Broken Legacy: Dark Legacy Book Three

by Eve, Jaymin

  He turned to the psycho in question, who had just finished having his rights read to him and was being led out to the police car, and asked, “You never really tried to hide this address … why?”

  Johnson smiled, teeth bloody. “It’s my original killing grounds. Sentimental reasons.”

  Beck finally spoke up, his voice graveled and deeper than I’d ever heard. “He’s lying. The Johnson I knew was not sloppy like this. Multiple times tonight he left a bread trail to him. Which leads me to only one conclusion. He wanted to be caught. This is his swan song. Go out with a bang taking down the biggest heiress in the world.”

  Beck was looking at me, I knew it, and I swallowed the burning lump in my throat.

  Johnson was still smiling but it was strained. “You got here just a little too soon, unfortunately,” he said. “The crumbs should have been picked up after I was done with our beautiful Riley. You overachieving fucks were always two steps ahead.”

  Beck was killing him in his head. I could see that.

  “We’ll make sure there is no fame for you, asshole,” Dylan said, his expression as deadly as Beck’s. “By the time we’re done, not a fucking person on this planet will know your name.”

  Now that really upset Johnson, but he was already out the door, and we didn’t get to enjoy his unhappiness for long. At this point, my body started to shake.

  “Miss Deboise,” a woman I didn’t know interrupted my breakdown. “Your ambulance is here.”

  I shook my head. “No. I don’t need an ambulance. I wasn’t raped or sexually assaulted in any way you need to test. I just have some minor wounds that a Band-Aid will fix.” A large Band-Aid.

  She opened her mouth to protest but didn’t get far before Beck and Dylan stepped in front of me, blocking me from her view. “She said no,” Beck rumbled.

  For the first time since all of this happened, Beck was close to me, and as his scent washed over me, my legs crumpled. He must have been waiting for it, because he spun so fast, his arms around me as he lifted me gently into his arms.

  A sob escaped before I could stop it, followed by another. Beck’s stormy eyes bored into mine as he leaned over and kissed me, just a brush of his lips.

  “Butterfly,” he breathed, and my heart started to go all out of sync as my pulse and breath raced. “I thought I fucking lost you.”

  Another sob. And another. The sobs kept ripping from me with force and agonizing emotion.

  Beck turned and strode from the room, like he was shielding me from everyone and everything best he could.

  “Tomorrow, Beck,” Decker called. “All of you need to be at the station tomorrow to give your statements.”

  Beck didn’t bother to reply.

  24

  Dylan ended up driving us home because Beck refused to let me go. Or I refused to let him go. Either way, we were not separating for any fucking reason, and no one argued about it.

  When we reached our apartments, we went straight up to mine, the five of us silent. Eddy screamed when we opened the door, her face red and tear-stained.

  “You found her!” she cried, and I held out a hand to squeeze hers, needing to reassure her the best I could that I was alive. Beck still held me, and in the back of my head I knew I should demand my independence and walk, but this whole thing had fucked me up too badly. I just couldn’t do anything but hold on to my rock: Beck.

  “I’m going to clean Riley up,” Beck said shortly, already heading for the bathroom.

  “I’ll get my medical kit,” Dylan replied.

  Beck just strode forward, into the tiled room, letting the door close behind him. I’d stopped crying and was now exhausted, draped across him. He gently lowered me to the floor, his hands tracing up my arms and across my neck to cup my face.

  “You scared the fuck out of me today, Riley.”

  Serious eyes drilled into mine, and I shook my head. “Thank you for saving me.”

  A flicker of amusement crossed Beck’s face. “Judging by Dylan’s bleeding head, it looked like you kind of had it handled, Butterfly. Something which doesn’t surprise me at all.”

  There was no way to tell if I would have gotten out on my own. But fuck knows, I would have given it a red hot try. Beck kissed me suddenly, and I pressed myself into him, needing new memories to erase the last twelve hours. I needed memories, and I needed Beck, because for twelve hours, I hadn’t known if he lived or not in the crash. I hadn’t known if I would see him ever again.

  This was a gift.

