She nodded and did something that she never did before in her entire life. Reaching out, she let another person hold her up when she was weak.
Vivian leaned on her husband and handed him all her trust.
They waited for them out on the couch. When Justin came through the door with Vivian tucked protectively under his arm, they both knew that he managed to patch up the misunderstanding.
Julian and Tori also knew that she was finally ready to tell them everything about the dream.
Justin sat on the couch and pulled his wife down into his lap to lean against his body. He didn't want her away from him for a single second.
“I’m sorry,” Vivian said softly.
Immediately, Tori took her icy hand in hers and patted it. “Family doesn’t have to apologize for things like this, ever.”
Julian continued, “You’re one of us now and that matters. We’ll stand by you when you need us, Vivian.”
She nodded and closed her eyes. “He’s taken another woman. This time in the dream, I was her. I could see myself running from him. He’s drugging the victims, or at least with Melissa and the last woman.”
“Was everything red like last time?” Tori asked, wondering if they would be retrieving another dead victim.
“No, this time I was drugged and everything was out of focus. It was like looking through a kaleidoscope. There was no color, probably because it was late at night.”
Julian held his phone on his knee as he recorded everything that she said. They would need to listen to it in the morning, to make sure they didn't miss anything, and share it with the rest of the team.
“What else can you tell us?”
She brought her hand to the side of her neck, as if she was trying to recall something. “There was pain, right here.” Vivian indicated a spot more towards the back of her hair line.
“Okay, tell me what you felt after being drugged,” Julian asked. It might help them narrow down a drug, and that could lead to the man behind the abductions.
“I was dizzy, woozy, and off balance. I remember looking down at the ground and seeing my clothes and feet. I was wearing a skirt. It was black, I think…” Then, she continued, “I was barefoot.”
Tori thought about all of that. “Okay, so if he tried to abduct our woman, could it have been from her home? Since she wasn’t wearing shoes?”
Vivian closed her eyes. “I don’t know. The woods this time weren’t anything memorable. The trees were closely bunched together, and I was stumbling along until I finally fell. I remember rolling to my back to see him, but my vision was skewed.”
“Anything else?” Tori asked, as she continued to hold the woman’s hand.
“Yes, right before I passed out in the dream, he drugged me again, and was laughing. He didn't speak, but he was actually enjoying it this time. With the last dream, he wanted to kill. This time it was like this was some sick sport, and he was reveling in it.”
Justin remained silent the entire time. He couldn’t even comprehend what his wife was feeling. Living these dreams had to be sheer hell.
At least when he had a nightmare, it was from his own past, and he could work his way through it. Poor Vivian was forced to endure someone else’s hell.
“There’ll be another dream,” she added, softly. “I know that I need to go to sleep and just get it over with.”
Julian placed his hand on top of hers while his wife held it. “You can do this, Vivian. We’re going to be right here, and we promise to say with you until you wake up.”
She nodded. “I believe you.”
Pushing up from Justin’s lap, she ran her fingers over his cheek. “I’ll go lay down.”
He kissed her fingertips and knew there had to be so much emotion in his eyes. “I’ll be right in,” he promised.
When she was gone, he stared blankly ahead.
“I’ll go sit with her,” Tori offered, knowing that her brother-in-law was still too shaken up to do it.
“Thank you, Tor.”
She headed in to keep her new friend, and sister, company for what was coming. She understood the hell that she was facing. Nightmares could rattle you to the core. Tori lived with them all the time.
Julian watched his wife head into his brother’s room, and he leaned forward. “I’ve got you, Justin,” he promised as he placed his hand on his shoulder. “I’ll carry you through this.”
He stared into Julian’s eyes. “I’m not worried about me. I’m used to hell. I’m worried about her.”
Julian knew exactly how Justin felt. “Welcome to marriage.”
* * *
This one barely weighed anything.
Carrying her into the house was incredibly easy. He had to admit that she was going to be the centerpiece to the collection. Where Melissa was pretty, Bridget Green was gorgeous. It was that black hair and tiny little frame.
She was his dream woman.
While he had her, he was going to treat her like porcelain. Nothing could happen to her. In fact, she was going to be his treasure. He thought about the woman in the cage in his basement and distaste filled him. At first, she seemed like a good choice, but now he saw that it had been nothing more than a boyhood crush.
But what could he do with her? His DNA was all over the woman, and if he killed her, the cops would figure it out. There were too many mistakes made with Tawny James. He couldn’t go there again.
This time, he would be patient. It looked like Melissa would have to wait to find out her fate. As of now, it was up in the air.
Heading past the couch, he glanced over at his mother sitting there silently. She stared at him disapprovingly, with her hollow eyes, but he didn't give a shit. Let her be a bitch.
Her time would come too.
Heading to the basement door, he rested Bridget on the floor to undo the three padlocks. He’d added one with each prize. It was his way of keeping track of them. There was one for each woman who he acquired for his collection. Soon, he’d be adding a fourth, but that could wait.
