Chapter 24
Lani
Ouch! What the hell happened? I touch the side of my head gingerly and pain immediately shoots from it. I make an attempt to open my eyes, but it hurts just to do that. Oh, God! I feel like I’m going to be sick. I place my hand over my mouth to keep myself from vomiting and it triggers the awareness of my pregnant state. I’ve been nauseous for weeks, and the swaying motion isn’t helping. I force myself to open my eyes and find myself in the back of a moving car. I’ve been in this car a million times...it’s Alex’s car...Alex kidnapped me! The memories come rushing back and my adrenaline spikes. I quickly sit up and I regret it immediately. Between my pregnancy and my aching head, I’m unable to keep myself from projectile vomiting towards the front seats.
“What the fuck?!?” Alex shouts from the driver’s seat, wiping at the back of his neck and turning towards me.
“I’m sick,” I say unapologetically. I feel like high-fiving the baby for the little bit of revenge we gave Alex. Like a typical guy, Alex always kept his car immaculate, and I’m sure he’s pissed about the mess I just made—bonus point for hitting him as well.
“You’re lucky you’re about to make me rich! You’re going to make me a millionaire. Between what your boy toy has been paying me and the payment I’m about to get when I deliver you, I’ll be sitting pretty. I’m not going to need this car where I’m headed. It will be blue skies and clear water year round for me,” Alex cockily brags.
“You’re delusional if you think Jackson will be paying you. Someone else thought he’d get a million dollar payment, but all he got was a bullet in the head.”
“Oh yeah? Well, that’s because he was stupid. He didn’t have a backup plan like I do.”
“And what would that be?” I question. I’m trying to get as much useful information as I can from him—in case I need it later. He nods towards the seat next to him and angles the rearview mirror so that I can see front passenger seat. I look in horror as I see the occupant. OH. MY. GOD. He has Harper strapped in her car seat, sleeping peacefully.
“So you see. Either way, I’m getting paid today,” he says, turning to smile back at me.
“If it’s money you want, whatever Jackson is paying you—we’ll give you more! Just please, don’t do this! Don’t hurt my baby!” I beg as the tears start to fall down my face. I should have left like I’d planned to do when I came back from the farmhouse. If I had left then, Harper wouldn’t be in danger now. I don’t know why Alex has her. He probably got her from my parents while I was passed out in the backseat. He could have convinced my parents that Evan or I wanted him to pick Harper. They wouldn’t have questioned it, there’s no reason to—he’s my security guard.
Evan
Dylan and I make it to the airfield before anyone else. I was thankfully able to avoid getting into a high speed chase with the police on the way over here. I’m glad that saying proved true today—there’s never a cop around when some asshole is speeding dangerously in and out of traffic. As I pull closer to the private airfield tarmac, I’m escorted into a plane hangar. I called Senator Morgan, who apparently keeps his private plane here. It’s the same plane Jackson thinks he’s leaving on. As we sit and wait, I decide to cut Dylan’s ties since he’s been calm and helpful so far. Besides that, the lawyer in me actually believes his story, and I may need his help at some point. I’d hate to lose precious seconds in a crucial situation, trying to free him later.
Dylan and I have a clear view of the runway and we see Jackson arriving first. It takes everything in me to not fire my weapon and end this long drawn out nightmare. But without knowing where Alani and Alex are, I can’t make a move. It’s impossible to judge how Alex will react if he finds Jackson dead or missing. But if Alex harms Alani in any way, he can guarantee that I’ll hunt him down and make sure he dies a slow, painful death. Several minutes pass before I see Alex’s car pull up. He quickly gets out and jogs around to the front passenger door. He opens the door and reaches inside of the vehicle. I instantly die a thousand deaths when I see him lift my sleeping daughter and carry her on one arm as he holds a gun in another.
A million thoughts and emotions simultaneously hit me. What is Harper doing here? I’m going to kill that motherfucker! He put my baby in the front seat! She’s too young to be riding in the front! Christ. He has a gun near my baby! I can’t lose both Alani and Harper! My anger and fear battle for dominance inside of me. I can’t focus...I can’t think. My little girl is in danger! I’m so lost and I feel all the happiness I ever felt in my life drain out of me. I watch as he goes to open the back passenger door and motions for Alani to come out. He keeps his gun trained on Alani’s head as she gets out. What am I going to do? How can I stop this? I suddenly regret not calling Maddox for backup before coming here. I’m so wrapped up in my thoughts that I’d completely forgotten about Dylan, who’s now pointing a gun at me. Fucking Alex! Did he even search Dylan for weapons?
