Predator Chapter 8
Furious didn’t begin to cover what I felt as I rubbed Dayanara’s back and tried to comfort her as she cried and puked.
I not only wanted to kill Marshall Webb, but her brother Jess needed his fucking head pounded for what he said to her.
That was uncalled for, cruel, and untrue.
No wonder assault and rape victims hated to come forward.
Stalker might work full-time at Haven, but I’d helped out enough to know some of the stories of those women and children.
If you haven’t walked in their shoes, you have no right to judge.
There was no guarantee that, if Dayanara had told, Marshall would’ve been arrested and convicted.
He might’ve gotten off, or carried through with his threat.
Even if he served time, look at him getting out early.
Nothing was preventing him from doing it again.
Surely, those wouldn’t be her fault, too.
Probably was in Jess’s fucked-up thinking.
“Jess, that was fucking uncalled for! Christ, look at her. She tells us something that has been eating away at her for years, and you prove why she stayed quiet for so long. You’re acting like a prick,” Stryder told his cousin.
“How can you say that? Daya isn’t at fault for what he did to those other girls or me.
You have no idea the fear, shame, and revulsion you feel.
A lot of it is aimed at yourself. No wonder she kept her mouth shut.
You’re an asshole,” Brighton lectured her brother in a hard tone. One I hadn’t heard her have before.
“Melyster, do you think you can sit?” Stalker asked our woman.
She had stopped puking, but remained bent over the trash can, crying. She shrugged, but no words left her mouth. I turned to Stryder, who hovered nearby, along with Brighton. They had their backs to Jess.
“Will one of you go find her some water and some mouthwash? She’ll want to get the nasty taste out of her mouth. And a wet cloth, too,” I asked,
“I’ll do it since I know where everything is. Be right back,” Stryder said before popping out the door.
“Can I help?” Brighton asked.
“We’re gonna move her back to her chair. Will you grab the can and then sit with her? I think she’ll like you close,” I told her.
Brighton nodded. Then, as we helped Dayanara to straighten up, she did as we asked.
Our woman was a bit shaky as she walked back to her chair.
It intensified my anger. Jess was pacing on the other side of the table.
He’d better keep his mouth shut. One more word out of him, and I’d forget he was my woman’s brother and beat his mouth closed.
It was his relationship with Dayanara that kept him safe up until now.
Stryder was back in record time. He set an empty cup, a bottle of water, a small bottle of mouthwash, and a damp cloth before her.
Stalker grabbed up the cloth and gently wiped her entire face, removing the tears, murmuring to her.
I filled the cup with water and added mouthwash.
When my best friend was through cleaning her up, I held out the cup.
“Daya, baby, here. Swish it around, then spit it into the trash can. Your mouth will feel better,” I told her.
She took it and did what I suggested four times. When she was through, I handed her the remainder of the plain water. She drank down half of it before taking a break. Thankfully, she’d stopped crying.
I wasn’t out to rile her up, but I had to say what was on my mind.
I caught Stryder’s attention. I glanced over at his cousin, then back, before giving my club brother a chin lift.
Stryder moved closer to Jess. With Brighton comforting her sister, Stalker and I could move closer to Jess, but not too close.
“You have no fucking idea what they went through. Or the damage you’re causing your sisters with your narrow-minded attitude,” I told Jess. His mouth opened, but I shut him down.
“If I were you, I’d keep my mouth shut and listen.
The only reason we haven’t laid hands on you is that you’re our woman’s brother.
But just because you’re family, it doesn’t give you the freedom to hurt her.
Are you na?ve enough to believe that everyone who is reported for a crime is arrested, prosecuted, and sentenced for their crimes?
And you know, even if that happens, the criminal can still get a light sentence or be released early.
Look at what’s happening with that bastard Marshall right now.
If it weren’t for us, Marshall would be returning to his old tricks, only this time he’d likely protect himself.
Do you know how? By killing his victims. And that wouldn’t be your sister’s fault.
“Question. Did Brighton tell you the details of what was done to her? I doubt it because she feared your condemnation. Did you blame her? Since you enjoy parceling out blame, let’s say it.
The wrong people are being blamed for what happened.
