Page 97 of Taking Denver

Chapter 32

Denver

The door to Ethan’s house opens, and my mouth drops open when I see his battered face. “Ethan, what—” He steps back, and I follow, my gaze halting on Ranger. He doesn’t look as hurt, but his nose is bleeding, and his shirt is peppered with red. I close the door behind me, my gaze darting between them. “What the fuck is going on?”

“Your fiancée paid me a visit,” Ethan says, and it’s then that I notice the gun.

Fuck. Did he say fiancée?

“He told you?—”

“Yes,” Ethan bites out.

I’d planned on telling him when I got here. I hoped it’d make it clear that there was no leaving for me. I wasn’t going to leave Ranger behind. I don’t think I could even if I wanted to, and I no longer want to.

Knowing I could have lost him to Wilder only solidified that I’ll stand by his side. I’ll be his. And he’ll be mine. And our life will be dysfunctional as fuck, but ours.

I’d called Ethan back to tell him that and make sure my confession was safe, too. But he had sounded so desperate overthe phone, so scared, that I had no choice but to come here and prove to him in person that this was over.

Now I’m glad I did.

“What are you doing here, Ranger?” I ask.

“I could ask you the same thing, little bird,” he says, his expression telling me that I owe him an explanation, which I do, but it can wait until we’re alone. His dark gaze moves to Ethan. “There’s been someone working for the police. Someone they were fairly excited to use to bring me down.”

My brows pull together. “Who? No one knows—” My words halt, and I shift my attention to Ethan. He tenses his jaw, finally lowering the gun. “No.”

“Yes,” Ranger says. “He was fucking you for information.”

“That isn’t what I was doing!” Ethan shouts. “Denver, I owed Archer?—”

I hold up my hand, surprise rolling through me. “How the fuck do you know Archer Adler?”

Shame coats his expression. “He’s Sebastian’s brother.”

I resist leaning back against the door to keep my balance.

“Ethan owed Archer a favor, didn’t you, Ethan?” Ranger says. “I guess him covering for you killing your brother does hold a pretty high price tag.”

Ethan flinches, and my heart stalls. My fingers curl into my hands as I stare, words lost in my throat. Ethan locks his gaze on me, a mixture of apology and anger whirling in the darkness of his eyes.

“Ranger.” My voice is hoarse. “Go outside while I speak to Ethan.”

Ranger scoffs. “We’re killing him, Denver. This isn’t a situation fixed with a fucking apology.”

I keep my voice low. “You said you’d let me decide how we dealt with him.” From the corner of my eye, I see Ethan’s attention cut to me. “This is how I’m dealing with it.”

Ranger lifts his chin but doesn’t argue. He closes the space between us and kisses me softly. “Ten minutes, then I start cutting pieces off him.”

He slams the door closed as he leaves.

Ethan places the gun down and leans against a kitchen stool, wrapping an arm around his ribs. He hisses in pain and drops his head back.

“Tell me,” I say. He says nothing. “Your brother? Tell me, Ethan. Help me understand why you did this.”

He fixes his attention to the floor, eyes glassy. “I was sixteen. My brother, James, was twenty, and we’d been at a party. Drinking, doing drugs, just stupid shit kids do. He was driving us home, and I must have fallen asleep or passed out, I don’t know, but when I woke up, we were parked on a railroad crossing.” He pauses, his voice tight, and I hold my breath. “He was high. He didn’t know what he was doing. He… he kept asking if I could feel the light from the train…” His gaze became distant, lost in a painful memory. “The train was coming, and he was just… laughing. I tried to get him out of the car, but he said he was fine, that he’d be fine… The train hit the car. I could do nothing.” He looks at me. “I panicked. I ran. Sebastian was home, so I went to him and told him what happened. Archer wasn’t a detective by that point, but he was still a cop, so we told him. But I’d already been arrested for assault, drinking, possession… This could have fucked my entire life. I didn’t care. I said I’d tell the truth, but Archer said he wouldn’t let me be punished for an accident. So, he lied for me. Said I left the party with James but didn’t get in the car, that I walked to Sebastian’s and stayed with them.”

I can’t imagine what he must have gone through. Sixteen and feeling that crushing weight on him, of not being able to do a thing as his brother was killed before him.

---