Nick

1. Chapter 1

As I’m sitting in the guest bed talking online with Fawx, a message pops up.

No one should be able to enter our secure chat.

I ask if he sees the message too, and he does.

I let him trace it to its source before opening it.

After he's confirmed it’s from the hacker Patrick is using, I open it.

The first thing I see is a photo of Shortie.

There’s a man I don’t recognize in the background with a gun pointed at her.

Patrick: Nick, did you think I wouldn’t find out about witness protection? That won’t save you or the girl. Come home to me, and I’ll leave her alone. You and I have unfinished business.

Fuck. I’m going to Tennessee, and there’s a damn leak in the local FBI office. Maybe I can get some answers first.

Nick: What am I missing?

Patrick: I thought you were smarter than this, son.

Nick: Answer and I’ll come.

Patrick: I arranged for Beth to get hooked on drugs again. I made sure Ben’s letters reached Summer.

Patrick: I am Lily’s father. I had the results switched so that John was listed as the father, hoping he could get the money. I would have left Summer alone if he had won, but at least she suffered because of the case.

Patrick: See you soon.

Fuck. He’s been manipulating so much I didn’t know about.

Fawx is still online with me, so I remind him about the promise he made to watch out for Summer and help her if she needs him.

He offers to monitor Tennessee and me too, which I appreciate.

Logging off, I get up and grab my bag. Packing the basics, I call a taxi, then go into Z’s office and write a letter to Summer and Troy and leave them on the island.

Deciding it’s best to wake Z, I quietly open his door and slip inside with my duffel bag.

He’s immediately awake when the door clicks. “Nick,” he says, turning on the bedside lamp.

I press my finger to my lips and go into his closet, and he follows. Closing the door, I turn on the light. He sees my duffel bag, and understanding dawns. “What happened?”

“He reached out through a chat room. If I go to him, Summer will be safe. He knows about WITSEC. He made sure Beth overdosed, was helping Ben get the letters out, and is Lily’s father, not John. The trial was a setup to get money.”

Zander stands there, stunned for a minute, sighing wearily, then nods. “What do you need?”

“Cash and a burner phone.”

He opens the safe room and hands me a wad of cash, a phone, and an extra charger. “Are you sure you want to do this, Nick?”

“No choice, Z. She comes first, always.”

“Thank you for keeping her safe. I’m sorry, Nick,” he replies. He genuinely looks upset.

Nodding, I put the phone in my pocket, splitting the cash between myself and the duffel bag.

“I knew I'd have to deal with him again. Keep vigilant for a while yet. Let Ceres stay with Summer. If nothing happens after a few weeks, then you should be fine. It was always me he wanted revenge on. I wrote letters to Summer and Troy. They’re on the island.”

Z pulls me into a hug. “I know about the new deal with the FBI you and Troy arranged. Stay safe and stay alive until you can return home. Do you have a plan?”

“Figure out who his boss is, then kill him.”

“Timeframe?”

“Probably months. He won’t trust me now.”

“Reach out to any of us if you need help. I meant it, Nick. You’re being heroic enough; no need to push it further. Promise me.”

“I will, but most likely you won’t hear from me at all until it’s over.” Checking my watch, I see it’s time to leave. “I have an Uber to catch at the end of the driveway. Keep her safe.” I walk out of the closet and out the front door. Time to start my old life again.

I had to wait an hour for a bus to take me north from Charleston and 2 hours for the next bus with too many stops in between.

I just switched buses again to get to Knoxville, Tennessee, and I’m fucking tired.

When the bus pulls into the last station, I get off and head into the building.

Looking for a camera, I find one facing the ticket counter and stand in front of it, glaring at the lens for a few seconds before leaving.

That should alert the bastard’s hacker I’m here.

Going outside, I see a 24-hour diner down the street, so I head there and grab a booth. The server fills me up on coffee while I wait to be picked up. After half an hour, I order another coffee with a burger and fries. Patrick is busy, or is making me wait on purpose. Doesn’t really matter which.

