The next morning, I wake up, kiss Piper’s nose and get ready for another round with the good old senator.

“You ready to talk yet?”

“I swear on my life, I don’t know anything else!”

“Your life! You want to go there?” I raise my eyebrow at him, is he really going to go there? Deciding I’ve had enough of his bullshit answers and lies, I think it’s time to take things to the next level. I pull out my pliers and walk over to him and tie his hands to the arms of the chair. “You won’t be needing these,” I say, grabbing the end of one of his fingernails and yanking it out of the nail bed with enough strength to pull a chunk of skin with it.

“Seems I’m late to the party,” Silas smirks, walking into the room and standing next to me. “You can’t have all the fun!”

“You can get his toes,” I laugh, because Silas has a phobia about feet.

“The fuck you say, I’ll remove his teeth, one agonizing tooth at a time.” The senator’s eyes widen in fear and sweat begins to form at his scalp, and slide down the sides of his face.

“Please, please don’t,” he pleads.

“You going to give us anything else?” Silas asks him.

“What else do you want to know? I swear, I don’t know as much as you seem to think I do.”

“I don’t believe that you lived amongst them for as long as you did, yet you know nothing! Do you take me for an idiot? I promise you, I’ve known men like you all of my life. You must know something you’re willing to bargain with for your life.” Not that he’s leaving this room still alive, but I need to make him think he’s got a fighting chance at survival.

“Okay, okay, okay,” he takes a deep breath. “I may know the addresses for three safe houses! One’s over off of Broad Street, near the dead end. A brown house, two-story, with a huge fence all around it. The other one is out off of Route 35, past that old dairy farm that closed down. If you head out that way, it’s on the right, about two miles past the farm. Black fencing surrounds the property. The last one is over the laundromat in town. They used to laugh that folks were hidden in plain sight.”

Silas shoots me a look and heads out the door. I know he’s going to give Jonas this bit of news so he can start digging and find out all he can about the locations. We don’t go in until we’re fully prepared and from the sounds of it, we’re going to need our back-up teams so we can hit them all at the same time. Can’t tip our hand to this group or we might never see Destiny alive again.

And I made a promise to my hellcat.

We will bring her back.

Failure is not an option.

“Wait,” he hollers out. “There’s this man, he hangs out at the Green Lantern bar. He knows everything. If you want to find her location, and not search all of those properties and take a chance of her not being there, he’s your guy.”

“Name?” I demand. For shits and giggles, I walk over and fire up my table saw. He immediately pisses his pants. “Now what did you go and do that for? I’m just having a little fun. Why do you all piss your pants when I turn this on...now, no more stalling...Name!” I bellow the last word.

“Sinclair Robenstein, that’s his name. He’s huge, not as big as you, but close in stature and size. He’s got long, stringy black hair, blue eyes, almost translucent, and has a scar from his right eye to the tip of his nose. You can’t miss him.” And that right there, is the information I’ve been waiting for. Now, the good old senator can meet the reaper and beg for mercy in the afterlife. Knowing that this is as much information as we’re going to receive from him that’s helpful. I walk behind him, wrap my right arm around his neck to where my elbow is in the middle of his throat. I grab my right wrist with my left hand and pull with all of my might. I hear his windpipe crush and hear him struggle as the last breath of air leaves his body. He sags in his chair, and now I can call in the cleaners to dispose of his body. I’ll let Law know later that his woman and that little girl no longer have to worry about this piece of scum.

I text Jonas the name the senator just gave me and also the name of the bar he frequents. We may need to go in that direction first before following the lead on the locations he gave us. If we can get our hands on this Sinclair person, we possibly can get her rescued safer than if we just randomly choose locations. I need Jonas to do his thing and the three of us can come up with a solid plan.

Walking out of the room, I pass Silas, who questions, “No teeth? Fuck, you take all my fun away.”

“Sorry, bro, but I’ve got things to do,” I tell him. More like a woman, but whatever. I need her softness right now and no, I’m not examining that too closely.

“Bro? You haven’t called me that since high school.” He chuckles, but I keep moving. I need to check on Piper, she is my number one priority right now. Well, that and bringing home her sister so I can put them both out of their current misery. I walk into my room and see the bed is empty. Deciding I need to clean the blood from my hands before touching her, I go in the bathroom and wash my hands. No blood on my clothes, just under my fingernails and painted on my fingers, hands, and wrists. Damn, taking someone’s nails is a bloody task, but someone’s gotta do it.

