The perfect tiles were a mess. Blood was neon red against the white. There were bits of something, shards scattered, and at first, I didn’t understand. I couldn’t look away, until it hit me…
That was bone.
Bone blown by the bullet that had entered one side of Killion’s skull and exited through the other. Bone that shimmered white against the crimson mess. There were other bits, too. Other bits that when I glanced at them, I wanted to puke…
In fact, I was going to puke.
“Princess.”
My belly tightened and acid burned in the back of my throat.
“Princess?”
Boom…boom…boom…
The deafening sounds were above me and inside my head.
“Ryth, we have to go now.”
Christ, don’t tell me he’s here…Killion’s words repeated in my mind. “He was expecting someone.”
“What?”
I lifted my gaze to Nick. “He was expecting someone.”
His eyes darted to the front door, and his grip adjusted around his weapon. “Are you sure?”
The hollow boom of my heartbeat thudded in my head. I pushed through the fog, battling the rock in my stomach and the rancid tang in the back of my throat, and tried to sharpen my memory of the seconds of chaos. “Yes. He said, “Christ, don’t tell me he’s here.’”
Nick glanced toward the hallway as Tobias strode out wielding a baseball bat. Where did he get that?
“I went through the scumbag’s bedroom,” Tobias snarled. “Now I feel like I need to shower for a fucking week.” He stopped, stared at Nick, then glanced at me. “What?”
“He was expecting someone,” Nick answered. “So we need to wrap this up.”
“If he was expecting someone, then the bastard never came.” Tobias gave a chuff. But concern moved through his eyes as he glanced at the front door.
“I have his phone and his laptop.” Caleb strode from deeper in the house carrying the items with one hand and a black bag in the other. “As well as a mountain of cash.”
“He was expecting someone,” Nick repeated.
C glanced at the front door. “Then I guess that’s our sign to leave.” He shifted his gaze to me. “Ready?”
I frowned, and glanced at the body lying at my feet for the last time. Empty eyes stared back at me. “Yes.”
“Come on.” Nick stepped closer and wrapped his arms around me. “Let’s get you home.”
Home…
I didn’t know where that was anymore. Still, I let him lead me out the front door and along the walkway.
“Watch your step,” Nick urged.
I’d almost kicked the body lying in the dark. Black on black shifted And I jerked my gaze up, flinching at the movement.
“It’s okay…it’s one of ours.”
One of ours…one of ours…the bodyguards that protected us stepped out of the gloom. One of them met my stare and gave a slow nod. I remembered him from the house, the house we stayed at. “He knew my dad.”
“That’s right, princess. He knows your dad.”
My feet moved, Nick’s hold around my shoulders the only thing driving me forward. We made it to the four-wheel drive and the door opened for me to climb in. Then I realized. “My knife.”
“It’s right here, my lioness.” Tobias neared, grasped my hand gently, and pressed the hilt into my palm. The metal was warm, and now, sickeningly familiar. “Keep it on you, just until you can work through the thoughts in your head.”
Work through the thoughts in my head?
How was I ever going to do that?
I climbed in, then locked my seatbelt down as my brothers followed, and before I knew it, we were pulling away. Leaving it all behind, every last…sickening image.
I just killed a man…
The words resounded, along with the memory of the spray of blood. I looked down, and saw the smears still on my arms and felt the wetness on my jeans. The cloying, meaty scent surged into my throat. “I’m going to be sick.”
“Fuck,” Nick snapped, then jerked the wheel.
Hands gripped me as I was thrown sideways. Tobias dove across me, yanked the door handle, and shoved it open. Acid spilled in the back of my throat as I clawed the clasp of my seatbelt and threw myself out of the car. Heat burned, carving all the way up as liquid shot from my mouth. I stumbled and threw my hand out to brace against the car, but Tobias grabbed my arm, steadying me, and murmured. “That’s it, let it all out.”
The asphalt blurred in front of me as Tobias held me gently. His other hand went to the middle of my back, caressing, stroking. “You did so well, princess. So goddamn well. I’m so fucking proud of you. Look how strong you are.”