“Do you trust me?” Dylan calmly asks.
“I have no options, but to trust you,” I answer, nodding towards his gun.
“Place your arms in front of you,” he instructs. No longer caring what happens to me at this point, I do as he says. Here I am, at the most crucial moment of my life when my family needs me the most and I can’t focus. I curse myself for failing them once again. I feel Dylan loosely tie a rope around my hands.
“Make sure you don’t move your hands around too much or they’ll see how loose it is,” Dylan warns. His words finally sink in and it dawns on me what he’s trying to do. Thankfully, he’s being level-headed when I’m too emotionally attached to think properly, and I begin to hope that I can actually trust him. With someone else on my side here, we may have a shot at rescuing my girls. I get on board and nod at him in acknowledgement. He motions the gun towards the runway and says, “Ok, let’s go.”
I walk ahead of Dylan and we make our way towards the runway. We walk a few yards before Alex and Jackson finally notice us. It suddenly occurs to me that Jackson didn’t ask to have me delivered to him, so I expect him to just shoot me where I stand. Of all the dumbest things I’ve ever done in my life, this now ranks number one. I’m clearly not thinking straight, otherwise, I would have considered that fact before agreeing to come out here like this.
“Jackson, look who I brought! I figured, if your old man didn’t come through, we could get plenty of money from this one. He’s worth at least a few million and it’s not like he’s going to need it where he’s going!” Dylan announces. The money angle...I’m impressed. Let’s hope Jackson takes the bait.
I try to catch Alani’s eye, but her eyes are glued on Harper. I know Alani has to be desperately trying to figure out a way to get our daughter safely out of here. It’s killing me to watch my sweet, innocent little baby sleeping so peacefully on that bastard, who betrayed us in the worst way.
“Well, this is definitely unexpected. I didn’t think you had it in you, Dylan,” Jackson remarks, sounding impressed.
“I told you...I can be bought. I’ve been trying to prove that to you, but it seems like you never trusted me—not like you did Michael,” Dylan replies, sounding a bit disappointed. God, I really hope Dylan is just a really good actor. If not, I’m about to be screwed over for the second time today.
“Why would I trust you? I saw you trying to cover Missy up that night I got to enjoy her. Tell me, how did it feel to know I fucked the girl you were in love with?” Jackson taunts Dylan.
“In love?? You got that all wrong. I covered her up because the sight of her disgusted me. She looked like some used up prostitute. There was nothing hot about some sloppy, drunk girl passed out on the bed. I was hoping you were going to share that fine piece of ass after you were done with her,” Dylan answers, gesturing to Alani and indicating she’s the one he’s referring to. Motherfucker. When Alani flinches at his words, I start to see red. I want to beat the shit out of Dylan, but I don’t move a muscle, knowing there are three guns here and none of them are in my bound hands. Dylan continues to say, “I definitely would have enjoyed having her—I remember how good she felt struggling in my arms that night. But her friend had to come in and ruin all my fun before it ever got started.”
I can see the wheels turning in Jackson’s head as he listens to Dylan. I’d be surprised if Jackson didn’t believe Dylan, because Dylan has me convinced that I’ll be ripping him apart once I’m done with Jackson. I notice Alex eyeing Jackson, trying to get a read on him. I know he’s about to do something to level the playing field between him and Dylan.
“I got what you want right here,” Alex announces, nodding towards my daughter.
“No!” Alani cries out, trying to reach for Harper. Alex points his gun at her to stop her in her tracks. She immediately halts her movements, not wanting to risk Harper getting hurt.
“I don’t want someone else’s baby! Put it away,” Jackson orders. Alex turns and places my daughter back in the safety of her car seat.
“Jackson, you should know something. Alex brought my daughter here because he plans on shooting you after he receives his payoff. Then, he was going to try and milk a few million from Evan in exchange for the baby’s safe return.” Alani cleverly incriminates Alex.
