Three Stepbrothers Save Christmas: O'Reilly Fight Club Book Four, page 36
Ryan nods before heading over to Verity and speaks to her. She looks over at me, and I flash her a smile.
“You go and do whatever you need to do, Sweetheart; we are fine down here.”
She nods as Ryan places an arm around her shoulders, and they head up the stairs. I wait for them to be out of view before standing and taking a picture of some of the ornaments I have removed from a crate. I attach the photo to a message and take a deep breath before sending it.
Travis: Does any of this look familiar?
65
Verity
Two hours ago, Thomas Nicholson turned up. I’d hoped I would never see him again and had prayed that would be the end of it. Oh, how wrong was I?
Travis came into the lounge earlier and pre-warned me Nicholson was on his way, that Dad had left us one more big mess to deal with. Not only had he used my mum's favourite room for storage, but it was drugs that he was storing.
Nicholson and Travis believe that for every shipment my father was in charge of going between here and the States, he helped himself to a little of it and falsified the documents so no one would know. Each figure or ornament was filled with drugs. Nicholson has put Travis in charge of going through the shipments and logging how many of each type he has so they can go back through the records my father kept seeing if they can work out the amount of drugs that are there and what types. I asked Travis if it had to be him, and he said yes. It could take others weeks to do, but he
People are coming back and forth, and I hate it. If this place felt any less like a home, it’s now. Long gone are the days when this was a happy place. That man has managed to spread his evil into every single room in one way or another.
“Little Kitten?”
I look up from my bed, where I’m hiding away from everyone, clinging to an old stuffed panda I found at the bottom of my wardrobe. It’s not my doll, which is what I really want, but it’s helping a little.
“I wanted to pop up and check on you,” Ryan says softly as he sits on the edge of the bed and takes my hand. “How are you doing?”
I shrug whilst burying my face into my panda. I don’t trust myself to speak. I don’t even know what to say. How do you explain this kind of shit? Really, there is only one thing to say.
“I want to go home.”
Ryan runs a hand over my head, and I wait for him to explain why we have to stay.
“Come on then.”
I look up from the panda and frown.
“But the others?”
“They can organise another way home, or we can come back for them when they are finished.” He leans in and presses his lips to my forehead. Throwing my arms around his neck, I bury my face into his neck and take a deep breath, inhaling his scent, which never fails to calm my racing heart.
“You are my priority, Little Kitten. Not any of this shit that’s going on downstairs. If you want to go somewhere you feel safe, then that is where we’ll go.” He wraps his arms around me, giving me the bear hug I desperately need.
“Come on,” he smiles as he stands and holds out a hand. I place mine in his so he can help me to my feet. Picking up the bag of things I packed to take with me, he holds my hand and walks me from my room and down the stairs.
“Everything okay?”
We turn to see Travis standing next to Nicholson. I find myself leaning into Ryan, who lets go of my hand and wraps an arm around my shoulders protectively.
“Verity wants to go home, so I’m taking her.” He doesn’t explain himself, and he knows why from the look on Travis’s face when he sees me.
He walks forward and cups my cheek pulling me from Ryans arms and into his own. His warm, hard chest presses against my cheek as I wrap my arms around his waist, needing to be held.
“Take her home, and we will come back as soon as all this shit is sorted,” Travis says to Ryan as his arms tighten around me for a moment longer.
“How will you get home?” I ask, leaning back. Travis smiles before pressing a kiss to my lips.
“Don’t worry about us; we will make our own way back.”
“I will ensure one of my guys gives them a lift.”
I look around Travis to see Mr Nicholson smiling at me. When he looks at me like that, I almost forget how dangerous he is, as he’s more like a man smiling at one of their children. “I promise no harm will come to either of them. You concentrate on yourself and take the time you need to heal, lovely.”
“Thank you,” I nod before stepping back from Travis and back into Ryan's arms.
“Go and rest with Ryan. We will be home before you know it.” Travis presses one last kiss to the top of my head and steps back, giving me a smile.
“Love you, Daddy,” I whisper as Ryan and I start to head towards the open front door.
“Love you too, Sweetheart,” he calls back. Ryan leads me to the car at the front of the house and helps me into the passenger seat. Once I’m inside, he places my bag in the back of the car, climbs behind the wheel, and drives away from the house.
I look back at it in the rearview mirror and know there is no way it will ever feel like home to me again. Turning to look out the windscreen, I take a deep breath and relax a little, knowing that we are finally on our way home, back to the place that’s now my sanctuary and where I will always be loved and safe.
Ryan held my hand the whole way home. He talked to me about anything and everything except the hell that’s happening where two of my guys are. I asked if he thought the others were safe, and he reassured me that they were.
“Nicholson has taken a liking to Travis and you, plus you have both just made him a very rich man. He has no need to hurt either of them. Even if Ethan says something he shouldn’t, which no doubt he will at some point. Travis is there to ensure he stays out of trouble and does as he’s told.”
I know he’s right. There is no reason for either of them to get hurt, but it doesn’t stop me from worrying about them.
We have been home for hours; the longer we go without the guys coming home, the more anxious I become.