I rush through the house searching for her. I find her in the kitchen with an old radio plugged into a wall socket. It looks like the one that Jonas used to have in his bedroom when we were younger. Her hips are shaking to a pop song I’ve never heard before, but am willing to listen to as long as she keeps moving the way she is now. I feel my dick hardening and walk up behind her, grabbing her hips and pulling her into me as I grind into her softness. I know I’m taking a chance like this with Silas and Jonas in the house, but she lights a fire in my blood every time I see her.

“Wha- oh, Atticus! You scared the hell outta me!” she exclaims, in a rush. Glancing down, I can see her nipples have pebbled at our contact and I smirk.

“Hungry, Piper. Bend over,” I command, my hands undoing the fastening of her shorts.

“Here? Now? What about your brothers?” she squeaks out.

“They’re busy.” And that’s not a lie, Jonas will be at his computer for the next couple of hours and Silas is calling the cleaners and getting our tools sanitized for our next victim.

“Then take me, not that I’d really care if they walked in on us, I just wanted to make sure you were cool with it.” That little minx.

“I don’t give a damn if they catch me fucking you. They won’t do anything but watch anyways, I don’t share, especially not you.” My brothers have walked in on me with women in the past, they just sit back and watch the show. Sometimes, they even take turns. It’s usually no skin off my back, but they won’t be placing one finger on Piper.

I feel her shiver at my words and I reach between us, testing to see if she’s ready for me or not. Don’t mind if she’s not, I’ve got a hunger that only she can satisfy. Soaked. She’s drenched, so I waste no time unzipping and pulling out my dick and lining up. “Gonna be hard and fast, baby,” I murmur. I push her over the counter top so she’s laying flat on it with her top half. She shivers from the coolness of it, so I yank her shirt and bra off with one tug so that her nipples are touching the cool tiles.

She hisses out a breath when I slam home and I have to mentally count to keep from blowing my load. Fucking tighter than hell and it puts me on the edge every single time. “You gonna move or what?” she asks, wiggling her ass. I smack it, enjoying the way my hand looks on her creamy flesh, before I start moving. It’s not a slow dance, I slam into her over and over again, never lessening the strength or rhythm of my hips.

“Fuck, Atticus! Don’t stop!” she screams out. As if I could at this point.

“Get yourself there, Hellcat, not gonna last much longer,” I pant out. Fuck, me panting? I’m in superb physical condition, but any time we’re fucking, I’m out of breath faster than a ninety-year old man using a walker. Her hand snakes between us, and I can feel her rubbing at her clit. The added bonus of her fingers occasionally touching my dick has me ready to come.

“Now! Come now!” I demand, because my balls have drawn up and I know I’m fixing to explode inside of her any second now.

“I’m there, just one more...Atticus!” she screams out, clamping down on me and drawing out my immediate release.

“Fuck, Piper!” I bellow, shoving my head in her neck. I bite down, not hard, just a love bite, she shivers. I’ve noticed how she likes a little pain mixed with pleasure, so I have tried to implement it either, during sex, or as soon as we’re done. “Damn, I needed that,” I state as I pull away from her. Imagine my shock the minute I look down and see my come trailing down her thighs. Fuck me! I forgot the damn condom, I never forget to glove myself. What the fuck is wrong with me?

It’s her! It’s all her damn fault, I can’t ever seem to contain myself when it comes to her. My anger taking over, I shove away from her and march out of the room, tucking myself away as I leave. “The hell is wrong with me?” I mutter under my breath as I head to my room to take a shower.

I stand here dumbfounded at his rude departure. What the fuck is his deal? Then I feel a sticky substance running down my legs. You have got to be shitting me! I’m not protected against STDs or pregnancy! How could he do this to me? I’m suddenly very angry myself. I reach over, grab a paper towel, and wet it so I can clean myself. Meanwhile, I’m cursing him out in my head as what I’m going to do to him to pay him back starts playing in my head.

Seems like a little mindfuck is in order. Decision made, I head up to his room.

Operation Mindfucking Atticus begins now.

I hear the shower running, and I quickly strip down, and head to the bathroom. Slipping inside, I pick up my sponge, and add some of my body wash before saying, “Had no clue you wanted kids, Roughrider.”