“She’s a lying bitch!” Alex hisses defensively over his shoulder as he continues to strap in Harper.
“Why else would you bring the baby if it wasn’t true?” Jackson questions, getting a crazed look in his eyes. Without giving Alex time to answer, Jackson fires a single shot into Alex’s back. The great news is that Jackson is an excellent shot and avoided hitting my daughter. The bad news is that he’s an excellent shot and I’m tied up with a gun trained on me. For now, I’m comforted by the fact that Harper is safely back in the car. I can hear her cries—the gunshot must have startled her awake. Alex groans in pain and I take a little satisfaction in knowing he’s suffering—even if I wasn’t the one to shoot him.
“I’m not exactly sure what to do here...I mean, having Evan Stone here wasn’t part of my plans...hmm...what to do...what to do.... You know what? I don’t want his money. I do, however, want him on the plane. I want him there to watch me fuck Alani. I’ve been waiting for so long to finally have her, and it’s going to feel even better with an audience. Oh, the things I’m going to do to her,” Jackson raves, touching Alani’s face with the barrel of his gun. I don’t know how I’m going to kill the fucker, but I swear I’m going to. Reaching out his free arm to grab her, Jackson demands, “Come on, Alani. Let’s have some fun.”
She goes willingly, probably wanting Jackson as far away from our daughter as possible. I try once more to catch her eye, but she refuses to even look in my direction. It’s killing me inside that I have no choice, but to remain at the mercy of Dylan—for now.
Lani
Jackson has me in a small private plane that probably belongs to his father. I’m surprised at how roomy it looks inside, even with six Captain’s chairs and a couch. The layout of the furniture is strategically placed to create a wider aisle for people to move around in. If they turn and walk sideways, two people can easily pass each other in the aisle. Jackson makes me walk ahead of him towards the back of the plane where the couch is located. Pushing me down on the couch, he takes a seat in one of the chairs across the way and eyes my body up and down as I lay on my side. I know he plans to rape me, but at this point, I no longer care what happens to me as long as my daughter can be taken safely away from here. With Jackson busy in here with me, Evan can figure out a way to get away from Dylan and leave with Harper. I trust Evan to protect her and keep her safe.
“I’ve missed watching you...I used to spend hours jerking myself off to those videos of you...I liked seeing you soaking wet. I used to imagine the water dripping down your legs were your juices, like you were getting so hot for me,” Jackson says creepily, rubbing his gun against his growing erection. God, I’m going to be sick. I cringe at the thought of him watching me naked and getting off on it. I become afraid all over again as the memories of the fear, vulnerability, and humiliation come rushing back. I try to keep myself calm to prevent the onset of a panic attack. After staring at me for some time, Jackson finally demands, “Take off your clothes.”
“I can’t,” I calmly reply, showing him my bound hands.
“Even better—I’ll do it. But wait, let me get your boyfriend onboard. I want to see the look on his face as I undress you,” he says, grinning widely. I hope Evan has left with Harper by now. Standing up, Jackson grabs me by the arm and pulls me onto my feet. He walks us over to the open door of the plane, and once we’re there, he places me in front of him. He’s using me as a shield—he must still not trust Dylan. Otherwise, he’d have simply gone to the door on his own. My hope that Dylan was telling me the truth earlier is renewed. When I saw Dylan coming out with Evan, I was worried that Dylan had played me. Plus, all that stuff Dylan had said to Jackson made me believe that I was wrong to have trusted him. My heart sinks as I look out of the door to find Evan and Dylan still standing on the runway.
“DyIan! Bring him up here!” Jackson calls out. I watch as Evan and Dylan climb up the stairs. I start to tremble, fearing what’s about to happen. Evan won’t be able to stand seeing Jackson touching me, and I’m sure he’ll do something that will get him shot like last time—or worse, killed.
As Dylan and Evan get closer to the top, Jackson begins to start backing up, pulling me along with him. Once they’re inside the plane, Jackson instructs Dylan, “Keep your gun on him. If he makes a move, shoot him. If Lani doesn’t cooperate, shoot him. If Lani doesn’t do a good job of pleasing me....”