  Just as the kiss started to get heated and I moved to wrap my legs around him, my body screamed at me for being so rough with all of my injuries. Beck drew back at my gasp, his worried gaze tracing along me.

  “Time to get naked, baby,” he said softly, already stripping my once fancy outfit from me. He didn’t say anything else as he removed clothing, but his gaze darkened with each new injury he uncovered. There were dozens of shallow cuts across my thighs and a few on my stomach. None of them were bleeding now, but they cast a macabre sort of artwork across my skin, and it was hard to look at them, knowing how close I came to being murdered. There was bruising on my breasts, and no doubt other places I couldn’t see from my angle.

  Beck was breathing heavily by the time I was completely naked, and not in the usual way he would be. His fury spilled over as he turned and smashed his hand into the towel rack, ripping it completely from the wall.

  “Fuck!” he shouted, and I remained where I was, completely unafraid even though Beck was losing it worse than I’d ever seen before.

  He braced both hands on the sink, sucking in deep breaths, staring down into nothing as he struggled to get himself together.

  “Beck,” I said softly. No response. “Sebastian Roman Beckett.”

  His shoulders tensed before I saw him squeeze his eyes shut, and then eventually stand. “I’m alive,” I reminded him. “These injuries…” I waved across my body, “they’re fucking nothing compared to what he would have done. We both stopped him in time. Don’t beat yourself up.”

  He shook his head, dark hair tumbling across his forehead. “I should never have let you out of my sight in the first place. Chasing down that asshole after the crash almost cost me my life.”

  I stilled, wide eyed staring at him, not even able to blink. “He almost killed you?”

  Beck stepped the two steps back to me, stopping right in front of me. “You are my life, Riley. My fucking life, heart, and soul.” His hand slammed against his chest. “Without you, there is no fucking me, so yes, he almost killed me.”

  Dylan chose that moment to step into the bathroom, closing the door behind him as well. Beck growled and in a split-second had stepped in front of my nakedness.

  The pair of them faced off, two alpha males, both of them acting pissed and territorial.

  “Guys,” I said, after a minute of posturing and rumbling chests. “Can we maybe do this later? I’m pretty dead on my feet.”

  Beck jerked his head to me, and I tilted my face back. “I’d really like a shower first before anyone patches me up.”

  With a deep breath, he nodded, stepping aside to turn the water on. He knew the exact just-below-scalding temperature I loved, and I tried not to laugh at the way Dylan was staring at anything other than the naked chick in the room.

  “They’re just tits,” I said, trying to joke about it. “I’m sure you’ve seen two or three … hundred of them in your life.”

  Dylan’s eyes were dark when they met mine. “Not just tits when they’re yours, Riley.”

  He whispered those words, and I wasn’t sure Beck heard, but I sure as fuck did. It made my heart ache at the pain and sadness on Dylan’s face.

  “Shower’s ready,” Beck said, breaking the tension.

  When I stepped inside, I had to bite my lip to stop from crying out. The water washing over all the shallow cuts felt a lot like someone pouring acid on them but there was no other choice. I had to be clean. I needed to get the filth from that place off me. Like
I could wash the memories away at the same time.

  Beck stayed right with me. Dylan never left either, and I felt their silent support. When I couldn’t reach parts of my back, Beck took the cloth and stroked across my skin, until finally, the water was no longer filled with blood and dirt. Running clean.

  When I stepped out, I dried off, and Beck disappeared into my walk in to find me some clothes.

  Dylan stepped closer, armed with shit that looked like it was going to hurt me. “Surprised he left you alone with me,” he started conversationally. “All naked and shit.”

  I snorted. “Why do you think he’s grabbing clothes. He’s going to get the important bits covered.”

  Dylan’s eyes darkened, but he didn’t comment. Instead, he reached out for my arm, hesitating slightly before I nodded my permission. Beck strode in then, black bra and panties in hand, and I was getting dressed first whether I wanted to or not. After that, Dylan went back to work.

  Disinfectant was brushed across every wound, my body tense and teeth clenched as I hissed through them whenever a particularly painful one was found. Beck stayed close, brushing a hand reassuringly across my back, offering comfort.

