27. Dawson
Dawson
Even though Harper has made it clear she wants her space, I can’t help but feel like she’s warming up to me again. At the very least, she’s eating. That’s progress.
I give her as much space as I can, knowing she needs it right now.
I’m not going to be aggressive or force her to act a certain way.
I don’t have that authority right now, anyway.
Before, she thought she was under this contract to get her art school tuition paid for, and now she knows that’s bullshit.
I’m sitting in the living room watching the news on mute so I can listen carefully to anything happening in the house.
The odds of Malik finding the safe house are slim, but it doesn’t hurt to be paranoid right now.
My phone rings, and I pull it out of my pocket, hoping it’s Xander or Quinton with some kind of information about where Malik might be.
As much as I want to be out hunting for him alongside them, Harper needs someone with her. I trust that Quinton and Xander will get the job done, though. This is what they do.
As it turns out, it’s my dad. I have half a mind to ignore the call and pretend like he doesn’t exist. I’m furious with him.
He’s the one who orchestrated this entire ordeal, and he has no idea what Harper has gone through.
He doesn’t even care. But at the same time, a part of me thinks that he might know about where I can find Malik, so answering seems important.
I slide the answer button to the right, and I have to blink a few times to make sense of what I’m seeing.
It’s dark, and I have to squint my eyes to try to make out the shapes in the center of the screen.
When I realize my father is in the center, tied to a chair, I know this is exactly who I’m looking for.
“I’ve heard about what you did at my estate,” Malik says as he turns the camera around to show him in the frame in front of my dad and Diana, who I’m now realizing is there too. “All of this for one whore? You have no idea what you’ve just started.”
“I know exactly what I’m doing. If I had to, I’d do it all over again,” I say, standing up and clenching my fist at my side while I watch him walk around my father and Diana.
“We can end this right now. Bring Harper here to me, without Xander at your side, and I’ll free the rest of your family,” Malik says.
I almost want to laugh. Malik must think I would do anything to spare them.
I don’t want to see them hurt, but risking Harper to protect either of them is foolish.
But at the same time, I know this isn’t going to end until Malik is gone.
If he’s about to give me his location, I have to go through with this.
“Send me the location,” I say through gritted teeth as if I’m reluctantly going along. Malik smirks before hanging up the phone and texting over an address.
I immediately search for it on Google Maps and see it’s an old, abandoned warehouse seemingly in the middle of nowhere. It’ll be about an hour from where we are now.
The only reason I accepted his offer is because I won’t be going alone.
If he doesn’t want Xander to come with me, Xander won’t.
But he didn’t say anything about Quinton.
Quinton is the next best thing. Xander raised him to be a near replica of himself, and if what happened Friday night is any indication of his abilities, I know we’re going to be able to make Malik regret ever messing with us.
I call Quinton and update him on everything that’s happening. He promptly agrees to meet me at the safe house so we can head to the warehouse together.
The hard part is explaining all of this to Harper. She’s already been through so much, and the idea of putting her back in Malik’s crosshairs is gut-wrenching, but I don’t have a choice. She wants him dead as much as I do. This is our opportunity to make that happen.
She reluctantly agrees and gets ready to go as Quinton arrives, and we go over the plan.
I’m going to bring Harper in like a bargaining chip to save Diana and my dad.
Before she’s handed over to Malik, Quinton and a few of his men are going to creep around the back of the warehouse and get the drop on him.
We took out a lot of Malik’s army, so we won’t have many guards to contend with.
But we’re positive there are going to be more of them.
When all of us are filled in on the plan, we make the drive to the warehouse in silence. I sit in the backseat with Harper to make sure she has company, but she keeps her eyes glued to the window while she nervously taps her foot on the ground.
As the warehouse comes into view, we park, and Harper and I get out of the car.
Quinton and his men immediately begin swarming the warehouse as I approach with Harper in hand.
When I slide open the doors to the warehouse, I see Malik standing in the center with his hostages, no other guards in sight.
Malik doesn’t say anything, nor does my dad. But as soon as Diana sees both of us, she starts shrieking and crying, almost unintelligible at first. I see everyone in the room looking at her with disgust on their faces, as they should.
“She’s here now! You can let us go,” Diana shouts at Malik. He looks down at her—tied to the chair—with frustration etched on his face. I can’t blame him; I’m furious with her myself. “None of this would even be happening if that whore had kept her legs closed!”
I look at Harper and see the pained look on her face as her mother lashes out at her. I wish there was a way I could shield her from these insults, but something tells me she’s used to it. She’s just not used to her mother selling her out to criminals.
“Shut the hell up,” I shout across the warehouse, my voice echoing through the empty space. Diana looks at my dad like he’s going to reprimand me for talking to her that way, but he just sits still in the chair, watching the exchange.
I can only imagine how angry he is with me for going against his plan.
He probably thinks it’s all my fault we’re here.
I doubt he has the ability to take any accountability for what happened.
It was his greed and desire for Malik’s men that started this whole ordeal.
Everything has been fine how it’s been—none of this needed to happen.
“I have to say I’m surprised you actually brought her,” Malik says with a grin as he approaches. “The bruises are healing nicely. I’m sure I can fetch a pretty penny for you when you are back at the brothel.”
He reaches out to touch Harper, and she recoils, backing away. I stand in front of him to let him know that’s not happening right now. “Untie them, and then you’ll get her.”
Malik watches me, trying to determine whether I’m trying to pull something.
I am, but I don’t let it show. Xander isn’t here beside me, so he thinks that I obeyed his command.
