Chapter 24
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
EMMETT
It's the dead of night when I exit my room to meet the others. They're waiting in the living room, all of us dressed in black slacks and matching button downs. We each have a pair of dark combat boots on.
Grimm , Eli , and Jaden all have their hair styled formally and their pinkies adorning the signature brotherhood ring. The gold material glints in the light with every movement of their hands.
I'm adjusting my cuffs as I close the distance between myself and them.
“ Are you all ready to go?” Eli just gives me a nod while Grimm pumps his fists.
“ Fuck yeah, let’s go kill this motherfucker!” He says with a huge smile. Shaking my head, I let out a small chuckle. If there’s one thing Grimm enjoys, it's inconsequential murders.
Jaden follows it up with a slap to my back, “ Let's go.”
We make our way out of the house and head over to our bikes. Myself , Eli , and Grimm have identical blacked out bikes, whereas Jaden’s is a deep blood red that almost looks black unless it's in the right lighting. We each climb on our bikes, pulling on the helmets. Once secured, I’m turning on the intercom system so that we are able to communicate with one another as we ride.
Pulling out one by one, we start heading towards the warehouse. The assignment, Mr . Travis Young , thinks we’re meeting to close a deal with him on some drug running in his city. Poor dude doesn't realize, he is the deal. As we pull onto open backroads, I rev my engine and speed up.
Eli and Grimm’s laughter fills my helmet and I look over to see them popping wheelies as they drive. Jaden shakes his head as he pulls further ahead, seemingly not interested in their games right now. That type of shit is usually right up his alley, making me wonder what caused his sour mood.
I look back over at them as they act like idiots. When Eli is carefree like this, it's great, a stark difference from the blank personality he has. It’s not his fault though, he’s different when it comes to showing emotions.
The ride gives me a bit of time to clear my head. Except , as I attempt to rid myself of any and all thoughts, Blair repeatedly comes to mind. A little smile forms under my helmet.
My little obsession.
The peace I feel when I think of her is greater than the emptiness that previously filled my heart and the booming negative thoughts that constantly floated in my head. I let the thoughts of her consume every corner of my brain while I ride.
And she does. She consumes every fucking inch of my mind .
I don't know when my obsession for her began to turn and morph into more of a genuine connection. Blair has cut open my chest and dug her little claws into my heart, effectively forcing it to beat solely for her.
The need for her that thrums in my veins is what I would imagine injecting drugs is like. The all consuming feeling she brings me is unlike anything I've felt before. I want to keep her forever, my beautiful little obsession. And I will. Because Blair is mine.
She will always be mine.
She belonged to me the moment she stumbled into me with her sugary coffee and raised those pretty little eyes to mine, capturing me, swallowing me whole. She is the one who made me feel.
It will be my ring she wears on her finger, my baby in her stomach, my cock she cums on.
Forever .
Fuck . I reach down and adjust my hardening length. It isn't until I hear Jaden over the intercom that I'm pulled from my thoughts of the future, realizing I spent the last thirty minutes thinking of her.
“ We’re here.” He says. The large warehouse looks like a giant metal box. No windows line the sides, besides the small frosted one on the door to enter. Pulling up, we park and cut our engines. Taking off my helmet, I check our surroundings. There's no sign of life, allowing me to believe Travis isn't aware of the fate that awaits him.
We don’t get much information when we’re assigned a task. We get a name, where we go to meet them, and what they believe the meeting is to be about. We’re told that the reason for their de mise is due to threats to the brotherhood. Whether that's an individual member or the society as a whole, we don't know nor is it our job to care or ask questions.
Truthfully , I don’t really give a fuck.
I do this to appease my father. A few more months of this and I will be able to leave the brotherhood and these idiotic assignments behind me. I’m not Tom Cruise and we are not starring in Mission Impossible .
I’m Emmett Blackwood and I need a fucking nap.
Walking over to the warehouse door, the knob twists easily for me and I open the door, strolling in. The inside is empty besides a few crate containers scattered along the sides. A couch that looks out of place sits in the center, a small table in front of it with beer bottles on top.
“ There you boys are!” An older man says, walking out from behind a crate with his arms spread wide, beer belly on display. His Italian accent is strong. “ I’ve been waiting for you. Let’s get this deal going, eh?” He claps and rubs his hands together before motioning towards the singular couch.