“I don’t feel strong,” I spluttered as my belly clenched and I heaved.
“Oh, but you are. How many women do you think could do what you just did?” His words praised. “How many women go through their entire lives feeling powerless and afraid? You did it for them. You did it for you.”
I shook my head as real tears began to fall.
“You are so fucking strong. I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone as strong as you. You make me proud. Even if you hadn’t done a goddamn thing tonight, you are breath-taking.”
The vise-like grip on my belly eased, so I swiped my mouth with the back of my hand and turned my gaze to his. Even with my vomit glistening on the tops of my boots and strands of my hair stuck in the corners of my mouth, even with smears of blood on my arms and more sticking my jeans to my thighs, he still looked at me with the kind of hunger that made my cheeks burn.
The car’s engine throbbed. Nick and Caleb were waiting.
“So, we move on,” Tobias murmured. “We move on and we grow stronger, okay?”
I nodded.
Tobias dropped his hand from my arm and held it out instead. “The first step is getting back in the car.”
I swallowed, hating the taste. Still, I took his hand and climbed in. Rocks kicked up as Nick pulled away the moment the doors were closed. I gripped Tobias’s hand, holding on tight as we sped through the backstreets and made our way back to the Rossi house.
My legs weren’t shaking anymore when we pulled up and I climbed out without help. In fact, I felt steadier, surer. Still a little like a toddler finding my feet, but that strength stayed with me, as did Tobias’s words. The guards stayed at the gate and I saw more of them now, probably ready in case there’d be a problem and retaliation from Killion’s men.
But there was no one coming for us, not at this moment, at least.
Killion’s men were all dead, even the one Tobias had beaten with his fists.
He was dead…they were all dead.
“Yeah, it’s me,” Tobias muttered on the phone as the garage doors closed behind us. “We’re back safe. No, we didn’t get what we wanted. He didn’t have it, said he didn’t know anything about a recording. No…I don’t know.” Tobias glanced my way as I followed Caleb and Nick inside the house. “I guess we’ll keep looking. Someone has that recording and we want it back. Yeah, I will. Okay.”
I hung on every word as we headed into the kitchen. Nick grabbed four glasses. Caleb opened the cupboard doors and pulled out a bottle of Scotch. Amber splashed in the bottom of a glass before Nick handed it to me. I shook my head. “I don’t—”
“Tonight, you do.” Those golden-brown eyes bored into mine.
I took the glass and swallowed, coughing and spluttering as my brothers watched.
“Again,” Nick urged, curling his finger under the bottom of the glass and tilting it to my lips.
I could only swallow. This time, the searing swill stayed down. The heat seeped out until the most delicious wave of warmth spread through me.
“There you have it,” Nick murmured approvingly.
I swallowed again while all three watched, until they were satisfied. Only then did they take a glass themselves and downed the contents in one gulp. I winced. “How the hell can you do that?”
“Practice, little sister.” Caleb gave me a wink, and even if it was sad, it still felt good. I finished that glass and half of another until that delicious warmth grew fangs and took a bite.
“Oh.” The room blurred, then sharpened.
“Okay, lightweight.” Nick took my glass. “That’s enough for you.”
I scowled. “But I haven’t finshed,” I slurred.
“Oh, believe me,” he muttered. “You’ve finshed alright.”
Caleb downed his second glass, or was it his third, tugged open the black bag he’d brought from Killion’s house, and upended the contents all over the counter. Stacks of one-hundred-dollar bills hit the counter with a thud.
“Damn.” Tobias leaned forward, eyeing the bundles. “How much is that?”
“Twenty, thirty grand,” Nick muttered.
“It was sitting there in his study, like he planned on paying someone.”
“The someone he was expecting,” Nick answered, drawing my gaze.
My thoughts were slower, grasping the threads.
“Someone who didn’t turn up,” Tobias added, and drank from his glass.
“Anyway.” Caleb reached over and stacked the bundles. “It’s ours now. We need it more than he does, whoever it is.”
