to the other side to keep space, but he slides to the middle seat, caging me against the door.
Oh, God. The tears are back. Jesus! I might just die in this back seat.
I try to put my window down but it’s locked.
What kind of sick form of torture is this?!
“Don’t cry, sweetheart. I promise when Thomas finishes with you, I’ll make you feel good.” He throws his arm over my shoulder and licks the shell of my ear. His now open armpit releases more of its fumes and my tears begin to fall.
I can feel the throw up building in the pit of my stomach.
“You and that horrendous stench will kill me long before anyone has a chance to do anything to me,” I snap. I pinch my nose closed and glare at him.
Musty opens his mouth to say something but Baldy barks out a laugh. “I told you your ass smells like the inside of a dumpster. Back off, Roy. The boss strictly said not to lay a hand on her. She’s his.”
I’m his?
My anger rises even more. I’m sure I have steam coming out of my ears. Thomas is delusional.
Musty scoots to the other side of the seat while never taking his gaze off me. That’s fine. As long as he keeps those hazardous armpits to himself.
After we make it to the airport, Baldy turns to me with cold eyes. “Don’t say anything. Don’t try anything. One wrong move and your mom is dead. Understand?”
I nod shakily. As much as I want to march up to Thomas and kick him in balls, I can’t. I have to set my mom free, any way I can. Even if that means doing something I really don’t want to do.
Once we make it to Thomas’s estate, I’m led to a room. Baldy opens the door and pushes me in.
“Where is my mom? I want to see her.”
Baldy slams the door shut and I hear the lock click. I run to the door and bang it with my fist, yelling to see my mother. I don’t know how much time passes before I slump to the ground in defeat.
Time passes slowly and by the time the lock clicks again, I’m antsy, agitated and angry. When the door swings open, Thomas stands there with a smug smile.
“I knew you would come home, my love.”
The feeling that courses through my body can only be described as murderous. I rush to my feet, grab a nearby vase, and throw it at his head. “You son of a bitch!” I yell.
Thomas ducks the vase by a second, but he doesn’t have time to recover before I’m on him.
I’m supposed to be acting calm and rationally at the moment. That idea was tossed out the window as soon as he opened his mouth. He’s smiling like I’m here by choice.
He can’t seriously be this damn delusional!
Punch after punch, I deliver to him. I have completely snapped. I pride myself on being a sweet person and never letting someone get under my skin, but Thomas Shaw can make an angel contemplate murder.
He only takes my assault for a few moments before he backhands me, sending me flying across the room. My cheek burns and my eyes sting from tears. I don’t dare let them fall. I’ve cried enough over this asshole.
“You want to be a bitch?!” he roars. “I’ll show you who’s in charge.”
He wraps his hand in my hair and drags me down the hallway. He tells one of the guards something, but I don’t hear what he says because of my screams.
“Let me go!”
He finally lets me go once we’re in the living room. He takes a seat on the sofa in front of me and crosses his legs. A maid walks in and gives him a tumbler with brown liquor. I give her pleading eyes, silently begging for help. She gives a small shake of the head, meeting my gaze with fear.
How many women has this man tormented?
How many are damaged because of something he’s done?
A muffled scream gains my attention. I turn around and watch Baldy and Musty drag my mother into the room. I get up to go to her but Baldy whips out a gun and presses it to my mother’s head. I freeze and the tears I’ve been trying to hold back fall.
My mom’s right cheek is bruised and swollen. Her eyes are red and puffy from crying.
“Please, don’t,” I whisper.
Thomas laughs and I turn to him. I snap my mouth shut. I don’t trust myself right now. I don’t want to say anything that will affect my mom’s life.
“You’re begging the wrong person.” Thomas smiles with a raised brow.
I swallow my pride and give him exactly what he wants. “Please, just let her go. This is between you and me. I’ll do anything.”
“Anything?” he purrs.
I don’t like the tone in his voice. I need to distract him. “Why are you doing this, Thomas?”
“Because you belong to me. You’ve been mine since the first time I laid eyes on you.”
Uneasiness flows through me. “I was thirteen years old when you met me!”
“And you were mine,” he repeats. “I let you and Jonah have your little puppy-love saga. Hell, I even allowed you to go to school and get your degree like you always dreamed of. As a bonus, I let you work in that emergency room for a few years. But then my men started telling me you went on a few dates with a doctor, and I knew I had to put a stop to it. You are mine! Mine! And I’ll kill anyone who gets in the way of that.”
He looks directly at my mother with his last statement. She sobs as tears run down my cheeks. Thomas is a damn lunatic. How could he possibly think this way? I always looked at him like he was just as much my uncle as Jonah’s, and he was harboring all of these sick feelings inside.
“Now, are you willing to make sure your loved ones are safe?” he coos as he runs a finger down my cheek.
My stomach churns with disgust but I nod. My mom screams, shaking her head rapidly, but her sounds are muffled by the tape.
Thomas’s hand goes to his belt buckle as he unclasps it. Before he can release himself, Baldy interjects.