  “These three probably need stitches,” Dylan said, stroking across my thigh. Those wounds had started weeping again after the shower. “But I can just butterfly tape them now, and they should be fine.”

  I nodded. “Yeah, I don’t care if they leave scars or whatever. I’m not allowing strangers to touch me.”

  Beck pressed his lips into the side of my head, basically holding me up now as my body crashed. By the time Dylan was done, handing me a couple of painkillers, which I swallowed down in a gulp, everything was fuzzy around the edges.

  I managed to walk myself into the bedroom.

  “None of us will leave you tonight,” Dylan told me from the doorway. “You’re safe.”

  I blew him a kiss, aware I was always safe with my boys, and slipped under the covers. Beck and Dylan spoke for a few minutes, but I was already drifting off. When Beck slid in beside me, he wrapped me up in his arms, and I pressed my face into his chest.

  “I love you,” I murmured, because there was a point I never thought I’d get to say that to him. “I fucking love you.”

  Beck chuckled. “I love you too, Butterfly.” There was a pause and darkness pressed in around me, my body going heavy and content as sleep stole me.

  “I’m never letting you out of my sight again.”

  I thought I heard Beck murmur those words, but it was all dark before I could grasp onto that thought.

  * * *

  The pain woke me in the early afternoon, the wounds and patches on my body reminding me that I’d been hurt. Again. When I opened my eyes, gingerly shifting around to get more comfortable, I turned to find Beck’s eyes focused on me. The thick dark lashes framing light gray eyes. He had himself propped on one arm, and it was clear he’d been watching me for a while.

  “Hey,” I rasped out, voice hoarse.

  He didn’t say anything, just leaned over and pressed his lips to mine. The kiss was slow, Beck’s full lips pressing against mine, moving tenderly. A low moan left my mouth as I opened and darted my tongue out, to caress across his.

  “Baby, fuck,” Beck murmured. “You’re killing me here. You’re hurt. We can’t do this.”

  I’d like to say I’d temporarily forgotten about my pain, but my body was actually hurting me quite a fuckload, and I knew Beck was right.

  I still pouted.

  “Should have shot Johnson,” I said, unhappily. “Bastard continues to ruin things even behind bars.”

  We both sobered at that thought. “We should head to the police station first,” Beck finally said. “Get it out of the way.”

  I almost jerked up then as a thought occurred to me. Of course, almost jerking had a cry bursting from my lips, as my entire body shouted at me. “Ouch. Fuck.”

  Beck lifted me then, helping the rest of the way. “You okay?” he asked, looking me over.

  I nodded, not sure that I actually was. Something felt like it might be bleeding again, but that was a worry for later.

  “Have you heard anything about Dante? Did you get that file to the police?”

  A fuzzy memory was tugging at the back of my mind, but it was from my time held by that asshole, and I wasn’t ready to think about it just yet.

  “Johnson confessed to Katelyn’s murder,” Beck reminded me. “We don’t need the file any longer. I wouldn’t be surprised if Dante is out right now.” He paused with a grimace. “Which is good, considering we don’t have the file anymore.”

  This sparked at that same fuzzy memory. “Wait, what? Where is it?”

  Beck huffed an annoyed sigh. “Safely back on Graeme Huntley’s desk, I suspect. He was the one who tampered with the car, not Johnson. That prick just took advantage of the situation when it presented too tempting to pass up.”

  I gasped as the memory of Johnson telling me the same thing clicked back into place, and I shuddered. “My uncle and I are going to have some stern words about the needless destruction of beautiful cars,” I said with a thick coating of anger. “And about his casual disregard for our lives.”

  Beck gave me a half smile, stroking a finger down the side of my bruised face ever so gently. “Fuck, you’re sexy when you’re mad, Butterfly. Remind me to piss you off again when those cuts are healed up.” His gaze was hot and full of promise, tempting me to jump back into his arms. But the trickle of blood running down my thigh had other plans.

