by Ruby Vincent
He nodded.
“Good.” I continued down my list. “I’ll tell her they’re guarding her, but I want them protecting her even if she disagrees. If that happens, they have to hang back and blend in, but she’s never to be alone except when she’s home. She’s safe with her parents.
“I told you I suspected the hundred-dollar-bill guy of being a part of it. He wore black like the others and they attacked me immediately after she left for smaller bills. I wrote down what he looked like,” I said. “There’s him and then... Shawn.”
I spat the name like it burned. “I didn’t recognize him until he said Sofia, instead of Richards. We met him once and he belted out her name like a jackass. I noticed then that he pronounced it SOH-fia, and not So-FI-a like most people.”
And once I realized he was involved, I made the connection to the smell of my attacker and Logan who always smelled of musk and pine.
“Do you have a last name?” he asked.
“Yes, I looked him up on Facebook.” I tapped the name written on my sheet. “Shawn Dimov. Physics major. Between the two of them, I’ll get the name of the others.”
“You want us to interrogate them,” he stated.
“I’m not asking anyone to do anything illegal, but having armed guards at my back while I speak to them should loosen their tongues.”
“What exactly do you intend to do once you’ve identified them all?”
I met his gaze steadily. “It doesn’t matter. That part comes after and no one else will be involved.”
He inclined his head, acknowledging the terms.
“As for Sofia,” I continued. “She’s going out with Hudson tonight and she’s safe. I expect she’ll get back late—if not tomorrow morning. While she’s out is the perfect time to find Dimov. Can the men meet me tonight to track him down?”
“They certainly can meet you tonight, Miss Moon. I already have the men in mind. What time would you like them to be here?”
“Nine o’clock.”
“Nine it is.”
A wash of gratitude propelled me out of my seat. I hugged him. “Thank you so much, Jacob.”
The guard didn’t return my embrace, but he didn’t pull away either. “The men who harmed you will be found, Miss Moon. I can assure you.”
I gave him another squeeze and then stepped back. “One more thing,” I said. “Promise me you won’t tell Ryder, Jaxson, Ezra, Maverick, or Caroline about this.”
“I promise.”
“I will tell them myself, but after I’ve dealt with it.” I gripped his forearms. This was the most I’ve touched or spoken to this man in years. “This is to protect them. I won’t have them do something they can’t come back from.”
He gently removed my hands. “I promise, Miss Moon. This will stay between you, me, and the guards I assign. May I have the name and descriptions?”
I placed it on his palm.
“I must get back to Caroline,” he said. “Will you be safe here? I can have someone posted outside in thirty minutes.”
“I’m safe. I’m not planning on leaving this room anytime soon and I’m surrounded by women who are... not to be messed with,” I finished.
He nodded. “Thank you for coming to me with this.”
“No, thank you, Jacob.”
I felt lighter after he walked out the door. The horror of that night clung to my skin like film. It crawled under the torment of phantom fingers and hungry gazes. As awful as Logan’s wide, shocked eyes seeking me in my nightmares.
That night would plague me forever, but with Jacob’s help, I could move forward and right the wrongs done to me.
I passed the hours in Sofia’s room reading, watching TV, and texting Caroline about Adam. My baby was safe, comfortable, and asking for me.
Me: I’ll be home soon. I promise.
“Val, are you sure?” Sofia plopped on top of me, dragging my attention away from my phone. “I can stay. I want to stay. Hudson and I can go out anytime. You need me more.”
“It’s been nice having time and quiet to deal with what happened.” I poked her side. “I want you to go and have fun. If I need you, I’ll call.”
“Promise?”
“Yes.”
It took some more cajoling, but at eight thirty I finally got her out of the room. I climbed back in her bed to wait.
Punctual as ever, Jacob texted me at eight fifty-nine.
Jacob: They are downstairs.
Me: On my way.
I jumped out of bed and hurried downstairs.
