Chapter 42 Dex
DEX
Fury pulsed through me like waves of lava destroying everything in its path. But I couldn’t take my eyes off the marks on Brae’s wrist. I could see it as clear as day. Slashes of bruising that meant someone had gripped her so hard they’d burst blood vessels beneath the skin.
“Breathe.”
Some part of me heard Brae’s voice through the haze of rage, but it wasn’t cutting it back. Not nearly enough. Someone had hurt her. Touched her with the intent to harm. And I wanted to kill them.
That thought should’ve snapped me out of it. The urge for violence should’ve terrified me. But it didn’t. Because I wanted agony for whoever had done this.
“Dex. I’m fine. I’m perfectly all right.” Brae took my other hand and placed it over her chest. “Breathe with me.”
The contact, the feel of her heart beating beneath my palm…it helped. She was alive. Breathing. Safe.
My gaze cut to her golden one. “Who?” I demanded.
Brae winced, biting her lower lip.
“Tell me,” I gritted out.
“Don’t you growl at me,” Brae snapped. “I’m not telling you anything until you dial it back a few notches.”
That fire. It calmed even more than her touch, her heartbeat. Because her fire reminded me just how strong Brae was.
“I’m not growling at you. I’m growling at whoever fucking dared to put their hands on you.”
She let out a soft huff of air. “That’s a little better. Would it help if I told you I pepper-sprayed him in the eyes and kneed him in the junk?”
My brows almost hit my hairline. Had a customer gotten rough with her? Wylder would’ve called me if someone had. But maybe he hadn’t seen. “What the hell happened?”
Brae shifted, peeling my hand from her arm and tugging the sweatshirt down so the bruises were out of sight. “Vincent showed up after my shift when I was getting into my car.”
Everything in me froze. “Vincent the douchebag ex? That Vincent?”
“One and the same.”
“Why?” I snarled.
Brae pulled at a thread on the couch’s seam. “I guess the newspaper from the town I grew up in reprinted an interview I did with a paper out here. Talking about Nova. Her case. I mentioned how she helped me raise Owen after everyone in my life bailed on me.”
“Like you did tonight,” I surmised.
She nodded. “Vincent’s brother saw the article, put two and two together, and told their parents. The Fabers want their grandson. He offered me money to sign over custody of Owen. I didn’t react well.”
Dread pooled, spreading from my gut and into my limbs. “Do you think he’s going to take you to court?”
“I don’t know,” Brae whispered. “But I need to find a lawyer just in case. I was going to tell you when I got home, but then Sky was missing. And then the interview with Ridley and—”
“Hey.” I scooped up Brae and cradled her to me. “I’m not mad at you. I’m fucking furious at him. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
Brae burrowed into me, and something about her leaning on me—something she rarely did without a fight—struck me right in the goddamned heart.
“I’m scared,” Brae whispered, her eyes filling. “They have endless resources. They have more money than God. What if they try to take Owen?”
“He’s not going anywhere,” I gritted out. “Not going to happen.”
Brae’s hands fisted in my shirt. “He’s all I have left. I can’t lose him, too.”
That organ that kept me alive, the one beating at a ragged pace, shattered then. She’d been through so much: people deserting her when she needed them the most, having her only support system ripped away, and now this… Life was so fucking unfair.
But that’s where I came in. I could balance those scales. At least when it came to Vincent. I would find every fucking skeleton in his closet. He wouldn’t be able to litter a gum wrapper without me knowing it. And I would make him pay.
“You’re not going to lose Owen. We won’t let that happen,” I vowed.
“We?” Brae asked, her voice starting to slur.
She’d been through too much today, and the adrenaline was finally leaving her system.
I pushed to my feet, cradling Brae against me, her red-currant scent wrapping around me. “We, Hellion. You’re not in this alone. And in case it’s been lost on you, it’s not just me who has your back. You’ve won over the Archers one by one. We’ve all got your back.”
