Page 88 of In Step

I snorted and my father turned toward me, wrenching free of Fox to step right up into my face. “You’re a fucking coward.”

“Watch your mouth.” Abe shoved him back with a hand to his chest, and my father fired him a murderous look. But that was all he did, clearly out-manned, and it was all I could do not to laugh.

Then Gerald glanced at the cage and his lip curled. “All this for a fucking cat. You couldn’t man-up on your own. You had to ask your friends to hold your hand?”

“Family.” Morgan stepped right up into Gerald’s face and my heart broke open at his words. “We’re Kane’sfamily. He didn’t need to ask. We’ve got his back, and you’d do well to remember that. And what the hell were you going to do with that?” He indicated the tyre iron.

Gerald hesitated, reading Fox’s furious expression and the icy calm warning in his eyes.

“Leroy?” Morgan waved him over, and Leroy stepped forward, brandishing his phone. “Would you mind?”

Leroy gave a wicked grin. He was enjoying this way too much. “My pleasure. A nice, still night like this makes for a really clear recording.” He hit play and my father blanched at the sound of his voice threatening us.

“We have video too.” Leroy held up his phone and waggled his brows.

Then I really did laugh, and although it might’ve sounded a bit manic, it felt so fucking good. I couldn’t believe they’d had the presence of mind to record him.

And suddenly I was so, so done with my father’s shit.

I pulled free of Abe’s hold and shoved my father back, again and again, until he hit the wall of the barn, his eyes wide, darting to the others, who I felt at my back, before landing back on me.

“Get your fucking hands off me.” He flailed but I held him firm against the siding, not quite sure where I got the strength.

Abe appeared at my side, his warm hand at my back, a quiet reassurance, nothing more. Like he knew I needed this.

“You won’t touch any more animals, do you hear me? Or you won’t just lose half the farm. I’ll drag your name through the courts for the shit you’ve handed out over the years. And I know the farm accounts aren’t right either. You think I didn’t know about you fiddling with the bull sale prices? You better hope the accountant doesn’t pick that up. I was gonna ignore it just to get things settled, but if you push me, I’ll take you for everything I can get and make sure you face charges for the rest.”

My father’s face pinched in anger, but he glanced over my shoulder and said nothing. When I turned to check, I found all four men at my back.

I jerked my father forward and then slammed him back against the siding once again. “So, you’ll sign that contract and sell, old man, whether it’s now while you still have enough in the bank to buy yourself something to live in, or after you’re too bankrupt to do anything because you’ve had to pay all my legal costs, as well as yours, for wasting everyone’s fucking time. Either way, you’ll sign and sell. It’s up to you. But if you touch any of those animals, I’ll do everything in my power to make sure you damn well go to jail as well.”

We stared at each other as I tried to catch my breath, adrenaline pumping so hard my hand shook around where it fisted his shirt. His teeth ground top on bottom, his jaw working, and I knew that look. He was about to spew something vile.

Leroy pressed the end of the tyre iron into my father’s chest and Gerald’s gaze jerked sideways. “Don’t,” was all Leroy said, and my father stared for a second, then grunted.

“Get off my land.”

“Ourland,” I corrected, patting his cheek just because I fucking could. Then I stepped back and let him go.

It was apparently the last straw for my father whose face blew red in fury as he pushed forward and spat in my face.

I had my fist up before I knew it, collecting his jaw with a satisfying crunch, before following it with a second as he fell back against the wall. Abe caught the third in his open hand, yanking me to the side while Fox and Leroy took an arm each and dragged a dazed and swearing Gerald back through the barn to the house.

Holy fuck. Breath whooshed from my lungs as I collapsed into Abe’s arms, my body shaking violently against his. “Jesus, Abe. But also, ow, the fuck, ow.” I gingerly held up my plated forearm. “That bloody hurt.”

“Come here.” He pulled me close and I clung tightly to his chest, burying my face in his neck as he wrapped his arms around me, plastering my hair with kisses, and murmuring reassurance in my ear about how proud he was and how everything was going to be all right, and how he’d look after me until the shaking stopped and my brain landed back in my head.

A text arrived on Abe’s phone and he grunted when he read it. “Your father’s fine. Nothing broken, shame. They’ve left him in the lounge with a warning to stay put, and Judah’s bringing the car up the drive.” He kissed my cheek. “Come on, let’s get you home.”

And with one of Abe’s arms around my waist and the other hand carrying Possum’s cage, I left the farm for the last time without a single backward glance.

* * *

Abe

By the time we got back to the homestead, Kane had some colour in his cheeks and was looking a lot less like a stunned rabbit in the headlights, no doubt helped by the loud debrief of events on the way back, including a lot of laughter and piss-taking. Kane had, in fact, become downright frisky the last few kilometres. Wrapped in my arms and crowded against a rear door, his hands wandered shamelessly under my jersey as he put his lips by my ear and informed me I was getting topped like a jar of pickles when we got back.

Colour me surprised and instantly fucking hard. Not that I was complaining.

---