9. Lex
LEX
“I don’t know who sent the money. I was just told that there would be more money in it for me if I made sure they got off.” I grab the sledgehammer off the table. “Um…” He panics and looks around the room for help as I step closer. “Wait, wait… I wasn’t the only one!”
“How did you convince the others?” Another step closer.
“Money!” he blurts. “I was told to tell them there would be money for them if they said not guilty.”
“And they all took it?”
“No, not all. Some I had to threaten, and that’s all, that’s all. I didn’t hurt anyone, I just threatened them.”
“You hurt Rory,” I growl and smash his foot with the sledgehammer. He screams out in pain, and I try not to smile.
“Wait! It might have been Chad’s dad.” He gasps for air and winces. “I heard him yelling at him one day, and I think it was him.” I ponder this for a moment. I wouldn’t put it past David. Chad is his only son. “That’s all I know. Please let me go. I’m sorry Rory got hurt.”
“We both know you’re not.”
“No, really! I’ll give you all the money I got, I just need—”
Sighing heavily, I pull out my gun and put a bullet in between his eyes.
“Boy, he caved quick. You barely needed the tools,” Sandy says as he comes into the room.
“You know he likes to tenderize them. That’s how he stays in fighting shape.” Quint laughs as he helps Sandy haul the dead man out of the room.
“True, I wouldn’t want to fight you, boss,” Sandy grunts.
“Don’t fuck up and you won’t have to,” I say.
Both men give me promises of loyalty and reassurances. I trust all of my men until they give me reason not to.
“You should let Doc take a look at your hand before he leaves.” Sandy nods to my bloody knuckles.
If Doc is here, Rory should be too.
I grumble an agreement and head up to my office. Thank fuck I keep a change of clothes here because Rory can’t see me like this. I don’t want to scare him, so I take the back way.
When I open the door, Mal is already waiting. “That didn’t take long.”
“Why’s Doc here?” I ask as I unbutton my shirt and step into the closet.
“Someone slipped up during training and cut himself.” Mal sighs.
“They need to be more careful.” My pants follow the shirt into the hamper. They’ll need to go in the incinerator.
“The new guys always…” I’m barely listening to him as he keeps talking. “Are you going to see Rory?”
“Why, did he ask for me?” I sound a little too excited.
“No, but he keeps looking around.”
“He’s probably nervous.” I zip my slacks.
“Or hoping to see you,” Mal teases, but I’m already throwing on a dark sweater and moving toward the door.
“What if I came here to tell you something important?” Mal says with a chuckle.
“Text me.” I shrug and close the door.
Rory grins widely at me from the couch in the lobby.
“Hello, Rory.” I walk closer to him, and he uncurls from his sweatshirt ball.
“Hi, Lex.” He sounds so bright and chipper today. “You look nice. I’ve only seen you in suits before.”
“I can be casual,” I try, and he laughs. “Alright, it’s hard for me. I’ll never be as comfortable as you when you curl into your sweater.”
“You’d never fit. You’re much too big for that.” He gives me an assessing look that pumps up my ego. Rory shakes his head and gasps. “Oh, I made something for you.”
“You didn’t need to do that, sweet boy.”
The grin that lights up his face is blinding. “I know, but you keep getting me presents.”
“You deserve nice, soft things.” Too bad I’m a hardened killer.
“I’ve been sleeping with your gift every night.” Something about the idea of him snuggling a gift I gave him—
“How are you sure it’s from me?” I tease.
“Huh.” He taps his chin in thought. “I found a stuffed rabbit on my doorstep after you called me rabbit.”
“Guilty.” I almost snort a laugh. I’ve never said that word before.
Rory pulls an envelope from his large front pocket and hands it to me with a shy smile. I reach out to grab it from him, but he gasps and grabs my hand.
Fuck, I forgot about that.
“What happened?”
I was beating the shit out of some guy cause he caused you pain.
“I was sparring.” Close enough.
“You should really wear gloves or at least tape your knuckles.”
He stands still, holding my hand and pulling me with him.
“Judy.”