“Shoot him. Got it,” Dylan acknowledges. Satisfied with Dylan’s response, Jackson motions for them to follow us as he takes us back to the couch. As we make our way down the aisle, Jackson addresses Evan.
“You have really been pissing me off from the start, you know that? You made it very difficult for me to get back into Chicago, and even more difficult to get to Alani. Difficult, but not impossible. But more than that...I’m pissed that you kept making me wait longer and longer for the chance to finally fuck her. You’ve kept her away from me, locking her up in that tower of yours...getting her pregnant and ruining those videos of her in the shower for me. Then, when I was finally ready to take Lani and my son to our new home, you fucking stole them away from me! I may not have my son anymore, but with Lani here, I can always make more. In fact, Lani and I can get started on our new family now.”
I cringe in disgust as I feel Jackson’s lips on my neck and his hand roughly squeeze my breast. I know Jackson is trying to get a rise out of Evan, but Evan doesn’t say a word or show any emotion. Evan may not be showing an obvious reaction, but I recognize the look in his eyes. It’s like the quiet before the storm.
When Evan doesn’t give him the reaction he wants, Jackson gets pissed off. Jackson positions us so that he’s standing behind me and our backs are towards the couch. Attempting to antagonize Evan, Jackson taunts him, “Have a seat over there. You get front row seating so you can enjoy watching me fuck her.”
Dylan makes a show of shoving Evan into one of the chairs across from the couch.
“How about we start with a blowjob? Let’s turn sideways, so Evan can watch my cock going in and out of your mouth. Now get on your knees, Alani,” Jackson instructs, moving us to face each other, with Evan and the couch on either of our sides. Jackson threateningly adds, “And make it good, or my buddy here will put a bullet in Evan’s head.”
“How am I supposed to make it good if my hands are tied?” I inquire coyly, showing him the zip tie that still bound my wrists. Putting his gun down on the couch, he takes out a pocket knife and starts to cut away at the plastic. I quickly glance over at Evan and see him working to remove the rope that appears to be loosely tied around his wrists. Jackson finally cuts through the plastic releasing my hands. To keep Jackson distracted and give Evan time to finish untying himself, I quickly drop to my knees. I run my hands down Jackson’s abs before stopping at his belt. Even though I’m making myself sick doing this, I look up at Jackson seductively and lick my lips. Out of the corner of my eye, I see that Evan has gotten his hands free and is about to launch himself at Jackson.
“I like how eager you become with the right motivation,” Jackson remarks, grinning down at me. I smile sweetly back up at him—right before I junk punch him as hard as I can. With a grunt, he doubles over in pain. Evan tackles him before he can finish shouting, “You bitch!”
Evan
While Jackson and Alani were alone in the plane earlier, Dylan assured me that he was just playing Jackson and was still on our side. He even apologized for being disrespectful of Alani with the things he had to say in order to convince Jackson of the deceit. Dylan warned me that Jackson likes to mess with people’s heads and advised that I remain calm no matter what happens and not to let my emotions get in the way.
From the moment Jackson appeared at the entrance of the plane, using Alani as a human shield, I’ve been wearing the same cold, unemotional mask I use in the courtroom. I know Jackson wants to see me angry or distraught over seeing him touching my girl, but I’ll be damned if I give him what he wants. So I stand here, fuming internally, while he kisses and grabs at Alani. I reach my breaking point when he plans to make me watch as he fucks Alani’s mouth. I have the rights to that mouth and if anyone’s cock is going in there, it’s going to be mine.
As Jackson puts down his gun to untie Alani’s hands, I begin to untie myself. Once my hands are free, I shoot out of the chair to tackle Jackson, but I realize that he’s bent over, so I quickly adjust my trajectory. I knock him onto the couch and start throwing punches to his head, his chest, his stomach, his sides, and wherever else my fists land. This fucking bastard keeps putting my family in danger. He’s taken so much from us and has caused us so much grief. I’m so caught up in throwing punches that I’ve forgotten that he’s still holding on to the knife. I feel the sharp pain as it pierces my side. I hear Alani’s screams as Jackson pulls out the knife and pushes me off of him. I’m thrown against the small table in between the two Captain’s chairs and watch Jackson pick up his gun and start to get up.
