Page 85 of The Puck Chase

My heart starts to race as I start to make sense of what he is saying, but still I need to hear him say it. “What did you do?” I ask desperately, fear and worry going to war inside of me at the thought of him getting caught up in this.

“Your father’s parole hearing has been cancelled, and a restraining order has been put in place to prevent him from contacting you in any way.” Words, simple words and yet still I start to panic, my breaths coming in quick pants, as he scoots across the bed and cups my face. “I will never let him hurt you again, baby, I promise.”

Something in his touch grounds me, and as I inhale deeply, I can’t help but ask, “You did that for me?” The question is laced in utter disbelief, but Archer only smiles, lighting up my whole fucking world.

“I’d do anything for you, Forbes, I thought after three years you’d have caught on to that fact by now,” he replies playfully,attempting to make a joke out of his feelings in a way that is just so him, and words are falling from my mouth before I can stop them.

“I love you,” I blurt, making his eyes widen in surprise, as I grab the back of his neck and bring his forehead to meet mine. “I love you so fucking much, I think I always have.”

His smile is soft this time. “I love you too, Daemon, and don’t worry, I always knew you were obsessed with me,” he winks with a smile, but my mouth is already on his, erasing the distance between us, until he is mine and I am his.

We kiss until I can’t breathe, until the pain in my head is forgotten, and the weight on my chest doesn’t feel as heavy as it normally does. I’m pulling him against me ready to show him what he means to me, when there is a brisk knock on my bedroom door.

“Fuck off!” Archer calls, making me smile, but not even a second later, Josh is pushing inside my room with a tense look on his face, making Archer groan out loud. “For fuck sake, Peters, didn’t you hear me say fuck off?” he snaps, pulling back a little and readjusting himself in his pants, but as my eyes meet Josh’s, I see worry in them.

“The police are at the door,” he announces, and though Archer curses again, his focus remains on me. “They said they need to talk to you.”

Feeling even more confused than when I woke, I tap Archer and he moves instantly, letting me up, as I reach for some sweats to put on over my shorts and tank. “Did they say why?” I ask, running through multiple scenarios in my head and my mind instantly lands on Jasper.Is he okay?

Josh shakes his head in response, turning to leave, and I move to follow him, but Archer grips my arm and holds me in place. “Silence is always the best policy, no matter what they say, keep your mouth shut, and if anything happens, I’ll callDavid.” His playfulness from before has disappeared completely, replaced only by his protective mode, and I nod, kissing him one more time, and sliding my hand into his.

“Let’s go.”

We walk downstairs hand in hand and when we reach the living room, I find an officer and a detective waiting for me, the latter of whom I recognize from when everything happened with my father and brother. Detective Myers was one of the first on the scene that night, she took my statement, and saw me through all the shit that followed.

“Daemon,” she greets me, that same no nonsense smile that I remember still firmly intact, and just the sight of her takes me back to that awful night four years ago.

“Detective Myers,” I nod, gesturing for her to take a seat, and she does, as the officer remains standing by the threshold. I see her look between Archer and Josh, who are standing firm at my back, and I wave a hand at them. “You can speak freely in front of them,” I tell her, and she nods, taking a deep breath.

“I’m sorry to be the one to tell you this, but your father hung himself in prison last night, he was pronounced dead at 2:45 a.m. this morning.” She in fact does not look sorry at all, but the silence that follows is deafening, as her words take hold.

My father is dead.

He killed himself.

“He’s dead?” Archer repeats in question, and I feel his stare burning into my back, as detective Myers’ eyes flick to his in wonder, but she nods firmly.

“A guard found him in his cell and he was rushed to receive medical attention, but it was too late, he was already dead,” she tells us, returning her stare back to mine, but I remain frozen in shock.

He’s dead.

My father is dead.

I’m finally free.

Questions are fired back and forth from Archer and Josh, but I drown them out, sitting in disbelief, until Detective Myers rises back to her feet to leave. I follow her in silence, still in a state of shock, as she makes her way to the door. The police officer who accompanied her, leaves ahead of her and climbs back in their car, but Myers lingers.

“It’s okay to feel conflicted, Daemon,” she starts, clearly mistaking my silence for emotion. “We’re only human after all,” she adds, and I know she means well, that her training probably requires her to learn and regurgitate this kind of stuff, but her words are bullshit.

“My father wasn’t human, he was a monster, and I hope he rots in hell,” I tell her truthfully, finally finding my words, and her answering smile is resigned.

“Look after yourself, okay?” she replies with a nod, before turning on her heels and walking away.

When I make it back to the living room, Archer and Josh are still standing there, both of them staring at me, as if they expect me to explode. If I’m being honest I’m half expecting it myself, yet I feel nothing. No sadness, no grief, not even relief, I quite literally feel nothing, and for once my mind is completely silent.

Before either of them can say anything, the front door bursts back open, and in strolls Alexander Reign like he owns the place, with Nova not too far behind. “You can’t just fucking walk into people’s houses,” he scolds him, but Alexander ignores him, smiling widely at me.

“Of course I can, Daemon and I are friends now,” he replies nonchalantly, as Archer looks between us both in question, before settling on his friend.

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