“Thomas, you have to be at the press conference in half an hour. We have to go.”
Thomas growls before standing and tucking his shirt back into his pants. He fixes his suit while never taking his eyes off me. “We’re going to go for a little ride. Depending on how well you behave, I’ll release your mom. I have a special getaway planned for the both of us.” His dark eyes hold mine and my throat goes dry.
I nod my head shakily and dropped my head in defeat. I want my mom free of this monster. I’ll play smart until she’s released. Maybe she can get some help.
“Martha, I will warn you now. If at any time you try and contact the authorities, I will have your sons killed.”
My head snaps to my mom and her tears are flowing heavily. I hate this man with everything in me. I can’t imagine as a parent what position this puts her in. In order to save one child, she has to sacrifice another. Just in case I don’t make it out of this alive, I need to make sure my mom holds no guilt over this.
“It’s fine, Mom. I knew this day would come. I don’t want my brothers involved in this. Promise me when the time comes, you run and don’t look back.”
My mom continues to sob, and Thomas sighs as if this entire thing is a bore to him. As soon as my mom is released, my foot is going to have a greeting with his balls.
Thomas grabs my arm and leads me outside. He shoves me in the back of an SUV, and I watch as they load my mom in another. I scoot to the far side of the seat, but Thomas yanks me back. The entire drive he rubs my arms and sweeps his fingers in the cleft of my breasts. Tears stream down my face and I look out the window trying to disengage myself from what’s happening.
We pull up at the city hall and Thomas instructs me not to do something stupid. He made sure to remind me my brothers’ lives are at stake. I don’t know how much time passes as I sit in this truck with two guards, but they receive a phone call and get out. One opens my door and instructs me to follow him and keep quiet.
I walk around the truck and see them pulling my mom inside the building. When I walk through the door, Mom is standing there in confusion. Honestly, so am I.
I look around to see if there is any way to escape with Mom but there isn’t. We’re surrounded. Baldy tells us to follow him. As we walk down a hall, I notice a guard on the ground, wiping his mouth. There’s blood on his sleeve.
Could it be? Did they find us?
I try and push down the excitement. I don’t want to get my hopes up just for this to be another trap from Thomas. Baldy opens the door and I cry out at the sight of Jonah. I grab Mom’s hand and run inside.
Jonah rushes forward and wraps his arms around Mom and me. Mom begins to cry in relief and Jonah squeezes us tighter. He kisses the top of my head and then Mom’s. “Let me get this handled and then we’re out of here. Okay?”
We both nod and he pushes us closer to Bear and Tiny. I wrap my arms around Mom. I hear a small intake of breath and turn to see Athena standing there, watching Mom and I dumbfounded. She turns to Thomas with hurt in her eyes.
“Tell me what you did! Tell me!” she shouts.
“You don’t get to question me. I took care of you and your brat after your husband died, with no questions asked. You haven’t had to work a single day since I started paying your bills, so spare me the dramatics.”
“Thomas,” she snaps.
“Enough. You have her here, now sign them.” He pushes a piece of paper toward Jonah, and he signs the paper.
What the hell is that?
I step forward but Bear puts an arm out, blocking me. I look up and he shakes his head. I want to refuse but, honestly, Bear is a little scary. I don’t think he would ever hurt me, but he also just has an aura about him that makes you not want to test those waters.
Once the papers are signed, Jonah leaps across the table and begins to beat the hell out of Thomas. Baldy and Musty step forward to intervene but Viper and Tiny raise their weapons. They smarten up and take a step back.
Slam after slam, his fists come down on Thomas’s face. His face is swollen, and his nose is pouring blood. When Jonah doesn’t let up, Bear pulls him away. Jonah struggles against his hold and tries to go at Thomas again.
Athena rushes forward and kneels down on the ground. She pulls Thomas’s handkerchief from his suit pocket and begins wiping the blood from his face.
Jonah’s face falls. “Even now that you know, he is still the one you choose,” he says. He looks down at his mom with disgust. She opens her mouth to say something, but Jonah shakes his head. “Don’t!” he sneers. He focuses his attention on Thomas. “Stay the hell away from Madison.”
Thomas turns away and grits his teeth as Cara squats down to look him in the eyes. “Also, you might want to read that NDA over. There is a clause in there that states if you do come anywhere near Jonah, Madison, her family, or the club, then this contract is null in void.”
Thomas rushes to his feet. “You can’t do that!” he hisses.
Cara smiles in amusement as she rises to her feet. “I can and I did. A man who is obsessed enough to stalk someone for as long as you have isn’t going to give up so easily. So just know, if you try anything, we will shut your shit down. Try me.”
She closes up her briefcase and begins to head for the door. When she passes Musty, her nose scrunches up and she covers her nose with the back of her hand. “Eww. What the fuck? Have you heard of a thing called a shower, you literal walking piece of shit?!”
Musty grits his teeth and sneers down at her. “Fuck you!”
Cara kicks him in the balls, and he drops down to his knees. With a quick right, she decks him in the face. “No thanks, asswipe.”
