The Pact

48

WESLEY

Damian and I jump out of Cole’s Range Rover before he comes to a stop. The two fuckers are peering through the glass, searching for her. Rage takes over.

I take the guy to the right, coming up behind him and grabbing him roughly by the hair. Damian does the same to the guy on the left. We drag them away from the studio, close to where the car is now parked. Their shouts hardly register. And I don’t care if anyone hears them.

I let the guy I’m holding loose, only to cock my fist back and release it into his jaw as soon as he turns to face me. His eyes roll back and his mouth goes slack from the force. As he drops to the ground, I pull the zip tie from my pocket, taking advantage of his disorientation.

Bringing his arms around his back, I plant my knee into his spine for good measure. I loop the plastic tie over his wrists, thread it and yank tight until it bites into his flesh. His hands quickly start changing color from the restricted blood supply.

He won’t need them anymore, so I don’t give a fuck.

Cole and Sutton jump out and help Damian and I load the men into the trunk.

“Wes, I need you to go in there and handle her,” Damian barks out. “We’re going to deal with this. Give me…” He looks at his watch. “An hour.”

I nod. “I’ve got this. Be careful.”

Cole walks to the studio doors and unlocks them before joining Sutton and Damian. I watch them drive off.

Taking a deep breath, I prepare myself for what I’m going to find inside. Thea didn’t tell me what they did to her, but something in my gut tells me it isn’t good.

Pulling open the door, I close and lock it behind me.

I walk down the hallway towards the bathroom. Beneath the door, I see the glow of light. I brace myself and knock lightly.

“Blue eyes, I’m here. Open up.” I jiggle the handle. It’s locked. C’mon, Thea.

The sound of the water quiets and I hear the faint click of the door unlocking, but she doesn’t open it. In the light beneath the door, I glimpse her shadow, then it’s gone.

Slowly, I turn the knob and push the door open, careful not to startle her. I peek my head in, so she can see it’s me.

“Hey,” I coo softly. Fuck. She’s tucked into the corner of the bathroom, shaking. Her face is red and splotchy. Her hair’s a mess. As soon as Thea realizes she’s safe, she breaks down. Her head falls into her hands, the sobbing makes her whole body convulse.

I get down on the floor with her and cautiously approach, unsure if she’ll want me to touch her. When I’m close enough, I reach out my hand, placing it on her shoulder. She flinches a little. Fury wells up inside of me. I wish I was with my brothers, giving Thea the justice she deserves. However, she needs me here.

A moment later, she crawls into my lap. As much as I hate it, a part of me is healed by that small gesture. She trusts me. My arms wrap around her, pulling her tightly to my body so she knows no one can hurt her. Nothing is going to happen to her. But that’s a fucking lie.

Something happened and none of us were around to protect her. We failed her.

We sit there for a while. I’m not sure how long, although I need to give my brothers time to handle business and I don’t want to rush Thea. I rock her in my arms, smooth my hand over her back, and tell her repeatedly that I’m here for her.

Her sobs eventually calm and I know we need to leave when my phone dings. I need to get her home. “Are you ready?” I ask. Thankfully, she nods. I lift her easily in my arms. I’m not making her walk out of here.

“Where are the others?” She croaks out. “Is anyone hurt?”

Sweet girl. She’s worried that those two pussies might have put hands on us.

I brush a stray hair from her face. “We’re all good. You never have to worry about us.” She nuzzles into my chest. I hate the thought that comes next. It’s not the time or place. I’m definitely falling for Thea. I push it away.

“She okay?” Thea’s head snaps towards Cole’s voice. I see the pain in his eyes when he looks at her fragile body in my arms.

“She will be,” I tell him. I’m going to make sure of it. If I have to spend every day by her side talking to her, holding her, caring for her…I will. And when she’s ready, I’m going to train her. This won’t happen again, yet I’m not na?ve enough to believe that we’ll always be around to keep her safe. She’ll need to learn how to protect herself, just in case.

I open the backseat door and slide Thea inside. Cole goes around the opposite side to sit next to her. Reaching over her, I buckle her in. I don’t miss the slightest flinch. It breaks my heart. My fingers brush over her hand. She catches it and intertwines our fingers. She still wants comfort, despite all that she’s been through.

Scooting closer to her, I let our legs touch. It’s not much. Baby steps.

Damian starts the car and pulls away from the studio. Glancing in the rearview mirror, he asks, “Do we need to go to the hospital?” I hate the question. I don’t want to know the fucking answer. It could send me over the edge. However, we need to know.

