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“You what?” Kieran asks in a deadly voice, looking down at her with fear twisting his expression. His eyes widen, and he tugs her impossibly closer, with emotions pulling him in every direction. By the time we make it home, he will be so rung out. “He what?” he murmurs in disbelief.
River hides her face in his chest, taking several deep breaths before she collects herself and speaks.
“Please, let it go,” she murmurs in a broken voice. “Please, just let go. I don’t want to talk about it right now.” No. It seems she doesn’t want to talk about it ever again. So, it’s time to force the words from her tongue so we can cut Bradley open and feed him to the vultures.
“River,” I bark, marching to her side. Leaning over Kieran, I gently grab her chin and force her to stare at me. So many emotions rest in her moss-green eyes. It’s hard to tell how she’s feeling. Fear. Anguish. Pain. Resentment. It’s all those wrapped into one. “He’ll get what’s coming to him, Little Brat. Don’t even worry about it,” I promise through a growl, envisioning his death by my hands.
“Don’t worry about it?” she whispers as fat tears drop onto her cheeks, sending searing pain through my chest at the sight of her pain. “I have to worry about it. I have to make sure he gets punished for his crimes! He got away with it once, and I won’t stand back and let him harm any more women.” Her body trembles in Kieran’s embrace, and the room falls silent.
I don’t miss her words. Or how she said them. All the answers reside there, and understanding pushes through me. River was the girl Bradley bragged about for months on end. Only, she wasn’t a willing participant like he eluded her to be.
“Got away with it once?” Kieran asks, furrowing his brow. “What?” River’s face pales when the realization hits Kieran hard, and a gasp forces its way through his parted lips. “No,” he murmurs, running a thumb gently across her cheeks and jolts, eyes bulging. I swear he stops breathing, and his head shakes in denial. “The fucking beating we gave him over the girl you found? No!” His fingers flex, engorging the veins lining his forearms.
Grabbing his arm, River shakes her head with a pained expression. “It was a long time ago. I don’t want to talk about it. I just want to move forward. I want Bradley to get what’s coming to him.”
She rolls her lips together, sadness glazing over her eyes. Something about the situation sends shame through her; it’s even more apparent when she closes her eyes. Kieran swallows hard, rubbing the back of his neck. Anguish takes over his expression when he kisses her cheek, murmuring words I can’t hear.
“More than a stabbing, Little Brat?” I quip, finally earning a soft smile that doesn’t quite reach her eyes.
“Jail time. Anything to make sure he doesn’t hurt anyone else,” she whispers in complete and utter defeat—something I’ve never seen from her.
Sitting back, River stays snuggled in Kieran’s arms, soaking up his support. “We’ll get you a wonderful lawyer. We’ll help with whatever you need,” Kieran promises, kissing her forehead with a feather-light kiss.
“Everything we have, we’ll give you,” Callum promises, leaning over to kiss her head.
“I’ll bury him in acid and laugh as his bones disintegrate,” Rad mumbles, kissing her temple.
A million thoughts rush through me when we leave River lying in the hospital. After sitting there all day and through nine p.m., they kicked us out, stating they admitted her until they got her results back. Our visit was over, but our night had only just begun.
Tension rises in my chest when we pull into the house’s driveway, looming in front of us.
“It was nice knowing you,” Kieran mumbles, hanging his head with a heavy sigh.
“I can’t believe you got arrested,” I say, sitting back in my seat and huffing a breath.
Over her—the girl we need in our corner. Over the entire situation—is what I want to say. Every inch of Kieran vibrates with a restless rage begging to come back out. So, I zip my lips and inspect the situation one more time. Another time and place, I’d let him pummel Van into oblivion. Not now. Not on the heels of his arrest.
Getting arrested is the least of our worries at the moment. Kieran didn’t just get himself thrown into jail; he got the both of us thrown into the lion’s den, covered in blood and defenseless. Now it’s time to face the devil himself.
Raising a brow, I stare at the dark, empty office window my father always peers out of and note the darkened room and closed blinds. In fact, the entire house swims in darkness, ready to swallow us whole. Somewhere in the depths of hell, our demon waits to attack us when we least expect it.
“Where is he?” I murmur, peering at every window, half expecting the damn boogeyman to pop out and attack.
My skin tingles in anticipation of the night ahead. We’ve been out for twenty-four hours and haven’t reached out. We may be twenty-one and old enough to hold our own, but in his eyes, we are children he’s successfully controlled.
“I don’t care as long as he’s not lying in wait, ready to attack us,” Kieran says, frowning up at the window when we exit the car. “Again,” he murmurs, shivering at the memory of Nigel popping out and taking us by surprise. He lives to make our lives miserable.
Looking around, I take stock of everything around us. Empty driveway. Empty street. The only logical explanation is his vehicle is in the garage, or he’s not here. I peek in the garage window, only to find Gloria’s BMW. Relief slams into me, and for the first time today, I feel like I can breathe, and the heavy pressure lifts. Not that my father won’t punish us when he returns, but we have a reprieve from his cruelty. For now, at least. That’s all I can ask for after a long day of waiting.
“He’s not here,” I rejoice confidently, leading the way and quietly entering through the front door. Silence clings to every inch of the space, and peace washes over me for once in my damn life.
“Maybe we got away with it,” Kieran says with false hope.
“Don’t hold your breath. Now, I’m going to bed,” I say, not waiting for his response, and quietly enter my bedroom at the top of the stairs.
Darkness greets me like an old friend, enveloping me in a warm hug. Once again, something eerie crashes over me, and my hairs stand on end. A lone figure hovers in the shadows, looking out my window.
“It’s that girl, isn’t it?” Gloria asks in a haughty tone, turning toward me. No expression breaks through the darkness concealing her face. “That bitch from Central City? The same one Kieran obsessed over as a kid.” She scoffs at that, coming toward me. “My advice?”