First, we’ll go over Sofia’s protection. Then we’ll speak to Shawn. If he gives up his friends and the photos without a problem, I won’t have to call my hacker. My best friend will be safe while I make them pay one by one.
“Coming,” I called at the door. I jogged past the girls watching a movie in the living room and threw it open. “Thanks...”
My greeting died on my lips. Ryder, Maverick, Ezra, and Jaxson loomed over me, the expressions on their faces ones I never wanted to see.
Quickly, I covered my mouth.
Ryder’s hand flashed out and pulled it away. His silver eyes flashed like lightning within his thunderous face, and it burned through to my core.
“They’re dead.”
The harsh, frightening hiss loosened my tongue. “Why are you here?” I croaked. “Jacob promised me—”
“Jacob works for the Shea family. He keeps our secrets. He doesn’t keep secrets from us,” Ryder said. “He knows he’d be fucking dead too if he didn’t tell me.”
Tears sprung unbidden to my eyes. Of course he told them. I was stupid to think he wouldn’t. “I don’t want you to do anything,” I cried. “I—”
Ezra held up the paper I gave Jacob. “It’s too late for that. Shawn Dimov is getting a visit from us tonight. Maverick already found his dorm.”
My eyes snapped between the four of them, reading their intent so clearly my stomach twisted. I didn’t give a fuck about Shawn Dimov. I wouldn’t shed a tear if he was run over by a flaming truck twice. But I did not want my boys driving that truck.
Leighton killed a man for me and it was a lash on my soul that would never disappear. My loves being driven to it would destroy me.
“What are you going to do?” I whispered.
“I haven’t decided yet. Every new punishment I come up with is more inventive than the last. I’m waiting until the right one hits me.”
“I’ll come with you,” I tried. “To make sure it doesn’t get out of hand.”
They didn’t bother voicing their denial. In unison, all four silently shook their heads.
What could I do? They knew his name. They knew where to find him and I couldn’t hold back all four of them. And in that acceptance, the fight went out of me.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered. “You must be so angry with me.”
“No, Val,” said Maverick.
Ryder tugged my wrist. I stumbled into his chest. Surprise stopped my tears as he held me. “You have nothing to apologize for,” he said gruffly. “We’re sorry you didn’t feel like you could come to us. But we’re here now, Val, and we’re going to take care of you.”
Something in me broke. The pain, fear, trauma, and loneliness of the past three days surged out.
I cried loud, stomach-clenching wails as my boys surrounded me.
Behind me, footsteps signaled my cries attracted an audience.
“Valentina? What’s wrong?” Blair asked.
“She’ll be okay,” Ezra replied. “We’re here now.”
EZRA
We took Valentina home. She cried the entire drive, curled up against Maverick’s chest as he whispered sweet, soothing things in her ear.
A feeling I couldn’t name swelled inside of me as her sobs filled the car. When Jacob relayed everything Valentina told him, I thought at that moment that I might be capable of anything. As I listened to her cry, I knew I was.
Jaxson carried her inside and up to his room. We washed and dressed her in s
oft, warm pajamas. After, we brought her to the one person who could comfort her as well as we could: Adam.
We placed her next to the sleeping child and drew the covers to her chin. Her hand shot out and grabbed me as I moved away. I read in her eyes that she wanted us to stay. It was the hardest thing I ever had to do to place her hand back on the pillow and walk out of the room.
Ryder shut the door softly behind us.
“Which dorm?” I asked Maverick.
“McAshton. Room 3112.”
I reached for the paper. “And the other guy Val described?”
“Too many guys fit that description. Dimov’s friends on social media hardly narrowed it down.”
Jaxson pushed through us. “Then let’s ask Dimov for the name. I’m sure we can get him into a sharing mood.”
“Agreed”
We marched out. The ride back to campus was made in silence. There was nothing we had to say to each other that hadn’t already been said during the hours we waited for nine o’clock. For ten minutes, the biggest shock of my day was Jacob away from Caroline’s side and speaking to me. Then he brought me to the living room where Maverick, Jaxson, and Ryder waited and told the news Valentina brought to him, not us.