Her eyes flick up to his. “I-I don’t think so. He…he hit my head against the wall, but I think I’m fine.” Thea’s voice is shaky. She pauses, knowing that she hasn’t answered the real question. Taking a deep breath and pushing it out, she speaks. “He didn’t rape me.” The word sends a flash of white hot rage through me. “He touched me, but I stopped him before he could do…” Thea’s eyes shut tight at the memory.

I want to take her mind off of the assault and I’m a little curious about how she stopped him. “What did you do?”

She turns her head to look at me. “I bit his fucking lip until he was bleeding everywhere.” Pride swells in my chest. Thea’s a fighter. I’m so proud of my girl.

Damian beats me to it. “Good girl,” he praises darkly. I can tell he’s thinking the same thing as me. She has the potential to be ruthless…with the right motivation.

We’ve all been nervous that our particular desires might make her turn from us, yet that’s only the tip of the iceberg. There’s so much more to us that Thea doesn’t know. Most of it’s in our past. That is, until tonight. Old memories resurface and I wonder if we’ve been focusing on the wrong things that might drive her away.

Thea’s voice pulls me from those dark thoughts. “I’m not a good girl.” Her voice cracks. Jesus, they fucking broke her. Sutton twists in the front seat to face her, putting a hand on her knee.

“Don’t say that. You did nothing wrong. Do you hear me?” Thea hangs her head—she won’t look at any of us. “Thea?”

I watch as her lip quivers. I hope my brothers made those fuckers suffer. “It was my fault,” she whispers.

“No,” Coles fumes, “It wasn’t.”

Thea finally lifts her head and stares at him. “But it was. Tonight’s not the first time I’ve seen him. He wasn’t a stranger.” I feel the air still as all of us go tense in confusion. “I’ve met him before.”

“Explain,” Damian commands. In the mirror, I see his eyes ice over.

She fidgets with the hem of her dress. “Before I met you…” She looks at Cole again. “I used to do this thing. It was idiotic. I felt so horrible after my breakup and I don’t know. I guess it made me feel like I was wanted after so many years of being rejected.” Her eyes fall to her knees. “I would go to bars and find guys to flirt with. I made sure they were pretty drunk and I would…” Thea pauses and even in the darkness of the car, I see her face redden. “I would see how far I could take it. They would buy me drinks, touch me, sometimes even kiss me. Then, when they thought they were going to take me home, I’d ditch them.”

She sneaks a peek up, assessing our reactions. I’m sure she expects disgust or confusion. We don’t give that to her. So Thea continues. “In Atlanta, I could get away with it and not worry about running into the same people twice. When I moved here, I went to that bar once before realizing I would likely run into these men around town, so I started driving to other towns where I wouldn’t be recognized.”

“Thea…” Sutton’s hand squeezes her knee. “You don’t have to be ashamed of that. You did nothing wrong,” He repeats, then adds, “A little devious, yes, but not even close to deserving of what they tried to do to you.” She doesn’t seem comforted by his words.

“But I put all of you in danger. They could have had a knife or a gun. I don’t know what I’d do—” Damian’s rough laugh interrupts her.

“Princess, we were never in danger.” She looks at all of us. I can see the wheels turning in her head. We’ve all worn black to conceal as much of the evidence as possible. Still, there are some signs of what we’ve done.

“What happened to them? Did they run off when you guys got there?” She waits expectantly for an answer. We only give her silence. “Damian, what happened to them?”

Gravity settles over all of us as he answers her finally. “You don’t need to worry about them anymore. That’s all you need to know.” Her eyes search his in the mirror. I see the exact moment when she puts the pieces together.

Fear pulses through me. This might be what drives her away.

Her gaze travels over Damian and I see Thea’s mouth part when she stops at his knuckles gripping the steering wheel. I see the same thing she does. They are red and raw. Her breath comes out faster when she sees droplets of red on his neck.

Thea’s eyes move to Sutton. I’m sitting behind him so I don’t see what she does, but I feel her body go rigid. Then she turns to Cole. His hair is disheveled. Her eyes sweep down to find his hands resting on the tops of his thighs. Something dark is embedded under his nails. I already know it’s blood.

She swallows and looks straight ahead, staring into the darkness. I can practically hear her thoughts. What had we done? Why? I don’t expect her to understand, although to be fair, we didn’t exactly hide what we’re capable of.

After her landlord sent her a picture of the note stuffed down her drain by Gavin, Damian revealed his threat he made to her ex at the carnival. “…he’ll find our teeth at his throat and we won’t let up until we feel the blood stop pumping through his veins.” This didn’t extend just to Gavin. Anyone who threatens our girl will feel our wrath.

