Chapter 10
TEN
JUSTICE
“What the hell happened?” Agent Carter asks as I buckle the seat belt.
I barely crossed the tracks out of Miller’s Branch before my car began to sputter and stall, white smoke billowing from the hood.
I dug the burner phone out from under the driver’s seat and dialed Dylan, but the call went straight to voicemail.
After the brutality I endured at Harlan’s hand today, I simply couldn’t take anything more.
If I’d gone to Haven’s I’d only risk bringing trouble to her door.
Agent Carter was my only hope of safety.
“H-harlan. He was high. Th-things got outta co-control.” It’s as close to the truth as it will get. He doesn’t need to know why Harlan snapped.
“We need to get you to the hospital, Mrs. Daughtry. Then I’ll have the county police come by to take your statement so the appropriate charges can be filed.
“N-no! I-I can’t! I n-need D-dylan!”
“Ma’am, I need you to calm down and listen to me. You’re injured. This is just another notch in the case against Harlan. It may be small, but you need to be evaluated by a doctor and a police report needs to be filed. We have to do this through the proper channels,” he reasons.
“D-damn it, Adam! N-no!” I hate the unease of my voice. I hate that I let Harlan unravel me like this.
Agent Carter, Adam, shoots me a side glance as he maneuvers the curves of the narrow road. “What do you want me to do, Mrs. Daughtry? I want to help, but you gotta meet me halfway.”
“C-call Dylan.”
Shaking his head, he picks up the phone from the console and dials Dylan.
I can’t make out Dylan’s side of the conversation, but studying Adam’s reactions: red face, flexing his fingers over the steering wheel, and sputtering quietly under his breath when he finally ends the call, clearly tells me he isn’t happy with Dylan’s response.
Curling into myself, I stare out the window in a dazed state.
Twenty minutes later Agent Carter has me checked into a room at the Montgomery Hotel. I don’t feel safe here, not after the elusive warning from Drew Varney. I’m manipulated by men at every turn, the pawn in a very dangerous power struggle.
“I grabbed a few things from your car. Wasn’t sure exactly what you would need,” he says, holding up my purse and tote bag.
“Uhm, thanks.” I didn’t even notice he had gotten anything out of my car. “When will Dylan be here?”
“Probably within the hour. He’s driving down from Lexington,” he replies, raking his fingers through his hair as he takes a seat on the couch.
“You can go, Adam. I appreciate you coming to my rescue, but I’ll be okay until Dylan gets here.”
“Nowhere else to be at the moment, Mrs. Daughtry. Wanna tell me what happened while we wait for Agent Warren to arrive?”
“No.” I shake my head. “Actually, I’m just going to shower.
” Turning on my heel, I go into the bathroom and lock the door behind me.
I flip the water on and let it adjust while I sift through the tote bag to see what clothes I have to wear.
Stripping down, I stare at my naked body in the mirror.
It’s not nearly as bad as I expected, but the sight still turns my stomach. It’s been much worse before.
Stepping into the shower, I let the warmth soothe the ache of the bruises and scrapes before lathering up a wash rag and scrubbing the essence of Harlan off my body. I still can’t wrap my head around the situation, and I don’t think I ever will.
Harlan makes me feel utterly conflicted.
Deep in my heart, I love him and I probably always will, but that doesn’t refute the fact that he’s a very bad man.
As the tears well up in my chest, I push all thoughts of Harlan aside.
I’ve cried countless tears over this man, many right in front of him, yet he feels no shame or remorse for the misery he puts me through.
I stay in the shower until the water runs cold and my mind is numb.
I turn the shower off, then step out onto the rug.
As I dry off, I hear raised voices coming from the room. I step closer to the door, clutching the towel to my chest as I listen.
“Don’t fuckin’ tell me what I already know, Adam!” I flinch at the anger that can be heard in Dylan’s voice. He’s always so calm and subtle.
“This isn’t fair to Kimberly and the kids, man.
They barely see you as it is with all the cases we’re juggling.
You’re here now. Check on her, then go home, spend the evening with them.
I’ll put a protection detail on the hotel to ensure nobody enters the premises.
” Adam persuades. Apparently he’s fully aware of the situation between Dylan and me, which is why he’s trying so hard to put distance between us.
I don’t want to hear Dylan’s response, so I give them a few minutes to hash it all out while I towel dry my hair and get dressed.
