Chapter 40
CHAPTER 40
ATLAS
T he drive to the cabin is a blur.
I couldn't tell you how fast I drove, how many cars I passed, or if I even stopped at any lights.
My focus was singular—get to Nora.
And now that I’m here, I swear to God, if even one hair on her head is out of place, I'll gut that piece of shit like the pig he is.
Nora's mine. Mine to love and to cherish. Mine to protect, and I've failed her.
As much as I want to punch it down the long, winding drive and come in guns blazing, I ditch my truck near the road and go in on foot.
I need to be stealthy, because he already has home field advantage, so to speak, and the last thing I want to give him is a leg up on me.
Especially when he has the most precious person in my world in his hands.
So, while I want to run, I don't. I creep, gun drawn, eyes peeled, and ready for whatever he may have up his sleeve.
I pause at his truck, taking a quick peek through the windows, but nothing jumps out at me.
In fact, nothing seems amiss at all as the cabin comes into view—that is until I hear Nora's terrified screams bleeding through the walls.
All bets are off now as I flick the safety off and race toward the cabin.
“I'm coming, Pip.”
I burst through the front door, only to stop dead in my tracks at the sight before me.
Nora is on her side with her arms tied behind her, soaking wet, and bleeding. Rand is gripping her jaw so tightly I can see his fingers digging into her delicate, already bruised skin as he tries to pull her leggings down.
Hell. Fucking. No.
“Get the fuck away from her!” I shout, cocking the gun and aiming it straight at him.
Nora’s wide, tearful eyes nearly gut me where I stand. She tries desperately to speak, but Rand’s tight hold on her prevents any intelligible words from coming out.
“Well, look who's here,” Rand murmurs, not remotely fazed by my appearance or the weapon pointed directly at his chest. “I was wondering if you'd show up. Nora here—” He yanks her by the hair, hard enough that her whole body slides toward him, her neck bent at an unnatural angle. “She was certain you'd swoop in and save her, but I had my doubts. That's a lot of trouble to go through for a used piece of ass carrying another man's child.”
Nora whimpers, and something inside of me breaks as fury unlike anything I’ve ever felt before sparks inside of me, racing through my veins like liquid fire.
“She may not be worth it to you,” I say quietly, “but she's everything to me.”
He laughs, but it's a dark sound, devoid of any humor. “Good. Then I'll make sure to let you watch while I fuck the life right out of her.”
He shifts their position, maneuvering them so Nora’s battered body blocks any chance I have at a clean shot.
Her pained sobs echo in the small space, and it’s a sound that will haunt me for the rest of my life.
“I will end you,” I vow, flexing the fingers on my left hand before once again steadying the weapon in my right.
One way or another, when we leave here, he will be bleeding out on this floor, but I refuse to risk her to make the shot. So, for now, I just need to keep his focus off of her and on me instead.
“You can try, son.” His patronizing tone sets my teeth on edge, causing my anger to override the fear.
“I'm not your son. I'm not your anything.” I look him up and down before glancing toward Nora. She’s shivering and crying, and her lips are looking a little blue. I hate how fucking helpless I feel. “You disgust me.”
Rand—because he's not my father—sighs, as if he's disappointed in me. “Soft,” he murmurs, shaking his head. “Just like your mother.”
His words hit their mark, striking me square in the chest.
“Leave her out of this.” My focus is split between him and Nora. She’s in bad shape, but I worry if I take my eyes off him for a single second, he’ll take her from me for good.
He laughs, loudly, coldly. “How can I, when she's where it all started?”
Is he saying what I think he is?
“Meaning...”
“I’ll never forget the first time I saw her.” He sighs wistfully, finally releasing his tight hold on Nora’s hair.
Her entire body goes lax, save for her shoulders, which shake as she cries.
In this moment, everything about him is completely at odds with the actual hell playing out before me. He’s walking down memory lane while simultaneously laying waste to everything I love.
“All I could think about was how pretty she'd look with my hands 'round her neck and her eyes rolled back in her head. She was the start of everything... my genesis. She showed me who I really am and led me down a path I could've never imagined.”
He shakes his head, as if clearing away the cobwebs, bringing his focus back to me. “Made a lot of mistakes with her, but I fine-tuned my process before Grace.”
A heart-wrenching sob slips past Nora’s trembling lips, causing Rand to flick his eyes toward her, an evil smirk curling his lips as he clocks her reaction.
