Page 31 of Black Hearts
I supposed that was a good thing, because if he was with her, I’d be tempted to tell him to hand her the phone, just so I could hear her soft, sweet voice again. Maybe it was foolish, but I wanted to save that respite for when I saw her in person, when I could hold her again.
“Where are you going once she’s released?” I asked.
“We have a motel room not far from here. We’ll probably go there until we figure something else out.” A pause. “I guess you could meet us there, if you want.”
“Yeah, give me the address.” Jaxon sent me the address, and I put the call on speaker in the car, the car’s GPS finding the best route to take to the motel. With how long it would take to get there, the hospital would release Juliet before I arrived, anyway.
Jaxon said, “I don’t know what Theo told you—”
“He told me enough. You don’t have to explain. I’m…” I struggled with this next part, not one to ever thank anyone for anything, and yet it had to be said. “Thank you for going after her when I couldn’t. You three saved her life. I won’t forget that, Jaxon.”
“We didn’t do it for you.”
Oh, I knew that all too well. “My father was the one who told Fred you three went after her. He’s the reason she got hurt.” As I said it, my hands gripped the steering wheel harder, my knuckles turning white. “We got into it. He said I had to choose the family, choose him, but I’m not. I won’t.”
It was a moment before Jaxon quipped, sounding like his old self, “So you stood up to the old man, huh? Took long enough. Wish I would’ve seen it.”
“I choked him a little, too.”
“Damn, I really wish I would’ve seen that.”
Even though now was not the time for smiling, I found myself grinning somewhat as I recalled Tori and what she’d said. “Tori had a few words with him, too. She reminded me of her mother, so unafraid, even in the face of someone who could kill her without blinking.”
“That girl is never afraid to say what’s on her mind,” Jaxon said, and then he changed the course of the conversation, “What are we going to do? I’m assuming we aren’t welcome back in the house, not while the big man is there.”
“No, we’re not, but that’s not going to stop us. Once Juliet feels ready, we’re going to go back, all of us, and when we do, we’re going to kick my father to the curb.”
Jaxon was silent for a while, and I had no idea what he was thinking about. I knew Juliet wanted to come back to the house, Theo told me as much, but did he? Did Will and Bennet? “And you think he’ll go, just like that?”
“I think we will have to convince him that either he goes, or he’ll lose every single one of us. He was quick to write you off, and he told me to leave, but when he sees how many are willing to walk… let’s just hope he realizes it’s a fight he can’t win.”
“And if he calls the others?”
“My father knows better. If he thinks my cousins are on our level, he’s gotten stupid in his old age. He chose me to run the family for a reason. I want to remind him why that is.”
Jaxon inhaled sharply. “Great. Can’t wait for that.” I could tell, just by his facetiousness, that he could, in fact, wait for it.
“I’m on my way to the motel now. I’ll be there just after six tonight. Don’t tell Juliet I’m coming.”
“You don’t want me to let her know?”
“No. I want to surprise her.” I wanted to see her naked reaction to seeing me. I needed to know if she still loved me, or if she blamed me for everything wrong that had happened to her lately. Yes, I was at fault for many of those things, and I never, ever should’ve let her go.
“Okay… I guess we’ll see you then.”
I didn’t say goodbye; I simply hung up. My father’s arrival at the house had, for lack of a better word, startled me. It had pissed me the fuck off. Combine those things, and I had been at a loss. I shouldn’t have stood back and let him hand Juliet over to Fred. I should’ve put my foot down, told him off, done something. Anything, really, would’ve been better than the reaction I’d had, and I hoped Juliet would forgive me.
I hoped she’d forgive me for everything.
I was a Scott. Changing was out of the question, but there was a time and place for everything. I’d learned Juliet was the last person I wanted to hurt in this world. Out of everything I was, I was no protector, but I wanted to be just that for her. To shield her from the horrors of the world. Very akin to the excuse Fred had given her while locking her up in that house, but I meant it. I would never, could never kill her. I couldn’t imagine it.
During the long drive, I imagined what I’d say to her. What I’d do. I played scenarios in my head, how she might react. Maybe she’d be angry with me or ticked off at my lack of action. Maybe she’d demand to know why it had taken me so long to come to her, why it took me so long to realize she was everything to me and I needed her in my life. Even if… even if I was forced to share her.
I knew it now. Juliet might have a meekness to her, she might like to be controlled every now and then, but she was also a stubborn girl when the situation called for it, and when it came to the others in the house, she’d proven her stubbornness a long time ago.
She wouldn’t give them up. Just as I’d fallen prey to her, she’d fallen for them. This was one fucked up situation on top of another, but the least I could do was work on myself for her, swallow my pride and let her have her fun. As long as she never ran from me again, we’d be fine.
Now, if Juliet tried to run again, if she told me she didn’t want me… the old Markus might come out.
