Unjustly Destroyed (Incapable Part Two)

by Marie Skye

  “I know how to load it.”

  He smirked. “It’s not a toy, doll.”

  I rolled my eyes. “It’s a 22 pistol. I know my guns, Ridge. And this isn’t what I want. I want a Beretta M9.” I handed him back the pistol.

  He smiled. “Well, fucking shit. I had you pegged wrong. My dick just got hard. Maybe we should fuck after all, make this shit as real as possible.” He winked at me. I crossed my arms and he held up his hands. “Okay fine, Beretta it is. He reached in his back pocket. He was like a damn magician.

  “Two grand.”

  My eyes widened. “They don’t even go for that much.”

  His stance firmed. “Two grand, doll. Including what you need for ammunition.”

  I sighed and gave him the other envelope. He peered in and smiled. He paused for a brief moment when he saw the Mandrake logo on the envelope, then stuffed it in his pocket. He extended his hand. “Pleasure doing business with you.”

  I tentatively extended mine. “Thanks.”

  He leaned in and whispered, “Best fuck ever,” and chuckled before opening the door.

  As we walked down the hall, the bar was packed, and I ran into Heather, who gave me a scrutinizing look. For all she knew, we both left separate bathrooms at the same time. At least I hoped that’s what she thought. I smiled at her. “I’m just going to tell Caleb bye, then we can go.” She nodded, looking at Ridge, who dipped his hat, already turning the corner, and left.

  I walked over to Caleb, who looked extremely anxious. “How’d it go?”

  I leaned in and whispered, looking around. Heather was still standing close. “It was fine. A bit easy actually.” I looked behind me at Heather, who was eyeing me like a hawk. “She’s really suspicious, so I should probably go.”

  He looked behind me eyeing Heather cautiously. “Be careful.” He leaned down, kissing me softly on the cheek, and gave me a hug.

  The ride home was silent. I felt Heather judging me the entire time. As if she thought I was cheating on Grayson. That wasn’t the case at all. Of course, if she knew what I was really doing, she would’ve put a stop to it, and Grayson would’ve had my ass. But I didn’t care. I made up my mind a long time ago. Way before Tyler died. The moment I saw him enter that hotel and threaten not only me, but everyone around me. I had to destroy him.

  Entering the apartment, I was thrown off to see Grayson home before me. I had no doubt Heather had told him where I was. He was sitting quietly in the living room, with the TV on low. I gently sat my bag down by the front door before joining him.

  "I didn't realize you would be home so soon."

  He watched me approach him carefully. I felt like he knew I was hiding something. "I wanted to see you. I didn't think you would be out though." He brushed his lips against mine.

  "Yeah, after I saw you, I went out for a bit."

  "Where to?"

  I sat in the chair across from him. "I went and checked out the bar Caleb works at now. It's nice." I could see his jaw clenching as he leaned back and crossed his leg over his knee.

  "How is Caleb?"

  "He's really good. He's working there part-time while going to law school. Doing really well for himself." I started to ramble, and did that for the next five minutes while Grayson stared at me, not saying a word. Finally, when I was done, he gave me a small smile.

  "What would you like for dinner, Emmalin?"

  I was thrown off by his question. "Um. I can make us something. Just let me changed first." He nodded as I slowly got up. I grabbed my bag I left by the front door, and went to the bedroom to change, throwing on a pair of yoga pants and a top. When I was sure he wasn't anywhere within distance, I placed the gun into a different bag, then went to the kitchen.

  I was still wrapping my hair into a top knot when I ran into Grayson in the kitchen, leaning against the counter. I smiled at him as I went over to the fridge and peered inside. “So, anything in particular? I know Magda froze a lot of stuff, but I can always make something. Maybe a quick stir-fry? I’m always down for breakfast for dinner, too.” I paused as I felt Grayson behind me, his erection digging into my back as he held me tightly against him. I braced myself against the fridge as his hands roamed up my body and teased my nipples, and I moaned against him.

  “Were his hands on you?” he whispered in my ear.

