10. Chapter 10
Chapter 10
***** Demon *****
I turned as the bike pulled up the path, surprised to see just one. Josh Demetrie did not do anything solo. So, either the men were in town, or he did come alone to collect his daughter.
Either way, it was stupid on his part.
“Venom,” I told him, causing him to lift a brow as he hit his kickstand and then sat on his bike. His eyes shifted from me to his daughter, who was still by my side, her arm around my waist.
“Should I be surprised?” he questioned.
His tone should stop me. Hell, if it was anyone else, they’d probably back away from him. Josh never spoke in an even tone. It was a death toll if he did.
“I don’t know, Venom, why don’t you tell me?”
He crossed his arms over his broad chest and lifted a shoulder in response.
“The other guys thought you were dead.”
“But you never did?”
“Why would I? I might have left you for dead, but I knew you’d find a way. I knew you were also up in these parts. My daughter thinks she’s sly, but she’s really not.” He finally climbed off the back and made his way over to us. I pushed her behind me and that caused him to stop.
“You don’t need to be here, Josh,” I told him. I didn’t need to respect him anymore. I didn’t have to use his name if I didn’t want to.
“It’s like that, is it? Think you’re a badass now, stepping up to me. She’s my little girl Hugh; you can’t keep her away. If nothing else, she’s club property.”
“Don’t fucking go there. She is not and you damn well know it. Don’t treat her like that, man.”
“Oh, you think you got special dibs on her or something?”
“Dad, will you just drop it, already?” Brandi muttered, stepping once more to my side. “Don’t try to pretend that you actually care about me or what goes on with me.”
I watched as his eyes flashed and then held her tighter. Something about the way she pushed that boundary made me wonder how far she could go before he came after her. Granted, it was a step I wasn’t going to let happen.
“Vixen, I’ve had enough of your sass. Your bike is down, then I suggest you get on mine and I will take you back to your mom. But you will not be staying here with Demon. Do I make myself clear?”
“Perfectly.” He gave me a smug look, which was wiped off with her next words. “But that doesn’t mean I have to do it. I’m a grown ass woman, Dad, who doesn’t need your permission to do anything. I never did, actually.”
“Vixen!” he shouted, his face starting to turn red from his anger. “Don’t you dare fucking disrespect me like that. Who do you think you are?”
“I’m your daughter, not your pawn! You don’t own me like you do the men so don’t try to pretend you do. And when I needed you around, you weren’t there. So don’t try to play some screwed-up hero now!”
I held her a little tighter, giving her my strength if she needed it.
“Look, if you need some damn dick between your legs, there are plenty of men at the compound that I can let you have. But you don’t need to date any of them. And you sure as hell don’t need to date one who is twice your age. Who already screwed up his life and isn’t loyal.”
“Now wait a minute there, Josh. I was loyal. I gave you everything. But you also told me I wasn’t allowed to follow my heart. So, the one moment I did, that I wanted something for myself, you stabbed me multiple times and left me on the side of the road.
“You can’t blame Brandi if she doesn’t want to deal with a man who has issues like that. And the men at the club aren’t any better. Also, might I add, I’m really surprised you’d allow her to be treated like a whore, again.”
I didn’t mean to drop that surprise, after all, it wasn’t mine to speak of, but to hear him talk about her like that, set my blood on fire. I mean, I knew he was an asshole, but he really thought it was okay to toss her out like that? His own daughter?
“What do you mean, again?” he asked, looking between us. “Did you screw her beforehand and toss her aside, Hugh? Was she pregnant and there’s a kid running around that’s yours?”
“Oh, give it a rest, Dad. No, that is not the case. Stop jumping to conclusions,” Brandi huffed, crossing her arms and glaring at him. “You don’t need to know the crap that happened, okay? It’s not about you; it was never about you. And it would all be a lot easier for all of us if you just got on your bike and left. Without me.”
“That will never happen. Now tell me what the hell does he mean!”
I looked at Brandi, offering her a smile. Again, I didn’t mean for it to come out, but I was on a roll and the words just came tumbling out.
Okay, really, I think deep down I wanted to put this man in his place, knock him down a peg or two without ever laying a hand on him.
Was that smart?
Far from it.
But it happened, and I couldn’t get it back. However, I wasn’t going to let her tell this story alone. I would be right by her side, walking through it with her.
“Brandi, tell me,” Josh demanded, his look and body language filling in the blanks of what he wasn’t saying, what we weren’t hearing.
I stood a little straighter and rubbed her back. She gave me a grateful smile and turned to face her dad.
“Remember quite a few years ago when you sent me up to Colorado?”