  “I think I ruined the sheets,” I commented, looking down at the gash on my outer thigh which had started seeping from between the butterfly clips. Smears of bright red decorated the crisp white sheets, and I wrinkled my nose. “We might need bleach.”

  “You need stitches,” Beck corrected, scowling down at the bloody mess.

  The idea of any stranger, even a medic, touching me right now made my skin crawl. Nope. Not happening.

  “Can’t Dylan fix it for me?” I suggested. “Maybe use that glue stuff they put on head wounds?”

  Beck gave me a long look, but must have seen how badly I didn’t want to visit a medic and finally nodded. “Stay here, I’ll go grab him.”

  “I’m not paralyzed, Sebastian, I can walk over to his apartment.” I rolled my eyes at him, but he gently pushed me back into the pillows.

  “I know you can,” he replied, dropping a quick, gentle kiss on my forehead. “But you don’t have to. Stay here and I’ll even get you coffee.”

  My belly fluttered with excitement at the mention of coffee, and I relaxed into my bed. “Fine. You win.”

  Beck flashed me a triumphant grin then sauntered into my living area wearing nothing but his boxers. Fucking hell, where did he get off looking so damn incredible after a car crash and full night of serial killer hunting?

  It became clear why he’d said I didn’t need to walk over to Dylan’s apartment. Beck paused beside my sofa and spoke a few quiet words. Moments later, a sleepy looking Dylan popped his head up and peered over at me still in bed.

  “Give me five minutes, Riles,” he called out to me. “I’ve got the stuff over at my place.”

  I just waved a hand back, like I wasn’t bothered. Like I wasn’t acutely aware of the pain without Beck’s distraction and just barely clinging to composure. Because holy fuck my entire body was in agony.

  Thankfully, Dylan was back faster than Beck could even make my coffee, and he brought pain pills.

  “You rock,” I groaned, taking the pills from him and washing them back with the water he offered. “Thank you.”

  Dylan peered at my seeping cuts for a moment then glanced up at me through his thick black lashes. “Anything for you, Riles.”

  Something in his tone immediately sent my mind back to this morning, when he’d watched me shower and I hadn’t even attempted to hide my nakedness from him. Shit. I needed to rein it in before I gave him the wrong idea about us... because as much as I loved him, I was in lo
ve with Beck. And Beck had some serious issues with jealousy.

  Clearing my throat, I averted my gaze away from Dylan’s smooth, dark skin and rippling muscles. Holy shit, these Delta boys looked like they should be on a firefighter calendar holding kittens and shit. Only their calendar would be dark and scary, and they’d have knives and guns.

  Was there a calendar for billionaire sociopaths? I’d buy it.

  While Dylan worked on my injuries, I dropped my head back and rested against the pillow. Exhaustion came and went, in such huge waves, and right now I felt like I could sleep again, even though I’d only just woken.

  A familiar voice at the doorway caught my attention.

  “Let me in!” Eddy demanded again.

  “Sorry, sis. Orders from the big man himself. Riley needs to rest.”

  Eddy snorted. “What, God told you not to let me in?”

  Jasper howled with laughter before he turned to peer through the bedroom door. “Hear that, Beck, Eddy thinks you’re God.”

  Beck, who was stretched out beside me, just smirked. Arrogant bastard.

  “Let her in,” I said to Jasper, shooting Beck a narrow-eyed glare. “I’m not dying. I’m perfectly fine.”

  Eddy basically hip checked her brother to get past him, hurrying straight over to me. She climbed across Dylan, uncaring about stomping on him, and snuggled down on the side that Beck wasn’t dominating. I winced as she wrapped her arms around me, but when she gasped and tried to pull away, I shook my head and held her close.

  “I’m fine,” I said against her protests. “Don’t worry about it at all.”

  We remained like that for ten or more minutes while Dylan fussed, Beck stroked my hair, and Eddy held me like I might float away if she didn’t keep hold of me.

  “Dante is out,” she whispered out of nowhere.

  I jerked my head up on the pillow. “He’s out?”

  She nodded. “Yep. All charges were dropped before a judge this morning, and he sent me a text straight away asking if I knew where you were.”