Chapter 7
Itook my time washing my hands while I admired the rivulets of crimson swirl down the drain, relishing every drop I extracted from his rotten body. Anyone who tortures women and children deserves all the hell I’m about to reign down on them. I put my gloves on and stalk toward my prey, laser focused on amping up his level of pain.
I grab Trickles balls, and he screams into consciousness, “Where. Is. Rob?”
I tighten my vice like grip and bile spews from Trickles rancid mouth, “You will tell me where to find your cousin, asshole, because if you don’t, your pain will never end.”
I feel warm liquid running over my gloved hand when this filthy piece of shit pisses himself, it doesn’t make me let up the strangulation to his junk, no, it only fuels my rage.
“M-myc-cousin s-said Bets was to b-be m-mine b-but h-he lied, h-he w-was the one who-who wanted her a-all al-long.”
I stab my knife into his arm and his screams pierce the air with his pain, I twist the blade extending his torture because this asshole deserves no leniency. I remove the blade from his arm dripping with blood and wipe the blade clean on his filthy dick, again he screams and starts sobbing and pleading like a baby as I create surface cuts over his pathetic excuse of manhood.
Trickle can only groan now, because he’s fading, and fast. Doc rests his hand on my shoulder and nods downward and when I track my gaze down, I see that I’ve almost torn his balls off, the skin separating from the force of my grip. Bile creeps up my esophagus and I let go of Trickles sac and nod to Doc.
“Keep talking asshole, why them? or my next move will be to slice them clean off.” I grind out.
“My g-grandpappy t-told us from a y-young age that he f-found us our wives, h-he wanted a p-pure w-white bloodline. The t-twins were h-his choice, with their w-white, blonde hair, p-pale skin, and b-blue eyes.”
I lean over into his face and grind out, “And you went along with this shit?”
“W-we didn’t have a f-fucking c-choice, Grandpappy w-was c-commanding and ruled our f-family, as d-did our father’s. We-we had to f-follow their o-orders or w-we’d be b-beaten s-senseless.”
“Where. Will. I. Find. Him?” My words booming with each enunciated word.
“I-I don’t f-fucking k-know, he hasn’t b-been around l-lately, h-he said he was g-going to get Bets and I waited, but he never b-brought her b-back to m-me. He p-promised me that s-she was mine, b-but all a-along he w-wanted Bets n-now he w-wants to take w-what’s mine, he w-wants Bets for himself, b-but I got her first. She. Is. Mine.” He manages to spit out with conviction.
I slice deeply from his sternum to his naval, exposing his insides and Trickle’s strangled screams make my blood tingle, it’s been a long time since I’ve personally tortured information out of someone, and I’m enjoying every fucking minute of it. Doc steps up and rapidly packs his gaping torso.
“You know what you have to do, Trickle, the pain will stop if you tell me the whole story, you see my brother here,” I point to Doc, “this is Doc. And he’ll keep patching you up just so I can repeat this over and over again, we will keep you alive until you give us what we need.”
“No, no, p-please, n-no more.”
I roar in his face, “Did you fucking stop when Lily and Caroline screamed, NO. Stop? No, you kept on going, pathetically inflicting mental abuse on Lily and mentally abusing and raping Caroline for what, years?”
“T-They’re j-just b-bitches to b-birth a p-pure b-bloodline.”
I slice deeply across his forehead this time, and as he tries to pull away from my blade, the silly fucker only makes the wound that much worse, scarlet streams trickling into his eyes.
“They. Are. Not. Bitches.” I roar.
Trickle is thrashing and I’m guessing to try to get his hands up to wipe away the blood, losing your visual on someone is never a good feeling.
“You’re a worthless piece of shit! Women deserve to be treated with the utmost respect, to be worshipped, not be treated as just a body for you to do whatever your twisted fucking mind likes to do to them.” I thunder in his face.
Trickle has bloody tears streaming down his beaten, cut up face, and I smile cause that shits gotta hurt.
“I want a location on Robert, and now.” My voice deathly calm, sounding as cold and deadly as this dark sterile room feels.
“T-the only p-place w-would be m-my g-grandma’s f-family home, her side c-came f-from money.” He struggles out and it looks like we’re losing him to the pain.