Tonight was all about Bridget.
She was his center jewel in the crown, and he wanted to enjoy it while he could.
Carefully, he carried her down to the basement and placed her on the mattress on the floor. First, he would prep her and get her ready. Next, he would enjoy her while the other one watched. She’d always been drugged, so she couldn’t enjoy the fun.
Now, she would see exactly what he liked to do with his collection of women.
Immediately, she began screaming, and it made his head pound. The rage was returning, and he didn't know if he could keep it in control.
“Shut up!” he roared at her. It must have scared her, because she finally did what he asked. “I will drug you again, and if I use too much it will kill you.”
Melissa made some whimpering sound from the cage.
He decided he wasn’t going to chance it. Grabbing the duct tape, he ripped off a piece and headed towards her. Opening the lock, he grabbed her by the throat and squeezed until her eyes bulged and lips quivered as they fought for air.
When some of the fight was gone, he slapped the tape over her mouth. Now, he could get to work and enjoy all his planning and effort.
Making sure to relock the cage, he headed back to Bridget. Already her eyes were fluttering and her pulse was returning to normal. This would be even better. His acquisition was waking up. Quickly, he stripped her and then himself.
It was time to enjoy his hard work.
He glanced at Melissa. “You’re next,” he taunted as he enjoyed the look on her face.
“But first, it’s time for my sweet Bridget. Isn’t it, pet?”
* * *
Vivian sat up and pushed away from the three people who were sitting around her on the bed. She was finally free from the nightmare and was feeling sick to her stomach.
This one had been the worst of them all.
Rushing from the bed, she raced once more to the bathroom. This time it wasn’t to hide, but to
purge everything in her body.
As the door slammed behind her, she just made it to the toilet before her stomach emptied.
God, she never wanted to dream again.
Not if it was going to be like that.
Tori slipped off the bed and put her hand on Justin’s shoulder. “Let me do this.”
He nodded and closed his eyes.
For the last forty five minutes, they had sat there and watched her living through the horrible nightmare. No one dared to try and wake her, since they knew she had to come out of it on her own. Towards the end, the violent motions stopped, and she lay there almost like a corpse. The only signs of life were the breathing and the tears streaming from closed eyes.
Justin knew that whatever had been happening in her mind, wasn’t pretty.
“She’s going to be okay,” Julian reassured.
He shook his head. “I wish I believed that, Jules. I don’t know how to help her. I feel useless.”
His brother sat beside him shoulder to shoulder. “And you always will when it comes to your wife. Every time she goes to work you’ll be scared, and when your phone rings, you’ll always wonder if it’s someone calling to tell you she was hurt. It’s the burden we carry.”
He glanced over. “I didn't know love would hurt this much.”
Julian knew what he meant. “Yeah, neither did I, bro.”
“I don’t know if I can watch her hurt,” he whispered.
Julian took a page from Tori’s book. “Man up, Marine. Right now, you have no choice.”
Tori knelt beside her and held her hair back until the woman finished purging. There had been many nights where she had woken up and been just as sick. What she needed now was to get it out, and then the reward of a hot shower. Tori knew that it always made her feel better.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered, as she wiped her mouth.
“It’s okay, Vivian. You didn't do anything wrong,” Tori reassured her.
“It was bad,” she murmured.
They sat on the floor side by side. “Want to tell me about it?”
Vivian needed someone she could trust. “If I tell you something, can you not tell Justin?” she asked.
Tori didn't believe in keeping secrets, but then she knew it must be something huge for the woman to ask her to do it. “Will it hurt him more to know?”
She nodded.
“Go ahead, tell me.”
“He’s raping the women he keeps.”
Tori was disgusted by the information. Poor Vivian had just lived through hell. “I understand why you don’t want to tell him, but I think you need to do it. He’s your husband.”
She was shaking. “I was trapped in her body. I couldn’t get free,” she whispered while the tears began to fall.
Tori wrapped her arms around her. “It’s okay, Vivian. Do you want me to tell them?”
She stared into the woman’s stormy eyes. “I’m a cop and I’m supposed to be stronger than this,” she began, “but I just don’t know if I can look Justin in the face and say the words.”
Tori helped her stand. She turned on the shower and pointed to the spray. “The heat will warm you up. I’ll take care of the rest.”
“Thank you, Tori,” she whispered, and then hugged the woman. She clung for a few minutes until she was strong enough to let go.
“You don’t have to thank me. We Littlemoons stick together.”
She began stripping, and then headed into the shower.
“I’ll handle the men and get you some fresh clothes.”
Vivian closed the shower curtain and stood beneath the scalding hot water. Now, she would try and wash it all away, so that she could face her husband and brother-in-law. The only thing racing through her mind was how she really hoped they caught this bastard.
Soon!
When Tori left the bathroom, she found the men sitting on the bed. Justin looked nervous as hell and Julian looked worried for his brother. As she exited, they both glanced up at her, expectantly.