I open the bathroom door and step into the room, cutting Adam’s further argument off. Dylan’s eyes meet mine as he stands and takes three long strides in my direction. Choking back a sob, I fall against his chest and let the exhaustion and agony of the last six months consume me.
Clutching Dylan’s crisp button-down shirt in my fist, the anger emerges.
I pound my fists against his chest as I scream, “I’m lucky I walked away from him this time!
He threatened to kill me!” Dylan grips his hands around my elbows and shakes me slightly.
“Justice, you gotta calm down and tell me what happened,” Dylan urges.
“Fuck you! He raped me, Dylan!” I seethe, my chest heaving rapidly with each inhale of air I take. Dylan’s soft brown eyes fade to black. He’s stunned by my revelation, but he needs to understand the severity of the situation he’s put me in.
“He broke yet another piece of me when he took my right to deny him. He knows just how fuckin’ disgusting a rapist is in my eyes…
What’s next, Dylan?” I stare up at his blank expression and spit, “He will Kill. Me. DEAD. Harlan fuckin’ Daughtry knows these mountains as well as the blow he sells.
My body will never be found. I’ll forever be the lost and shattered girl from Miller’s Branch.
Haven and Ezekiel will never have any peace or comfort.
They will expect his connection in my disappearance, but the law ain’t gonna do shit to protect me. You have proven that yourself!”
I’m blind to the rage I feel coursing through me. It isn’t until the sting that burns through my palm registers in my brain that I realize I’ve just slapped Dylan. Taking a step back, I try to compose myself, but I’m a fuckin’ mess … always a fuckin’ mess.
Slowly, Dylan rubs his hand across his jaw as his eyes shoot daggers at me. He makes his way across the room and pulls the door open before turning to Adam. “I appreciate you seeing to her safety, Agent Carter.”
Adam’s jaw tics and his spine stiffens as he approaches the door. He glances at me over his shoulder, his eyes narrowing in a hateful glare.
“I’ll see you at the office tomorrow.” He nods to Dylan, then leaves without further argument.
Slowly, Dylan turns his attention to me. Pointing to the couch, he orders, “Sit, Justice.”
It’s a forced habit of mine to comply to a man’s direction.
Call me gullible, stupid, what have you…
Taking a seat on the couch, I pull some Kleenex from the box and wipe the snot and tears from my face.
My eyes are puffy and swollen, and it hurts to blink.
Dylan paces the floor briefly; the internal battle he’s facing is obvious in his hard-set features.
“First, you need to understand the compromising position I put myself in by being in this room, alone with you right this very minute. Adam knows what’s been going on between us for a while now.
He has every right to be concerned because I’m laying my ass on the line for you, Justice!
If our relationship gets out, my career in the FBI will be over.
I’ll lose my family, and then what will I be left with?
” He continues to pace, leaving me to pick my slack jaw up from my lap.
“Are you fuckin’ kiddin’ me? Dylan, do you realize that I risk my life every damn second I’m near Harlan, snooping in his business, trying to get evidence for you to put him away, but you can’t keep your damn word!
” He stops mid-stride and turns his glare toward me.
“And what will you be left with? Oh well, I’m guessing sure as fuck not me since you are throwing me to the wolf at every turn, protection be damned.
Oh, but don’t let me forsake your precious marriage or the relationship you have with your children.
I forgot I’m the one who approached you that day in the diner and begged and pleaded to be your CI.
I forgot I’m the one who seduced you into my bed after weeks of flirtatious advances when we’d secretly meet, so I could give you intel on Harlan.
Isn’t that how it all happened, Dylan? It was all me. The temptress fuckin’ whore?”
“You’re distressed, Justice. Agent Carter said you refused medical treatment, and I can’t force you to accept help. You need to get some rest.” Dylan leads me to the bed and pulls the covers back. I crawl beneath the soft blanket, my body sinking into the mattress.
“Hold me, please?”
Dylan sighs and scrubs a hand over his face before climbing into bed.
Being in Dylan’s arms provides an overwhelming comfort I’m not accustomed to.
His touch is soft and caring, where Harlan’s is hard and unforgiving.
His tone is respectful and understanding, where Harlan possesses and demands.
I’ve never felt a sense of safety and love like I do when I’m with Dylan.
I know I’m falling in the wrong direction, stumbling over my feet to land right in the arms of a married man.
My mind is so jumbled and confused, torn between two men I love and hate.
They’re both shattering me to pieces; I just wonder which of them will take the final blow.