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“Why not?” I figure if I go with Dax, I’ll have a bunch of huge guys around me in case my dad gets any ideas. He can be a dangerous bastard and wouldn’t think twice about fucking me up right good, son or not.
Dax grabs his bag and throws a few things in it for tonight. “We might as well go now and I can warm up. Plus, I can tell my brothers to look out for your arsehole of a dad.” He hauls the bag up on his shoulder and opens his bedroom door, stalking out as I follow behind.
I don’t say anything. What would I say? He’s right, my dad is an arsehole, and because he defended me, Dax is probably someone he would love to see suffer. Not that Dax can’t take care of himself, but just like the punks who stabbed me, my dad is well connected with some really dodgy blokes. Two or three stints in lock-up will get you those kinds of friends.
Dax has three brothers, all only separated by a few years. I think his oldest brother, Ethan, is only twenty-two. Liam and Shaun are in the middle, twins. I can’t imagine growing up in this miniscule flat with that many boys, especially the Davies boys, because they are fucking enormous, each and every one of them. Their dad raised them to fight, and once they were old enough he expected them to do their share to earn money, even if it meant having more broken bones than they could possibly count.
We head out for the underground fight club that Dax’s dad runs and I pray that his brothers are receptive to helping us get out of the country in one piece.
chapter 16
Ellie
Pounding. No, it’s more of a banging. Wait… actually, it sounds like hammering. Yes, a constant hammering, that’s what I hear.
I force myself to sit up in bed and throw my legs over the side. Crap. I look down and see that I’m still dressed in my clothes from yesterday. That means I passed out while studying, again.
The insistent thumping noise snaps me out of my half-awake state. I finally put the pieces together and realize that someone is knocking at the front door and they’re getting impatient. I stand up and stretch, my body aching from another fitful night’s sleep. Exhausted, I trudge through the lounge to the door.
“Ellie! Are you in there? So help me you better answer the sodding door!” An obviously upset voice shouts from the hallway.
“Adam?” I’m still not completely awake and alert.
“Ellie? Open up, now!” Adam insists, his voice bordering on coming unhinged.
I quickly unlock the two dead-bolts and open the door. Adam rushes past me and spins around to face back the way he came, staring me down with a surly expression and darkened eyes.
“What the hell, Ellie? You don’t show up at school and you don’t answer the door? I’ve been standing out here for ten bloody minutes! I thought something horrible happened to you!” During his tirade, Adam alternates between pacing frantically back and forth across the small space, gesticulating wildly with his arms, and throwing angry glares my way.
I calmly shut the door and turn back to my visibly distraught boyfriend. Closing the few steps between us, I grab his flailing arm and fit myself under it, snuggling into his hard chest. “I’m sorry.” I snake my arms around his trim waist and lay my head against his chest. “I fell asleep studying. Last night was … hard. Mum was ill, she had to be up for an appointment today. Dad was taking her this morning so I stayed up with her…”
Adam silences me by letting go of his irritation and wrapping his arms around me, crushing me against his body. I can literally feel his anger dissipate as his stiff posture relaxes. He buries his face in my hair and exhales in relief. “I was so fucking scared, Sweetheart. Jesus, if anything happened to you, I don’t know what I’d do.” He brushes soft kisses over my neck, his warm breath caressing my ear.
Startled by his statement, I tilt back on my heels so I can see his face. “What do you mean if something happened to me? Why would something happen?”
Adam’s jaw ticks and his warm hazel eyes go cold, sapped of their usual life. I watch as the blood drains from his face, then rushes back to turn his cheekbones a deep scarlet. He releases me from his embrace and slides one hand into mine, tugging me over to the sofa. “Sit with me.” He sounds calm, but his twitching fingers and clenched jaw expose the truth. Adam is freaking out.
“What’s going on? You’re scaring me.” I plead with him to speak to me.
Adam shifts uncomfortably, twitching and fidgeting, obviously trying to collect his thoughts. His hand is still clasped in mine, his rough fingers gently rubbing my wrist. Whether the gesture is to keep himself calm or to keep me calm, I’m not sure.
“My dad came to see me last night,” he says, unable to meet my eyes as he relays what has him so on edge.
“Your dad? I thought he was gone?” I scrunch my face in confusion. Adam mentioned that his dad was a complete tosser, but not that he still sees him. I had figured that he disappeared a long time ago.
“No, he turns up from time to time. Usually to smack me or my mum around.” Adam clears his throat, faking indifference as he speaks. I see him swallowing to hide his emotions, his throat constricting and relaxing each time he does it. “Anyway, Dax was with me, and he sort of … well, he sort of knocked my dad out cold.”
I gasp, then I smile. “Wait, that’s good, right? He got what he deserved, Adam. You shouldn’t feel bad.” I try to make him see that this isn’t his fault, he shouldn’t have guilt for his horrible father getting injured.
Adam slowly turns to look at me, his handsome face, usually so happy and full of life in spite of the home he was raised in, is ashen and terrified. “No Ellie, it’s not good. He’s not a forgiving kind of guy. I can’t go back to my flat unless I want to wake up and find him standing over my bed with a knife in his hand. That’s why I never defend myself, or my mum. He wouldn’t hesitate to kill one of us. Plus, I hate being like him, a vicious, sadistic bastard that hurts people. I refuse to turn into that. But Dax? Dax has no problem with violence or fighting, and he just didn’t think. When you weren’t at school… I thought…I…”
“I’m fine,” I interrupt, squeezing his hand reassuringly. “He doesn’t know about me, right?” Adam nods, confirming my statement. “So what does this mean? Where will you go?” My heart is breaking for this gentle soul in front of me. He’s so adverse to bloodshed that he’s unwilling to use force against the man who beats him regularly and has been terrorizing him for years. Yet, that doesn’t make sense. He fought Callum for me, contradicting every single one of his beliefs.
Before I can ask about Callum, Adam speaks again. “I’m going to be at Dax’s place, but I can’t stay there long. My dad will know that I’m there, El. Dax and his brothers are huge and can take care of themselves, but I won’t bring my crap to his doorstep. His family doesn’t deserve it.” Adam shifts around so he’s angled towards me and takes both of my hands in his. “Ellie, we’re leaving sooner than we planned, me and Dax. We’ve moved up our tickets to Los Angeles to this Saturday.”
“But school’s not over for three more weeks.” I start to panic, scrambling to make sense of this rapid change in plans, to make sense of losing Ad
am, even if it’s only for a little while. The thought of being apart makes my stomach twist painfully. “I don’t understand, I can’t go with you on Saturday.”