His stammer would be cute, but I’m pissed off. How dare he expose me to anything? “What are you talking about, Piper?” he asks.

“Well, the only time a man doesn’t protect himself and the woman is if they’re attempting to procreate. But what really worries me, is that I caught gonorrhea from a bathroom, from the bar I worked at a few months ago. I got prescribed antibiotics, and all of that, but before I could go back and get retested, I was kidnapped.” How do you like that bag of apples! It’s a lie, but I really want to mess with him.

I see his face go pale at my words and have to bite back my giggles. The big, bad, Atticus Nelson looks like he wants to puke right now.

He turns around not looking at me, his shoulders fall and he says, “I’ll call in Dr. Sandall to come and check us both out. Maybe he can give you the morning after pill or something.”

Those words anger me more. He wants me to kill what could potentially become our child! He really is a monster! “Fuck you!” I scream, beating on his back. “I was fucking with you, wanted you to think so that next time you don’t lose control!”

“Next time? There will never be that, Hellcat. This is the last time I make that mistake.”

“Mistake!” I screech out. “I’m nobody’s ‘mistake’ you asshole!”

“Fuck you, Piper.” He gets out of the shower and quickly dries off, leaving me under the hot spray.

“Fuck me,” I say, pointing at my chest. “No, fuck you, Atticus! You’re the one who didn’t protect us. So if something comes from this, you’re just going to have to deal.” I jump on his back and begin pulling his hair. I’m so motherfucking mad right now I could spit nails. He wants a fight, he’ll get one because there’s no way I’m backing down from him.

“Woman,” he growls at me. “Knock it the fuck off, now!”

“Not happening, you misogynistic asshole!” We make it to the bedroom where an all-out brawl begins. He throws me over his head and I land on the bed, taking a few clumps of hair with me. I get up and charge him again, he rushes out to the hallway where I pursue him. I jump on him again and we go tumbling down the stairs where we land in front of Jonas and Silas. Butt ass naked, and they’re both looking down on us in amusement.

“You kids fighting again?” Silas asks us, with humor in his voice.

“Fuck off, Silas,” Atticus growls.

“Live porn? Yeah, there’s a market for that,” Jonas muses.

“This isn’t funny you two, I’m seriously contemplating murdering your brother!”

“Well, we could help her hide the body, whatcha think, Silas?” Jonas questions. I can’t tell if he’s serious or not, so I beam a smile at him, letting him know I’m down with that.

“Wait now, I’m your motherfucking brother, for fuck’s sake! Why are you taking her side, anyway?” Atticus asks.

“Because, she cooks for us. And the house hasn’t been this spotless since the last housekeeper quit,” Jonas states, shrugging his shoulders. I mentally cheer at his words. Sue me, I’m bored, so I putter and clean in between cooking meals that more often than not, I eat alone.

“Wanna tell us what this little foreplay display is about?” Silas asks us, breaking me out of my reverie.

I break it down and tell them everything. Starting with the day he rescued me, and how I feel he’s belittled and demeaned me. Then when I say he didn’t use a condom, his brothers give him a look I can’t decipher.

“Hmmm, Uncle Jonas. It’s got a nice ring to it, I think.”

“She has gonorrhea!” he screams out, pointing an accusatory finger at me.

“You motherfucker! I told you I was kidding!” I bellow.

They step back and look at me. They’re acting as if I have brought the plague into their house. “It was a joke! It was supposed to fuck with his head because he forgot to wrap it up!”

“So, no actual STD but I could still become an uncle?” Jonas asks.

“I wasn’t the only one there! You could have stopped me and reminded me to use one!” Atticus hollers, getting in my face.

“I don’t know, Jonas, I mean, he wants the doctor to come over and give me the morning after pill,” I sweetly say. Stick that in your fucking pipe, you asshole!

“You want to kill a future Nelson!” Silas screams out. The tension in the room is suddenly so thick that you could cut through it with a knife. Jonas shakes his head in disappointment and Atticus looks as if a knife has been plunged into his chest.

“I wasn’t thinking clearly,” Atticus mumbles, almost to himself. He looks like a scolded five-year old. His head is hung, he turns around and walks away from us and back up the stairs.

