Chapter 23
I kick my bedroom door shut behind me. My chest rises and falls with quick, angry breaths.
My nails bite into my palms as my hands curl into tight fists by my sides.
The skin over my knuckles pulls taut. Red bleeds into my vision, obscuring it more than my helmet’s tinted visor.
I still haven’t taken it off since arriving back at this godforsaken house.
I’m tempted to take Madison back to my place to hide her from Jerry, and I’m struggling to stop myself from storming inside and demanding just that.
She’s alone in there with him, and I can’t be there as a buffer when he talks to her.
Or when his palm itches too much to resist, and he hits her.
If he can do it to me, he can and will do it to her, too.
My chest tightens and burns as the strange feeling returns whenever I think about Madison.
It’s not anger or hatred, the emotions I’ve felt for her for so long that they’ve consumed me.
No, this new feeling is taking control of me at a frightening speed.
It’s the same way I felt five years ago when I witnessed Mickey strangling Madison.
Unlike that time, I don’t know why Madison ran from Justin yesterday.
It wasn’t because of a fucking misunderstanding .
Misunderstandings don’t cause people to run for their lives with a look of terror on their faces.
Whatever the reason, I have a sick feeling in my gut about it.
Especially since Jerry participated in harassing her yesterday evening while she was with me.
After Madison abandoned her phone in my bedroom in her desperation to escape me, I spent an ungodly amount of time going through it.
I read the messages from Jerry and Justin.
None of them was good, and it was clear they’ve been working in tandem to wilt her fighting spirit and shove her into a gilded cage.
Jerry called Madison just as much as Justin did.
He didn’t leave concerning voicemails, unlike her piece of shit fiancé, but his text messages raised red flags.
Also, who is Justin? Where the fuck did he come from?
How in the hell did he convince Madison to marry him?
Where does he fit in all of this? Is he part of the Exiled Society and I just never heard of him?
My stepfather doesn’t have friends. He has acquaintances and pawns.
He judges people based on how useful they are or how far they’re willing to go for him.
If Justin has wormed his way into Jerry’s good graces, there’s a reason, and I’m dying to know what he has up his sleeve for him.
Regardless, if either of them hurts Madison, they’ll find out just how terrifying I can be.
I pull at the straps under my jaw, then rip off my helmet. My phone rings, pulling me from the edge of losing control. I toss the helmet to the ground and fish my cell out of my pocket.
“Yeah?” I answer.
“I promised I’d call you if I found something,” Jaxon says. “Caught a blurry image of someone hanging around outside my place from that morning.”
I know my friend well enough to not mistake the boredom in his tone as apathy. He must be fuming over this. Someone was with Mickey, and the motherfucker would have gotten away undetected if Jerry hadn’t opened his mouth.
I raise my head. “Can you recognize them?”
“No.” He pauses, then says, “Hawk is sending the images to his cousin, Declan. He’s good at cleaning up images. We should have more info soon.”
I nod, even though he can’t see it. “Keep me updated.”
“One more thing,” Jaxon says.
I put my phone back to my ear. “Yeah?”
“The person isn’t working alone, either. Someone pulled up outside of the neighborhood and picked them up.”
“Did you get any details on the car?” I ask.
“Dark grey Honda Accord. Declan will get the plates and info on it.”
“Thanks, man.”
We end the call, and I stare blankly at my unmade bed.
Mickey’s mystery accomplice will be a thorn in my side until I get a name and a face. Whoever they are, they’re close to my father and the other Kings in the Exiled Society. At this point, it could be anyone.
Nervous energy buzzes beneath my skin, begging to be released. If I wasn’t worried about Madison being hurt, I’d go for a joyride on my motorcycle, but I can’t bring myself to leave her alone with her father. I trust Jerry as far as I can throw him.
I strip out of my clothes and change into a pair of basketball shorts and my workout sneakers. The only way to rid myself of the nervous energy while also monitoring Madison is a workout in the home gym.
I leave my bedroom and take the stairs on the deck two at a time. The back door noiselessly slides open, and I squeeze through the small space before I shut it behind me. The den is dead silent as I cross the room and head toward the hallway.
