Page 92 of Wicked Oath

I can’t help but laugh at them. “Y’all are hilarious.”

“Oh, there you are,” Talon says when he suddenly snatches Grim by his shirt when he abruptly comes into view. He is immediately slammed face first into the trunk of the tree before being dropped to the ground. Everyone swarms him and he is stripped and tied to the tree with his arms behind his back. They’re bent in an awkward angle and putting an incredible amount of strain on his shoulders.

“What do you want to do?” Jude asks.

“Beat the fuck out of him,” I say. “I want the five of you to put him through the same amount of pain that you experienced when he took me from you. Don’t be nice about it because he is not walking away from this. I want the very last thing for him to see is the five of you, but I want to be the very last thing on his mind.”

“Stand with Ripper and enjoy,” Talon says with a smile. He kisses me before the other four take turns kissing me.

“This is going to be fun,” Ripper says as he wraps his arm around my shoulder. The others gather around as Tony releases Grim from the tree. They surround him and he looks panicked as they circle him. They slowly step closer but just before Grim can sink down to cower, Talon swings and his fist connects with Grim’s jaw. His head snaps back and chaos ensues. As Grim hits the ground, all five set in on punching him. Tony is the first to kick him, which leads to all five of them kicking and stomping Grim. He is screaming and begging for his life, but I just watch in awe of the violence my men are bringing down on him. It’s right now that I can understand just how devastated they were by my kidnapping. They suffered similarly to what I did, only theirs was just the mental anguish that they experienced.

Soon, Grim goes limp. They all stop, but Talon hasn’t. He has stomped on his head so many times now that he no longer looks human. His head is cracked open, and his brains are splattered around as blood coats everything. I step up and gently touch his back. When he turns to me, tears are rolling down his cheeks. He grabs the backs of my legs to lift me up and I wrap my legs around his waist as he keeps a firm grip on my ass. I gently cup his cheeks and wipe away his tears. No one is saying anything, but they all come closer to support him. He tries to shy away so the others do not see that he is crying, but I stop him. “You are a human being, Talon,” I say softly. “You have seen and experienced horrific things. We both have. Be an example to others and show that it is okay to show that emotion. Keeping everything bottled up is like juggling grenades with no pins. It’s going to blow up in your face and there’s not a damn thing you can do to stop it. You won’t know when it’s coming, but it will.”

“I just want to keep you safe,” he says. “I feel like I failed you. We shouldn’t have left you alone.”

“You had no way to know that going to work would lead to this,” I say.

“We… weren’t at work,” Talon says slowly. I frown at him, and he sets me down.

“Go ahead,” Jude smiles.

“What?” I ask. Talon pulls a small box from his jeans pocket, and I slap my hands over my mouth when he steps back and goes down on one knee. One by one, Jude, Chris, Tony, and Adam join him.

“Guys,” I say tearfully.

“Delaney Maddox, you are incredible in every way,” Talon says. “I want to do this the right way with you. We want Ripper to walk you down an aisle to meet us and we want to marry you. We all want to show you that we want forever with you, and we will do anything to have it… Even wear a tux.”

“You don’t have to wear a tux,” I laugh through my tears.

“We love you so damn much, Little Flower. There isn’t a thing on this earth that will stop us from loving you and we will walk through fire every day just to show you the love you deserve. Delaney… Will you marry us?”

“Yes,” I say as I wrap my arms around his neck and hug him tightly. He stands and continues to hug me before the others join in.

When we get backto the house, the first thing we do is go upstairs to shower. Talon and Jude go with me, and we take our time washing and relaxing. It makes me feel spoiled and loved limitlessly when they pamper me like this. They even go as far as helping me shave. They know I am mentally exhausted after today. We have more things to take care of, and some might still be dangerous for us, but having this time to just focus on resetting is vital for all of us. By the time we get done and are out of the shower, the others have joined us.

“Can I get a new tattoo?” I ask.

“You can. What would you like?” Talon asks, sitting me on the bed.

“You know how you call me ‘Daddy’s little whore’ when we fuck?”

“Yes.” A smirk tugs at his lips when he sees where I’m going with this.

“I want you to tattoo that above my pussy,” I say. “That way, no matter who sees it, they know that you guys belong there.”

“Shouldn’t it be ‘Daddys’ little whore’ then?” he asks.

“Hmm,” I say. “Yes. You can all be my daddy. You all take care of me in different ways. You spoil me and even punish me when I am in need of correction.”

“Daddys’ little whore it is then,” Talon says with a soft smile. I lie back on the bed as Jude goes to grab the kit while the others take a seat on the bed to watch. I am giddy as they prepare everything and I can hardly sit still when Talon gets ready to begin.

“Sit still, Little Flower. I’d hate to mess this up,” Talon commands softly.

“I’m sorry. This is just the happiest I’ve been since before I was taken,” I say. “Seeing him die… It healed something inside of me. It’s like my brain is finally able to see the difference between what I was made to believe and reality.”

“It has been an absolute blessing to see the way you’ve bloomed, Little Flower. The battle isn’t over yet, but we are prepared for the fight,” Talon says as he starts the first line. A calmness takes over and I relax into the bed when the needle sends jolts of pain through my skin.

Epilogue

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