Page 74 of Man of Honor

I hated that he was right. Hated it more than the dread crawling up my spine. I couldn’t lose Wyatt, but I couldn’t lose Dominic either. When he got like this, there was no telling what would happen. He never did anything without reason, but his reasons weren’t the same as normal people.

I dragged a hand through my hair, trying to clear my head, and said, “All I care about is Wyatt.”

“And Dom cares about you,” Gideon said with quiet certainty. He grabbed his keys from the hook by the door and motioned forme to follow. “You get Wyatt out of there. That’s your job. Let me worry about Dom.”

Rain lashed us the moment we stepped outside, a relentless downpour that made it almost impossible to see more than a few feet ahead. Mud sucked at my boots as we jogged to Gideon’s truck, the junker he used for deliveries to food pantries.

He climbed wordlessly behind the wheel and hit the gas, spinning up mud as we tore down the driveway. The headlights cut through the darkness in thin, watery beams, illuminating nothing but the endless sheets of rain. It was safer this way. My shaking hands and lead foot would wrap us around a tree before we got there.

“Keep your head, no matter what you see when we get there,” Gideon warned. “Focus on Wyatt. Dominic is mine to handle.”

I didn’t answer. Couldn’t.

Because the truth was, if Dominic had laid a hand on Wyatt, not even Gideon would be able to hold me back.

Chapter Thirty-Five

WYATT

Pain draggedme back to consciousness like a claw hooked in my chest. Every breath was shallow and wet, laced with the metallic tang of blood. It felt like someone was dragging a rusty razor over my broken ribs.

My face was a wreck: split lips, a relentless throb behind my swollen eyes, and blood dripping down my face to pool in the hollow of my throat. My wrists were swollen beneath the zip ties, and my fingers had lost all feeling, but I tested them anyway. Pointless. Even if I managed to snap them, my legs were useless dead weight.

Unless it was in a body bag, I wasn’t going anywhere.

Dominic had been at it for so long that the lantern on the wall was guttering. I blinked at the warped beams of the ceiling, trying to focus, but I wasn’t thinking clearly anymore. My head lolled to the side, and there he was.

Dominic had lost his usual composure. Dark hair clung to his damp forehead, and his sweat-soaked shirt was stained with myblood. He stood in the open doorway, shoulders taut, staring out at the water.

A big guy stood beside him, speaking in a voice too low for me to hear. Marcel, I figured. Not like we’d been in any position for introductions. I couldn’t make out the conversation, but Dominic’s responses put me on edge. His voice was deep and guttural, raw enough that it sounded like he’d been the one taking the beating. The tension between them was thick enough to choke on.

The distant hum of a boat motor filtered through the night, growing louder with each passing second. Marcel gestured wildly toward the sound, shouting, “So fire me, you stubborn motherfucker! He already knew! This vendetta of yours is going to rip your family apart, and I’m not gonna sit back and let it happen.”

Dominic’s reply was too soft to hear, but the venom in his tone chilled my blood. He turned his head slowly, and his face was a mask of icy fury.

“I’ll meet them at the dock and try to fix this before it goes too far. But you?” Marcel jabbed a finger into Dominic’s chest. “You’d better get your head on straight.”

Dominic’s jaw worked, but he didn’t argue. With a disgusted snort, Marcel stormed out, boots thudding down the porch steps. The noise of the boat kept growing. Dominic stood frozen for a moment, silhouetted against the flickering lantern light. Then, with sudden fury, he stalked back into the shack.

With one vicious kick, he sent my chair crashing sideways. The impact sent fresh agony coursing through my battered body.Pain tore through my shoulder as I hit the ground, and I cried out for the first time.

His control was gone. He crouched beside me and grabbed a fistful of hair, forcing me to meet his blazing eyes. I’d never seen so much hate, but the craziest part was I didn’t get the feeling it was entirely directed at me.

“This is my fault,” he hissed. “I lost my temper. If I’d stuck to the plan, you’d already be gator food. Gage never had to fucking know.”

I wheezed, trying to draw enough air into my spasming lungs to speak. “Untie me…before he gets here,” I rasped. “I-if…you want to keep him from going berserk…you better untie me.”

Dominic’s eyes narrowed to slits. “You think I’m scared of Gage?”

I bared my bloody teeth at him. “You should be.”

Before he could reply, the boat’s engine was cut, and the blinding wash of a floodlight lit up the room. Dominic’s head snapped up, and his expression turned to stone.

Gage stood in the doorway, backlit by the lights like something out of a fever dream. He braced his clenched fists on the rickety doorframe, chest heaving as he took in the scene before him. For one stunned, agonized moment, his gaze locked on mine, and I saw the horror in them. His lips parted, but no words came out, just a guttural, broken sound.

With a roar that shook the walls, Gage launched himself at Dominic like a battering ram. The force of the collision sent them both crashing to the floor. Gage was on top of him in a flash. Dominic writhed like an eel to dislodge him, but Gage washeavier and more experienced. He trapped Dominic’s legs with his own and straddled him, raining down punches like a man possessed. Dominic managed to get an arm up to block, but Gage just shifted his angle and kept going. Each blow landed with sickening precision, and the dull impact of flesh striking flesh filled the cabin.

“Gage!” I tried to yell, but my voice cracked, little more than a rasp. “Gage, stop!”

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