She turns with a smile. “Yes.”
“Do you have a first-aid kit?”
“Of course.” She opens a drawer and pulls out a small red box.
“Thank you. Now where’s the bathroom?”
“I’m fine, rabbit.”
“I’ll be the judge of that.” His button nose is wrinkled in concern. “Bathroom.”
“Fine.” I point to my office, and he drags me there. When he opens the door, Mal seems surprised, but he grins.
“Why, hello there.”
I roll my eyes at him.
“Oh, um, hi. I’m Rory.” He sinks into me a little, and I’m incredibly pleased that he looks to me for security.
“Hi, Rory, I’m Mal, this big lug’s brother.”
“Nice to meet you. Can you show me where the bathroom is?”
“That door over there.”
“Thanks. Okay, come on.” He drags me to the bathroom and carefully washes the cuts between my knuckles. His movements are sure and practiced.
“Did you learn first aid from your brother?” I ask, but he stays focused on my hands.
“Some, but I was going to school to be a pediatric nurse. It’s been my dream since I was a kid and I had to get stitches on my knee. The nurse was so nice and made me feel comfortable. I wanted to be able to do that for others.”
“You have a very kind soul.” I hide my wince when he rinses the wounds with some kind of solution.
“Thanks.” He smiles softly as he carefully wraps my hand. Then he shocks the hell out of me when he lifts my hand to his lips and presses a gentle kiss to the bandage. “There, all better.”
My eyes light up at his sweet gesture, and he smiles so brightly it puts the sun to shame.
“You’ll be an excellent nurse.” I lean in close to him and rub his soft cheek. He relaxes into my palm.
“I was supposed to graduate this summer but…”
“The attack?” I prod gently and rub my thumb over his smooth skin.
He gives me an assessing look, and I’m not sure if he’s going to answer me. I’m about to tell him he doesn’t have to answer. I already know all about the attack anyway.
“I stayed late at the library that night because I was working on a paper. When I left, they were there.”
That gets my attention. “Did they target you?”
“Yeah, Chad had propositioned me a few times, but I was too focused on finishing school.”
Fury fills my veins, but Rory’s eyes go distant, and I can see the fear as he relives the attack.
Fuck, that isn’t what I wanted.
“Rory?” I gently place a hand on his knee, and it takes a few moments, but when he snaps back to reality, there are tears in his pretty eyes and his plush lower lip is trembling. “I’m sorry.”
He wipes his eyes. “I just wanted to protect others. To stop them from hurting anyone else like they did me. No one should have to endure that, but the jury believed that I asked for it. How anyone could think that—” He sniffles and looks around. “I need to go.”
He’s out of my bathroom so fast, I don’t even have time to comfort him, to reassure him that it wasn’t his fault.
Well, I know whose fault it is, and those jurors, who were supposed to protect the public from predators like those men, failed him. No, they fucked him.
I storm out and into my office.
“Hey, boss, did you scare the sweet—” Numbers starts.
“I want every detail on the rest of the jurors for his case,” I growl. When Mal and Numbers just look at me… “Now!” I shout. They jump up and head out of my office like their asses are on fire. I stand there for a moment, just trying to breathe.
How could anyone hurt this most precious boy?
He wants to be a nurse and help people. People who don’t deserve his attention.
I’m just so fucking angry. I want to burn the whole world down around him and give him marshmallows to roast.
If anyone even looks at him wrong, I’ll break—
“Dad.” Liv is standing close, and she’s reaching out cautiously. I don’t know when she got here, but fuck, I’m so goddamn angry. “Let’s go to the gym and you can beat the shit out of a punching bag.” I glare. “Or we can go to Mitch’s house.”
I give a clipped nod. But with the way I’m feeling, Mitchell might die tonight, and that is not the plan.
“Just make sure I don’t kill him.”
“I’ll try, but I really don’t want to watch you shove a bat up someone’s ass.” That gives me an idea. We’ll be stopping by one of my dens. “You just got an idea. As long as it doesn’t change anything with surveillance.” She sighs. “It should be fine.”
“It won’t.”