Tracker and Jacob exchanged a glance. “That must have been when they made the switch. On our last stop.”
A faraway look entered Luke’s eyes. “They darted me,” he whispered. “I remember feeling a sting in my neck right before I passed out.” A darkness passed over his face. He closed his eyes and I knew he was remembering something terrible. Then he schooled his features into a blank mask and opened his eyes. He glanced at me. “Sorry, my mind’s a little fuzzy. The Controller’s still inside, trying to get to me.” He shook his head roughly.
The Controller—whoever or whatever he was—had done some serious damage to Luke’s mind, breaking him down in a way we could only guess at. It was obvious he was still suffering from whatever had happened. At this point, none of us knew the extent of what The Controller had done to him. In time, I hoped Luke would talk to me about what had happened. For now, I could only be grateful he was alive. And we were getting him out of here.
I squeezed his arm. “It’s all right, man. Push him out. Don’t let him get to you.”
My words seemed to have the desired effect. Luke cleared his throat. “How did Ellington and his twin manage to pull that off?”
“We’re about to find out,” I said. “You ready to interrogate him?”
A hint of vulnerability entered his eyes. Then he blinked, and it was gone, his expression hardening once again.
“Let’s do it.”
Luke was trying hard to be himself, but it was obvious he was struggling.
He wasn’t alone. We would all help him deal with this.
But first, it was time for an interrogation.
CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
Ryan
“I’m going to make this quick, so listen up, dickwad.” Luke yanked Mateo’s head back and glared at him. Then he kicked Mateo’s feet out from underneath him and shoved him to his knees on the hardwood floor.
We hadn’t returned to the warehouse. Instead, we’d just hauled Mateo out of the trunk of the car and back into the house where we’d found Luke. The Controller was long gone by now. We were the only ones here.
I’ll admit I was a little concerned that Luke wasn’t ready for this yet, that his psyche was still too badly damaged by whatever The Controller had done to him, and that overseeing an interrogation right now might be too much for him.
But Luke determinedly pressed on, showing me just how incredibly strong he really was. I couldn’t feel any emotions coming from him right now, which told me he’d blocked himself off from everything. He’d gone completely cold. How did he do that?
He continued with the interrogation like he normally would. Roughly smacking Mateo around. Using a mixture of brute force and mind control. Using his empathy to read Mateo’s reactions. Luke pushed and pushed like the interrogator that he was, taunting, tormenting Mateo, messing with his head, using painful torture where necessary…
But Mateo stubbornly remained silent. Bastard.
So I stepped forward and released the pheromone, unsure if it would work or not. It didn’t work on the other dregs, but they were the only ones who appeared immune to it. Mateo, being a Company soldier, might also be immune to it, but I wouldn’t know for sure unless I tried it.
Mateo’s attitude changed instantly. The sneer left his face. His eyes darkened with hate that he directed at me. But his mouth opened, obviously against his will, and he blurted out everything. He answered all of Luke’s questions, and we learned the entire truth about how the twins had fooled us.
Mateo was indeed Mark Ellington. His twin had killed the real Mateo the night we’d freed Shannon from the facility, leaving his body there by the zoo. While Mark had been home with his family, Matt had murdered Mateo and taken on his identity.
They’d met up at that vacant house where we’d found Liz, and Mark had wanted “a go at Liz”, so they’d switched places. The night we’d gone to free Liz, Mark and Matt had both been there. Mark had been impersonating Mateo and Matt had been impersonating another soldier. Mark had been the one who’d attempted to rape Liz, while Matt kept the other soldiers occupied with the prostitute. And when we arrived, Matt slipped away before any of us saw him, but Tracker shot Mark in the leg as he was fleeing down the hallway away from Liz. That was why Mateo didn’t have a bullet wound in his leg when we’d interrogated him earlier, because he’d switched places with his brother. Matt was the one who’d kidnapped Liz from the hotel, promising Mark he’d finish the job of taking me out. He’d impersonated a delivery boy, hanging around, making sure to deliver all the takeout orders, thereby fooling Tracker and Jacob, and being able to sneak into my mom’s room. The twins communicated telepathically, Matt letting Mark know where Liz had run them off the road near Laredo. So Mark had headed to Texas to pick up his twin (who was still posing as Mateo), but Luke, Tracker and Jacob had already kidnapped Mateo by the time Mark arrived. So Mark had followed them back to Oklahoma, waiting for the best moment to strike. They’d shot Luke with a tranquilizer dart at the gas station, and Mark had taken on Luke’s identity, fooling everyone.