Jonah chuckles and pulls Mom and me into his arms. “Let’s get out of here.”
His mom calls his name, but he ignores her and continues out of the room. Mom and I hold him tight. We could feel his body shaking. I don’t know if it’s from anger or hurt at this point. This can’t be easy on him.
We’ve talked about Athena, and I know how strained his relationship with her has been since that night. Now that everything has come to light and she still chooses Thomas, I don’t know what this is going to do to him.
I can be there for him like he’s done for me. No matter what happens, we will always have each other. I couldn’t ask for anything more.
THOR
It’s been two weeks since we left Arizona. Thomas has been silent. I figured he would try and come after Madison as soon as we got back. I was actually looking forward to it. Viper told me to try and handle this the smart way, but I can't. Not when I know he will always be a threat to my woman.
I’ve already made up my mind to take the fall for his murder. I hate doing this to Madison, but I would spend the rest of my life behind bars to ensure her safety. She might be angry at me for a while but it’s a chance I’m willing to take.
We’ve talked to her parents every day since we left. Andrew won’t let Martha out of his sight and vice versa. She’s afraid as soon as she does, he will do what I’ve already planned. Madison told me we got to her just in time. Apparently, the sick fuck had planned to take her away after the press conference.
Maddy still has a protection detail when she goes to work. I know the girls think that little NDA was enough to keep Thomas away, but I highly doubt it.
I saw the way he watched her. He’s obsessed. That’s why I have to end him. It’s the only way for this to be over.
My mom has tried calling me several times since that day. I haven’t picked up any of her calls. I’m done with her. I love my mom. She never mistreated me growing up, but I can’t fathom how she can take his side in this. How can she be okay with what he did to Madison and me?
I just don’t understand it and I never will.
I’m snapped out of my thoughts when I see a fuming Viper stomping across the common room. “Sara,” he calls with a stern tone. Maddy turns to me with concerned eyes, and I shrug. I have no clue what’s going on.
Sara’s head pops up as she looks at Viper, a bit uneasy.
“Where is she?” he questions Sara.
Her brows scrunch up and she stares at Viper in fake confusion. “Who?”
Viper scoffs and looks at Sara, unimpressed. “Don’t even try it. You and Cara are like ying and yang. I’ve been calling her for over an hour and she hasn’t responded. I asked Tech to track her just to find out her GPS is blocked. I know you know something,” he accuses.
Bear turns to Sara with a raised brow and Sara turns away quickly. Yup. She’s guilty. Sara is the worst at keeping secrets. All it takes is one look from her Ol’ Man and she’ll confess anything.
“Well,” Bear prompts. When she remains silent, Bears grasps the back of her neck, turning her to face him. “Princess,” he warns.
“Okay! I don’t know much. She just said she had something to take care of and to cover for her!” she rushes out. Viper squints his eyes at her. “That’s all I know. I swear.”
“Geez, remind me to never to tell you a secret, Sara,” Bianca mutters from Blade’s lap. Maddy snickers at the offended expression on Sara’s face.
Sara opens her mouth to say something but Viper’s phone rings. He grunts as he looks at the caller ID. “What?” he snaps when he answers it. He listens for a few minutes before he turns to Blade. “Do you know someone named Frances?”
Blade, Torch, and Sara’s look between each other with worried expressions. They all nod to the question. Viper frowns and puts his cell back to his ear. “Send her in,” he says and hangs up.
“She’s here?” Sara gasps.
Viper nods just as a woman walks through the door, looking almost terrified. When her eyes land on the Romano siblings, she quickens her steps. They all stand and take turns hugging her.
Blade better explain fast. Bianca looks like she’s two seconds from removing his balls. When Blade sees the expression on her face, he smirks. “Is that jealously, Coco?” She narrows her eyes, and he throws his head back, laughing. “No need for that, baby. You own my ass. This is Wyatt’s baby sister.”
Bianca turns to the woman in shock and then she smiles. “Frances, this is my Ol’ Lady and wife, Bianca.” They shake hands and say hello.
“Not that we’re not happy to see you, Frances, but what are you doing here?” Torch asks.
“Cara called me a few days ago and said she had some updates about Wyatt’s case but she needed to discuss them in person. She told me to fly out today because she would have all the information by now and here I am.”
“Did you two know anything about this?” Viper questions Blade and Torch.
They both shake their heads. Viper pulls out his phone and dials a number. My guess is he’s calling Cara. When she answers, he looks surprised.
“Hellcat, care to explain why you told me you were going to Walmart and then went off the grid. And now there’s someone here that you failed to mention to anyone that they were coming.”
He listens for a moment before saying, “Cara, don’t you dare hang up. Cara? Cara? Goddammit!” He starts pacing and running his fingers through his hair. “I swear that woman is a goddamn pain in the ass. How did your parents keep her ass in line? I need some pointers.”
Sara, Blade, and Torch burst out laughing. “They didn’t. Cara is the rebellious one,” Torch says, smirking.
Viper grumbles and takes a seat.
What in the world are you up to, best bud?