Page 105 of Ruin

“Until she's comfortable talking to you, you don't talk to her,” I tell him.

“Was it a good read? Did you enjoy reading everything your daughter went through, and you ignored it because of them?” I nod my head toward the other two people in the room. “Did you?”

He says nothing, what the hell can he say so he doesn't sound even more like a shit dad.

I look over at Robert. Now, there's the asshole. I walk over to him, slam him hard against the wall. “Fight. Try using your power on me!” I shout at him. “You did it to her. Now, do it to me. Come on.” He goes to punch me, but I duck out of the way.

“Not so fucking easy when it's someone your own god damn size, is it?” I punch him in the face, and I hear his mom shouting for me to stop. I wrap my hand around his neck, slamming his head against the wall, hard enough for him to grunt out in pain. “How old was she when you first touched her?” He stays quiet, trying to get my hand off his neck. “Trixie, how old were you when he first touched you? Words, Trixie, words.” I don't hear anything. “Trixie, how old were you when he first touched you?”

“Thirteen,”she replies in the smallest voice.

I look over at her dad quickly, his eyes are popping out in surprise. “What did you think when she was fucking talking before, and then stopped for the hell of it, it's because you didn't listen!” I shout at her dad. Turning back to Robert. “I could kill you right now, if I wanted-”

“You can't threaten my son. I'm going to the police,” his mom screams at me.

Ignoring her I continue with Robert. “Thirteen, I'm going to make your life fucking miserable for thirteen years. I'm going to break bones and wait for them to heal, so I can break them again. Thirteen years, you’re going to be in so much pain you’ll wish I killed you. Thirteen years is going to feel like thirty. I’m going to make sure you suffer every single minute of the day. You can hide, but I promise you I will find you. I have a plan so if you disappear before I get the chance to hurt you, I'll find you, and I will double the timeline of how long I keep you alive before killing you.” I squeeze my hand around his neck, and see him fighting to breathe. “When you realize what I'm going to do to you, you’ll wish I'd killed you in thirteen seconds, which I probably could do. But no, since she was thirteen you made her suffer. You raped her over, and over again. You hurt her. I promise you’ll know the pain I'm going to bring upon you, it will be nothing to what you did to her.” I finally let him go and walk over to his mom. “And as for you-” I tilt my head to the side a little and smile. “I'd look both ways when you cross the road.”

Taking the box back off Hayden, I walk over to her dad. “And as for you, I can't kill you, I could but I won’t. She's already lost one parent. Why should she lose another? But you don't talk to her. You don't contact her until she wants to talk to you.” Pulling out a card from my pocket, I hand it to him. “You have until midnight to transfer all the money her mother left for her, every single dollar. Oh, and I know how much it is too, so don't forget the cents that go in there. You’ve read what he did to her, but what she did to her..” I point to the stepmom. “You saw the pictures. And you didn’t acknowledge there was anything going on. I don't think you should be let off so lightly.” I slam the box into his chest. “Open it.”

“I don't want to.”

“I'm not asking you to open it, I'm fucking telling you to open it.” I see his hands shake as he takes the lid off the box.

I move closer and whisper. “You can still see the pain she went through. Look in the box.” I move back from him, and his eyes glance down to all the blades she used on herself. He looks at Trixie, and there goes the first drop of a tear he sheds for his daughter. “You have till midnight,” I turn to the other two. “And I'll be seeing you two. It won't be long, I promise.”

Walking back to my brothers, I put my arm over Trixie’s shoulder, and we leave the house.

“I got goosebumps.” I hear Mason shout at us as we walk toward the car and van. “I actually feel my adrenaline pumping. D, you might become the sick one, now.” I chuckle and turn to him.

“You've set the bar very, very high. You know, I'm still crawling up it.” I let him know.

“Yes, but it's not going to be long until you join me in my corner.” I don’t reply to him.

“See you guys at home.”

“Where are you going?”

“Home.”

“Don't fuck around D. Where are you going?” Hayden asks again.

“Home.”

“I'll go with them.” Miles tells him and sits in the back seat.

“I was going home. Hayden, I swear.”

Hayden starts laughing. “Well, you are now.” He gets in the van, and I shake my head.

They don't even trust me to go home. Well, maybe I was going to do a little pit stop somewhere. I don't know where, but I thought maybe I'd get two minutes with my girl alone without my brother hovering around, but it looks like that’s not going to happen.

Well, I suppose I can have fun with her tonight in bed. I’ll take it.

TWENTY-NINE

TRIXIE

Declan's handsare on my thighs as he lifts them higher, and wider for him. He looks at me and smiles.

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