“ Travis .” Eli purs, the smile that covers his face doesn't reach his eyes. “ That couch is only big enough for you, sir. We’re okay standing, aren't we boys?” He gestures to us, waiting for our nods of agreement.
“ Of course, of course. No worries. Let's get started.” He starts, pulling papers out of a binder on the floor. With his head lowered and his guard off, it gives us the chance to attack. Grimm quickly rounds the couch, putting him in a headlock from behind as Eli and Jaden grab his flailing limbs. I grab a cloth from my back pocket and shove it into his mouth, quickly taping his mouth to keep the fabric inside .
He screams behind the gag, finally realizing that this meeting was a setup. His muffled screams die out and his head hangs. We all snap our eyes to Grimm who looks back at us like we’re in the wrong.
“ What the fuck, Grimm ? We weren't supposed to kill him yet!” I whisper yell.
Grimm lets out an annoyed huff and places his fingers against his neck. “ Why are you whispering? We’re the only ones here. Besides , he’s still alive, just passed out. Sorry , I got a little excited.” He shrugs and reaches under the man’s armpit, attempting to lift him, “ Help me get this fucker outside.” He grunts.
Each of us grab some part of Travis and carry him over to the nearby forest. A premade grave is waiting for us, dug by another brotherhood member prior to our meeting. Eli shoves his hand into one of the bags, searching around until he pulls out some rope. Leaning against a tree we watch as he hog ties Travis , now we just have to wait for the fucker to wake up.
“ Nice going, idiot,” Jaden says, smacking Grimm on the back of the head. “ Who knows how long it’s going to take for him to wake up? I don’t want to be here all night.”
Grimm rolls his eyes and plops down on the floor, picking at the dead grass. “ You are all fucking party poopers. No one knows how to have any fun.”
That's the part that sucks about these assignments. Although we seemingly have nothing to go off of, they want us to confirm they were working alone. That the brotherhood is safe. From what, we still don't know.
When a low groan fills the air we all turn towards the source. Travis begins to stir, groaning behind his gag. Pulling the piece o f tape off his mouth, he spits out the cloth that I shoved inside. With labored breathing, he quickly becomes aware of his circumstances.
“ You stupid kids, you don't even know the man you're working for. I’m tired of keeping quiet. You ever wonder why all those students go missing at your school?” Simultaneously we all freeze. How the hell would the brotherhood have anything to do with the missing students?
His eyes land on mine and he smirks.
“ You’re his son. You’re going to take his place and commit the same vile acts, eh? I moved to drugs to atone for my part in his business.” Travis spits out.
Grimm stands and delivers a swift kick to his side, causing him to cough. “ I don't know what he told you to get you here, but he's been taking out anyone who gets close to the truth.” Travis attempts to get out between his coughing fits and the pain of Grimm’s foot connecting with his side.
I put a hand on Grimm’s chest stopping him from further injuring Travis .
“ Tell us everything you know or I will make sure he spends the rest of your waking minutes providing you with absolute torture. Don’t underestimate him.” I sneer, getting nose-to-nose with the lame excuse of a businessman.
“ He sells them. Those kids aren’t just going missing, they’re being sold. Investors with a taste for innocence are buying these young men and women. They are written off as donations made to the school to continue providing academic excellence . Those kids are never coming home because they are in a new home and that’s only if they’re still alive. Those buyers are sick. Who knows what they’re being used for.” He groans out.
Jaden looks at me, eyebrows furrowed. Eli’s face is blank but Grimm shakes his head. “ James is an asshole but I don’t think he’d ever do something like that.” He reasons.
Jaden speaks up hesitantly, “ I don’t know Em , I have a weird feeling this dude isn’t lying.” He turns back to Travis and asks, “ How would we find more information on it? Where are these dealings done?”
“ His office. He would bring us to his office and offer us a catalog per say. It was their student files.” He provides.
I've heard enough. Raising my hand, I aim the gun straight at his forehead and shoot. His brain matter and blood splatter everywhere. Grimm sucks his teeth, annoyed that one headshot is the only fun we had tonight and he wasn’t the one to administer it. Jaden and Grimm push his body into the pre-dug grave. When he drops down with a thud, we pick up the shovels and start to cover his body up, giving the worms a fresh meal.
