by Ella Miles
Caius sits on the bench next to me, staring at me with guilt in his eyes. My eyes are closed, but I can feel his guilt pouring out of him.
“You can stop looking at me like that.”
“No, I can’t. This is all my fault. You wouldn’t have had to endure any of that if my stupid ass hadn’t gotten captured and needed rescuing.”
I open my eyes. “My back and wrists will heal. We didn’t finish the ceremony, and I didn’t sign anything, so I’m not married. And…”
He stares at me intently.
“And other than smashing his lips against mine and palming my breasts, he didn’t touch me. Everything he did I can heal from within a few days. So you can feel sorry about your part in deciding to drug me, tie me up, and scare me into talking to you guys, but don’t blame yourself for me sacrificing myself to save you. That was my decision, not yours.”
Caius hangs his head between his legs. I’m not sure if I got through to him, but I hope so. I can’t stand watching him, or any man tear themselves up because they failed to protect me. They can call me Princess all they want, but I never asked to be one. I don’t want to be a damsel in distress. I want to be able to protect myself.
“Why did you trade? Why did you save me?” he asks.
I stare at him, finally realizing that part of his shame comes from needing to be rescued. I feel the same. We both want to be strong, independent, and self-sufficient. We want to be able to save ourselves. Before Beckett, Caius was the leader of his crew. He wants to appear strong, not weak.
“I don’t have a good answer for that. Maybe I thought it was the only way we were all getting out of there alive. Maybe I knew you’d all come to rescue me, and I wanted to prove to you guys that you couldn’t threaten me while saving me. Maybe I was foolish enough to think that Paxton couldn’t do anything to me that I couldn’t endure.”
“You’re strong, Ri. One of the strongest people I’ve met, and I don’t think I’ve seen the depth of your strength yet. I’m not even sure if you recognize your own strength. There is nothing you can’t get through.”
“I thought so, but being threatened by Paxton changed my perspective. There are definitely some things I’m not sure I’m strong enough to survive. Or at least things that will take a lot longer to heal from.”
Caius stiffens, and I think he’s going to promise to protect me from the things I can’t survive. But he thinks better of it, because he wouldn’t be able to keep his promise.
I try to clear my mind and think of something else when I realize that I’ve seen all of the guys except Beckett, and none of them have mentioned him. Is that one of the reasons all of the guys are so emotional—Beckett didn’t make it?
My heart clenches at the thought of Beckett being injured or killed, but I have to know.
“Did Beckett…? Did Beckett make it?”
Caius frowns. “Beckett is meeting us at the cabin.”
It’s clear from what Caius isn’t saying. Beckett didn’t want to come save me. The rest of the guys went rogue and saved me on their own. I’m nothing to Beckett, not even an innocent girl worthy of his men’s time to rescue. I deserved my fate.
I like the rest of the guys, and I know Beckett is married, but I thought we still shared some small connection. I thought he at least wanted me to help get Odette back. I thought we had a shot at being friends, if not allies, but now I know what Beckett and I really are—enemies.
14
Beckett
I pace back and forth in the cabin that serves as a safe house for the Retribution Kings. Even though the guys have accepted me as their leader, I’m not initiated yet, so Caius had to be the one to arrange the safe house with his father, who is technically still the leader. I never wanted to be a leader, but if it helps me get Odette back, I’ll do whatever stupid initiation task it takes for me to have that power. And after I get Odette back, she and I will have a long talk about our future.
Unfortunately, that time will not be today. The lead Langston gave us brought us to a dead end. My heart lightens, knowing that she at least left the hotel alive. There’s a chance she’s still alive.
I glance at the clock on my phone; they should be back by now. Anxiety ripples through my body at all the different outcomes. Gage, Hayes, and Lennox should be relatively safe since the plan was for them to stay on the boat unless absolutely necessary to help in the rescue. Ri and Caius were most at risk, and any number of things could go wrong.
Yes, Ri has the best chance at giving me the information I need to get Odette back, but my anxiety is more than that. Ri doesn’t deserve to die. Caius and the rest of the guys are slowly growing on me. I didn’t grow up having much family.
I didn’t even know my half-brother existed until recently. Even though I have a lot of friends I can call family now, these guys accepted me into their group immediately. They’ve been following orders and risking their lives to help me get my wife back. My responsibility is to keep them safe. And if I sent them on a mission that results in their deaths, I’m the one who has to take the blame and carry the guilt for the rest of my life.
It’s not something I’m used to; I’d rather risk my own life. But I can’t accomplish everything I need to by myself. I need their help. If this mission fails, it will just prove that my self-doubt is warranted.
I just hate waiting here doing nothing and hoping that everything turns out okay.
A low buzzing of an engine lifts my spirits—they’re here.
I run out of the cabin and down through the woods toward the dock. The cabin is well hidden in the woods, and there is a small dock where the lake juts into the land, making the boat easy to hide from the lake as well. No one would know there is a cabin here unless they already knew of its existence.
The speedboat pulls into the small enclave as I stand on the dock, silently doing a headcount. One, two, three, four, five.
I let out a breath. They are all safe.