We went back and forth—raging, shouting, breaking every expensive thing in the room. We made up our minds to storm the Sally house. Caroline stopped us in the front hall.
“Val will be waiting for you at nine o’clock,” she said. “Get yourselves under control by then. What she needs is love, support, and for you to know she kept this from you to protect you. Even now she puts you four first. Show her it’s okay for her to need you.”
It was as close to impossible as an act could be, but we waited... and we planned.
Ryder killed the engine near McAshton House. We got out, walked across the empty lawn, and let ourselves inside. The ride up the elevator was charged with rising emotion. The sooner we got to him, the more I shook.
It opened, letting us out directly in front of 3112. We fanned out in front of the door and Ryder knocked.
We heard movement inside, and then the door flew open. Shawn Dimov took one look at us and his jaw stuck half open. He paled.
“Good,” I said. “You know who we are.”
Maverick punched him dead in the face. His neck snapped all the way around and he hit the ground—out cold.
We stepped over his body and streamed inside. The click of the lock was a clanging bell, signaling a line would be crossed to which none of us could return.
Jaxson took hold of him and propped him against the dresser. While he did so, I gazed around the room of the man who dared to touch Valentina.
It was a mess. Dirty laundry, crumpled paper, and food crumbs littered the floor. The stench permeating the air pointed to how long it’d been since he washed those clothes. On the walls, half-naked women smiled and smirked at me. It was a typical guy’s room, but there was nothing typical about Shawn Dimov or what he and his friends chose to do to Val, and wanted to do to Sofia.
But it will be the last mistake he ever makes.
“Laptop,” I said, arriving at the desk.
Maverick went over and turned it on. “If he has the pictures on his computer...” He stopped. The muscles in his jaw ticked. Jacob didn’t get through telling us about the photos before Maverick flipped over the television.
“I’ll find them,” he continued.
The three of us watched in silence as Maverick did what he did. If his computer was clean and Maverick found proof he went to a movie that night or something, we had an apology to give. But Val was certain he was one of the men, and that was enough for us.
“Anything?” Jaxson burst out.
“I think so,” Maverick replied. “I found a file hidden on the hard drive but I haven’t gotten it open yet. He’s smarter than we thought.”
“Can you get in?” Ryder asked.
Maverick leveled us with a look. “I’ll get in.”
The tapping of keys were the only sounds in the room for a solid ten minutes. None of us would interrupt him. What he found on that computer would determine the course of the night.
“I’m in.”
We surged forward. Ryder, Jaxson, and I leaned over Maverick as he clicked on the untitled folder. A string of items with no icons greeted us.
He chose the first one.
Maverick shot out of the chair. It would have toppled into me if I wasn’t already across the room, towering over Dimov.
“Wake him up,” I hissed.
Ryder chose to do that by banging his head once, twice, three times against the dresser. Shawn came to groaning. He peeled his eyes open, finding us standing above him. His lips twisted.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he shouted. “You can’t—”
Jaxson socked him across the jaw. “Don’t speak,” he said dispassionately. “Just listen.” He flexed his knuckles. “And don’t make me have to tell you again.”
Blood trickled from the corner of Shawn’s mouth. The false bravado vanished and fear flickered in his eyes.
Good.
I crouched down in front of him. “This is how it’s going to go,” I began. “I am going to ask you questions, and you’re going to answer those questions with nothing but the truth. If you lie or try to justify what you’ve done, you will regret it. Do you understand me?”
His tongue darted out to lick his dry lips. “I haven’t done anything. You’re making a mistake.”
“Ryder,” I said.
Ryder buried his fist in Shawn’s gut. He doubled over and Jaxson yanked him back up by the neck.
“I told you not to lie to me. We found the pictures.”
Blood and spittle flew from his mouth as he sucked in ragged breaths. “Stop!”
Jaxson raised his fist again.
“No, I’ll answer!”