I haven’t stopped to think too hard about where I am.

Reuniting with Patrick was inevitable. I had hoped the reunion would be brief, me simply shooting the bastard, but that choice is gone.

Now I need to navigate my old life while keeping my real family safe, especially Shortie.

It would be so much easier if it was just the asshole, but he has a boss now that I need to worry about.

Hopefully, the boss is an idiot too, but my luck has never been that good.

Shortie will be upset and sad today, but with time she'll understand why I had to do this.

Z and the guys will support her and Gabby.

This is minor compared to what she's already been through, so I have no doubt she'll be okay.

I should've told her I loved her in the letter I left her.

I've known for a while how I feel, but I want to say it in person the first time.

I always swore to myself I would never tell another person I loved them after what I went through in my childhood.

Love was a weapon for Patrick and his crew.

Love was a weakness to be used against people.

I watched, helpless, as Patrick beat, drugged, or raped female family members of people who owed him money, or who he wanted something from.

If there wasn't a female available, he'd use a son, or brother, or anyone else the person held close.

He spared men from sexual abuse, but he exploited young boys.

It didn't happen often, only once that I was aware of, but I'm sure there were more.

Most of my severe beatings came from when I found out about kids being sexually abused.

Despite being a kid myself, I did everything in my power to stop them from being raped.

All three times, I ended up in seriously bad shape.

The first time I made it to the hospital, but I couldn't tell you how I got there.

I had a broken arm, internal bleeding, and lacerations all over my body.

I spent 3 weeks in bed recovering. The other two times I caught him with little kids, the asshole had a doctor come to the condo to tend to me, and I was bedridden for weeks each time.

I never intended to allow any woman close enough for me to develop genuine feelings for them, but Shortie managed. I know she never set out to be my person. She just wanted to be my friend, like the guys, and maybe that's why it happened. Whatever the reason, she got to me, and she's mine now.

As I’m finishing my burger, the bell over the door chimes and I see two men enter, heading right for me.

One is short and stocky with a shaved head, a black leather vest, and dirty jeans.

The other is over 6ft, lanky and dressed well, with a pressed grey dress shirt, black dress pants, and leather shoes.

He’s the threat, carrying himself with confidence and watching his surroundings at all times.

They stop at my booth, and the short one slides into the seat opposite me and reaches for my fries, so I quickly grab his thumb and break it.

No room for understanding or second chances in this world.

He howls, but the taller one quietly tells him to shut up.

Stocky does, holding his hand to his chest.

“I’m Artur. You’re Nicholas Bouras. Come with us. Patrick is expecting you,” tall guy says.

I look up to meet his eyes and point to Stocky across from me. “Who's that?”

“Danny.”

Nodding, I drop some cash on the table, then stand up and grab my bag. “Let’s go.” No need to cause issues already since I agreed to come here. I can hear Danny whimpering as he follows behind us, but I ignore him. I follow Artur outside to an SUV and hop into the passenger seat.

“Hey, you can’t sit there. Get in the back,” Danny whines.

What a waste of space this idiot is. I close the passenger door in his face, so he turns to Artur. “Get in the back and shut up,” Artur barks before getting into the driver’s seat.

Artur and Danny are both silent during the drive, but there's classical music playing low from the stereo.

The interior of the SUV is as pristine as Artur appears.

He's got an expensive gold watch on his wrist, and his hair is perfectly arranged.

He even drives perfect, hands at 10 and 2.

I wonder if he's Patrick's boss. If he is, I'll be at a disadvantage.

Artur's not some lowlife idiot I can force to do what I want.

It’s a 15 minute drive through a rough part of town before Artur parks in front of a bar near a highway.

Very original Patrick. I get out and follow him around back and through a beat up door.

A bland hallway lined with wood and steel doors is inside.

Interesting. You'd only need steel doors to keep something in or out.

I wonder what Patrick's hiding. Artur opens the first door on the left, which has stairs to the basement. Great. I follow Artur down with Danny behind me. Not ideal, but I need to see what I’m dealing with.