“Hey.” I try to bring her back to me. “That’s not something for you to concern yourself with.” I soften my expression, wanting her to know that what happened to those pricks is on us—not her. Thea glances away, but finds Damian’s hard stare in the mirror.

I can see the challenge in his eyes. He can tell she knows what’s been done, even without saying it. He wants her to embrace this darker side of us. I do too. Although he has no tact sometimes. Damian’s too fucking impatient with her. He wants all of her darkest parts and to share all of his with her. It’s a dangerous game he’s playing.

COLE

No one touches the things I love. No one touches Thea.

I’m itching to get to Wolf Creek to finish what we started. An hour only bought us enough time to drop those two pricks off and get back to Thea. With her and Wes at home, Sutton, Damian, and I are headed there now.

Damian turns off on the dirt road that’ll lead us deep into the woods. It’s private property, but we know the old man that owns it—we go way back.

The headlights bounce over the ground until we find the familiar reflector attached to a tree, our signal that the rest of the journey will be on foot. Hopping out of the car, I grab the duffle bag and shovels from the trunk. It’s going to be a long fucking night.

“Never thought we’d be doing this shit again,” Sutton grumbles. He’s always been the one who hates this kind of stuff the most, although this is certainly much less complaining than I anticipated. Probably because he’s justifying doing this to protect Thea—that’s understandable.

Wes, Damian, and I don’t particularly enjoy this shit, however, we can somehow turn off the part of our brain that holds guilt.

Our feet crunching the sticks on the ground is the only noise for the next fifteen minutes. Then, the muffled grunts of the two men struggling against their restraints and gags chimes in. They’re exactly where we left them, laying beside their grave. And the best part is they’ll get to watch us dig it.

“Let’s get this done with. I don’t want to be out here all night,” Damian snaps at us. Gladly.

We sink our shovels into the soil. Then we do it again and again.

So much for not being out here all night. I’m wiping sweat from my brow two hours later, needing to take a break. Unzipping the duffle bag, I grab a water bottle and down the whole thing. The two men never take their eyes off of me. I pull another bottle out of the bag and walk to them.

I crouch down beside them, lifting my gaze to make sure my brothers aren’t paying attention. Tucking the bottle into the man’s pant’s pocket, I speak in a hushed tone, “A little something for the afterlife.” Then, I rejoin my brothers.

“This has to be deep enough. My arms are dead and I’m fucking tired,” Sutton protests. I agree. This grave will have to do, but ultimately, we give the final decision to Damian.

He examines the roughly six foot deep hole. “Fine. Let’s do this.”

Sutton and I grab the first guy under his arms and by his legs, hauling him to the hole.

“Mmphhff.” The man tries thrashing against us, but it’s useless. We toss him into the grave with a soft thunk. Then, we grab his friend, who puts up even more of a fight. We drop him a couple of times, although eventually get him in the hole too.

“It’s not as deep as it should be,” Damian worries. “Too late now, I guess.”

The three of us grab our shovels and throw the dirt on top of Thea’s attackers. Each scoop of soil makes my satisfaction grow. Knowing I can protect her from these men, so she won’t ever have to look over her shoulder, is a feeling unlike any other.

It’s another hour before we finish and head back to the car.

“Sutton, get the car detailed first thing. Cole, burn that bag,” Damian orders as we all undress and change into a new set of clothes and shoes. Stuffing our incriminating shit into the duffle.

The first rays of light hit the sky as we drive back down the dirt road. To the right, in the distance, I can make out the creek we spent so much time at growing up. This place holds so many of our secrets. Wolf Creek was the start of this and it’ll likely be the end of this, for all of us.

THEA

“Halos and Horns,” I announce. The name came to me in my sleep last night. I’m laying across the couch in the theater room, Cassie’s sprawled out on the other side, popping candy into her mouth.

She sits up a little. “That’s perfect!” Her eyes widen as her mind runs in a thousand directions.

We’ve been laying here for hours. She came as soon as I told her about what happened last night. Cass felt partially responsible for drinking too much and leaving me alone, but she also chastised me for not letting Anthony drive me to my truck. She’s right.

I’d told Damian that I wouldn’t go anywhere alone. Sure enough, the first time I did, something happened. I’m still unsure if it was a coincidence or if he has some sixth sense for trouble. Normally, I’d worry that he’d punish me for not listening, but I think he’s going to give me a free pass on this one. If he tries to bring it up, I’ll milk my sore ankle for all it’s worth.

After I told Cass all the details, she asked about the security camera footage. I watched it myself this morning and I don’t want her getting even a small glimpse of the attack. Seeing myself being dragged away, out of the camera’s view, only to come running back minutes later, was terrifying. The look of fear on my face as I tried to shove the key into the lock will never leave my memory. She doesn’t need that burned into her brain.