“So you’re the one who tried to rape Liz,” I growled in disgust. Leaning over him, I kneed him in the nuts as hard as I could.
Mateo gasped and wheezed, his face turning red. I stepped back, satisfied.
Take that, you bastard.
Luke sneered at him. “You like to hurt women? Guess what, motherfucker! You’ll never hurt another woman again.” He stepped aside, turned, and kicked Mateo in the groin.
Mateo screamed, his eyes filling with tears as he rolled into a ball on the floor.
We all stood back and stared down at Mateo as he made strangled, garbled sounds and curled tighter into a ball.
“Looks like The Company is finally done,” Noah murmured. “You’re going to rot in prison, Mark. How does that make you feel?”
Mateo didn’t respond. He was too busy writhing in pain. Then his face changed, twisted, and he morphed into several different faces before he finally shifted into Mark Ellington.
Tony let out a snort. “Ah ha! The face of the devil finally emerges! Should we cut off his dick to make his castration final?”
Everyone exchanged glances. Body mutilation was a bit much, even for us. None of us wanted to go there.
We all shook our heads no.
Tony smirked. And for a moment, I thought Tony was actually going to do it. But he just turned away with snicker.
Ellington had been punished. It was unlikely he would be able to use that part of his anatomy anytime soon, if ever. And we’d gotten all the information we needed.
“Let’s dump him off and head back to the hotel,” I suggested.
There were murmurs of agreement from all around.
I glanced at Luke, noting the obvious strain in his eyes, the weariness in his body. He’d reached his limit. This interrogation had been too much for him.
Regret washed over me. We shouldn’t have let Luke do this. It was too soon. This may have only added to his burden. What the fuck had The Controller done to him? And how could I help him deal with it?
“Tony and I will drop Ellington off at the cop shop,” Nate suggested. No one argued, so he and Tony hauled Ellington out of the house.
We all followed, getting into our cars and heading back to the hotel.
I was anxious to get back to Liz.
But I couldn’t shake my worry about Luke.
What could I do to help him? I wasn’t sure if he was up for sparring right now.
Liz would know. She was smart. Intuitive. She understood people.
And she was my woman now. My partner. So I wanted to consult with her about this. Get her opinion.
Because I wasn’t about to let Luke suffer alone. He needed me right now.
I just had to figure out what I could do to help him.
Before The Controller obliterated his soul.
CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO
Liz
Ryan was gone a lot longer than I expected him to be. It was late when he finally retur
ned and crawled into bed with me. He drew me tightly against him and nuzzled my neck.
“I missed you,” he whispered.
I turned in his arms to face him and wrapped my arms around him. “I missed you, too. How did it go?”
He sighed. Then he told me a story that shocked the hell out of me. From twins with evil powers, to the FBI arresting the dregs then releasing them, to Luke being kidnapped and abused and broken…
I gaped at him.
“I’m worried sick about Luke,” he admitted at last. “He’s not doing well at all. That Controller guy messed him up inside.” Ryan closed his eyes and swallowed hard. “And the interrogation may have only made him worse. We shouldn’t have let him do that. I’ve never seen him so broken before, Liz. He’s the strongest person I know. I feel terrible. I need to help him, but don’t know what to do.”
I sat up. “He told me you guys have a way to deal with PTSD. Don’t leave him alone right now. He needs you.”
Ryan sat up next to me. “I know he needs me, but I’m not sure if he’s in the right frame of mind for sparring right now. He needs time to deal with whatever happened to him.”