You’re the reason both your sisters were harmed.
Suppose you hadn’t befriended him and brought him home with you.
If you hadn’t allowed him free access to your home and sisters, they wouldn’t have been molested,” I snarled.
He wanted to act superior… let him chew on that. I hoped he’d see how ridiculous he was for saying what he did. It wasn’t as if, as a five-year-old, he would’ve known that he was befriending a monster—the same as Dayanara not knowing that Webb would hurt others, and her little sister.
“That’s not fucking fair! How was I to know he was a pedo when we were five? That’s fucked up. If I had, I wouldn’t have befriended him, and I would’ve reported him.”
“And then you would’ve been put through the wringer, trying to prove he was.
You saw how they treated Breezy when we went to the cops.
They made her feel like she was the criminal.
They almost didn’t arrest him. If it hadn’t been for the bite marks that they eventually matched to his teeth, he would’ve gotten away with it.
“I don’t need you making me feel worse. No wonder I didn’t say anything.
There was another reason I didn’t. I figured you’d believe him over me.
He was your best friend, and you thought he was perfect.
So, Jessup, you can go fuck yourself. Marshall assaulted Breezy, but thank God he didn’t actually go all the way with her.
She reported it before he could. Believe me, having your virginity taken by a rapist leaves even worse scars,” Dayanara stated rawly.
We all froze. I had assumed by the way she spoke of Marshall that he’d done things, but stopped short of actual intercourse. I didn’t know why I thought that. But to hear my woman admit he raped her was too much. Lord knows I tried to hold it in, but my anger burst free.
I roared and then beat the tabletop with my fists repeatedly. Stalker was shouting, and I heard something get smashed. I thought it was a chair. Other voices were bellowing, but their words were warped as if I heard them underneath the water.
The next thing I knew, Dayanara was wrapping an arm around me. She had the other around Stalker, and sweet Brighton was standing before us, trying to offer comfort by hugging us from the front. It was fucking nuts to have them comforting us after what they went through.
Then, through the pounding of my blood in my ears, I heard voices. They belonged to Bull, Demon, Bear, and Payne. The haze over my vision cleared. As I scanned the room, I noted the door was open, with brothers inside, while others stood in the hallway. They wore concerned expressions.
“Shut the door. We don’t need everyone in here at the moment,” Bull ordered.
Demon did the honors and locked it for good measure.
“Sorry, Pres, sorry. I’m back in control,” I muttered hoarsely.
“I’ll be the judge of that. I don’t like to stick my nose into family business, but when it leads to three of my brothers getting into a screaming match behind closed doors, I have to step in and ask.
What the hell is going on in here? Why are you carrying on in front of the women? ” Bull asked gruffly.
“Sorry, Bull, that wasn’t our intention, I swear,” Stalker added. His voice wasn’t any better than mine.
“Everyone needs to sit down. There will be no screaming. I want rational explanations,” Bull demanded as he walked to the head of the table where his chair was.
As he passed the trash can, his nose crinkled. The others all took their seats. We got both women resettled before Stalker, and I sat. We left Jess to take care of himself. Stryder whispered urgently in his cousin’s ear for a minute before the hardheaded bastard took a seat.
“Who wants to tell us what’s going on?” Bull asked.
I glanced over at my woman. She met my look and nodded. She was pale and tired-looking. Receiving her permission to share, I spoke up.
“Stalker and I will. We asked for a private family meeting. You saw last night that the tension was already high. We didn’t want a fight in the common room.
Clearly, that backfired on us. Daya asked to speak to her brother, cousin, and sister.
There was information about Marshall Webb that she felt needed explaining after Jess and Stryder overheard a comment at breakfast this morning.
She told Stalker and me about it yesterday.
We promised not to tell anyone without her permission. ”
When I paused, Bull smiled at Dayanara.
“Daya, honey, you look worn out. Are you able to do this now? Would you like to take a break? Then we’ll reconvene. Are you okay revealing your secret to the rest of us?”
Bull was always fair. If it were something that she absolutely wanted to keep between the seven of us, he’d work to allow it. Plus, his protective instincts weren’t just for his old lady, kids, and grandkids. It was one thing that made him such a wonderful president and role model.