34. Chester
Chester
I stared at the handsome stranger in utter bewilderment. “I’m sorry, have we met?”
“Yes.” He took a step forward. “I mean, no. Well, we have, but you won’t remember it.”
Finn got to his feet slowly. “I think ye better start explaining yourself, Calix.”
“What?” Cal’s eyes widened in surprise as they darted between me and Finn. “Are the two of you together?”
“Aye.” Finn’s hand rested protectively on my shoulder. “And I think we’d both like to know how ye know Chester.”
Cal seemed to regain his composure, straightening his jacket before closing the distance between us. “My apologies, but it’s a long story and really, not fully mine to tell.”
Danny straightened up. “Hang on, is this the Chester?”
“It is.” Cal grinned broadly at Danny before turning back to me. “I have to say, knowing you’re with Finn is the best news ever.”
Finn glanced down at me helplessly. “Are you keeping up with this, m’eudail?”
I shook my head mutely. Danny clapped his hand dramatically against his chest. “Oh my god, stop. You’re calling him ‘darling’?”
Finn flushed as he glared at Danny. “Thank ye for that.”
I got to my feet to kiss Finn’s cheek. “It’s okay, I may have googled what ‘m’eudail’ means a while back. I think it’s sweet that you call me that.”
Cal was on his phone, his shoulders twisted away from us. “Yes, Harlow. He’s here in The Closet. Can you ask Bailey what I can tell him?”
Bailey. Why did that name ring a bell? I knew why Cal’s did—that was my great-uncle’s name. But Bailey was familiar too…I just couldn’t put my finger on why.
“Fine, see you in a few minutes.” Cal sighed, hanging up his phone and turning back to me with a kind smile. “I know you must be confused, but I promise it’ll all make sense shortly.”
Finn tensed beside me. “Is this an explanation that’s going to be pleasant?”
“Very.” Cal patted Finn’s shoulder reassuringly. “Well, you’ll think it’s pleasant, Chester might have other opinions. Regardless, he’s not in danger.”
“He’s right,” Danny said. “Chester’s been under Cal’s protection for a while now.”
The floor seemed to tilt under me. “I’m so fucking confused.”
Finn caught me under the arm to steady me. “M’eudail, are you okay?”
The door banged again and River swore. “Might as well have put a fucking revolving one in.”
“Where is he?” A petite guy dressed in a cropped shirt and tiny shorts raced in, hands going to his hips. “Where’s Chester?”
I waved my hand, slightly dazed. “Um, here. ”
Once again, I found my arms full of a stranger, and he had a hell of a grip for such a little bloke.
“I’m so glad to see you,” he croaked in my ear. “You have no idea.”
“Low, you’re choking the poor fella.” I looked up to see a man about my size and build smiling at me sympathetically. Unlike the others, he looked strangely familiar. “Have they explained anything to you yet?”
“That’d be a no,” Finn said, extracting the man from my arms and fixing him with a glare. “Someone better start talking, and fast. Clearly there’s something going on that Chester’s not privy to, and I won’t have him mucked around like this.”
Several of the men winced, but it was the familiar one who spoke. “Sorry, Chester. They all seem to act without thinking. It’s a family trait, I’m afraid. Anyway, I’m Bailey, and the one who tried to cuddle you to death is my mate, Harlow.”
“Bailey,” I repeated, shaking his hand as the pieces slid into place. I’d seen photos of this man before. Photos of him smiling tightly beside someone I’d rather forget. “You’re Matt’s ex.”
Finn drew in a breath and gathered me into his arms. We were several paces away before I’d even realised we were moving.
“What is this?” Finn hissed, shoving me behind him. “If you’re about to walk Matt in here then?—”
“Finlay.” Danny held his hands up placatingly. “Chester’s safe. No one here means him any harm.”
“Matt’s very far away,” Cal added. “And none of us want to hurt you, Chester. Quite the contrary, in fact.”
Finn didn’t seem keen to let me any closer to them. “Keep. Talking. ”
Cal stepped forward. “Just over a year ago, Harlow asked me to track Matt down and teach him a lesson for how he treated Bailey.”
My eyes shot over to the quiet man. Granted, he hadn’t said more than a couple of sentences, but so far nothing about him married up with the version Matt had painted. Someone who was controlling, forceful, and loud. I should’ve known Matt had been spouting bullshit.