“I don’t mind the view and all,” Jonas announces, “but maybe you should put some clothes on. You’ve come to be like a sister to me, and I can’t seem to enjoy the view.” I chuckle as I attempt to stand and keep things covered. Both men thankfully turn their backs and I hurry up the stairs to get dressed. Damn, now I have to go in the same room as him because that’s where all of my clothes are.

I walk in the room and he turns his back on me. So, we’re going to play the ignoring game? Fine, works for me. Once I get dressed, I grab all of my clothes and place them in a pile. I know they’ve got extra bedrooms, and I for one will not stay somewhere I’m not welcome. I grab them all in my arms and march out of the room.

“Jonas! I need my own room...stat!” He comes up the stairs, and looks at me in question, but then proceeds to walk down the hallway.

“This one is the biggest and has its own bathroom. You can stay in here,” he says opening a door down the hall, a few doors down from Atticus’ room.

“A shoe box would work for me, as long as I don’t have to see his smug face.”

“Alrighty then.” I can see how uncomfortable he is. “Well, the drawers and closet are cleaned out, so make yourself at home.”

“Thank you,” I walk over and drop my clothes on the queen-sized bed. He leaves and I look around. The room is a decent size, with cream-colored walls. The furniture is a dark wood, and everything matches, something I am impressed by. The comforter set is a sage color and there are no extra pillows, which makes me grin. Time to shop some more, I see. I make a mental note to get my stuff from his bathroom once I know the coast is clear. I walk into the bathroom and note that they kept to the sage theme, as all the towels are the same shade as the comforter. It’ll do, I suppose.

I refuse to acknowledge the ache that has settled in my chest at sleeping alone. I lay down on the comfortable bed and turn over burying my face in the pillow and I cry. I cry hard, for my sister, for the things he said to me, but most of all, I cry because I already miss the comfort of his strong arms.

I’m an emotional wreck, and find myself so sleepy that I close my eyes.

“Piper, Destiny! Come here and talk to Momma for a minute,” I hear her call us from the living room. Destiny and I share a bedroom that’s so tiny, only a set of bunk beds and one dresser fits inside. I grab Destiny's hand and we begin heading towards the living room. We play hopscotch with all the holes in the floor. It’s the only way we can not cry in fear every time we come this way.

“Hurry it up, girls, I’ve got something important to tell you.”

“We’re here, Momma.” I scurry over and stand in front of her, Destiny hiding behind my back as she always does. Momma’s breath smells funny. I hate it when she needs her special medicine because her head hurts.

“I need to tell you girls the secret to life that I’ve recently learned. I wish someone had told me this when I was your age.”

I’m looking around trying to look anywhere but Momma’s direction.

“Look at me when I’m talking to you, Piper!” She grabs my chin, and yanks my head her way. “That’s better.” Destiny grabs a hold of my shirt from the back and I can feel her fingers shaking...Momma’s not nice when she’s had to take the bad smelling medicine. “Men, they are evil, they only want one thing from women. Remember these words for the rest of your life...if nothing else, don’t ever let anyone make you think they love you. Relationships don’t work, you girls—you always stick with each other, don’t let any man, any….well, don’t ever let anyone tear y’all apart. You’re all each other can ever depend on in this life. Family, they’re not always around, but you two, y’all stick close to each other and don’t ever leave one another.”

“Piper’s my bestest-friend ever,” Destiny finds her voice and says. She’s still shaking, but has the courage to speak out so Momma knows she’s listening to her.

“That’s good, Destiny, so very good. Don’t ever let anyone talk mean to you girls, always stand up for yourselves and give as good as you get. No one has the right to make you feel less than you are.”

“No boy’s ever gonna get one on me Momma, I swear it.”

I jump from the bed, sweating profusely. I nearly forgot about that day. It’s buried deep in my subconscious, that’s the last day I remember my mom being lucid. She got lost in the bottle, and never recovered. We spent the rest of our childhood on food stamps, begging on the streets to pay the bills, and working in the back of kitchens doing dishes and other things girls of our ages could just so we could eat.

I knew from a young age that Destiny was going places. I had street smarts, but she had book smarts. She is the most intelligent person I know. That one conversation I had with my mother changed my outlook on life and people. I didn’t rely on anyone but Destiny, and made sure that no one could break through the wall I put around my heart. I became a bit...mouthy...and likely pushed people away with my attitude, but I was safe.

Until him.

He has systematically broken down each and every wall in spite of how I treat him.