“Little Kitten, you need to relax. I promise you they are fine.” Ryan wraps his arms around my waist from behind as I look out the window into the dark night. “When was the last time they messaged?” he asks.
“Two hours ago. Ethan said his phone was dying and that Daddy’s already had,” I answer chewing on my thumb nail. He also said that the house line and internet are down. Apparently, Nicholson admitted they did it when they kidnapped my father.
Ryan turns me in his arms and removes my thumb from my mouth.
“There you go then. Stop worrying. I’ve made you some dinner; you need to eat.”
“I’m not hungry,” I answer, going to turn in his arms to look back out of the window, but he stops me.
“I haven’t seen you eat since this morning. You need to eat something, even if just a few mouth fulls.” He looks me dead in the eye whilst giving me a firm look. “You are going to go in there and eat some of the food I prepared for you. It isn’t much, but you need to eat something.”
I want to argue with him, but the second he cocks his eyebrow, I know I will lose.
“Yes, Bear,” I sigh before walking towards the kitchen, where we sit to eat our meals. There on the table is a small plate of leftovers from yesterday. He hasn’t given me much as he said. But I don’t think I could eat any more than what’s in front of me.
“Thank you,” I whisper, looking up at him as he sits beside me with a larger plate of food for himself.
“You’re welcome, Little Kitten.” He reaches over and places his hand over mine on the table. “I know you are worried, and after finding out even more shit today, I’m not surprised. But I promise the guys will be home before you know it, and together, we can start processing everything you’ve had thrown at you.” Lifting my hand, he places a kiss on my knuckles. My heart swells as I look at this guy who’s showing me all the love and support I need right now.
“You know, you are a pretty great Daddy.”
Ryan's eyes shimmer a little as a smile slowly spreads across his face.
“I’m glad you think so.”
Letting go of his hand, I move my chair so I can sit directly next to him.
“I do,” I smile before picking up my knife and fork to eat some of the food he has warmed up for me.
66
Verity
Arms tighten around me from behind as I watch the minutes tick by on the bedside clock. It’s gone two in the morning and the guys still aren’t back.
Ryan tried everything to distract me from the fact we hadn’t heard from them, but nothing worked. I watched TV, listened to music. I even went for a light run with him to try and clear my head. That did not work, and I am not a runner. Nothing he did distracted me from the growing worry that something is wrong, and we shouldn’t have left them.
More than once he offered to drive us back so I could see that they are fine for myself. But I was scared we would cross paths on the way, and they would be home by the time we got there. So, we sat and waited, and waited, and waited some more.
I can’t do this. I can’t lie in bed waiting for them to come home. I’m not tired; I’m too stressed to sleep. Slowly I lift Ryans arm and slide out of the bed, being sure to grab my doll as I go.
“Kitten?” I freeze at the door, my hand on the handle. “Where are you going?”
“I’m thirsty, I’ll be back in a minute,” I reply, turning to see him looking at me with half closed eyes.
“You need to sleep.”
“I will after I get a drink. I won’t be long,” I reply before leaving the room. I know he doesn’t believe me, and I’m sure he will come searching for me if I take too long, but I can’t stay in that bed one minute longer.
I head into Travis’s room, where most of my things are, and grab my dressing gown off the back of the door. Shrugging it on, I head down the stairs, planning on having a hot chocolate with a shot of whiskey in it to see if it’ll help me settle enough to sleep. Anything has to be better than worrying constantly.
Whilst I wait for the milk to warm in the microwave, I look out of the kitchen window to the front of the house. All three cars are parked together, a reminder that they have no way of getting home. My car is still at the O’Reilly’s, where we left it before going into hiding. It’s tucked away in one of their garages, where no one will see it. The guys offered to go and get it, but I told them to wait. This is Jasmine’s first Christmas with the guys as a family, the last thing any of them want is for a Donavon turning up and interrupting their festivities.
I make up my hot chocolate whilst running on autopilot. Do I believe this will help me sleep? It’s more a case of hoping. Daddy won’t be happy if he realises I haven’t slept.
After adding a splash of whiskey to my drink, I head into the lounge to retrieve my phone from where Ryan made me leave it. He said I wouldn’t sleep because I would keep checking it. He should have realised I wouldn’t be able to sleep because I couldn’t check it.
I sit on the sofa with my doll and sip on my drink, waiting for my phone to turn back on. As soon as it comes to life, I realise I have two messages waiting for me.
Daddy: I got hold of a charger. We are both fine and will hopefully be home by four am. But don’t wait up. We will see you in the morning. Xxx
Ethan: My phone is alive! Stop worrying about us, I know what you’re like. We will be home by the time you wake up. Go to sleep, Baby Girl. xxx
I check the time the messages were sent and realise they would have come through less than ten minutes from us going to bed. Maybe if Ryan had let me take my phone with me like I wanted to, I would have been able to sleep. Bear didn’t know best on that one.
Looking at the time on my phone, I see it’s twenty past two. The guys said they would be home by four. That’s still over an hour and a half away. I lie down on the sofa and hug my doll to my chest, feeling more tired than when I came down. Knowing that they are really okay, I find myself relaxing as I smell the top of my doll’s head, and my eyes feel heavy.