Madison is nowhere in sight. Not even her voice carries through the house.
I glare at Jerry’s closed office door as I pass it. His low, muffled voice is absent for the first time. I stop outside the gym and peer down the hallway, debating if I should find Madison. The thought lasts for all of a second before I brush it aside.
She would get upset if sought her out and got caught by anyone.
Shaking away the uneasy feeling, I enter the gym and pull my phone out of my pocket to check Madison’s Instagram. If she can post, she’s not hurt. My fingers tighten on my phone when I spy the image she uploaded five minutes ago.
She’s okay. Thank fuck for that.
I lock my phone screen, and start my workout routine by stretching, then move on to jogging for a few minutes. I eventually swap to heavy lifting. With no music playing in the background, I can listen for any sounds from Jerry or Madison.
An hour drags by. After working out the tension, I head toward the kitchen to grab some water and food. My steps falter when hushed voices reach my ears just outside the threshold.
“I’m fine, sweetheart,” Mary says.
Madison’s voice strains as she says, “No you’re not. You can’t just excuse a black eye like it’s nothing.”
My eyebrows furrow as I move closer, keeping out of sight so I’m not caught eavesdropping on their conversation.
Madison’s back faces me as she crowds Mary, who’s trying to console her niece. My teeth grind together at the sight of the deep purple bruise beneath Mary’s left eye.
That motherfucker. Not only is Jerry okay with hitting a child, but he also beats his sister.
“You think this is the first time he’s done this? Because it isn’t. Trust and believe me when I say karma will get him one day,” Mary says.
Madison flails her hands by her sides. “How can you act so nonchalant about this, Minnie? He hit you! We need to go to the police about this.”
Mary draws Madison into a hug, one of her hands cupping the back of Madison’s head. My sister doesn’t fight the embrace. She clings to the older woman as though her life depends on it.
“I don’t need to go to the police. It’s okay.” Mary kisses Madison’s temple. “You think I didn’t get my own punches in? I’m not scared of him, and he knows it.”
Madison makes a disgruntled noise and squeezes Mary tighter.
“One of these days, someone much bigger than him will knock him down a peg or two. Until then, all I can do is ruffle his feathers and remind him our grandfather wouldn’t stand for his bullshit.” Mary smooths the back of Madison’s head, then untangles herself from the hug.
Madison sighs. “Did you really punch Dad?”
“Damn straight I did.” Mary cackles. “He whimpered like a little bitch, too.”
“Who taught you how to fight?”
Mary’s face softens. “Your great-grandfather. He was the best boxer of his time and taught me fighting skills at an early age. He said it’d come in handy to fight off all the boys when I got older.” She shakes her head with a darkened expression. “He was right.”
Feeling like I’m intruding on their private moment, I head for the back door.
Unfortunately, that means I have to pass by the kitchen’s entryway.
There’s no escaping being seen, but I can make it look like I haven’t been listening in on their conversation.
Both women go quiet as I cross the small path to the door.
I know the very second when Madison looks at me. Like all the other times, tingles spread through the side of my face, and heat waves roll through my body.
I spent years hating and lusting after that woman, wishing she would stop looking at me with those eyes.
It always made it harder to resist her, and it’s the same, even now.
I love and hate her attention because she’s making it difficult to keep my promise to treat her the same way when all I want to do is punish her for the years of anger toward her.
“You hungry, Ryder?” Mary calls.
I keep my expression blank as I barely turn my head to side-eye the women who turned toward me.
Mary leaves Madison’s side and rounds the kitchen island, where two stacks of pizza boxes stand. I was too engrossed in their conversation and watching Madison to notice the food.
“I got your favorite.” Mary raises the topmost box in a proud display. “Meat Lovers.”
I stare at her, ignoring Madison as she burns a hole in my face. My sister can lie to everyone else but me. We both know the truth about how deep her feelings for me go, and now that she has my attention, there’s no escaping it. Even when I’m ignoring her, she steals my every thought.
I turn back to the door and leave without a word. I meant what I said about keeping our tryst a secret. I’ll treat her the same as before. I’m a man of my word, even though this one will kill me.