Chapter Eight #2
"Stop—" I started to say, but Brad increased the pressure on my arm, nearly bending it to the breaking point.
And then suddenly, the painful grip was gone. There was a blur of movement beside me, a sound like rushing wind, and Brad was on the ground, his arm bent at an angle arms definitely shouldn't bend. His face contorted in shock and pain as he looked up at the figure now standing between us.
It was the Thai man from the nearby table, his long black hair falling forward slightly as he looked down at my brother with an expression of mild interest, as if he was observing an insect rather than a man he'd just taken down in seconds.
"I believe he asked you to let go," the man said, his voice carrying a slight accent but perfectly understandable.
My mother's shocked gasp cut through the sudden silence that had fallen over the cafe. "Who the hell are you?" she demanded, fury replacing her usual calculated control.
The man straightened, turning to face my mother with an easy confidence that suggested he was completely unbothered by the situation. His grin flashed white against his olive skin, surprisingly friendly given what he'd just done to my brother.
"Kyue Panich Kincaid," he introduced himself with a slight bow that somehow managed to be both respectful and mocking. "Friend of Julian's." He turned to me, his expression warming. "Your husband sent me to make sure you're safe."
Husband. The word hung in the air between us, drawing another shocked gasp from my mother and a pained groan from Brad, who was still on the floor clutching his arm.
"Montgomery?" my mother whispered, connecting the dots. "You actually married Julian Montgomery?"
The naked calculation in her eyes was replaced by something I'd never seen directed at me before—respect tinged with fear. In one moment, I had transformed from expendable son to valuable connection in her eyes.
It made me sick.
Brad wasn't as quick to accept defeat. With a roar of anger, he lunged up from the floor, charging at Kyue like a bull seeing red.
Kyue simply sidestepped, his movement so fluid it almost looked choreographed, and Brad's momentum carried him straight into a nearby table.
The crash of dishes and startled cries of other patrons created a fresh wave of chaos.
"You broke my fucking arm!" Brad shouted, struggling to his feet again.
"Technically, I dislocated it," Kyue corrected calmly. "If I'd broken it, you wouldn't be using it to try to attack me again."
I stood frozen, watching this stranger defend me with an ease that spoke of years of training. My family, who should have protected me, had sold me to a predator, while this man—someone I'd never met until today—was risking himself to keep me safe.
Because Julian had sent him.
The thought warmed something inside me, a feeling of security I'd never experienced with my biological family.
Two cafe security guards were making their way toward our table now, stern expressions suggesting they weren't pleased with the disruption. My father had helped Brad to his feet, while my mother was gathering her things, her eyes still fixed on me with that new calculating look.
Kyue placed a gentle hand on my shoulder, the touch careful and non-threatening after what I'd just experienced with Brad.
"We should go," he suggested, nodding toward the approaching security. "Julian's waiting, and I'd rather not explain to him why I had to bail you out of trouble with cafe security."
I nodded, still slightly dazed by how quickly everything had happened. As Kyue guided me toward the exit, I heard my mother call after me.
"Connor! Wait! We need to talk about your new... situation."
I didn't even bother looking back. There was nothing more to say to the people who had seen me as nothing but a commodity to be traded when convenient. Instead, I walked beside Kyue toward the door, toward freedom, toward Julian.
Toward home.
Outside the cafe, the bright afternoon sun hit my eyes, momentarily blinding me after the dimmer interior. Kyue moved with purpose toward a gleaming red motorcycle parked at the curb—the kind of machine that screamed both danger and freedom.
My heart was still pounding from the confrontation inside, my arm aching where Brad had grabbed me, but there was also a strange, buoyant feeling in my chest.
For the first time in my life, someone had actually stood up for me against my family. Someone had been there exactly when I needed them, sent by the one person who had shown me what protection actually felt like.
"Julian's worried sick," Kyue said, reaching the motorcycle and swinging a leg over it with practiced ease. He pulled a sleek black helmet from the back compartment and handed it to me. "He was ready to come himself until Jake convinced him it would draw too much attention."
I took the helmet, trying to imagine Julian storming into the cafe in his wheelchair, facing down my family with that cold fury I'd glimpsed in his eyes. The image was both terrifying and oddly comforting.
"Thanks for stepping in back there," I said, awkwardly holding the helmet. "With my brother."
Kyue shrugged, the leather of his jacket creaking with the movement. "Your brother's an amateur who watches too many action movies. Next time he tries to twist someone's arm, he should make sure they don't know Muay Thai." He nodded to the helmet in my hands. "Put that on. We need to move."
I slipped the helmet over my head, the world instantly becoming more muffled and confined. Kyue was already starting the engine, the powerful rumble vibrating through the sidewalk beneath my feet.
"Ever been on a motorcycle?" he asked, his voice barely audible over the engine.
I shook my head, suddenly nervous. "First time for everything?"
He laughed, the sound surprisingly warm. "Hold on tight. Julian will kill me if I deliver you with so much as a scratch."
I climbed on behind him, awkwardly wrapping my arms around his waist. The motorcycle lurched forward, and I tightened my grip with an undignified yelp that I was glad no one could hear through the helmet.
We pulled into traffic, the world blurring around us as Kyue accelerated with confidence. I'd never moved through the city like this before—no metal cage surrounding me, nothing between my body and the rushing air except leather and denim.
