Page 78 of Duke
“She was a slut, spreading her legs for everyone. She deserved it. No woman is going to cuckold me.”
“So… you killed her,” Mason rasps.
My heart is breaking. But good for you Mase. May as well make him admit it.
“And I’d fuckin’ do it again.” Murdock steps toward Mason just as Cannon and Kingston appear in the doorway behind him. It makes him stop short.
Mason shoots the man he once called father a nasty smirk. “You got big in prison, Murdock. But I’m not alone to deal with you. And you deserve everything you’re about to get.”
Bear stands up, watching Kingston and Cannon move in on Murdock, until they each have one of his arms. And that’s when Mason steps in and delivers a fist to Murdock’s temple, and it’s an immediate lights-out. The huge man goes down with a loudthump.
I can’t control my smile, despite still being tied to this table. Because look at that. All three of my guys are fighters. The next bit is a blur as my eyes fill with tears. I don’t even know whose fingers are scrambling at each of my wrists to set me free.
“Lennon. Baby, it’s okay. We’ve got you.” Duke pulls me off the table and into his arms. I nod, hanging onto him tightly.
While Duke holds me, the other guys lift a squirming Tristan onto the table and tie both of his wrists to the ring on the left side of the table. They repeat the procedure with Derek, only they tie him to the ring on the right. Just as he’s coming to, Kingston picks his head up and looks him in the eye. “You took my sister from me. I hope you get everything you deserve in prison.” He slams Derek’s head back onto the table once, twice, and a third time before Cannon pulls him away. Kingston’s pain is a palpable thing in the room.
I blink back tears watching them. Cannon speaks softly to Kingston as he leads him out, his arm around his friend.
“We’ve gotta deal with Murdock. Bear and Mase need my help, Stella Bella.” Duke kisses my temple. “Is that okay?”
I nod, allowing him to let me go, even though I’m shaking. I turn around. Damn. The big fucker is still out. It takes all three of my guys to pick his ass up because he’s so muscular. He must weigh a fuck ton. They deposit him on the table, too—on his back, right between his friends. Bear uses more rope, and ties each of his wrists to the rings as well.
The police arrive as we’re exiting the back of the building.
Bear grimaces, then jerks a thumb toward the door we just came out of. “There are three guys trussed up in there on a table.” He quickly explains to the officers where to find them, and we’re told we’re required to wait at our SUVs until they can take our statements.
I don’t know whether it’s because I’m completely overwhelmed or what because I look at the officer and burst out laughing so hard, tears stream down my face. “Don’t worry. We definitely want to tell you every single thing we know. They deserve to be put away forever.”
We walk across the parking lot, arms wrapped around each other.
Archer, Elliot, Cannon, and Kingston are waiting for us. Elliot breaks away and jogs toward us. She throws her arms around me. “That was incredibly brave of you.”
I draw in a ragged breath as it all hits me. With nerves jumping in my stomach, I meet Archer’s eyes over her shoulder. “Did we get it?”
“Fuck.” He runs his hand through his hair, shaking his head. “Every last goddamn word they spewed. You did great. And don’t worry, we told them they’re going to want to pick up Hunter, too.”
“Thank you for helping us.” Bear smiles.
Mason blows out a hard breath. “Yeah. I think we got way more than we bargained for when we showed up on your doorstep. We appreciate it.”
I’m a little nervous for Duke because he’s gotten all twitchy in the last thirty seconds or so. But then, he steps forward, directly in front of Kingston and holds out his hand. “I’m so sorry we lost her like that.”
Kingston’s head tilts to the side and his green eyes go glassy. “Me too. Me fucking too.” And then he pulls Duke against him. They hold on to each other, broad backs shaking, until finally, they thump on each other and let go. They nod, a new understanding forming between them. I don’t know if they’ll ever consider themselves friends. But at least there’s no hate between them any longer.
FORTY
DUKE
From the front seat,Bear grits out, “They just picked up Hunter.” Apparently, not all cops are on the OGs’ payroll. We’d been more than happy to tip them off as to his whereabouts and were prepared to head over to the Mikaelson residence to make sure they picked him up, but Kingston said we should go home—that it’d been a hard enough night. He assured us he’d see to it that Hunter didn’t get away. Said he wanted to see the look on his face when he realized he was caught. I don’t blame him one fucking bit. I’m still wrapping my mind around it.
I glance at Bear in the rearview mirror. It must suck for him to know that his father is truly a monster, just like the rest of them.
Lennon exhales hard. “That makes me breathe easier. And was very fucking nice of them. I feel a little bad that we took off while Archer finished handing off all the video and audio coverage to the police.”
My gaze drifts to Mason’s profile as he murmurs, “I doubt they’d want us to feel bad about it. It was a rough fucking night for us. Kingston, too.”
I can’t concentrate enough to speak. There’s been a gaping chasm in my chest since the moment Derek admitted they’d killed Juliette, a painful twisting in my heart that hasn’t let up. I’m nervous to learn the specifics of what happened, but I wonder if I’ll ever know. I doubt it will make me feel any differently than I do now. It might be worse.