  I froze. My breathing picked up as his hands delved lower into the waistband of my pants. “He’s just a friend, Grayson, you know that.” I moaned as his hand started to rub my clit before dipping lower into my entrance.

  “Hmm, you’re wet. Really wet. Were you this wet when you saw him?” I gasped as he pinched my clit, and I shuddered, leaning my head back against his chest.

  “You know I only get wet for you. Right?” I tried to turn around, but he held me firm. "Why don't you believe me? Do you doubt anything I feel for you?"

  He inhaled sharply before backing up, and I finally turned around, seeing the slight pain in his eyes. I placed my hand over his chest, feeling his heartbeat. "Grayson? I'm yours. You know that."

  He stared at the ground as he spoke. "For the first time, I feel like I don't have control over anything, and I don't know what to do. I feel like I'm losing you. Like you'll be taken away from me, and I won't be there to stop it from happening. There's been too many close calls." He shut his eyes as he took a step back. "And what I want to do, what my gut tells me, is to end it.”

  My eyes grew wide at what he was implying, and my thoughts could barely form at what he just said. My mind started going a million miles an hour. This was all my fault. It was too much. I had expected this, so why was I surprised? I should’ve known, and probably should’ve expected it to happen sooner. This is good then, right? He deserved someone who wasn’t so fucked up. Who wasn’t a murderer, and who didn’t have a fucked up stepbrother looking to seek revenge. Not someone with a fucked up past. Yeah. End it now then. It’ll be fine. I’ll be fine. So why did I want to breakdown and scream and cry right now? Because he is breaking your fucking heart.

  “Emmalin.”

  I looked up at the sound of my name. Grayson was looking at me, concerned. He stepped forward, reaching his hand toward my face, and I moved back. Frowning, he stepped forward again and grabbed my bicep, as he brushed a tear off my face, and I turned my head to the side. Dammit, I didn’t even realize I was crying.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Um. I can be out in a week, maybe two, if that’s okay? I just need some time to find a place.” He gripped both my shoulders tightly, looking me in the eyes.

  “What are you talking about?”

  I looked at him, confused. “You said you were ending it.”

  He shook his head. “No. Dammit, Emmalin, that’s not what I was talking about.”

  I shoved him back, and he looked at me in bewilderment. “Well, don’t say shit like that to me because I can’t lose you too.” I slammed the refrigerator door and walked out of the kitchen. Grayson was hot on my heels. He spun me around and pushed me up against the wall. We stood so close, we could feel each other’s heartbeats.

  He lightly trailed my neck. “You’ll never lose me. I claimed you a long time ago.”

  After I was sure Grayson was asleep, I took out my phone and looked at the last message I received from Carson. It was sent weeks ago. I replied to it, not even sure if it would even send, but tried anyway.

  Me: I have the money

  Now, all I had to do was wait.

  Grayson

  “He’s fucked up pretty bad.”

  I nodded at the guard at the door. He was smiling as he let me thru the small room. The first thing that hit me was the stench. The smell of piss, blood, and shit. “How long has he been out?”

  “We just woke him. He doesn’t get more than fifteen at a time. That would deem us considerate now, wouldn’t it?”

  I turned on the light, and there in the chair sat Carson. He wasn’t even recognizable. They fucked him up good. Both eyes were swollen shut, some of his tee
th were on the floor, and he was losing blood. A part of me wanted him to die right there on the spot, the piece of shit. He looked up at me as best he could as I approached, and smiled.

  “The man that’s fucking my sister. Congratulations!” He coughed, and blood came out of his mouth. I rolled up my sleeves and punched him on each side.

  I grabbed him by his shirt. “She’s not your sister, you fucking piece of trash.” He laughed as I threw him back.

  “Oh, come on. This fight isn’t even fair. I’m all tied up,” he drawled on. I had to remind myself, I couldn’t kill him. Not just yet.

  “Who are you working with, Carson?”

  He laughed louder before spitting out blood. “Why? Afraid of something? Hurting me isn’t going to solve your problem. Killing me won’t either. If I come up missing, those pictures are set to go live to every major network.”