“Not Orion,” Brae said sleepily as I carried her into her bedroom.
“He did send you cake. I think that’s a pretty good start.”
Brae’s mouth curved as her eyes fluttered shut. “That cake was really good.”
“It was.” I carefully laid her on the mattress, pulling off her slippers and then tucking the covers around her.
“Dex?” she mumbled.
“Yeah, Hellion?”
“Will you stay with me?”
Fuck me. She’d never asked that before.
“Yeah. I’ll stay. Just give me a second to check the doors and turn off the lights. Okay?”
Her eyes were still closed, but little lines appeared between her brows. “You’ll come back?”
A knife to the goddamned chest. And then I made a promise I knew I shouldn’t. But I did anyway. “I’ll always come back, Hellion. As long as you want me to.”
“Okay, Buttercup.” And then her whole body went slack, and her breathing deepened. She was asleep.
I couldn’t move. Not at first. Because walking away felt like a betrayal. Even when I knew I’d return.
A thought of the douchebag finally spurred me into action. I moved as fast and quietly as possible, checking every door and window and the alarm system, then shut off the lights and moved for the weapon I needed.
I snatched my laptop from the coffee table and strode back toward the bedroom. Brae lay curled on her side, deep breaths fluttering the hair that had fallen across her face. I eased onto the bed, careful not to wake her.
As soon as I settled, I pulled my phone out of my pocket. I brought up my brothers’ group chat and started typing.
Me
How do you feel about a revenge mission?
Maverick changed the group name to 50 Shades of Slay.
Maverick
We ride at dawn. Who we fuckin’ with?
I shook my head, wanting to laugh but not being able to get there. Mav didn’t need to know the why, just the who, because he trusted me not to ask for help unless the cause was just. And that kind of trust was a gift.
Kol
Change it back. What’s up, Dex?
Maverick
You change it back, Gramps. Oh, wait, you still have an AOL email and pay your bills through the mail.
Wylder
Mav, not the time.
Wylder changed the group name to Hot Sauce and Hot Goss.
Wylder
What’s going on?
Me
Brae’s asshole ex showed outside the Boot this afternoon. Put fucking bruises on her arm and wants to take Owen. I want him buried.
Orion
Name.
Oh, hell. If Orion was in, Vincent was a dead man walking. But I didn’t give a single fuck. He’d earned what was about to come his way.
Me
Vincent Faber. Wealthy family from Rhode Island.
Kol
Want me to tail him? I’ve got off tomorrow. I can put in some man-hours while Skylar is at camp.
Maverick
You’re letting her go back?
Kol
Waylon and Blaze are joining the counselor ranks.
Wylder
Sweet baby Jesus. They have no idea what they’re in for.
Kol
Tail?
Kol was coming through with his vow to have Brae’s back, and it felt damn good to know my brother was on her side. They all were.
Me
Please. Send me everything. I’m going to hit the digital trail. See what I can find. But Brae needs a lawyer. Anyone know someone good?
Orion
I might. Give me a day.
Maverick
I’m sorry, YOU know someone? You never leave Twisted Oak Ranch, and you don’t talk.
Orion sent Mav a middle finger emoji.
Maverick
That’s uncalled for. I was just curious.
Me
You’re just an asshole, you mean. Thanks, Rion. Let me know what you find.
Wylder
You’re going to bury him, aren’t you?
Me
I’m going to ruin everything good in his life and expose every dirty little secret he has. And after he’s dead and buried, I’m going to set that grave on fucking fire.
Maverick
God, I love it when you’re on a vengeance streak.
Maverick changed the name of the group to 50 Shades of Slay.
Kol
MAVERICK.
Maverick
Peace out, bitches. I got a douchebag to fuck with.
And fuck with him, he would. Just like the rest of my brothers would do their parts.
At the end of the day, Vincent Faber would never breathe easy again. Just like he deserved.