“But when I found him, he wasn’t alone.” Cal gave me a gentle smile. “You were with him, Chester.”
I leaned into Finn’s side. “I’m still not following.”
“I watched you all day,” Cal said softly. “From breakfast until dinner. I saw how he treated you. I heard every pointed comment. Saw every derogatory action.”
My face flushed in shame. It was bad enough knowing I’d put up with it, but knowing someone else had witnessed it? I wanted to go and hide in a dark corner somewhere.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Danny, Riley, and River exiting, presumably to give us some privacy. Thank god. The fewer witnesses to my humiliation, the better.
“Don’t be embarrassed,” Cal said. “Believe me, you weren’t at fault in that situation. My husband was also abused by his ex. He blamed himself for a very long time too.”
My chest ached at his admission. I couldn’t speak, my tongue feeling too big for my mouth. If it hadn’t been for Finn quite literally holding me up, I was certain I’d be on the floor.
Harlow cleared his throat. “From what Cal told us, Matt had stepped up his piss-poor treatment of Bailey with you.”
“Matt didn’t…” I paused, trying to make the words come out. “Matt didn’t abuse you, Bailey?”
Bailey rubbed his upper arm. “I’m not sure I’d call it abuse. It was a toxic relationship for sure, but from what Cal told us about you, it wasn’t on the level you experienced.”
A breath rushed out of me. Was I weaker than Bailey? Was that why Matt had turned the pressure up so high?
Suddenly Finn was in front of me, his hands cupping my face. “Whatever yer thinking, m’eudail, stop it. Right now.”
“How did you?—?”
“Because I know you,” he said quietly. “I know you’re wondering why he treated you worse than Bailey. Probably some bullshit about you being weaker. And it’s not true. Ye hear me, Chester?”
“Finn’s right,” Cal said behind him. “People like Matt often increase the level of abuse with each new partner. It has nothing to do with how strong you are, it’s about where you are in the cycle.”
“Can we sit down?” I whispered, suddenly regretting my decision to stick with a soft drink. “And maybe get me a gin?”
“Of course, m’eudail.”
Two minutes later, I was back at the table. Finn was by my side, Harlow and Bailey opposite. Cal had gone behind the bar to add some gin to my lemonade before sliding it in front of me with a kind smile.
“The owner won’t mind?” I asked.
Cal shook his head as he took the seat at the head of the table. “It’s okay, I have an in with him.”
“He’s our brother,” Harlow said with an eye-roll. “There’s four of us, but the other two are occupied today.”
“Harlow, Cal, and their brothers are the sons of Lucifer,” Finn said, his arm resting on the back of my chair. “Harlow is the one who manages my stock portfolio. ”
Harlow waved a manicured hand dismissively. “One of my many talents.”
Fuck, this was so much information to process. I felt like I was back in my kitchen, just learning that Finn and Buddy were one and the same.
“So you saw me with Matt,” I said, trying to get us back on track. “What happened then?”
Cal paused before answering, addressing Finn. “You might not like this next bit, but I promise it was done with Chester’s best interests at heart.”
There was the now familiar cracking sound, but Finn stayed in his human form. “Go on.”
Cal turned to me with a sigh. “I saw you in a restaurant. You were so unhappy, and the whole time Matt was just piling on the misery. I decided I had to help you, so I compelled you to meet me in the toilets.”
Finn drew in a sharp breath. “Yer right. I don’t like that.”
I glanced at him, puzzled. “Why not? You use compulsion nets all the time.”
“Compelling someone directly is different. And yes, I do that too, but they’re strangers.” He shook his head. “I know it’s hypocritical, but the thought of you being under someone else’s control…I don’t like it, m’eudail.”
“I wouldn’t either if I was in your position,” Cal said heavily. “But I know all too well how hard it is for people in Chester’s situation to leave their abusers. Oscar, my husband and mate, he almost lost his life when he tried.”
“It’s okay.” I put my hand on Finn’s thigh under the table as I spoke to Cal. “I don’t mind that you compelled me. What happened next though?”
“I asked you what your dreams were. Where you wanted to live. What your ideal home would be like.” Pennies were dropping all over the place. “Most importantly though, I asked you if you wanted to leave Matt. You said you would if you had a way out. So…we gave you that.”