He takes in a few deep ragged breaths as Doc injects the prick with morphine allowing him to continue with the pain dulled.
“He w-was left the p-property when G-Grandma died and I g-got our Grandpappy’s l-later on when h-he died. T-Technically I own both b-because h-he was declared d-dead after the d-drowning incident, but that’s been a s-secret kept from e-everyone. W-We couldn’t h-handle the abuse and c-concocted t-the p-plan when I was s-sixteen and he was eighteen. Rob copped it the m-most, b-but when t-they thought he d-died our elders s-stopped hurting m-me, b-because I w-was the o-only one left to c-carry our b-bloodline.” He pants out.
Ahhh now we’re getting somewhere, I stare into his bloody eyes and revel in watching the color drain from his face as the trauma I inflicted takes him into unconsciousness.
I step away to allow Doc to tend to the asshole, we still need the whole story, and I’m not done yet.
“He needs a break, Chief, or his hearts going to give out.”
I growl from the pit of my gut, and Doc turns to face me.
“If I don’t sew is chest, he’ll be dead in the next half hour. He’s lost a lot of blood, we need the full picture before he dies, Chief.”
“Fine, do what you need to do.” I acquiescence.
Doc has a dark look shadow his face before he says, “Besides, he’ll know your statement about fixing him up over and over again to be true.”
I let out a deep chuckle, “True, I’ll leave you to fix the prick just enough to keep him alive, I need to grab a shower and check on my girls.”
“He’s not going anywhere,” Doc grins salaciously.
I step over to Cuddy, Reid, and Jackson, the guys need rest they’ve been awake too long with no break.
“You guys need to get food and sleep; I’ll send down a couple of men from Delta team. Go home, refresh then gather supplies. Jackson make sure all weapons are ready to go.
Cuddy have five new Beasts organized; I don’t care about cost.
Reid find out all you can about the history of the family and use everything at our disposal.”
“Got it, Chief, when Delta comes to relieve us, we’ll head upstairs and pick Blake up and take him home with us, he’ll know someone who is able to rush produce the SDV’s.” Cuddy states.
“Yeah, good idea, Cuddy, I want you to coordinate the team, step up while I’m needed here, you’re in charge once you’re rested.”
“Roger that, Chief.”
I look to Doc and ask, “You all good, Doc?”
“Yes, Chief, go get cleaned up, eat and spend some time with your girls. I got this.”
I nod and leave the cold sterile environment, walking along the corridor I run through what I managed to get out of Trickle. It seems as if he and his cousin were groomed by their fathers and grandfather to choose Elizabeth and Caroline. It makes me fucking sick; some people have warped fucking perceptions on who should be included in society and what their legacy should be, it makes my blood boil.
It doesn’t excuse Jay or his cousin Rob’s behavior, they’re weak for continuing on this path their family elders mapped out for them. People can choose a different path in life; they can step away from toxic family and create a life of their own and choose a better way to live.
For all I’ve seen in the worst parts of the world, this type of thing happening in my own country is horrifying and pisses me the fuck off.
Standingunder the hot water feels like heaven, on my hellish soul. My mind is twisting like a tornado over all that’s happened in the last three days, and it’s one of the toughest missions I’ve ever had to endure.
When it’s your own family being threatened, held captive and hurt, it hits you like a freight train when everything goes quiet.
I used to appreciate the silence when I returned home from missions, now my home is filled with the voices of my girls, which is my driving worse when deployed, to come home to the sound of my girls living life... happily.
All I want is to hear Lily’s voice, to know she is truly okay, to have her giggling with Alexa, reading my princess bedtime stories in her melodic reading voice. To have her back doing what she loves, baking her treats for everyone to enjoy, walking in Central Park and reading. My girl loves the simple things in life and the universe couldn’t have sent me a more perfect love, an all-consuming love, one I would never recover from if my angel doesn’t pull through this.
Then there’s my babies, two of them tucked safely in their amazing Mommy’s tummy, I can’t wait to tell Lily the welcome news when she wakes up. Alexa is going to be so excited; my little girl has always wanted a brother or sister. She used to tell me to hurry Andrew up. I allow myself a genuine calm smile because I feel it in my heart that Lily will be okay and wake as soon as she can. My angel has only just begun living, and our story has many more chapters to enjoy.