Lennox tosses me the rope, and I tie the boat up as it glides in. Lennox jumps onto the dock first, looking angry as usual. He nods his head at me then stomps toward the cabin without a word.
Gage climbs out next with a backpack full of electronics.
“The mission was successful?” I ask.
“Yes, but...” He glances back and then thinks better of whatever he was going to say. He pats my shoulder and then walks toward the cabin after Lennox. Hopefully, he’ll get to work finding any other clues we’ve overlooked of who has Odette.
I turn my attention back to the boat. Even though I counted heads, I didn’t get a good look at everyone’s condition. Hayes stands in front of Ri and Caius—the ones I’m most concerned about.
Hayes jumps onto the dock and then turns to hold his hand out to Ri.
My mouth gapes at her. She’s soaking wet as expected but wearing a fluffy white wedding dress and tiara on top of her still dripping dark hair. Her lips are tight, and her eyes seem to be throwing daggers at me as she takes Hayes’s hand. I notice the wraps around her wrists—no doubt from the rope that I tied the previous day.
She steps barefoot onto the deck.
“Thank god, you’re okay,” I say.
Her eyes narrow her glare at me as she continues to hold Hayes’s hand.
“Like you care,” she snaps, continuing to walk with Hayes. “But yes, I’m okay as you put it.”
They continue toward me, and I notice Caius is unharmed, just wet and shirtless as he hops off the boat looking concerned. I don’t know why he’s so anxious; the mission went off successfully.
But I follow his gaze to look at Ri and Hayes walking toward the cabin. It’s then that I notice her back.
I gasp.
She whips her head around, daring me to say something. I know if I do, I’ll get a smart comment back. But I’m speechless. Her back is covered in welts and slices through her beautiful skin. Blood still stains her back.
This is the fate we left her to. If they did this to her, there’s no telling what else
they did.
Caius walks toward me, and I grab his arm. “What happened?”
“They tried to whip her into submission. Tried to force her into marrying Paxton, their leader. She only agreed after he threatened my life.” She’s stronger than any of us realized.
“Did they hurt her? Other than her back, did he…?”
“No, she says no, but…”
I see the guilt in Caius’s eyes. He blames himself for what happened to her, but that guilt is misplaced. I’m the one who deserves all the blame. It was my plan to take her to that field where we were attacked in the first place.
“Don’t beat yourself up. It’s my fault, not yours.”
I release him and jog up the dock and through the woods to the cabin just as Hayes leads Ri inside. Caius enters just after me and goes to work securing the cabin with alarms and cameras.
“You need an Epsom salt bath and more pain killers. You’ll feel better after a bath, and then we can put a compress on your back—”
Ri whips around at me, letting go of Hayes in the process who steps back. We are all standing in the living room. Lennox is enjoying the show. Gage is typing away on his laptop. Hayes is folding his arms and looking at me with an amused expression. And Caius is still entering codes into the panel next to the door.
“You don’t get to tell me what to do! I get that all you care about is your wife. I’m nobody to you but a host of information and clues that could help you find her. But you could have at least come rescued me along with the guys. You shouldn’t have left them to do your dirty work!”
“Actually—” Hayes steps in to correct her, but I glare at him, and he shuts up. It’s better if she hates me.
“Are you finished?”
“No.” She throws her tiara at me. “I’m not finished. I hate you! You left me to that—that…Ugh!” she screams at the top of her lungs.
Gage opens his mouth, no doubt to remind her that we are trying to remain quiet so no one knows we are here. I put my hand up, telling him to hush. She needs this.
I don’t know what happened while she was captive, but it doesn’t take much for me to piece together what she’s upset about. I saw how she handles physical pain. Despite how ghastly her back looks, that’s not why she’s so upset. She was being forced to marry, no doubt knowing that he would rape her as soon as the vows were finished. That’s what has her so rattled.
I’m not going to let Paxton win, though. Ri, despite her spoiled upbringing, is strong. She doesn’t like to be seen as afraid, and she’s going to need to keep her strength and spitfire in order to survive life with her father. If she continues on and the guys realize how afraid she is, she’ll be embarrassed the next time she’s around them.
She yells a second time, getting more of her emotions and fear out, but I can see the tears welling.
I stomp toward her.
“What are you doing?” She glares at me, her anger overtaking her fear.
Good, keep that anger at least until you are by yourself, then you can let loose, Princess.
Without another word, I scoop her up and throw her over my back.
“Beckett! Put me down!” She yells, her fists drilling into my back.
Hayes chuckles.
Lennox sneers.
Gage raises his eyebrows.
“Beckett, are you sure that’s the best way to handle this?” Caius asks.
“Yep, I’m more than sure.”
I stomp up the stairs to the master bedroom that will be hers while we stay here. The benefit of getting here early is that I had time to scope out the house.
I walk through the spacious master bedroom decorated in neutral grays and whites. It will be a perfect sanctuary for her to heal in. I head to the bathroom that has a large whirlpool tub.
I flip the warm water on with my foot. She’s still yelling while beating against my back as I finally set her down.
“You’re a fucking psychopath! Why do you think you have the power to tell me what to do? I’m not telling you a damn thing about what I know about Odette!”