“She’s going to be okay.”
Justin stood. “It was bad, wasn’t it?”
Tori just nodded. “She needs some clean clothes and to just get her bearings.”
Justin began digging through her overnight bag. “I’ll take them in to her.”
She stopped him at the door. “Justin, you need to know something first.”
Both men looked at her.
“The man who’s taking these women, he’s sexually assaulting them.”
There was a deafening silence in the room.
“Are you saying that,” he began, and then was unable to continue. There was a really good chance that he too, was going to be sick.
Tori didn't have to answer that. All it took was the simple nod of her head.
Time passed slowly before the eruption. They expected it to happen, and as predicted, Justin lost it.
All the pain, frustration, and rage bubbled over in one giant explosion. He flipped the mattress and threw the lamp across the room, breaking it into pieces.
Julian stood protectively in front of his wife, but made no move to stop his brother. He completely understood what the man was feeling. If Julian were in his place, he would probably do the same thing.
Or worse.
“God damn it!” he raged, as he kicked the shit out of anything in his way. When he turned towards his family and moved towards them, he noticed that his brother prepared for confrontation.
It made him pause.
Julian saw the fire and anger, and then watched it being replaced with pure raw pain. As Justin stood in the center of the room motionless, he moved towards him and wrapped his arms around his brother.
“Don’t worry, Justin. I have you,” he whispered.
Tori went to his back and mimicked her husband’s actions. She placed her arms around him and rested her cheek on his shoulder. “We have you, Marine. We’ll all get through this as a family,” she promised.
He shook with pain.
Everything in him ached for her. How was he supposed to protect her in her dreams? At least in life, he could act as her shield, but this was an affront to his manhood. Justin couldn’t keep his wife safe when she went to sleep in their own bed.
They both continued to soothe him.
“She doesn’t need this right now,” Tori whispered. “She needs you to hold up. She didn't want to tell you.”
He shook more at Tori’s words.
“She wanted to protect your heart, Justin, and now you need to do the same for her.”
Julian agreed. “You need to go in there and tell her it’s all right. Tell her that you two are stronger than this. Marriage isn’t easy, and you can’t let her be ashamed of this. Don’t make her carry this alone, or over time, it will chip away at what you’re trying to build.”
He nodded.
“You can do it, Justin,” Tori whispered.
Justin took a minute to be weak. He hugged his brother tight and closed his eyes. “I love you, Julian,” he finally said. Then, he turned and hugged Tori. “I love you too. Thank you for taking care of her.”
She kissed him on the cheek. “Go be with your wife, Justin. You need to be her husband and love her enough to get her through this.”
He released Tori. “I’m sorry,” he said, as he motioned to the room.
“We’ll handle it,” Julian replied.
When he was gone, they began picking up the destruction. Tori wished that she could tell what her husband was thinking. Usually, he was an open book, but this time her husband wasn’t showing anything on the outside.
“What’s going on in your head?”
“I’m going to find this guy and kick the shit out of him for hurting my brother,” he answered.
Tori went to him and tucked his hair behind his ears. “We’ll kick the shit out of him together.”
He kissed her gently on the lips. “We will.”
Damn right they would.
No one hurt one of their family.
He found her in the shower and immediately, his brother’s words came rushing back to him. No matter how brutal his hurting was, Justin needed to heal the woman who owned his heart.
She was his priority.
Pulling off his shirt and stripping down, he took the chance that he would be welcomed into the shower. He knew what Tori had said, but he had to hope that she wouldn’t push him away.
When the curtain rustled, Vivian turned to stare at him. The pain in his eyes told her that he was well aware of what had happened in her dream, and he too was struggling with it.
“Vivian,” he murmured, as he stood there. He was unsure if she would want to be touched or left alone.
“Oh, Justin,” she blurted and moved towards him.
Immediately, relief flooded him. She wasn’t going to pull away, but go to him. He wrapped his arms around her and stood beneath the spray with Vivian. As she wept against his shoulder and buried her face in his neck, all that Justin could do was hold her.
“It was horrible,” she whispered.
Again, he simply listened and offered comfort. The light kisses across her shoulder and cheek brought peace to them both. “I’m here, baby. I’m sorry that I couldn’t keep you safe.”
She looked into his eyes. “This isn’t your fault, Justin. Please don’t let this hurt us.”
He shook his head. “Never. We’re just as strong as we were when we took our vows. Nothing will ever break us, Vivian. I’m here for you.”
His words touched her. Slowly, the warmth began to return and the need to erase the memories rose up in her. The feather light kisses became more heated and showed him that she still wanted his touch.
“Vivian,” he whispered, as the naked woman began rubbing against him.
“Make me forget, Justin,” she begged. “Replace the evil with love. I want to feel us and stop thinking about him.”
His hands traced her flesh as he found himself wanting to forget too. Right then, he wanted to give her something to fill the void and patch up her heart.
Blood Red Rage (LIttlemoon Investigations Book 1) Page 31