I swayed a bit on my feet, making Nick grasp my arm. “Whoa there. Shower and bed for you, okay?”
“I’ll help.”
“I’ll help her.”
Tobias and Caleb answered as one, then glared at one another.
“I’m fine,” I muttered, patting Nick’s arm. “I’m a big girl. If I can kill a man, I sure as hell can shower by myself.”
“Stab,” Tobias corrected. “Technically, you just stabbed him.”
“Sure,” I nodded, then staggered as I left. “Technically.”
But I wasn’t stupid. I knew what he’d done and why he’d done it. The pang in my chest was brutal as I headed to the stairs and climbed. I didn’t even know where I was going, just that I was…going somewhere. I made it to the first floor and somehow found a bathroom.
The overhead lights were blinding, making me wince as a dull throb came at the back of my head. “Technically stabbed him,” I muttered as I unbuckled my belt and exhaled with relief. I kicked off my boots and peeled my jeans off, wincing at the smears of blood they left behind on my thighs.
I needed to get it off…just get it off…
I lurched to the shower and hit the faucets, not bothering to wait for the hot water before I stepped in, still in my underwear. Cold water slammed me, instantly making my teeth clench.
“Here,” Nick murmured.
I jumped, jerking my gaze to his, but the alcohol and the cold did nothing to change the fact of what I’d done. “I killed him, no matter what Tobias said or did, I still killed him.”
“He’s just trying to protect you.” Nick adjusted the faucets, then tested the water with his hand before meeting my gaze. “The last thing he wants is for that to be on your conscience.”
“But I knew what I was doing.” I searched his stare. “Lucas showed me…he showed me where the veins were. He told me that a bullet or a puncture there would result in death. I knew…and I still did it.”
“Then you killed him,” Nick answered. “You killed him and you take ownership of that act. We’ve all done things that’ve changed us. Now you need to decide what happens with that. Do you let it destroy you or do you rise above it, knowing that a man like Killion will never harm another woman again?”
His words hit me.
He slowly reached for the back of my bra and unhooked it. His touch was so gentle, catching the straps as they fell, then he turned his focus to my panties, sliding his fingers under the elastic and tugging them down. Seeing him kneel in front of me reminded me of the night our parents married. That seemed like a lifetime ago, another me…another them.
I reached down, caressed his strong jaw, and whispered, “Stay with me.”
He did, through the undressing and showering. We took our time, giving comfort more than anything. He held me when I cried, standing outside the spray so the warmth hit my back and ran down my shoulders, and when we were done, he switched the water off.
No words were needed. He ran towels over my body and squeezed out my hair, toweling the strands before he searched the drawers for a comb. When he was done, I was clean and dry. He led me out with a towel wrapped around his waist. Tobias strode out of another room, also wearing a towel. Those dark eyes met mine. Somehow, they just knew.
We made our way to the bedroom, climbed under the sheets, and just lay there. Caleb came in, tossed the phones onto the table, and undressed before he climbed in. I reached out, caressing Nick on one side and Tobias on the other, as Caleb sprawled out across the foot of the bed and caressed my leg.
The bedroom was silent as I closed my eyes. I didn’t sleep, I drifted, but I didn’t replay the things that had happened tonight. Instead, I thought of Mom, and Creed, and all the women still trapped in that hell that was The Order.
Someone had to do something about it.
Someone had to get them all out.
But not me and not us. Not tonight, at least.
Tonight, warm bodies lay beside me. A faint brush against my arm and a stroke of my leg drew me back to them. There were no sounds, no questions, not even a conscious thought when I turned to Nick. He was waiting for me, reaching down to cup his cock with one hand, as he slid the other around my waist.
I leaned up, slid my leg over to straddle him, and climbed on top. His thick head pushed into me as I eased down. God, this was what I needed, what I wanted. I rode him, letting Nick steady me with his hands on my hips. Tobias rose up, slid his fingers through my hair, and kissed me. I leaned down and reached for his cock, needing them…needing all of them.
“Fuck,” Tobias growled as I gripped his length.