Little does he know, Quinton and five of his best men are all swarming the warehouse with guns in hand.
If there are any guards walking around, they’re dead by now.
A gunshot sounds, and I know that’s my cue.
Malik whips his head around to see what’s going on, reaching for the gun at his waist just as I duck to the ground with Harper in my arms. Malik looks down at us, ready to point his gun at me, but before he has a chance, the doors to the warehouse bust open all at once, and he doesn’t know where to look.
He points the gun in one direction and shoots recklessly.
The bullet ricochets along one of the metal walls and backfires.
He ducks out of the way and tries to scurry along the ground to keep Quinton and his men from spotting him.
Bullets fly in his direction as Harper and I both move away.
Quinton’s men keep a close eye on us to make sure we’re not caught by stray bullets.
Diana is once again shrieking in the seat as she shakes against the ropes, accidentally knocking herself over and falling to the ground. One of the guys cuts both of them free and helps Diana up to lead her toward a safe space at the end of the warehouse.
It’s chaos in the warehouse as Malik fires at Quinton and his men aimlessly. Smoke and gunpowder fill the dusty room so much that Harper and I are coughing as we take shelter against a wall. After a few minutes, the gunfire dies down and the smoke clears.
Quinton scours the room for any sign of me and Harper, and as soon as he sees us, he rushes over to make sure we’re okay. He looks Harper in the eyes and assures her that nothing bad is going to happen now.
Looking around the room when everything is clear, I see some of Quinton’s men have a few cuts and scrapes, surface wounds that can be easily mended by their doctor. Malik, on the other hand, is slithering along the ground with a trail of blood behind him as he tries to escape the warehouse.
I let go of Harper’s hand, which I only just realized I’ve been holding, and walk over to Malik with one of Quinton’s guns. Malik hears me approaching and tries to hurry up as if he’s going to outrun me.
As I approach, I stand in front of him, stomping on his hand and savoring the shriek that escapes when I break his fingers.
“You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this,” I say as I squat down in front of him, grabbing a handful of his hair and forcing him to look at me.
I spit in his eyes, completely degrading him as he’s about to die in shame.
“I’ve lain awake during the night for the past week dreaming of ways to torment you.
I know what you’ve done to the women in your life.
I know what you would have done to Harper.
I thought about torturing you, about cutting your dick off and shoving it down your own throat. ”
I pause and watch the fear settle in his eyes as he stares at me with his mouth hanging open and blood dribbling from his chin. By the look on his face, he’s not above begging. I just wonder how many people have begged him for mercy and he’s shown none.
“But I was thinking about it on the drive here. You and I are two different people. I’m not the monster that you are, and I take pride in that.” I stand up and pull the gun from the holster on my belt, turning off the safety and pointing it at his head.
“No,” Malik groans as he shakes his head.
“You should be thankful I’m making this quick,” I say before pulling the trigger. The bullet lands between his eyes, and he’s instantly limp on the ground. I just stare at him in silence for a moment, feeling the weight of this lifting off of me.
Malik is dead. That means Harper is no longer endangered because of him. I should be happy, running around and screaming out in joy. But I still don’t have Harper back. She still hates me for my role in this. I don’t have anything to be thankful for right now.
“You selfish bitch!” Diana shrieks from one end of the warehouse.
I look up to see her storming across the open area with Harper in her crosshairs.
Harper doesn’t move. She only stands there, still covered in bruises from Malik and his men tormenting her, watching as her mother approaches with her fists balled at her sides.
“All of this was your fault! How could you be so stupid as to sleep with the first man who shows you attention? I should have known you would let us all down.”
Harper is dumbfounded and doesn’t know what to say. I close the distance between me and Diana as she quickly approaches Harper to stand right in front of her.
“Leave her alone!” I shout. Diana whips her head around to glare at me.
Her arms are folded indignantly across her chest, and I just know she truly believes she’s a victim in this scenario.
“None of this is her fault, and you know it. I’m the one who got her into trouble.
Nobody told me about this deal when she came to live with me. It’s my fault.”
My dad approaches the group with his arms crossed in front of him angrily. I shake my head seeing him and feel I need to correct myself. “Actually, it’s all Henry’s fault. He’s the one who offered Harper up like a pawn to begin with. This never should have happened, and he knows it.”
“You don’t know—” my father begins before I hold a finger up to silence him.
“We’re done. You have no hold over Harper anymore after everything you’ve put her through.
I’ll pay for her art school tuition. I’ll make sure she’s taken care of.
” I look at Harper and wrap an arm around her shoulder to hold her close to me.
I feel her body relax in my embrace, and it feels like a positive step forward.
“In fact, you’re done with the business too.
I’m running it from here on out, aboveboard.
Feel free to take your wife and enjoy the rest of your life together. ”
My father looks me up and down to try to figure out if I’m being honest about the way I feel, and he must determine that I am. Honestly, he’s lucky he’s not ending up like Malik. I’m furious with him, and if push came to shove, I would do what I have to to protect Harper.
He grabs Diana by the arm and pulls her away from the two of us, guiding her toward the exit. Diana tosses one furious glance over her shoulder before storming out beside my father.
“Did you mean that?” Harper asks, looking up at me with wide eyes. “You’ll help me go to school?”
I nod. “Of course. I’ll let you go.”
A smile grows on Harper’s face, and I feel a moment of warmth in my chest before it’s replaced by ice. I wish I could get her to stay with me, to forgive me for my hand in the pain she’s gone through. I want nothing more than to stand by her and to protect her.
But the truth is, if leaving is going to make her happy, I love her enough to let her go.