  I turned on him. “You think I give a shit about some pictures with me fucking some other women? I don’t give a damn about that. Release them. I don’t give a fuck.”

  He threw his head back and laughed. This guy was crazy as fuck. I didn’t have time for this. I headed for the door. “Oh, you will care! I promise you. You will fucking care. You will fucking care.”

  I headed back upstairs where Ruska was overlooking the streets. “He’s insane.” I took the Cuban out of his fingers and took a drag. Damn, that tasted good. He smiled at me.

  “He’s been rambling some bullshit ever since he’s been here. Nothing he’s said is coherent. Half the time, he acted like he didn’t even know what we were talking about. He just kept repeating the same shit.” I watched as Ruska lit up another Cuban. “I say we kill him. Get it over with.”

  I rubbed my head. I thought about Tyler being killed, then I thought about Emmalin. She sure as hell didn’t need any more of this shit in her life. “Wait a few days; see if you can drag anything out of him. Set him free, then make it look like an accident.”

  Ruska blew out a puff, and then smiled. “Consider it done.”

  Three days later, I received a text, with one word.

  Done

  For three days, I felt like I was holding my breath. I looked over at Emmalin. She was sleeping. Not peacefully. I debated waking her up, but instead wrapped my arms around her, and softly whispered in her ear that it was over. It was all finally over, and the first thing we could go back to doing was planning our lives together.

  Emmalin

  While Grayson was in the shower, I placed the gun in a bigger purse, deep inside. He wouldn't question my decision to change bags. I'm a woman. We do that. I still hadn't heard from Carson, and I was starting to get anxious. I was finally able to withdraw the money from my trust fund given to me by his father. If anything, he was right about that. He should have it. It was blood money. It probably wasn't enough to keep him quiet, but maybe it was enough to get him to go away. 7.25 million dollars. That's what I had. I laughed out loud. To think all these years, I could've easily used it. I was working multiple jobs. I could hardly afford to pay for insulin, there were days where I could barely eat, and skipped taking insulin because I was 'rationing' it because I adamantly refused to touch that money, which ultimately ended up making me sick. I shut my eyes, thinking back when Grayson found out I was still making hospital bill payments from two years ago.

  "So, I think I've finally mastered making chicken pot pie. Third time’s a charm, and I didn't burn the crust this time."

  Grayson chuckled as I set the dish on the table. "I love how domestic you've gotten. Makes me want to keep you barefoot and pregnant." He pulled me into his lap, and I cringed at the word pregnant, then quickly changed the subject.

  "Well, you haven't tried it yet, so it may not even be any good. And you know I'm never barefoot. I hate it." I got off his lap and scooped his serving onto a plate, as he poured us each a glass of white wine. "This is Magda's recipe, so I hope I did her justice."

  He smiled as he cooled his off then took a bite. "I love it."

  I smiled, and I started eating mine. We ate in silence a few moments, with just the sounds of our forks against the plates.

  "When do you start planning for your charity benefits?"

  "Typically around the spring time, I start seeing what hospitals could benefit the most. Speaking of, I paid off the rest of your hospital balance, from two years ago. How would you feel about going on a mini weekend vacation next month? Take some time away from the city. Just me and you. Sans clothes." He gazed at me, with that half smile, and a glint in his eyes.

  I was frozen mid-bite. He was so nonchalant about the hospital bill. I put my fork down and cleared my throat. "What did you say?"

  "Weekend getaway. No clothes."

  I waved my hand. "No. Not that. The hospital bill. You said, you paid off the rest of my hospital balance."

  He casually took a sip of his wine. “Yeah. What about it?”

  I stared at him in disbelief. “Why did you do that? How did you even know about that?” He leaned back in his chair. “Grayson, that was a $4,000 hospital bill I’ve been paying off, from an arranged payment plan.”

  “I’m a little perturbed you didn’t tell me about it. I came across it by accident; it was mixed in with my mail.”

  I shut my eyes. “You weren’t supposed to see that.”