“Excellent.” An icy calm gripped me. I never felt more secure in what I needed to do. “First question, what hand did you use to touch our girlfriend? Which one held her down? Which one violated her?”
He stared at me, eyes wide. “I-I don’t—”
“Do you need a reminder of what happens when you don’t answer?” I asked.
Slowly, Shawn raised his right hand. Jaxson seized it.
“What are you doing?” he shouted.
Jaxson forced his hand onto his knee, palm down.
“Next question,” I continued. “What are the names of the other men who attacked her?”
“Names?”
I balled my fist. “I’m going to add another rule about making me repeat myself. Last chance. Give us their names.”
Shawn’s eyes rolled in his head, darting between the four of us. If he was looking for mercy, he found none. He finally landed on me.
“I-I know you,” he said. “I know who your mother is.” Shawn straightened. “If you think I’m going to give a big confession for you to blast all over MMBC, you’re a fucking idiot.”
I listened expressionlessly.
“You think you got me because you found some pictures?” Shawn spat, gathering steam. “I downloaded those off a porn site and you can’t even see the girl’s face. What’s the sentence for that?” He barked a laugh. “You want to beat me up? Do it. And get me in the face because it’ll look great to a judge when I get all of you for assault!”
He smirked in my face. “Oops. I broke one of your precious rules.” Shawn raised his chin. “Go ahead. Get me in the nose this time. I—”
I grasped his index finger and wrenched it back until I heard the snap.
Ryder was quick. He stuffed a dirty t-shirt in Shawn’s mouth as he howled.
The boy threw himself back, screaming as tears leaked from his eyes. Ryder and Maverick clamped down and held him still, preventing him from ripping out of Jaxson’s grasp.
“I should have explained,” I said evenly. “The cost of further pissing me off isn’t a few punches or kicks. It’s the breaking of every finger you put on Valentin
a.” I tapped each one in turn. “If you haven’t learned by then, I move to the next hand.”
Shawn whipped his head side to side, pleading through the white of his eyes.
“If after I’ve broken all of your fingers, you still haven’t answered my questions, I’ll break the arms that held her down. I’ll break the legs that ran after Sofia—one of the sweetest, kindest people I’ve ever known.” I leaned in close. “And then I’ll break your ribs... for fun.”
Shawn tossed his head wildly, his muffled shouts getting louder.
The beast in me woke. It shook off sleep, uncoiled its body, and spread through me, filling the deepest corners of my being. I wasn’t Ezra Lennox. I wasn’t the mannequin man. I was new. Forged in the flames of trauma, nursed by resentment and rage, held down by shackles of civility, and then ignited by love. I was now what Valentina Moon needed me to be.
Ruthless.
“You’re right, Shawn,” I said. “After all of that, you’ll appear incredibly sympathetic to a judge, but then the question is, how much pain can you withstand?” I clapped my hands. “I’m eager to find out. What about you boys?”
“Oh, yeah,” said Jaxson.
“Definitely,” Maverick threw in.
“Let’s take turns,” Ryder said.
“I’m going to try this again,” I said. “What are their names?” I pulled the shirt out of his mouth.
The words poured out of him in a rush. “King Paxton, Brandon Kollie, Finn Joseph.”
“And?” I prompted when he didn’t say more. “There were five of you.”
Shawn dropped his head. “The fifth guy was Chance Smith.”
My eyes narrowed. “You just lied to me, didn’t you?”
“No,” he cried. “No, I didn’t.”
“Avoiding eye contact. Using the most common last name in the country for your fake one. The Media Maven herself taught me what to look for in an interview, Dimov.” I tsked, shaking my head. “I warned you what would happen if you lie.”
“No! N—”
Maverick stuffed the shirt back in. The crunch of his middle finger echoed through the room.
“We’re going to try this again,” I said to him.
Dimov’s bright red cheeks ballooned as he tried to suck air in through the fabric. Tears, snot, and blood ran down his face, soaking the shirt. His cocky-shit act was over.