Making our way back towards our bikes, Grimm , Eli , and Jaden all continue to pound me with questions. Questions I don't have answers to.
Have I ever overheard James and his dealings? Is there a chance the student files were still in his office? Would he really be capable of pulling this off? I gave the same answer to every question. I don’t fucking know.
We make it home and everyone immediately retreats back to their bedrooms to sleep off the shitshow this night has been. I don't even bother showering as I throw myself fully clothed onto my bed. Staring at the ceiling my mind wanders back to Travis and all he had to say about my father’s dealings.
I try closing my eyes and shutting off my thoughts. It’s been a long fucking night and the need for sleep pulls at every ounce of my being, yet it doesn’t come. I toss and turn as Travis’s words continue to bounce around my mind.
James has always been a shady bastard. If it wasn’t in his business deals, it was in his private life. The hushed conversations and constantly locked offices. It makes sense.
I shouldn’t put it past him and his capabilities. Moments of my life flash through my mind where I wish dreams would show instead. I remember the eight-year-old with the pulsing red handprint on his face. Moments where I could’ve spoken up but chose not to, out of fear or shame. I remember the twelve-year-old who “fell” and broke his nose. Moments where I could’ve told my father to fuck off and take control of my life.
I’m only thankful for the brotherhood because it brought me closer to the guys. They truly are my brothers and if not for them, I’m sure I would’ve tried to off myself before my father ever got the chance to.
Waking up and looking at myself in the mirror has been getting more challenging by the day, knowing I will be forced to be at his mercy for the rest of my life. Knowing I can’t go back and stand up for the kid inside of me who dies a little more with each passing day. There will be no avenging him. The closest I have to vengeance is getting out of this life and never looking back.
My thoughts wander to mom. I wonder how long she waited before she decided it was her time to leave us. Did she plan it on a specific day? Or was she so fed up with her life, that if she lived another second, she would go batshit crazy? I never understood her choice and I wish she left behind something, anything , for me to comprehend why she left me alone with that monster.
No longer able to fight off the feeling swirling around in my gut, I pull myself out of bed. I need to go see for myself, to make sure these allegations aren’t true. I know my father is a heartless man, but is he capable of an evil that dark and disturbed? Surely , my mother could have never loved a monster like him. Young’s words about the disappearances ring in my ears. I decide to go check out James’s office at the school to see if what he said appears to be true.
It’s late so the building is locked, not that I expected anything else. I came prepared for this. Dropping my bag, I pull out the small kit I shoved inside to pick the lock of the administrative building's front door.
Crouching down in front of the door, I pull out the keys and start to pick the lock. It takes me a few tries but when the resounding click fills my ears, I release a breath I didn’t realize I was holding onto.
The lights are off, making the hallways dark. I come up to James’s office door and attempt to twist the handle. When it moves under my grip, I laugh. That cocky motherfucker didn’t think anyone would attempt to break in. That or there’s really nothing of importance here and Travis was giving me bullshit.
I start with the drawers of his desk, pulling them out aggressively and rifling through the files. Nothing alarming catches my attention. I go through the rest of the desk drawers before moving on to the filing cabinets that adorn the walls .
I shift through every single file, again coming up with nothing. Just more student records, plans for future school events, and other unimportant documents.
Once I’ve searched every inch of this office and have come up with nothing, I fall back onto his chair and rest my head in my hands. I have not found anything resourceful or of the slightest importance regarding the disappearances.
Yet , the nagging feeling in my gut won’t go away. I haven't been back to the house in a very long time, but the only other place I can think to check is the home office. Travis said they were there, so let’s see if the fucker was telling the truth.
With a feeling of resolve, I pull myself off the chair and head back toward my house. Quickly arriving home, I go straight for the garage to get my bike. Swinging my leg over, I pull on my helmet and turn it on, the engine purring to life.
I drive fast, eating up the distance between my campus home and my father’s house. Pulling up to the gate, I type in the code that hasn’t changed since childhood and wait for it to open. Once it does, I slowly ride up the long winding driveway until I reach the front entrance.