I ignore her and dump Epsom salt into the bath that will help clean and soothe her back.
“Take a bath, Princess. I’ll put some clothes for you just outside the door. When you’re finished, you can kill me then.”
And then I walk out of the bathroom before she has a chance to argue with me more. I shut the door and gather some clothes for her. As I set the clothes down, I hear her sobbing. I put my hand against the door, wishing I could comfort her.
If she didn’t hate me, maybe I’d offer to, but that’s not the kind of woman she is. She prefers to fall apart alone. So I leave her alone, hoping she’s at least soaking in the bath, washing away any touch that vile man did to her.
I smell garlic and onions as I head downstairs and see that Hayes is in the kitchen cooking. I spot Gage on the couch still. Caius isn’t in the main living space, so I suspect he’s gone to shower and change clothes.
I head to the bar cart to start making drinks. I know Ri will want one, and I’m guessing the rest of the guys could use a drink as well.
Lennox approaches as I start pouring a bottle of bourbon into the first glass.
“I don’t trust her,” Lennox says.
I frown. “What are you talking about?”
“Princess—I don’t trust her.”
“What’s there to trust? She sacrificed herself to save Caius. She took a whipping and didn’t crack. I’m not saying she’s on our side, but she’s not against us.”
“But that’s the thing—why save Caius? Why go through what she suffered?”
I shake my head. “Drop it, Lennox. Leave Ri alone.”
“I just think you are all thinking with your dicks instead of your brains.”
“I’m not thinking with my dick.”
“Sure you’re not.”
I punch him. How dare he think I would ever be disloyal to my wife.
Lennox dabs at the corner of his mouth. Blood drips from the gash I just made in his lip. “I think I was wrong about you.”
“What does that mean?” I ask.
“You’ll make a better leader than I thought.” Lennox walks back to the living room, and I go back to making drinks.
Caius jogs down the stairs and walks over to where I’m making drinks at the bar. He takes one and watches me closely as I pour more. “It’s not my place, I’m not the one in charge anymore, but I think you should tell her.”
“No.”
“But—”
“No, I’m not telling Princess anything.” Not when she keeps just as many or more secrets from me.
Caius sighs. “And the lead we had on Odette?” He swirls the single ice cube around in his drink, no longer meeting my eyes. I know losing Odette is just as hard on him as it is on me.
“Led to another dead end.”
“But we know she’s alive; that’s better than before.”
I nod, even though it doesn’t mean a damn thing. Odette could be alive or long dead. All we know is she was alive when she was carried out of the hotel. What happened after, we have no clue. But like Caius, I need hope. I need to believe she’s alive. It’s the only thing keeping me from completely shattering.
Caius picks up another glass of bourbon and heads to the kitchen to hand one to Hayes. I take two glasses in my hand and hand them out to Lennox and Gage in the living room just as we hear footsteps descending down the stairs.
We all glance up in one motion as we watch Ri walking down the stairs barefoot. There is nothing covering her legs even though I put pajama pants out for her to wear. My eyes continue up until they catch the hem of her white shirt that just covers her ass. Her nipples are hard against the thin material, and her dark hair is dripping down her front, making her shirt even more see-through.
I don’t have to look at each of the guys to know they are drooling over her. If they didn’t know about her injuries, it wouldn’t surprise me to see them all try to get in her bed tonight.
<
br /> “Snap out of it,” I hiss at the room as I walk over to Ri. She’s doing her best to hide her pain with every brush of the shirt against her back, but she can’t help but wince.
I meet her at the base of the stairs. “Turn around.”
She narrows her eyes. “Why?”
“So I can stop you moaning and causing every guy in this room’s cock to twitch every time you do.”
“Oh.” She turns immediately.
I know my next actions aren’t going to help the guys keep their dicks in their pants, but I’ll worry about them. Ri should be comfortable.
Using my mouth and hand, I rip the back of her shirt open to expose her wounded back. I quickly inspect the stitches at her side and the wounds at her back for any signs of infection or needing restitching. At the moment, she seems like she’s on the right track for healing.
“Turn.”
She does, and then I tie the pieces from the back together around the front of her neck and ensure the shirt stays down below her breasts. Now her stomach and back are exposed, along with her black panties, but the shirt is no longer agitating the wounds on her back.
“Better?”
She nods but doesn’t bother thanking me, not that I blame her.
She walks over to a spot on the sectional between Gage and Lennox. All four of their eyes stare intensely at her until I clear my throat.
I head to the hall closet and retrieve a throw blanket before grabbing a glass of bourbon and walking over to Ri.
“Bourbon, or would you like something else?”
She snatches the bourbon without speaking to me. She seems calmer, more collected than before, but it’s clear that her anger for me hasn’t diminished at all.
I toss the blanket on her legs. “In case you get cold,” I say, instead of ‘cover yourself up, so the guys stop making idiots of themselves.’
Caius and Hayes start bringing out bowls of pasta from the kitchen and handing them out to all of us. I sit on the edge of the fireplace to eat mine, while Caius and Hayes sit in the two remaining chairs.