My chest tightened with emotion. Dealing alone was the hardest way to deal. I flipped the covers aside. “Come on.”
Ryan hesitated, his gaze following me as I quickly dressed. “Liz?”
“Get up!” I urged. “He’s your brother. Your best friend. You can’t leave him alone right now. He needs you.”
Ryan leapt up from the bed. “You’re right. I knew you would know what to do.”
Several minutes later, we were standing outside of Luke’s hotel room, and Luke was eyeing us from the doorway. I could see right away that he wasn’t himself. He seemed…somber. His eyes were almost…vacant.
“What’s up?” He glanced from Ryan to me.
“We brought games,” I announced, holding up a deck of cards and the bag of dice. “Can we come in?”
“Games?” he repeated, raising a brow at Ryan.
Ryan just smiled and shrugged. “Liz’s idea.”
Luke stepped back—reluctantly—and we entered the room.
At first he was standoffish, appearing lost in his own world, not really participating in any of the games we played, just sitting there with a faraway expression on his face.
I touched his arm. “Come on, Luke,” I urged gently. “You need to let those demons go. You told me you guys had a way to rid yourselves of the pestilence brewing inside. Well, we’re here to help you with that. Tell me what you need, and I’ll help.”
He heaved out a sigh, his gaze darting to Ryan. “I appreciate what you’re trying to do, Liz. But what I need is more than you can handle. I don’t even think Ryan can help me.”
“We can spar, right here,” Ryan suggested. “You can beat the living shit out of me. Whatever you need, man, you can use me. Or I can go get Tony if you want.”
Luke swallowed hard and turned his face away. “I don’t want Tony to see me like this. The Controller’s still in my head. Like a fucking parasite burrowing deep. I can’t cut him out. I don’t think any amount of sparring will help.”
Ryan and I exchanged a glance. I got up from my chair and moved around the small table to Luke’s side. What Luke needed was to know he wasn’t alone. That he was loved, and that he would be able to overcome this. And that we would never abandon him.
I slipped my arm around his waist and hugged him against me. “We’re here for you,” I whispered. “You know that, right? You can talk about it, if you want.”
He tensed, then slowly, his body relaxed. He lifted an arm and wrapped it around my shoulders, bowing his head and puffing out a breath. “You’re a good person, Liz. Don’t ever leave Ryan.”
I glanced at Ryan, who was eyeing Luke with concern. “I won’t,” I promised. “I love him.”
Luke nodded. “I know. I can feel it. You give off nothing but good energy. A soothing energy. I’m afraid if I touch you too long, I’ll want to steal you away from him.”
Ryan let out a soft snort. “Not gonna happen, buddy. She’s mine. You’ll have to find your own woman.”
Luke let out a chuckle that sounded genuine. He lifted his head, his gaze darting to mine. “Thank you. Just being around you and Ryan makes me feel better. Positive energy like yours is rare, but it helps push aside all that evil energy.” His eyes darkened, filling with an unknown nightmare.
Ryan sent me a worried look.
Luke squeezed me one more time, then let go. “You’re a sweetheart. Don’t ever change.” He glanced at Ryan. “I need an outlet. You ready to spar?”
Ryan jumped to his feet. “You bet.”
They moved the furniture aside, clearing a space to spar. And for the next thirty minutes or so, they pummeled each other—or, rather, Luke pummeled Ryan while Ryan allowed himself to be the punching bag. It was Ryan’s unselfish way of letting Luke rid himself of his demons. I flinched the first couple of times when Luke struck him, but Ryan took it all in stride, and I marveled at the deepness of their bond, and how willing Ryan was to do this for his friend. Some of those strikes looked painful, and I suspected Ryan would have a few bruises from the beating, but he seemed to know what Luke needed, and it was only a small sacrifice, after all.
Finally, they stopped, stepping back, and breathing heavily.
Luke looked Ryan in the eye. “Thanks, man. That really helped. I wasn’t sure if it would work, but it did.”