Damian only let me watch as far as the few seconds after I locked myself in the bathroom. Rob and Matt shaking and slapping at the glass cut off to a black screen. I asked him where the rest of the footage was, but he only said it was gone. I didn’t need to ask him why.

He got rid of anything that would incriminate them.

Sleep didn’t come easy, although when it did, so did the nightmares that woke me every hour. Wesley’s arms around me were a reminder that I was safe. I’d fall back asleep, only to wake again later.

I thought if I slept, my mind might process everything from last night. The attack and the actions of Damian, Sutton, and Cole. If anything, I’m more confused than ever.

They’d killed two people—well, they hadn’t directly admitted it, but I was pretty sure.

They dropped Wesley and me off before tearing out of the driveway. I tried staying up as long as possible, waiting to hear the front door open. I didn’t.

This morning I was nosy, checking the laundry room for the black outfits they were wearing last night, but I couldn’t find them. The only evidence that any of it was real is my memory of the events and my aching body.

Otherwise, I might dismiss all of it as some sort of fever dream.

I told Cass about everything except that. She, of course, asked about what happened to my attackers and if we called the police. I simply told her that the men were gone by the time the guys arrived and I didn’t want to cause a stir, knowing that the gossip would surely make me out to be the bad guy.

She didn’t agree, although she still rushed over with a care basket filled with candies, wine, salty snacks, fuzzy socks, and face masks. We both know these are superficial bandages. Nothing will fully heal what I’ve been through, but I appreciate her effort.

“Alright, I ordered all the props we’ll need. We just need to settle on a date!” Her voice draws my attention. I hadn’t realized that she was consumed by her phone while I stared blankly at the movie we’ve hardly watched.

I smile at her gratefully. “Well, we should probably do it before fall and Halloween. The last weekend in August? That will give us plenty of time to edit and order books, so it’s here before the thirty-first.”

“Perfect! I think it’ll go over a little better if people associate it with Halloween. You know how people are—Halloween can pull out the sluttiness in even the most modest woman.” She shrugs and I laugh at the observation. She’s not wrong.

We won’t have much time to promote it, however, that might work to our advantage. “Let’s get some ads running and spread the word around town. Hopefully, it’ll create some urgency since the spots are limited,” I suggest optimistically.

Cassie doesn’t waste any time. She’s back on her phone, her fingers flying as she sends out messages and posts on her social media.

Wesley pops his head in. I’ve lost count of how many times he’s checked on me today. All of them have been waiting on me hand and foot, in their own ways, since I woke up this morning.

Cole made me a breakfast fit for a queen, bringing it to me in Wesley’s bed and insisting on staying until I’d eaten to his satisfaction. Damian, while not so obviously concerned, has been more watchful of me. I wonder if he’s nervous that I might go to the police or if he’s making sure I’m not downplaying my injuries from last night—realistically, probably both.

Sutton had to work today. However, he’s texted me no less than fifteen times to see if the guys are taking care of me and promised me a full body massage when he gets home, if I’m up for it.

The offer sent a wave of tingles through me. I feel guilty. After last night, I shouldn’t want anyone to touch me. But I do—I want them to touch me. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.

Before he can ask, I repeat for the twentieth time, “No double vision and the pain is a three.” My answer doesn’t seem to satisfy him. “I could use some ibuprofen.” I smile sweetly as I make the request.

Wes looks relieved that I finally need something. I watch him walk out of the room. My smile falters once he’s gone. Trying to slow my pounding heart, I hope I was convincing enough to conceal what I’ve been hiding from him, from everyone.

Just before Cassie arrived, my phone dinged. I thought it was Sutton checking in on me again. No. Not even close. Gavin’s name appeared with more sinister messages.

Gavin: I wish I could have watched those guys rape you. That’s what whores deserve.

Gavin: I wonder if the police would be interested in finding the bodies of two missing men…I know where to find them.

Me: You’re going to regret it if you don’t leave me alone!

I shouldn’t have responded, but I couldn’t take his taunts anymore. I deleted his messages and blocked him once again. I had my suspicions before about him sneaking into the house, but I’m sure of it now. There’s no other explanation.

Cassie giggles and throws me a smirk, pulling me from my anxious thoughts. “You’ve got them wrapped around your finger,” she teases.

“I do not.” I force a grin so that she doesn’t see that I’m hiding something.

Her brows raise. “They would walk through fire for you, probably with smiles on their faces.”

No, they would kill for me.The thought is sobering. Fire is for rookies.