I hear a gun go off and I realize that Dylan is firing at Jackson. Either he’s not a very good shot or he’s not aiming to kill because he winds up hitting Jackson in the arm. Before I can get to him, Jackson fires off a shot. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Dylan go down. I kick the gun out of Jackson’s hand and pick him up from the couch. I am so fucking sick of this guy! Throwing him against the small table, I start to repeatedly smash his head against the table. I only stop when I hear Alani’s voice.
“Move, Evan!” I turn to see Alani standing with Jackson’s gun in her hands. I don’t know how good of a shot she is, but at this distance, she’s not going to miss.
“No, Lani. Don’t do it,” Dylan advises her. He lets out a groan as he tries to get up. From the looks of it, he got hit in the shoulder.
“Why not? He deserves it for all the hell he’s put so many people through,” she replies.
“He does, but you can’t be the one to pull the trigger. You don’t need that kind of darkness in your life,” I tell her, as I make my way to her. Holding out my hand, I gently request, “Give me the gun. I’ll take care of Jackson. Why don’t you go down and see about Harper. She’s probably terrified, all alone in that car.”
“He’s right, you know. But neither one of you needs to be involved with this. Let me be the one to put a stop to Jackson once and for all. I’m the one who needs to make amends. Let me take the fall. Besides, I’ve at least had a chance to spend several years with my daughter. You deserve to find some happiness with yours without the threat of Jackson looming over you,” Dylan says. Alani nods her head and hands me the gun.
“Thanks, Dylan. I really appreciate all your help today,” I tell him, shaking his hand.
“It was the least I could do,” Dylan replies. “Now go...get out of here. Take care of your daughter. I’ll take it from here.” Alani and I are making our way to the front of the plane when I hear a grunt, followed by a thump. I turn to see Dylan on the ground and Jackson unsteadily trying to reach for Dylan’s gun. He probably can’t see straight between all the blood pouring down his face and the heavy beating he took. As he picks up the gun, I fire off three shots, putting two bullets in his chest and one between the eyes for good measure.
“It’s over, Evan. It’s finally over,” Alani cries, hugging me tightly.
Wrapping my arms around her, I say with relief, “You’re safe now, baby. You’re safe.”
After a few moments, we hear a groan, and we look back to see Jackson’s hand moving. What the fuck? I start to laugh when I realize that Dylan is trapped under Jackson’s corpse and is trying to get out from under Jackson. I quickly head back to help Dylan up.
“Are you alright, man?” I inquire, kicking Jackson’s body to the side and extending an arm out.
“Yeah, just a little embarrassed that he got the drop on me. Sorry about that,” he apologizes.
“We’re good. Jackson’s dead. That’s all that matters,” I assure him, clapping him on the back. I look guiltily at him when he groans in pain. I forgot he got shot on the shoulder. “Sorry, I know for a fact those bullet wounds hurt like a mother.”
We start to make our way down the stairs, but stop dead in our tracks when we discover that Alex’s car is gone—along with Alex’s body. I start to panic that Alex somehow managed to survive and took our daughter with him. I release the breath I’d been holding when I see Senator Morgan comes walking out of the hangar, carrying Harper.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Stone, but I had to make sure that Jackson stays hidden. So I put my own men on this,” Senator Morgan explains. Thankful that I don’t have to deal with disposing of the bodies, I decide to take my family home.
“I understand sir. Thank you,” I reply, grabbing Harper from him. “Dylan, do you need a ride somewhere?”
“Yeah, you don’t by any chance know where I can find a doctor who’ll fix me up without asking questions, do you?” he asks.
“Sure, I know a guy,” I answer with a big grin.
Before we head to my car, Dylan approaches Alani saying, “I’m sorry I didn’t do the right thing when I was younger. And I hope it will bring Missy some comfort to know that it was just Jackson who raped her. I know she was still raped, but it wasn’t by three guys. Michael was hoping toclaim Kerrigan that night, but luckily the two of you got away.”
“You more than made up for it today by helping to save my family. I forgive you...and thank you,” she tells him. Turning to me, she says, “Let’s get out of here.”
“Sounds good to me,” I respond, wrapping my free arm around her and heading towards the hangar.