Chapter 8 Demitri
DEMITRI
As soon as Nyx bolts out of the pub, we share a glance and we both shoot out of the booth and are off. “God Damn, that girl is quick.” Hutch laughs to himself as we are exiting the building. I look in every direction to see if I can see which way she took off.
“She’s on foot in downtown Detroit. I need to find her.” I murmur to myself. I feel Hutch lean closer to me.
”We will find her brother, not to mention she is a cop. I don’t think she would let anything happen to herself.” He says it with such conviction that I almost believe it, but I have a bad feeling about this. We just found her, I will not let her run that easily.
“The river is behind the pub.” I point over my shoulder with my thumb. “She probably ran that way to follow the river walk down to the precinct.”
“Alright, do you want us both to head that way, or do you want to split up? Whoever finds her first gets the first kiss?” His shoulder shook slightly with a silent laugh. He is lucky he is my best friend. Anyone else would have been punched.
“Let’s both head down towards the river.
No need to split up. If we can’t see her running down the sidewalk we will go look somewhere else.
” Reaching behind my back, a subconscious action, double checking to make sure my sidearm is there for my own piece of mind.
You never know what you might run into wandering the streets like this.
While downtown has gotten much better since the Illich family has revitalized most of it, I still don’t trust anyone.
Once we make it to the river walk, I can see her shape running off in the distance. “There she is!” Hutch points off towards her like I can’t see with my own eyes. I have never been more thankful for our long legs than I am right now. Our strides eat up the distance between us in no time at all.
There is a guy who is trying to talk to her.
She goes to run away from the stranger and he puts his hands on my Little Fox.
My vision goes red and I fear that my demons are going to come to the surface.
I can feel Hutch standing next to me, but I am not able to see him through the crimson tinting everything around me.
Much like the years we have spent deployed together, his steady presence next to me is something that will always ground me.
He won’t let me slip too far into the dark.
I am unhinged at this point, and I am not exactly sure what I will do to this man when I get my hands on him.
He has her arm twisted behind her back. He got the jump on her and she couldn’t have expected him to touch her.
By the way they are talking, she knows this dead man.
“You will step away from my woman.” I hear it come out of my own mouth.
Had I not felt my own chest vibrate with the growl I wouldn’t have believed I had said it and the shocked expression on Nyx’s face says she’s just as surprised.
Grabbing this asshole by the ugly ass tie around his neck, this mother fucker decided to wear an Guardians tie in Detroit during the playoffs.
Bringing him up to my eye level. He is definitely teetering on tiptoe trying not to be choked by this scrap of material.
“Would you like to tell me why you had your hands on something that does not belong to you? Didn’t your mother teach you to look, not touch? ”
I feel Hutch leave my side and as my vision clears around the edges, I see him walk over to her when she is released.
Feeling my heart rate start to calm, I am now unnaturally still.
I'm in complete control of everything, running completely on instinct.
She is safe, the voice inside my head is reminding me.
The only other person I trust with my own life has his arms wrapped around her.
She is shaking but is trying to still hold her head high and not let this prick see her scared.
“So, let’s talk man to man.” I look him up and down. “Ok, well, man to a wannabe.”
“Who the fuck are you?” He tries to puff his chest out and be big and bad. I just chuckle.
”I will be your ending unless you start answering my questions.
You had your hands on someone who obviously didn’t want to talk to you.
We don’t play those games in this day and age.
If you can’t get someone to suck your Tic Tac of a cock, then pay someone.
You definitely don’t put your sleazy hands on a Marine’s woman. ”
I can see tremors working their way through this prick’s body.
I haven’t even truly got my hands on him yet, and I’m sure I can make him piss himself with very little effort.
I walk over to where Nyx and Hutch are standing.
Running my hand over her cheek, visually making sure she is ok.
“Hey, Little Fox.” I whisper just loud enough for her and Hutch to hear me.
“Do you want to tell me who this waste of space is?”
“He is my asshole ex. He decided that one of my best friends at the time was a good pussy to fall into. I found out when I came home from work and heard her obnoxious voice moaning from my bedroom. I left him at that moment. He’s pissed, I told his family, and they cut him off.
They loved me and treated me like one of their own. ”
“She ruined my fucking life. I had a fucking baby on the way and couldn’t even afford the apartment I lived in at the time.”
”That sounds like you made your bed and didn’t want to lie in it.
Which is a you problem and not Nyx’s problem.
I will give you 10 seconds for you to retreat back to your car, and I want to never hear of you being near Nyx again.
” I lower myself to his level to look him dead in the eye, letting every single demon shine through.
“If she even mentions that you looked at her the wrong way, you will find out just how cold Lake Superior is. Do we understand each other?”
That does it. This little bitch actually pissed himself and I didn’t even have to lay a hand on him. I can see him shaking and deciding if he wants to agree to my terms. “I am waiting-.”
”Yes, yes, yes, whatever you want, just please let me get back to my wife and child, please.” He turns tail and runs as fast as possible to the light gray SUV idling by the curb. I hear a nasally voice yell at him, but I can’t make out what is said.
I turn around and take a handful of steps back to my brother and the woman who just blew up our world. It was at that moment I knew nothing was going to be the same. Not for me, Hutch or even Nyx.
”Will you walk her back to her car?” I say harshly, trying to put a little distance between us.
”Ya Dee. See you back at the precinct?”
”I’ll let you know.” I turn and start to jog back to the pub to get my truck.
Needing to place these demons back in their boxes and figure out if sharing a woman forever is something I can do.
Deciding if allowing myself to love is something I can do.
I won’t try and say I can’t love her, because I have a feeling I’m ready to jump off that cliff, and I just met her.
The terrified look on her face was enough to make me worried that she could be the end of my control.