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“I promise, Momma,” he says, looking at me with a mischievous smile on his face. “Uncle Reap said he’d let me ride my dirt bike.”
“Have fun, and make sure to wear your helmet. I’ll watch you when I’m done here.”
“Kay,” he murmurs and looks past me to Brass and waves. “Hey, Brass. Are you going to help Momma save the world from the big bad?”
Again, the kid and his mouth.
“Yeah, Jesse,” Brass grunts and levels a look at me. “We need to talk.”
“Great, more talking,” I snap and roll my eyes. “It will have to wait. I need to talk to Lucifer first. Then I need to handle a few other things before going to work tonight.”
“You’re not working tonight or ever again at the strip club,” Brass snarls, gripping my arm, pulling me flush against his front. “You’ve got some explainin’ to do, and your ass is going to start with who got you pregnant.”
The color drains from my face. I can feel my stomach tighten as the pits of hell threaten to swallow me whole. Why didn’t I think about the fact Brass would ask something like he just did? About who the father of my son is.
I swallow back the dread and answer him quietly. “You don’t need me to tell you who my son’s father is.You’re smart and can do the math. I was fourteen, about to turn fifteen, when he was born. You know the people you left me behind with, so you should have known what they were capable of. Or at least what Mario was capable of.”
CHAPTER12
BRASS
Anger coils in the pit of my stomach. I want nothing more than to hit something right now. More like go and kill the motherfucker who knocked Athena up at the young age of fourteen.
Fucking fourteen.
Fourteen motherfucking years old.
If I could get my hands on Mario Brandshaw, I would gut him where he stands.
I release Athena and take a step back from her, take one long look, and then spin on my heels and stalk away. Knowing I left her to that hell kills me and if I don’t get away from her now, I’ll do something I’ll regret later. That or scare her or the kid.
Shit, I still have a hard time coming to terms with the fact she’s a mother.
A mother goddamnit to a boy that was fathered by a man who raped a fourteen-year-old. Balling my hand into a fist, I slam it against the wall. “Fuck.”
“Brother, you need to get it together.”
I cock my head enough to see my VP standing there watching me.
“I’m good,” I remark through grinding teeth.
“You’re not, Brass, so don’t try bullshitting me,” Horse grunts as Stoney, Twister, and Lucifer step up next to him.
“How do you know Athena?” Stoney asks.
I clench my teeth hard enough I’m surprised I don’t break them. I look to Lucifer and jut my chin out. “You took her in when she ran away.”Lucifer crosses his arms over his chest and stares at me without answering. “You’re also the one that made Mario disappear. You did what I couldn’t.”
Lucifer watches me for a moment longer and nods. “I found Athena and took her in. She’s hell on wheels, and back then, she didn’t trust anyone. That is no one but you. She talked about you and before you phased out of the system. I looked into you, so I know who you are, and I know you tried to save her. But the way you went about it took too long.”
“I should have just killed the motherfucker,” I grind out.
“You still can,” Lucifer states with a shrug.
I stare at him for a long moment realizing what he just said. “You didn’t kill him?”
“Why would I kill the fucker when he hurt my daughter the way he did? No. He lives only to be tortured on a daily basis,” Lucifer answers with a shit-eating grin. “I live to make those around me and mine miserable. Maybe I will allow you to be the one to finish him off when the time is right. You did, after all, keep her safe until you were forced out.”
I nod, unable to speak at the news he’s just shared. The bastard who hurt her is still alive. Lucifer makes sure he’s paying on a daily basis.