I’m dressing when I hear the faint voice of Alexa speaking with Lily.
‘Mommy, it’s me, Alexa. I dwawed you a pictuaw today. It’s a wainbow with wots of cowows! I hopes it keeps you heaw with me on da gwound and not in da stars. Daddy said you wiww wake up as soon as you can and then you wiww see it. I miss you; I’s want to cuddle in bed weading a stowy. I just… miss you so, so much. Can you heaw me, Mommy? I wuvs you to da moon and back.’
Listening to Alexa’s one sided conversation with Lily has pain filling my chest, because I know she’s worried about her going to the stars like her parents, and that alone breaks me. I step out of the bathroom quietly and walk to Alexa sitting on the edge of Lily’s bed. Lily looks better visually, she’s not sheet white anymore because her face has some color back, her beautiful ivory complexion.
I gather Alexa in my arms and sit on the chair next to the bed and she slowly turns in my arms and grabs my face.
“Hi, Daddy, I was just tawking to Mommy.”
Alexa leans in and smells me, “you smewws so good now, and I’s gwad the icky face haiw is gone.”
I chuckle, because my princess really hates when I have a beard and isn’t shy about speaking her opinion.
Alexa’s smile grows. “Do you think Mommy can heaw me tawking to her?” She asks with a concerned look on her sweet face.
I lean in and kiss Alexa’s forehead, “Yes, Princess, I do, she may not remember all of what is said when she wakes up but she can hear you my little love.”
“Good, I’s keep her company. I’s not touching Mommy, I’s vewy caweful.”
“I see that, how do feel? Is your pain, okay?” It’s been a good twelve hours since her last morphine injection.
Alexa nods enthusiastically, “Much bettaw, Daddy. I’s just having the runny medichin now and my chwest feels not so twight.”
I smile and kiss her forehead once more, “That is very good, it means your body is healing and will be back to normal soon. How about we go get some clothes and have a special lunch?”
Alexa turns her head to look at Lily, “I don’t wants to leave Mommy, she needs me here.”
I turn her back to face me and cup her little face with my hands this time.
“Mommy knows that you need to eat, play, and watch a movie, read. Doing the normal things, you enjoy and being a kid because that’s how you make Mommy happy baby girl.”
“Okay, but can we’s come back heaw aftaw, I think Mommy woud wike to watch Fwozen with me.”
“I reckon she would too, let’s go have something decent to eat and grab some supplies. Then we can come back and spend time with Mommy, how does that sound?”
“Yesh, pwease, Daddy.” She says leaning in a kissing my cheek.
We both lean in and give Lily kisses, leaving the room we go downstairs to eat in the cafeteria before we head home to gather some supplies, fresh clothes and some of Alexa’s favorite things to make her feel more comfortable.
When I step into our bedroom, I see Lily’s engagement ring sparkling on her nightstand. I walk over and pick it up and sit on the bed, just admiring the beauty it holds. This ring represents us as a family, it circles the bloodline of my angel that travels directly to her heart, and that means more to me than some piece of metal and a diamond for show.
As soon as Lily wakes, I need to marry her, I can’t wait any longer, and then we can do a wedding when she’s healed and able to enjoy it.
Alexa walks in and notices what I’m holding and says, “Mommy onwy takes it off to bake, we needs to put it back on hew fingaw. And I wants my wing on twoo, I think Auntwie has mine.”
“I’m pretty certain she does, Princess. Let’s get back to the hospital and we can put yours and Mummy’s rings on together like we did the first time.”
Alexa bounces up and down, but then stills, her little face pained, she is feeling it now.
“Time to get you back, you need some more medicine and to rest.”
“Daddy, can I be with Mommy? I’s be vewy caweful I don’t wants her to be awone.”
I smile, “I’ll ask Uncle Doc if and he says it’s okay, then yes. I’m sure Mommy would love your snuggles, they will help her heal. Come on let’s head back.”
Doc gave his position, so we moved Lily slightly over and raised the safety rail and Alexa is lying beside her, already fast asleep, curled into Lily’s side as best she can without disrupting cords. They both appear to be calmer; I don’t know if that’s just wishful thinking or not, I don’t know but they seem at peace being together.