Travis
“What’s the bet she’s waiting for us?” Ethan asks as he climbs out of the car and meets me at the trunk, where I’m retrieving a few boxes of things we found at the house.
“Hopefully, she’s not, so be quiet when you go in. If she’s in your bed, don’t wake her, or you will have me to deal with,” I warn, handing him a box before balancing the other on my lifted knee whilst closing the trunk as quietly as possible.
“Yes, Daddy,” Ethan smirks. Taking the box in one hand I punch his arm with the other knowing he won’t be able to defend himself.
“I’m too tired for your bullshit,” I sigh, walking towards the front door. Before we get the keys in the lock, the door opens and we are faced by a tired looking Ryan. He holds his finger to his lips while holding the door to let us enter.
“Where is she?” Ethan whispers, placing a box in the corner.
“Asleep in the lounge,” Ryan replies before nodding towards the kitchen. We follow him in and close the door behind us.
“Why is she in the lounge?” I ask, walking over to the sink, desperate for a glass of water.
“She wasn’t sleeping, she got up around two saying she needed a drink and I found her fifteen minutes later asleep on the sofa. I saw your messages and slept on a chair so I could warn you she was down here.” He looks between us as we both look towards the lounge. I have no doubt Ethan is feeling as guilty as me. We never dreamt we would be out this long. But I wanted everything dealt with.
“All done?” Ryan asks, looking between us again.
“Yep, Nicholson has all his drugs back, and I even managed to get him to buy some stuff that wasn’t his. Looks like Henry had been stealing from Taylor as well. There were over four million pounds worth of drugs in that basement. Most was pure so the street value would have been three, even four times that. Nearly half a million's worth was from the shipment Taylor stole. It's confirmation that Henry was in on the theft.”
Ryan curses under his breath. I rub the back of my neck, which is aching after pouring over the paperwork Henry had kept down there.
“So Henry was looking to become some kind of dealer?” Ryan asks.
“He already was. The safe was filled with cash, I mean filled. We counted over eight hundred thousand. There was also information on another account with over one and a half million in it. He had been selling stuff for years, but seems he was laying low for a while after stealing the full shipment with Taylor. I was thinking about going to the States and checking out their property there as I suspect they are hiding even more than what we found.”
“You think Mum was in on it?”
I nod in response. Our mother will do anything to continue living the life of luxury she has become accustomed to; it wouldn’t be the first time she got involved with a drug dealer.
“Then why don’t we just leave it for mother dearest to have. Verity doesn’t need any more upheaval or stress. She needs us all to be here for her. From what you have told me she will have plenty to live off and won’t need anymore.” Ryan leans back against the fridge.
“We discussed that on the way home. We think we tell Mum that she can have everything that’s there on the grounds she never contacts us again for anything. As far as we are both concerned she has run off with Henry to live in the states full time.”
“We found Henry’s paperwork, and he has left everything to her anyway. Verity gets nothing now she is over twenty-one,” Ethan explains as his hands curl into tight fists.
“We found a lot in the safe that we will need to be careful with. For Verity’s sake.” The three of us share a look, and Ryan knows it’s not going to be anything good. I know I should tell him now, but I’m too tired. Now I am finally home and can relax; exhaustion is taking over. One look at Ethan, and I can see he is feeling the same way.
“It’s been a fucking shit long day. I say we put a pin in this until tomorrow. I think Verity needs to be present for this conversation,” I sigh as I push myself away from the counter I’ve been leaning against. “I’m going to check on her before going to sleep.”
I walk towards the door and open it quietly. I know the guys are behind me as I stand at the lounge door to see our girl curled up under a blanket. Her doll lying on the floor beside her.
“You guys go to bed. I’m going to chill out in the chair for a bit. I need to unwind before I sleep anyway.”
We say a quiet goodnight before the two of them head up the stairs to their own rooms.
For a moment, I consider picking her up and carrying her to my bed. But I’ve learnt that she can’t go back to sleep once awake and I know she will need her rest. Especially if she hasn’t been asleep long.
Quietly I walk over and pick her doll up before placing it beside her again. Pressing a kiss to her head, I tuck the blanket in around her and watch as she snuggles back into her doll before heading to my favourite chair to sit and rest my aching head.
Today did not go as planned, and I know tomorrow won’t go much better. Once again I have to tear open my girls world and give her even more information about the man she thought was her father, and the extent of what he was willing to do to make sure she didn’t get a penny of her money. If he weren’t already dead, I would kill him, even though I know she would ask me not to. He never did deserve her, and what I learnt today proves just as much.
Watching Verity sleep soundly for the time being helps me to relax. No matter what she learns, we will work together to give her all the support she needs and to make sure she never doubts how loved she is again. Together, we will show her she is finally listened to and respected.
67
Verity
I woke up to find Travis asleep in his recliner chair. I lay there for a while, watching him sleep soundly. If he arrived home at four as he said he would, it means he’s only had two hours sleep. As tempted as I am to curl up with him so he can wrap me in his arms and tell me he’s okay, I don’t. Instead, I walk over to place a blanket over him. He groans slightly in his sleep but doesn’t wake.