I watched as her dad bristled, and felt some sick, twisted satisfaction at the words coming his way.
***** Vixen*****
I took a deep breath as I finished the story, realizing that I was wrapped up tightly around Hugh, and I didn’t care. I know he didn’t mean to start it, but it was also high time that my dad knew just all the ways he didn’t give a shit about me, no matter what he wanted to believe.
And okay, I’ll give it to him that in his twisted mind, he might have been doing something right, but it wasn’t right to me, or for me. And as an adult, I needed to stop it. Needed to back away from him. Needed to save my own sanity, and that meant having distance between me and him. No matter the cost.
“So,” he started, arms crossed, and I lifted my brow, ready for whatever he was going to throw my way. “What the hell took you so long to say anything?”
I rolled my eyes and looked at Hugh, who shrugged.
“Really? That’s what you tell me? Not that you’re sorry it happened, or some sorry ass bullshit. You just ask why I never said anything?”
“What should I say, Brandi? You’re screwing a man who’s almost twice your age.”
I let my jaw drop at the implication he was laying down. No way in hell did he think I was lying. Or that I condoned what happened years ago. But instead of letting me swing, Hugh did it, catching my dad off guard.
I knew what that would cost him if his guys came running so I quickly stopped him, shaking my head.
“He’s not worth it, babe,” I whispered, grabbing his cheeks and making him look at him. “He’s not worth it,” I repeated, needing him to hear me.
When he finally looked at me, I mean really looked, I nodded, letting him know I was okay. With a shaky smile, I turned around, watching my dad as he wiped blood from his nose.
“You fucked up, Demon,” my dad roared, standing up to his full height, as if that was a trick of the trade either one of us would fall for.
“Go away,” I told him quietly.
“What?”
“Go. Away. What part of that is hard to understand? I don’t want you here, I don’t want anything to do with you anymore. So, jump on your bike and go back to the shit hole you crawled out of it.”
“You little bitch. Who the hell do you think you are to talk to me that way? I’m your father and I will demand the respect that you need to give me. I should have left your ass in Colorado; they were willing to teach you lessons I never could.”
I saw red at that and before I knew it, I was charging at him, my fist catching his eye while my knee collided with his dick.
“That’s what they taught me. Say that shit again, old man, and I’ll bury your ass so far down in the ground, you’ll be dead from dirt getting in your lungs.” I kicked him in the chest, making sure he landed in the dirt and was about to do it again when Hugh pulled me back, eyeing the man.
“Brandi,” he told me, holding me tightly, “don’t do it.”
“He fucking deserves it. Let me at him,” I growled, struggling to break free.
The last few years I lived with nightmares about what was done to me, about what could have happened if I wasn’t strong enough. And just a few moments with Hugh allowed all of those to go away. I felt safe with him, loved by him, and this man, this piece of shit sperm donor basically said he knew and didn’t care. Who does that?
“You’re dead to me, Josh Demetrie. If I so much as find out that you come near me, my mom, or Hugh, I will make sure you suffer like I did.”
“This isn’t over, you little cunt.”
I narrowed my eyes, about ready to strike again when Hugh kneeled next to him, grabbed his hair, and yanked his head back.
“Call her that again and you will answer to me. We know the night you attacked me with your band of muscle was because you were scared to take me on alone. You’ve always been. I won’t kill you, but I can, and you know that.”
The soft but harsh voice that Hugh delivered his speech sent a tingle down my spine. It was something new, something dark and menacing, but I wasn’t afraid. No, with this man, I never would be again.
“So, listen to the lady, and don’t look back. Or you won’t be answering to her, you’ll be answering to me. And we both know that one on one, I’ll fuck you up far more than you ever did me.”
Hugh shoved his head, knocking back into the ground, causing Josh to cry out. But he had made no move to get up.
I swallowed hard, watching him for a moment before I looked at Hugh. I gave him a small smile then turned and walked into the woods.
I needed a moment to come to terms with everything my father just said. Which was going to be the hardest part.
I didn’t have my dad on any pedestal, that was for sure. But I had some hope that he cared, that he would want something better for me.
But it seemed he had plans for me that were unknown and that’s why no one was allowed to get close. In other words, I wasn’t outright sold into sex trafficking, but if the right buyer came alone, he would have jumped at it.
Well, guess he did when I left the state.
I sat down on a log, looking out over the trees and then the peaceful lake, letting the peace and quiet, the stillness, and nature all heal my battered and bruised soul.
This was a place I knew rest would come.
But there was only one person who could help mend my broken heart, and my broken mind, back together. Only one person I would ever feel safe enough to trust, actually.