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“If you love her like you say you do, you wouldn’t be holding a fucking knife to her throat, asshole.” Thiago’s calm reserve is completely gone now and I can tell he’s getting anxious. His statement does the opposite of what I wanted. It causes Greyson to tighten his grip even more, but he does move the knife down closer to her chest.
It’s go time. If he cuts her on the way down, at least it won’t hit an artery at this angle. The thought pisses me off, but we have no other choice.
I switch my grip on the gun, wrapping my hand around the barrel. I have to do this perfectly or I risk hurting Lya, and Zep will kill me with his bare hands for fucking this up.
Zep intentionally takes a small step forward to get Greyson to focus on him. I lift the gun and whip the handle as hard as I can into the back of Greyson’s head. A grunt falls from his mouth, as Lya lets out a scream. Greyson’s arms fall to his side first, then his head wobbles from side to side. His body falls full force to the floor, taking Lya down with him.
Fuck!
I run to Lya, rolling Greyson’s two-hundred pound body off of her tiny frame. “You okay, baby girl?”
“I’m okay.. I’m okay,” she whispers with a vacant look in her eyes like she’s a million miles away from here. I help her to her feet and hug her like I’m never going to let her go.
“I love you. I’m so sorry, I should have protected you. I haven’t protected you enough, please, please forgive me,” I say with my whole heart.
“It’s not your fault. He slithered past us all.” She squeezes my waist, trying to give me some reassurance. I wrap my hand around the back of her neck and give her a kiss on the top of her head. She is so beautiful even with her uncontrollable hair, flushed skin, and vacant eyes.
I know the others are itching to get their hands on our girl, so I let her go, reluctantly. They each give her a hug and kiss before I have to ruin their moment.
“Hate to ruin our reunion here, but we need to tie this fucker up before he wakes,” I say, pulling their attention back to the lifeless body at our feet.
Thirty-Five
Greyson sits there in the chair, tied up, and still passed out. Besides the bruises forming on his face from my attacks, he looks so calm right now, like he’s at peace. My heart feels shattered right now.
The conflicting emotions I’m feeling are almost too much for me to handle. I know it shouldn’t, but my heart hurts for him. He was pushed into a life he didn’t ask for, forced to do things he didn’t want to do, and became a product of his circumstances. He wasn't born this man, his father made him into this person.
Not that continuing a human trafficking operation is justified based on how you were raised, but I can see in his mind how he thought he was doing the right thing. Completely wrong, but love makes people do insane things. Part of me wants to judge him so harshly for the things he’s put me through, for the things he’s put countless women through, but I can’t. I just can’t.
He’s done horrendous things, but so have I. Shit, I would probably do worse if something ever happened to one of my guys. If anyone ever took them from me, I would burn the city down in a storm of chaos and rage, ending anyone in my way until we were reunited again.
I used to think loving my guys as hard as I do was a weakness, but they’ve only made me stronger. Rian has reminded me that we all harbor pain differently. He’s shown me that it’s okay to be scared as long as we don’t let it stop us from living. Thiago has made me realize that our scars can be beautiful. He’s shown me the strength it takes to protect those you love by sacrificing yourself, but never letting the darkness take you. Zep has helped me understand that you don’t have to succumb to the environment you were born into. He has shown me how to take the pain and despair inside me and turn it into power and strength.
Pain blossoms inside of me, thinking about how I could have seen my desire and care for Greyson growing into something just as beautiful as the love I have for my guys. Part of me buried deep down will always have a soft spot for him, but it’s well and truly overshadowed by the agony he’s put me through.
Greyson slowly starts to wake, groaning, probably from the blow to his skull from Rian. His arms flex, trying to pull on his arm restraints, but it’s no use. Rian expertly tied those things, so it’s virtually impossible to get out, I know from personal experience. Zep’s patience is thin as it is so the moment he sees Greyson waking up, he slaps him across the face so hard that we have his attention now. His head snaps up as he shoots daggers at Zep.
“You’re lucky I haven’t killed you yet, asshole. I suggest keeping those looks to yourself, if you want to stay alive,” Zep growls at him, his cool composure from earlier gone. Realizing that Zep’s going to lose control quickly, I step closer to him, grabbing his arm. Looking into his eyes, all I see is a storm of rage looking back at me. Zep is getting lost inside the crashing waves of his mind, but I need to pull him back. Stepping in front of him to create a barrier between him and Greyson, I peer down into Greyson’s eyes.
Staring back at me is pain and sadness. The realization that he will never have me, that he will never have Lainey, is slowly overwhelming him.
“Greyson, I don’t want to hurt you, but I need you to talk to me. I need to find Lainey and you’re the only one who can help. If you give us answers, this will all be over quickly,” I kindly say, hoping this approach will work before we have to resort to violence. I’m not sure how far the guys will take it if I let them unleash their wrath on him.
Silence. Silence is all he gives me. I knew he was a stubborn asshole, but I didn’t want to take the hard way to get information out of him. “Greyson, what is the name your father gave you?” Still nothing. He’s not budging on this.
I nod to Thiago who’s standing to the left of Greyson. He delivers a strong blow to Greyson’s jaw in the exact spot I hit him earlier. Part of me winces from having to do this to him, but I need to find her. I can’t let anything cloud my judgment, even if I do still care about him in some sort of fucked up way.
“I’ll give you one more chance. What is the name?”
“Shouldn’t you know it already? Considering he was the man who bought you, Lainey.” How many times do I have to tell him I’m not Lainey? Another blow, this time from Zep, has Greyson’s head snapping back. My guys are on edge, so whatever he’s going to say next I hope he treads carefully.
“Answer the damn question, Greyson.” Rian cuts in, barely holding it together.
“Fuck no. You tricked me, Lainey. You led me on in that room, deceived me. I trusted you.” His voice croaks with every word. I’m not sure if he’s had a temporary lapse in judgment, but I’m pretty sure he’s the one who tricked me, led me on, and deceived me. Not the other way around.
“You know that’s not true. I told you I wasn’t Lainey, but you wouldn’t listen. You refused to believe me, you refused to let me go, so now here we are.” My voice is distant, showing no trace of the feelings I had for him.
“Why are you still lying, Lainey? They know who you are now. You can stop pretending. It’s the least you could do before you let your goons kill me.” He’s seething now, getting mad at what I’m saying.