  “Well, I did. And since we’re being honest with each other, I then ran a report on you, and any other bills you owed, I made sure they were taken care of as well.” My head snapped up as he poured himself a glass of wine, like what he said was completely normal. “Haven’t I made it clear that you’ll always be taken care of? Jesus, Emmalin, you don’t even need to work.”

  “So what? I do everything that you want me to do? You keep me under lock and key? You pay for everything, and I’ll have nothing of my own. And if this happens to go to shit, or you wake up one day and decide you no longer want me, you’ll throw me out, and I’ll have nothing but the sticks I came in with.”

  He calmly placed his glass down and was quiet for a moment. Just when I thought he wouldn’t say anything, he placed his hand over mine. His warm hand calmed me almost instantly, and I knew I was becoming irrational. “Do you remember when I told you I loved you?” I sighed, because none of this had to do with what we were talking about. He began rubbing his hand on mine. “Do you?”

  “Of course I do. Like it was yesterday.”

  “And what did I say? What were we talking about that day?”

  I looked down at our joining hands. “You sent me shopping. Alistair took me, and I was bothered by the prices in the store. So I walked out of there with nothing, except for the belt I bought, and handed you back your card. I was saving you money.” He quirked up the corner of his mouth in a slight grin. “Then I came home, and I was frustrated and overwhelmed about the whole thing.”

  “What did you tell me?” He urged me on.

  “I told you I was scared to be lost in you, and then you told me you loved me.” I smiled. “And you told me you wanted me lost in you, because you were lost in me.”

  He nodded. “I meant all of that. I still do. I always will. I plan on…” he stopped talking. “You’re mine, so I take care of mine. You don’t have to work, but I support the fact that you want to. But I sure as hell don’t want you saying you’re doing it because it’s future planning for when you decide I’ve had enough of us, because it sounds to me like you’re preparing for it. If you want out, tell me now.”

  I slowly stood up, and he watched my every moment. Shit. He was right. That’s exactly what I was doing. I was still using excuses. Even Tyler said the same thing, but I always felt like I needed that security. I thought back to lunch that previous day with Tyler and Chace. Grayson was running late.

  “I feel like we’re having our own little special lunch club. I’m used to fucking on lunch, and now I’m reduced to having lunch with you guys.”

  I watched as Chace took a sip of his scotch, then he winked at me. “You know you love it, don’t even
deny it.”

  “I’m pretty sure we all know who you’d rather be fucking.” Tyler didn’t miss a beat with his jab.

  Chace rolled his eyes, and looked back at me. “Where’s your husband, did he say what time he was getting here?”

  I laughed. “You guys are ridiculous with that. A girl moves in with her boyfriend, and society automatically labels them as husband and wife. People can’t live together anymore these days? Grayson and I are two different people. We’re far, far from that.” I laughed as I took a sip of my water. Chace and Tyler stared at me with amused grins on their faces and shared a look.

  “You know he’s going to marry you, right? Ooh, can I walk you down the aisle?”

  Tyler jabbed Chace in the side. “I’m her best friend. I get to walk her down the aisle. Besides, I’ve known her longer.” I sat there listening to both of these idiots talk as if I wasn’t even there.

  “Emmalin?”

  Grayson brought me back from my thoughts. “You’re right,” I whispered. “I’m so used to protecting myself, and preparing for the worst, that I didn’t think. You’ve told me time and time again that this was real.” My shoulders slumped. “I’m sorry.”

  He stood up, walking toward me. “Maybe I haven’t proven enough to you that this is real.”

  I shook my head. “You have. More than you know. It’s me. I just need to get over my relationship issues. I love you. I know that, and I want to be with you, but I also like some independency too.”

  I glanced up as Grayson entered the kitchen, and he leaned down and kissed me on the top of my head. “How would you feel about Abby and Noah staying with us for a few days? Meredith and her husband were wanting to take a trip and were thinking of hiring someone, but I told them if you were okay with it, we would love to have them.”

  I eyed him wearily as he watched me. I smiled, but I was also confused. “I would love that. I think it’s great, but I’m surprised you would agree to that. You barely let me go out, with everything going on, so you’re fine with them coming here?”