Then Nick shifted, slid me from on top, and knelt behind me. One thrust, and he was inside. I looked up as Tobias slid the slick head inside my mouth.
“Jesus, princess,” he moaned, looking down and watching as I sucked and fisted his length.
He’d killed a man for me tonight. I wasn’t under any illusion that it was the first man either. There had been many, I was sure of that, and I didn’t doubt there would be many more. Because that’s how Tobias loved.
I slid my fist down, working T’s length as Nick’s thrusts grew harder and more savage. He leaned over me, driving my body down as he claimed my pussy.
Hard breaths filled the space.
I sucked harder, desperate to have, desperate to taste.
Tobias’s hand cupped the back of my head as he gave a grunt and held my head down. “Christ…Ryth…” Warmth filled my mouth with the taste of saltiness.
Nick gave a grunt, then a groan, as he slammed me hard against the bed and stilled. “Fuck…I’m sorry,” he groaned.
They’d both come so fast, leaving me aching when Nick slipped out.
“It’s okay,” I murmured.
Nick moved to the side, sucking in deep breaths, and muttered. “C?”
I looked over my shoulder to the silhouette behind me.
“Princess,” Caleb murmured as he ran his hand along the outside of my thigh, then slipped it between my legs and found Nick’s mess. “Look at how you made my brothers come.” I closed my eyes and unleashed a groan. “Such a wet pussy.” He slipped his fingers in the slick, spreading it all along my crease.
“You going to be good for me?” He murmured as he pushed Nick’s seed into my ass. My body clenched around the invasion. The warmth of the alcohol hummed in my veins. I rocked backwards, driving against his touch, and whispered. “Yes.”
“How good?” He pushed in deeper and a flutter came within my core.
“So good,” I moaned. “So fucking good.”
“Good girl,” he growled as he slipped his finger from my ass. “Such a perfect cunt, such a tight little hole. Fuck, I love this hole.” He drove his cock against the tight ring of muscle, spreading me before he eased away, running a trail with his fingers from my core up to my ass before he tried again. “Breathe, princess.”
I tried to focus, but my mind was soft with Scotch.
“Breathe…” he grunted, then drove inside me.
I bucked with the intrusion, fisted the sheets, and squeezed my eyes shut. His thick head stretched me, making my ass grip tight around him.
“Jesus Christ,” Tobias groaned.
Caleb gripped my hips and slid out as his hand caressed my ass. Something cool and slick dribbled down, finding that burn. “How good?” he asked again, dragging his cock through the slick to push back in.
The burn and the wet…and his words collided.
“So fucking good, Caleb,” I whimpered. “Please, I’m going to be so fucking good.”
He gripped my waist, pulling me hard up against him until I rested against his chest. His arms wrapped across my chest as he jutted his hips, driving deeper in my ass. Stars ignited, casting white sparks behind my eyes as he drove all the way inside.
“Yes,” he groaned, bucking upwards. “Yes, you are.”
My core clenched, twitching, quivering, and pulsating. “Oh God.”
My eyes flew open as Nick wiggled around, his feet against the pillows now as he lay on his back. “Open your legs.”
“Oh, fuck, that’s it,” Caleb growled.
Restrained, I did as they wanted, widening my thighs apart as Nick settled between my legs and licked my core. I clenched, invaded and wet, rolling my hips as Caleb drove me against Nick’s mouth. His tongue invaded my pussy and his thumb grazed my clit. The sensation tipped me over, making me ride Nick’s mouth. I squeezed my eyes closed once more as Caleb unleashed a savage sound, bucking harder and harder and harder…
Until a cry tore free. I spasmed again and again, arching my back, giving over to them. My body, my heart, my soul, as Caleb gave a grunt and filled me. It was just them at that moment. My body trembled, warm and pulsing. Caleb’s hold slowly eased. His hard breaths were a rush in my ears. Nick slipped out from between my thighs, swiped his fingers across his mouth, and looked up at me. “Christ, you taste good.”
“And you fuck well, too,” Caleb growled, as he gripped my hips and slipped his cock free. “You fuck really well. Such a good fucking ride….”
