Chapter 27
Trick/Jase
Prez heaved a sigh, his expression grim. Ella rubbed his shoulder, looking like she was on the verge of tears. Viking and Tony just looked pissed off.
“Late last night, the guard took off the handcuffs to let Darnell take a piss. He shattered the bathroom mirror and tried to slit his wrists with a jagged piece of it. The guard heard the commotion and rushed in. Managed to stop him and call for help. He’s gonna be OK, but they had to sedate him. ”
I reached for Lauren, knowing she was going to start crying any second. She had her hand pressed to her mouth in horror, and she’d gone deathly pale. I tugged her into my arms and held her as he continued the explanation.
“The psychiatrist’s theory is that Darnell suffered a psychotic break years ago when he killed Nadia, then his subconscious blocked it from his mind.
Then, for whatever reason, his memories started returning recently and the delusions started.
He became obsessed with Lauren and thought she was his dead girlfriend, or maybe that his girlfriend hadn’t really died that night and come back to him.
They aren’t fuckin’ sure of anything at this point, except that once he was lucid and realized everything he was done, the guilt was just too much, and he tried to end it all.
They’re keeping him on suicide watch in the psych unit for now. ”
“Oh God, Jase,” Lauren cried, burying her face in my neck. I rested my cheek on the top of her head as I rubbed her hand over her hair, trying to soothe her. I looked up and saw Viking staring at us with a worried look on his face.
Prez glanced up at his wife then tugged her onto his lap and hugged her close.
“It just doesn’t make sense,” Lauren said softly, taking the box of tissues that Tony handed to her.
“He told the receptionist that he’d run into his old girlfriend from school.
I thought it was sweet that he was hoping to get back together with her.
We used to talk about his plans with ‘his girl’.
That’s what he called her,” she sniffled, wiping her tears.
“He never once acted like he was talking about me, or that he though we were the same person,” she finished softly.
Prez shook his head. “Randy showed me Nadia’s yearbook photo. She had blonde hair and blue eyes. Pretty girl, but she looked nothing like you. I don’t understand it either, sweetheart.”
Viking spoke up then. “He’s crazy, girlie. Whatever twisted shit was goin’ on in his mind will probably never make a damned bit of sense to anyone but him,” he said gruffly.
We stayed for a while longer, until I told Lauren that I thought she needed to rest. The fact that she didn’t object told me I was right.
Ella and King walked out with us, and Viking yanked on my arm as I passed by him on the way to the door. I stopped, and he pushed himself to his feet to look me in the eye.
“I heard her callin’ you by your government name, and I know what that that fuckin’ means,” he stated, narrowing his eyes at me. “That girl deserves a good man, and I guess you’ll do,” he said gruffly. I knew that was as close to a compliment as I’d ever receive from the crusty old bastard.
“I’ll take good care of her,” I said, and he nodded.
“I know you will. Now, git on outta here and take her home. She looks like she needs to sleep for a week, and you don’t look much better, jackass.”
After delivering his grumpy seal of approval, he hobbled down the hall toward the guest room without saying another word.
I glance at Tony, to find him sitting there with his mouth hanging open in shock. I smirked at him before heading out to take my woman home.
King texted me later, forwarding a link Randy had sent him.
King: This is the audio file that Lauren recorded. I listened to it, and it’s rough. If you decide to listen to it, make sure you’re alone. Lauren doesn’t need to hear that shit again. I’ll warn you, you may not want to hear it either. Your choice.
I waited for a week before listening to it, after deciding that if Lauren had to live with those memories, then so did I. I also knew I couldn’t help her work through the trauma if I didn’t know exactly what happened.
I went to the gym and took the stairs up to the roof, so I’d have complete privacy. I often used the space for outdoor calisthenics, and I knew no one would disturb me.
By the time I finished, I was certain that I’d hear Lauren begging, screaming, and crying in my nightmares for years.
JD Darnell was truly unhinged, his emotions swinging wildly from eerily calm, to raw fury, to loving tenderness and back again.
He cried, asking why she’d stopped loving him. He screamed at her that she’d lied and called her a cheating whore for dating Dustin, and for kissing me in her living room. He begged her to forgive him for hurting her, then screamed that she need to pay for what she’d done.
He told her how it had turned him on to hear her moaning his name as she came, just like she use to do.
I’d had to stop the recording at that part. It literally made me sick to my stomach, and I heaved and retched until there was nothing left.
I braced myself to finish listening to the rest, relief flooding me when I heard my own voice screaming at him to let go of her and knew that the recording was finished.
I rode my bike for hours afterward, trying to bring my emotions under control enough to go back home.
The women had come to our place for book club to help get Lauren’s mind off of things.
They were still talking about some pirate and his stowaway when I walked through the door.
Later that night, I held Lauren as she slept, hoping to keep the nightmares at bay.
I wasn’t successful, but luckily she slept through it.
A few days later, she received word from her realtor that she’d received a cash offer for the condo.
The potential buyers wanted immediate possession once the inspections and title paperwork could be completed.
Lauren was thrilled to be getting her half of the money, since she’d decided to take a few months off before accepting any new projects.
I was thrilled that she wouldn’t have to deal with Beau the Bastard anymore.
“Let’s go out to dinner to celebrate,” I told her.
She’d been cooped up in the house for days, embarrassed to go out because of the bruises around her neck, plus the fear of being recognized since the whole fucking story had been in the headlines for days.
She’d turned down multiple requests for interviews, and the media circus had finally started to die down.
The bruises around her neck had faded to a sickly yellow that she was able to cover with makeup, and she had a sparkle in her eye by the time we returned home from the restaurant.
“I have a surprise for you,” she said, taking me by the hand and leading me into the bedroom. “I did some online shopping.”
I grinned. “I like where this is goin’, darlin’.”
She sat me down on the edge of the bed, then did a slow strip tease that left me aching to touch her.
We hadn’t had sex since the attack, although we’d held each other and cuddled every night.
I hadn’t tried to take things any further because I knew what a fragile mental state she was in.
Tonight, though, I saw glimpses of my Lauren, the sexy, seductive woman who rocked my world.
She stood before me in nothing but a lacy thong, then turned to open the drawer on her nightstand. I eyed her delectable ass as I waited to see what she was looking for.
She straightened, then turned to face me, swinging a pair of handcuffs with one hand, and dangling a set of nipple clamps on a silver chain from the other.
I lunged for her, catching her around the waist and twisting to drop her on the mattress.
She giggled as I pressed frantic, open-mouthed kisses down her neck, then moaned as I played with her tits.
I licked and plucked at her nipples until they were hard and tight, and just begging for those clamps.
She gasped and let out the sexiest little moan as I put them on her and gave the chain a slight tug.
I captured her roving hands in mine, pinning them to the mattress on either side of her head as I took her mouth in a deep kiss.
I explored every inch of her mouth, threading my fingers through hers as she rocked her hips, desperately seeking the friction she needed.
I had one wrist handcuffed before she even realized it. I slid the padded chain around the slat in the headboard and quickly snapped the second cuff around her wrist. Only then did she register that she was at my mercy.
“Do you remember when you told Molly that you thought I had a medical problem because I winked so much, and I warned you that you would pay for that?” I asked casually, slowly dragging my fingertip over her sternum and down her stomach.
She bit her lip and nodded, anticipation sparkling in her eyes.
“It’s payday, Lauren,” I smirked, before pinching her clit and tugging on the nipple clamps at the same time.
She arched her back off the bed, wrists straining against the handcuffs as she shuddered and screamed my name.
“Jase!”
“That’s one, darlin’.”