Slowing down to a stop, I shut off my bike and hop down. Making my way inside, I remain quiet, not wanting to alert anyone to my presence. I don’t come back here often, so being here, in the dead of night at that, will raise suspicion amongst staff and my father.
I make my way down the hallway, careful to not make a sound as I walk. The house is silent, making me wonder if James is even here. Still , I need to move as if he is.
Coming to the door, I try to turn the handle but it won’t budge. Huh . The possibility that he’s hiding something increases as the feeling of dread forms a deeper pit in my gut. My intuition tells me that something isn’t right.
I pull out the lock-picking kit from earlier and get to work. This one is trickier. It takes multiple tries and by the time the door is unlocked my fingers hurt and sweat has formed on my hairline. Either from the unnecessary amount of work and patience it took to get the door unlocked or from the unsettling feeling growing in my stomach.
The first thing that catches my eye when I pull open the door is the photo of Blair attached to her student file. It sits on his desk, out in the open. Instantly , my stomach turns to lead and the room feels as if all the air has been sucked out. Why would he have this? Lifting it up to my eyes, I glance past her file to the next one under it.
Looking back at me is the same face of a girl that was on the missing posters around campus last week. I start to pull the files out, scrambling through them. Each and every file I unveil matches the familiar faces of the students who are littering the campus with missing posters.
Based on the stack in this drawer, there must be hundreds of them, definitely from before this year. I feel fucking sick. Travis was right. If Blair’s file is in here, that means she’s being targeted by those sick fucks. I will not allow anything to happen to her.
Over my dead body.
I shove all the files back into the drawer, keeping Blair’s out to take with me. I round the desk when a piece of the floorboard under me slightly dips in and creaks. I lift up my foot and look down at the clearly loose floorboard, halfway hidden under the desk .
You wouldn't notice it until you stepped in just the right spot.
What the fuck?
Leaning down, I lift up the wood until it opens for me, letting me peer inside. Sitting there is a worn envelope with my name scribbled across the top. The letters are smudged and clearly written frantically.
What the fuck is this?
I reach down and pull out the envelope. Opening it, I instantly recognize the feminine writing. A little photo falls to the ground. Bending down, I pick it up and look at it.
Staring back at me is a young version of myself sitting on the lap of my mother. We're sitting on the edge of the dock at our lake and her arms are wrapped tightly around me, huge smiles adorn our faces.
I feel a pang in my chest as I look at the photo. I miss her. Pulling my gaze from the picture, I look at the letter.
My Sunshine Emmett ,
If you find this letter that means I’m no longer with you. I’m so sorry, my love. Please know that I did everything I could to keep you from that world. My sweet boy, how I wish I could see you now. I hope your heart is still pure and full of love, and that art remains as an important piece of your life.
I’m sorry for leaving you. My poor son, I wish I could have stayed. I wish I could have given you a better life. Please know that I love you until my last breath, and I will love you forever. I am always right by your side, my sunshine.
- Mommy
My jaw is clenching so hard I feel as if my molars may crack from the pressure. What appears to be dried water droplets cover the paper. Shoving the letter into my pocket, along with the photo, I pick Blair’s file back up and start to put the floorboard back in its place so I can get the fuck out of here. I'm stopped in my tracks when the voice behind all the missing students travels down the hall.
Trying to get the floorboard back into place, it finally clicks as I stand up. I take a step forward as James enters the room. My spine stiffens and my free fist clenches. He looks at me and slowly drags his eyes down to the file in my hand. I go to move it from his sight but it's too late, he knows whose file I'm holding and why.
He knows that I know.
“ So you’ve finally figured it out. Do you know what happened to these other students, Emmett ? Do you know what we plan on doing?”
“ You won’t lay a finger on her. I’ll kill you myself.” I spit out.
He laughs mockingly and steps forward. When he’s inches away, I lunge forward, arms wrapping around his torso and driving him back into the wall. We hit the wall with a hard thud, the pictures, and shelves rocking with the impact. Almost immediately, he pushes me back. We exchange hard blows that are laced with hatred and distaste, partly from having to be so close to one another.
My knuckles are split open from striking him and blood drips, leaving a trail on his expensive wooden floors. Just as I lean in to attack again, I'm hit on the back of the head and my world goes black. The last thing I hear is James’s wretched voice in my ears. “ You stupid boy.”