I don't let his words get to me, at least not outwardly. Outrage is exactly what he’s looking for, and I refuse to give him the satisfaction.
“You’re telling me you killed my mom, and Nora’s?” My voice is calm, despite the inferno of rage and regret warring inside of me, burning every decent memory of the man in front of me to ash.
“That’s exactly what I’m telling you. And countless other bitches.” He has the sick audacity to sound proud. “Practice makes perfect, son.”
“I’m not your son.” My voice is low. Deadly. “I meant it when I said I’m not your anything.” I spit the words at him, disgust dripping from every single syllable.
“Watch your tone, Atlas.” He rakes his bloodied fingers through Nora’s hair, yanking her head back.
She yelps, her back bowing under the pressure of his grip.
My eyes connect with hers, and for a moment I catalog every injury—from her black eye and split lip, to her bruised neck and bleeding stomach.
I’m going to kill him. I’m going to end his sad, miserable existence so he can never hurt Nora ever again.
“Atlas,” she whispers my name, her hoarse voice barely audible.
“I’ve got you,” I promise, meaning it. This has gone on long enough.
The man—no, the piece of shit on his knees before me, using the love of my life as a living shield—is reprehensible. He’s hurt God knows how many people, and now, he needs to pay.
I just need to lure him away from my girl so I can make the shot.
“You’re pathetic,” I whisper, hoping to bait him.
“What was that?” Those three words take me back to my childhood, to the way he’d whisper them any time I did something to disappoint him. They were usually followed with the back of his hand striking hard against my cheek.
Which means my plan is working. He’s getting pissed—at me. And if I’m lucky, he’ll play right into my hand. He’s an arrogant fuck. Here’s to hoping pride really does come before the fall.
“You heard me.” I stare down my nose at him, not masking an ounce of my hatred for him. “Look at you, preying on defenseless women because you know going toe-to-toe with a real man would leave you on your ass.”
He appraises me with a wicked glint in his eyes. “And I suppose you’re a real man?”
“Why don’t you get off your sorry ass and find out?”
His grip on Nora’s hair tightens momentarily before he shoves her out of the way and climbs to his feet, immediately charging me.
I let him think he has the upper hand, allowing him to slam me against the wall. I even let him get a few licks in, knowing if I give him an inch, he’ll shamelessly try for a mile, and that’s when I’ll fucking end him. His cockiness will be his downfall.
As we go toe-to-toe, trading and blocking blows, I maneuver us so that Nora’s out of the line of fire.
I grunt as he drives his knee into my ribs. He’s in decent shape for his age, but he’s no match for me. Especially not with all I have on the line.
Playtime’s over.
“Should’ve killed you when I did your mom,” he growls, trying—and failing—to pry the gun out of my grip.
“Fuck. You.” I spit in his face, shoving him away from me.
He roars like a man possessed, charging me once again.
But I’m ready, and I take a step back and then to the side at the last minute, faking him out.
His shout shakes the windowsills, but I just grin, because he’s playing so perfectly into my hand.
Before he can charge me again, I move in from behind him, wrapping one arm around his neck while using the other to wrench his arm behind his back.
Nora whimpers at the sound, momentarily distracting me. It’s the in he needs, and he grabs the gun from me.
I react with a mixture of fear, instinct, and adrenaline—punching him hard in the nose. Blood sprays as he staggers back, his eyes wide.
Sirens sound in the distance, and I know we’re running out of time, the same way I know there’s no justice for him inside the four walls of a courtroom, only death.
“They’re coming for you,” I sneer. “They’re coming and they’re going to lock you up in a cage for the rest of your life.”
He waves the gun through the air, more animal than man, as panic washes over him.
“You know what happens in jail to men who hurt women, right?” I scoff. “What about what they do to pedophiles? They’re going to put you through every ounce of torment you put Nora through. Over and over and over again.”
“There’s no fucking way,” he mutters, the only thing shaking harder than his voice is his hand as he brings the gun to his own head.
“Do it,” I hiss. “Fucking do it.”
I wait with bated breath, but he’s as much of a pussy now as he ever was and can’t pull the trigger.
That’s okay though, because I fucking can.
Moving slowly, I step into him, sliding my hand over his, I force the muzzle harder against his temple.
“Atlas…” he croaks, but I have no desire to listen to anything else he has to say.
“Who’s soft now, you sad sack of shit?” I ask before I shove my finger over his and pull the trigger.