It was terrifying and exhilarating all at once.
We were about three blocks from the cafe, waiting at a red light, when I glanced back and my blood ran cold.
Two black sedans with tinted windows had pulled out from a side street and were positioning themselves behind us in traffic.
Even through the helmet, I could see the driver of the closest one speaking into what looked like a radio.
"We've got company!" I shouted over the engine's roar, tightening my grip on Kyue's jacket and nodding toward the rearview mirror.
Kyue glanced at the mirror, then twisted to look over his shoulder. His posture changed instantly, tension replacing his previous relaxed confidence.
"Harris's men," he confirmed, voice tight. "Hold on. This is about to get interesting."
The light turned green, and instead of accelerating normally, Kyue gunned the engine.
The motorcycle shot forward with such force that I nearly flew off the back, my fingers digging desperately into the leather of his jacket.
The sedans accelerated too, their powerful engines allowing them to keep pace despite the traffic.
Kyue wove between cars with terrifying precision, squeezing through gaps that seemed impossibly narrow. My heart hammered against my ribs as we leaned into turns at angles that defied physics, the ground rushing by inches from my knee.
"Are you trying to kill us?" I screamed as we shot through a space between a delivery truck and a taxi that was barely wider than the handlebars.
Kyue's laugh vibrated through his back and into my chest. "If I wanted to kill us, we'd be dead already!" He took a hard right into an alley so narrow I could have reached out and touched the walls on either side. "Julian really married a trouble magnet, didn't he?"
The sedans couldn't follow us into the alley, but I caught glimpses of them paralleling our route on the main streets, trying to anticipate where we'd emerge. Kyue seemed to sense this too, making unpredictable turns that had me clinging to him like a terrified koala.
We burst out onto a main thoroughfare, Kyue expertly weaving through the congested lanes of traffic while I held on for dear life. My knuckles were white inside my gloves, my thighs aching from gripping the motorcycle so tightly.
"I think we lost them!" I shouted after several minutes of Kyue's insane driving had put considerable distance between us and any sign of the black sedans.
"Not taking chances," Kyue called back, making another sharp turn that had me pressing against his back to avoid sliding off. "Julian would have my head if I brought them straight to him."
We continued our wild path through the city for another ten minutes, Kyue occasionally checking the mirrors before finally seeming satisfied that we weren't being followed.
The motorcycle slowed to a more reasonable speed as we approached a gleaming office tower that rose into the sky like a monument to wealth and power. The glass exterior reflected the afternoon sun, creating an almost blinding effect as we pulled up to the entrance.
"D'Amato Technologies?" I murmured, recognizing the logo etched into the glass doors.
Kyue killed the engine and helped me off the motorcycle, my legs wobbling slightly after the adrenaline-fueled ride. "Julian's waiting inside."
I removed the helmet, my hair probably sticking up in all directions, and handed it back to Kyue. "Thanks for the rescue. And the... interesting ride."
He grinned, taking the helmet. "Any time. Though next time, maybe just take Julian's security detail to family reunions?"
I laughed, the sound surprising me after everything that had happened. "Noted."
We entered the building's massive lobby, the cool air a welcome relief after the heat of the motorcycle and the summer day.
My eyes immediately found Julian, his wheelchair positioned directly in front of the entrance, his expression one of barely contained fury that softened momentarily when his eyes landed on me.
Michael stood beside him, as imposing as ever in his perfectly tailored suit, along with two other men who had the unmistakable look of security personnel.
Julian didn't seem to notice any of them. His entire focus was on me, his dark eyes scanning me from head to toe as if checking for injuries.
"You're safe," he stated, not as a question but as a declaration that brooked no argument.
I nodded, suddenly exhausted as the adrenaline that had kept me going began to fade. "They were going to—"
Julian cut me off, reaching out to take my hand in his. His grip was warm and solid, an anchor in the storm of emotions threatening to overwhelm me. "I know. They'll never touch you again."
The promise in his voice was dangerous, possessive, and exactly what I needed to hear. There was something in his eyes—a cold fury when he thought about what my family had done, but also something softer, something that seemed reserved only for me.
"They sold me," I said quietly, the words still difficult to speak aloud despite knowing the truth for days now. "My own brother set it up. He's friends with Harris."
Julian's jaw tightened, the muscle there jumping with tension. His fingers squeezed mine, not painfully but with enough pressure to draw my focus back to him, away from the horror of my family's betrayal.
"Look at me, Connor," he commanded softly.
I did, finding in his eyes a certainty that steadied me.
"You are not property," Julian said, each word clear and precise. "You are not merchandise. You are Connor Montgomery now, and what's mine stays mine."
The possessiveness in his voice should have bothered me. After discovering I'd been treated like property by my own family, I should have recoiled from anyone claiming ownership of me in any way.
Instead, I felt something inside me settle, like puzzle pieces finally clicking into place. Julian's protection wasn't about controlling me—it was about valuing me enough to fight for my safety, my freedom, my dignity.
I squeezed his hand back, managing a small smile despite the emotional rollercoaster of the day. "Taking the Montgomery name is starting to look like the best decision I ever made."
Julian's expression softened further, the corner of his mouth quirking up in that almost-smile I was coming to recognize and treasure. "Let's go, Connor. Jake is waiting for us upstairs in the lab."
Lab?