Chapter 13 #2
All at once, every single one of my demons inside me rushed to the surface in a wild frenzy, clawing out for the taste of blood and carnage to satiate their wrath.
My feet moved before I even realized it, my body nearly flying across the room to crouch down in front of her like the shield I was supposed to be.
Jaden shut her eyes then, her body shaking as she clutched her knees tighter.
I could see different parts of her paint-coated dress had been stretched out or torn, the signs of a fresh bruise blooming on her face and temple—all of it evidence of what my brother had clearly done punching me right in the chest.
Carefully reaching out, I took her face in my hands, softly coaxing my thumb across her cheek.
“Look at me,” I ordered, needing to see her eyes again, needing to claim her rage for myself.
She sucked in a breath, and then opened her eyes, big bright hazel irises gleaming back at me.
The brims of her lids began to quickly flood with an anguished hatred, and a single tear broke free to slip down her cheek.
Tilting her face, I assessed the discoloration and swelling building under her skin, my jaw clenching in response. My thumb stopped the single tear in its tracks, smearing it against her bruised face, the shadow of a wince catching my attention.
I needed to know what else he had done, needed to see every inch of his betrayal with my own eyes. Bracing myself with a deep breath, I wrapped my hands around Jaden’s knees and prodded her to open them for me.
“Let me see,” I murmured gently, keeping my voice as calm as I could manage.
A gasped plea left her lips. “No,” she begged, her hands clutching my wrists in a desperate grip to stop me. I shushed her fears away, my need to see what had been done to her far greater than whatever insecurity she was currently feeling.
Slowly prying her knees apart so that only I could see, the small traces of blood between her bruised legs tripled the wrath that was erupting throughout my body.
My muscles tensed so hard with the need to burst free and destroy everything in my path, and I was counting down the seconds before I could do exactly that.
“I…I tried to run, not fight…like you said,” she murmured softly.
At her explanation, I closed my eyes and sighed heavily, absorbing what felt like the stab of blame directed at me for essentially disarming her.
I had forbidden her from fighting on more than one occasion, ordering her to run instead.
This time, her rare obedience had resulted in her harm, and the realization didn’t sit well with me for multiple reasons.
“Are you hurt anywhere else?” I asked, my gaze returning to hers.
Jaden barely shook her head, her silence a painful pill to swallow.
“Any contractions or cramps?”
Again, she shook her head.
“Not so special anymore, now is she, Darren?” Daniel slurred from across the room. “You’re welcome.”
White-hot rage instantly exploded inside me.
The actual admission coming from Daniel’s own mouth without a hint of remorse or fear left me in a state of absolute derangement that I visibly struggled to contain.
Closing my eyes for a single moment, I took a deep breath to regain my last molecule of control—to accept that this was the last time my brother would ever cross me again.
Jaden’s slight squeeze of my wrists was the only reminder I needed to ensure that this never happened again. Straightening my spine, I stood over her, my eyes lingering on hers for just a second longer before ordering the room to clear out.
“Sloane, take Jaden out of here. And have Sid look her over immediately. Everyone else, get out.” If Jaden miscarried because of this, Daniel’s soul was in for an eternal reckoning he would never escape from.
I watched as Sloane picked Jaden up from the floor and carried her to the door. Daniel’s soft laughter rang through my ears, echoing with the retreating footsteps and the sudden slam of the door.
Lifting my gaze, I looked my brother in the eye, his body swaying slightly while his tongue licked at the blood drying down his mouth from his nose.
How much he had to drink, I didn’t know, and as much as I preferred to do this with him sober, I would have to take him as is. Because this couldn’t wait.
Pity, because he deserved to feel so much more pain than he was about to.
“I told you to stay away from her not more than six hours ago.”
Daniel shrugged, as if disobeying my direct orders was inconsequential to him.
“What are you going to do, brother?” he taunted, spreading his arms out wide. “You gonna kill me now? Or are you finally going to lift the veil and see the truth?”
Turning away from him, I removed my suit jacket and tossed it aside, my tie quickly following before I began to roll my tight shoulders loose.
“I’m going to grant you the same courtesy I do all men who betray me,” I replied, cracking my neck. “Even my own family.”
Daniel chuckled as he stared at me, a cocky bloody-toothed smile on his lips.
“Oooh, so dramatic, Darren,” he mocked, pacing back and forth. “We both know you’re not going to kill your last living brother.”
My gaze hardened as I leveled him with the truth he had yet to grasp. “Watch me.”