I sucked in a breath. “You’re Uncle Cal.”
Finn frowned. “The one who died and left you everything?”
Cal bowed his head, a small smile on his lips. “In a way, yes. With Harlow’s help, we arranged for movers for you. We found Thistle Do Nicely and the house with a view of the water from your bedroom. We tried to cover everything so that you could have a fresh start, far, far away from him.”
I was stunned. “Holy shit.”
Really, I should’ve put two and two together earlier, but come on. Why on earth would I think my mysterious dead relative was actually one of the sons of Lucifer?
“I’m sorry if we overstepped,” Cal said gently. “But we wanted to help you.”
I took my hand off Finn’s thigh to twiddle with my leather bracelets. “Everything that’s happened to me since I left Matt was because of all of you?”
“No, it’s not.” My head snapped up at Harlow’s words. “We gave you the tools to start your new life, Chester, but you’re the one who did it.”
“Harlow’s right,” Cal said. “We might’ve found you the property for Thistle Do Nicely, but you’re the one who turned it into a success. We gave you the house on the loch, but you turned it into a home. We gave you a fresh start, but you’re the one who built it into the life you wanted.”
Finn had said something similar not long ago. Somehow though, hearing it from the ones who’d started me on this journey struck so much deeper. “Thank you.”
“How do you know what’s happened to Chester since?” Finn asked suspiciously. “Have ye been checking up on him?”
“Yes,” Cal said simply. “Like Danny said earlier, we consider Chester to be under our protection. One of us has looked him up whenever we’ve been in the area. It’s why I was coming here today—to ask you to stop by as it’s been a few months.”
“A busy few months,” Harlow said, waggling his fingers in Finn’s direction with a smirk. “This isn’t what I thought would happen when I chose that particular house knowing it was on your land, but I can’t lie, I’m thrilled.”
Finn blinked. “You chose McCarthy land intentionally?”
“Duh.” Harlow rolled his eyes again, and for a moment, it was almost like looking at Logan. “Chester wanted to move to Scotland, and where better to place him than on your clan’s land?”
“Danny’s told us many times about the lengths you and your circle go to to protect the humans within your boundaries,” Cal said. “It felt safer than anywhere else.”
Finn smiled wryly at me. “Guess it did work out for the best.”
I wished I could accept it as easily as Finn, but there was something nagging at me. Something I knew I shouldn’t ask, but the question was coming out anyway. “Why me? I get that seeing how Matt treated me can’t have been easy, but you gave me so much. There’s no way I’d ever be able to repay you.”
Both demons jolted, Harlow looking scandalised as he replied. “Um, if you tried to repay us we’d be mortally offended.”
“Immortally,” Cal corrected with a smile. “Given our lifespans.”
Frustration bubbled, threatening to boil over. Matt’s voice was alive and well in my brain again, fed by the absurdity of the situation.
You don’t deserve any of this.
They pitied you because you’re pathetic.
You never would’ve escaped me alone.
To my utter mortification, tears filled my eyes. “I don’t understand. Why? Why me?”
“Because I was almost you,” Bailey said, leaning closer.
“And Oscar, Cal’s mate, he was you. Nobody was able to help us, but we could all help you.
It’s not because any of us thought you were weak.
On the contrary. We thought you were worth saving.
That you deserved the happiness Matt worked so hard to deprive you of. ”
Bailey’s voice silenced Matt’s with ease, leaving nothing but peaceful acceptance behind.
“I’m sorry if we overstepped,” Cal said. “But like Bailey said, seeing you in that situation was almost like being offered a do-over. We’d do the same for anyone we realise is being abused.”
“You didn’t overstep,” I said. “I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to thank you enough though.”
“I too need to thank ye.” I turned at the raw emotion in Finn’s voice. Surprise filled me at the silver lining his eyes. “I didn’t know who Chester was to me then, but thank ye. I’ll forever be in yer debt for saving him.”
“No debt is needed,” Harlow said firmly.
Finn smiled tightly. “Still, if you ever need an extra pair of shifter hands alongside Danny’s, you know who to call.”
Everyone chuckled. I closed my eyes, letting some of the anxiety seep from me. At Finn’s next question though, they flew back open.
“Now, is this where you tell us Matt suffered a suitably painful and prolonged death?”