Ryan nodded. “Anytime, bro.” He hesitated, then asked, “You gonna be okay now?”
Luke puffed out a breath. “Yeah.” He glanced at me. “Thanks, Liz. Now get him out of here. He’s going to need some loving to smooth away all the bruises I just gave him.” He smirked. And I caught a glimpse of the old Luke in his eyes.
I grabbed Ryan’s hand and pulled him toward the door. I paused when we reached the door, and turned back to Luke. “I never thanked you for bringing us together. So, thank you, Luke.”
A hint of color crept into Luke’s face. “It had nothing to do with me. I may have pushed him toward you, but he was already leaning in your direction. You two were made for each other. Just be good to him, all right?”
“I will.”
“Later, man.” Ryan pulled me from the room.
Several moments later, we were back in our own room. Ryan closed and locked the door, then pressed me up against the wall.
He kissed his way across my jaw and over to my ear, before nibbling on my earlobe.
I gasped. “Ryan…”
“Thank you,” he whispered. “You don’t know how much your support means to me. And to Luke. You’re truly one of a kind, Liz.”
He slid his mouth over mine, kissing me deeply. Then he stepped away, pulling me toward the bathroom.
“Come on, I’m going to need some loving to smooth away all the bruises Luke just gave me.” He winked.
I chuckled, allowing him to drag me into the shower with him. We stripped off our clothes, and came together hungrily.
I helped smooth away his aches—all of them.
And he did the same for me.
CHAPTER FIFTY-THREE
Ryan
I woke to the sun’s rays glaring in around the edges of the curtains, filling the room—and my heart—with a lightness I hadn’t felt in a long while.
It was a new day. And we all had a chance for a new start now. A future.
Late last night, Noah had sent a group text to everyone. Agent Browning had been in contact with him and assured him that Mateo—aka Mark Ellington—would be prosecuted for all the crimes he committed. He’d stated that the information Noah had previously given him about The Company was enough to put Ellington behind bars for life. Also, Agent Browning had told Noah that Matt Ellington’s death had been “accidental” and that they’d put in their report that he’d been killed while trying to escape, so Tony wouldn’t be charged for his death. None of the dregs were wanted for any crimes, he assured us. He’d also said that the FBI planned
to go back into Augusta over the next few weeks to conduct more raids to rid the city of all of the gangs. Soon, the gangs would be gone, and people would be able to return to their homes and their lives.
With the last shareholder of The Company now behind bars, the dregs could finally relax. We were truly free men.
Except…The Controller was still out there somewhere. No one but Luke knew who or what he was. And Luke wasn’t ready to talk yet. All we could do was give Luke some time and hope he revealed what had happened during that time they’d kidnapped him.
Today, we were all leaving Oklahoma, and heading for Idaho.
I glanced over at Liz, and my heart filled with warmth. And so much joy it nearly burst from my chest.
I slid over on top of her, kissing my way down her body, unable to resist. I loved this girl. And I would continue to love her for eternity. Not even in death would we part. Because Liz was my forever girl and she would be with me always.
She stirred, letting out a soft laugh. “You really are insatiable, you know that?”
I chuckled, suckling her breast into my mouth. “You love it, and you know it.”
She sighed. “I do. I love you, Ryan. It’s just so crazy that I fell I love with you so quickly.”
“Not crazy,” I murmured. “I’m just irresistible. You couldn’t help yourself.”
She snorted and smacked my arm. “Cocky, much?”
I snickered. “If it makes you feel any better, babe, I love you more. So, so much more…”
I took her mouth in a hot, wet kiss. She melted into me, kissing me back, proving that we fit together perfectly. Proving that she was okay with me being cocky every once in a while.
Someone knocked at the door.
Dammit. Go away.
I groaned, lifting my head.
“I’ll give you two guesses who you think that is.”
Liz chuckled. “Glenda.”
I shook my head and laughed. “I agree. It’s gotta be my mom. Only she would interrupt us when we’re about to get it on.”
Liz smacked my arm again playfully. “We’d better let her in.”
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