Page 35

CHAPTER 34

W ilder

Honor.

The fucking monster had no clue what honor was.

In some worlds, there was a thought that love trumped evil.

Whether or not that was true was being put to the test.

As I rushed through the woods, I felt the near panic settling in. I’d never felt that way during a hunt. Not a single time. But this was different.

Minutes ticked off and I had a bad feeling he’d buried Cassandra alive. He’d had time to dig a goddamn hole.

My mind was a blur, the anger and rage from what I could lose pushing horrific thoughts and desires into my mind. Roaring, I tossed over fallen limbs and thick logs, desperate to try and find her.

I couldn’t stand the building pain, but nothing was going to stop me from finding her. “Cassandra! Where are you?”

Even my voice echoed.

I powered on, lunging over debris, throwing the beam back and forth.

Until I heard a noise.

A single cry.

One so pitiful my heart turned to stone.

“Wil-der…” Her voice was weak, but I heard it. I rushed toward the sound, gasping for air as I stumbled to the ground after noticing a depression.

There she was, my Lady Butterfly clawing her way up from the depths of hell. I dug at the earth just as she was doing. When her arms gripped mine, I noticed she had a Swiss Army knife in her hand.

“Wilder. Wilder. Oh, God.”

I wrapped my arms around her, dragging her free, the momentum tossing her body on top of mine.

“I thought I’d lost you.”

She pressed her face against mine, taking several ragged and deep breaths. “You found me.”

“Baby, I promised I would.” I pulled her to a sitting position, tossing the flashlight aside. As I cupped both sides of her face, I studied her wild eyes.

She clawed at me, lifting her head. When I crushed my lips over hers, she moaned and I captured the sound.

There was nothing like the feel of having her in my arms, but I knew that I’d need to let her go. I’d need to allow her to return to her life. A safe one.

She thrust her tongue inside and together we reveled in being in each other’s arms. When she finally pushed me away, she laughed softly. “Did you kill him?”

“No, baby. I came to save you.”

“Why? You need to kill him.”

“Why? Because you were right. I love you. God help me, but I do.”

Cassandra fought to get to her feet, pushing me hard. “No! No. You can’t allow him to escape. We need to get him. We must do this.”

“No. I’m taking you home.”

“No. We’re going to hunt that bastard. We must. Let’s do it.”

“You’re crazy.”

She backed away from me. “Then I will. I’ll do it. It’s what needs to be done.”

“Wilder!” Xander’s voice called from only a few yards behind.

“Come on,” she encouraged. “Hunt with me.”

As my brothers came into view, their flashlights highlighting her bright eyes and the depth of anger in them, another swell occurred in my soul.

This was wrong, but nothing had felt so right. There was no end unless we did it the way that could possibly free us from the rusted chains. It was time.

“Let’s go hunting,” I growled.

There was nothing as freeing as the rush of wind or the way the crisp air hit my lungs. We ran together, the four of us heading in the same direction. I refused to lose sight of her and what struck me more than anything was the delight I sensed she was experiencing.

A monster had tried to end her life. Now she was ready and willing to take justice into her hands as we’d done in ours.

We weren’t good men, but, in this case, we were doing the right thing.

I felt it in my bones.

The woods were dense, limbs yielding to our will as we weaved our way through them.

When she threw out her arm, stopping short, the three of us ceased moving altogether.

He wasn’t far.

The Scorekeeper wasn’t as young as he used to be. We’d caught up to him.

Or perhaps he was ready to face his maker.

We continued along the path, moving silently through the night.

Until we found him.

“Cain Demarco, you’ve been found guilty for the murder of several innocent women, including the woman who promised to love and honor you for the rest of your miserable life. Your punishment? Death.”

Perhaps in the future I’d remember the night differently or perhaps the tale of ending a monstrous cycle would be told with glory and righteousness taking center stage.

But not tonight.

For weeks, even months in the future, we’d remember the ugly deed and the joy in performing the act of fulfilling justice.

Not just for the women who’d lost their lives to a true butcher or the woman who’d thought love could conquer evil, a sweet angel determined to protect her three innocent babies, but also for the men who’d believed themselves the spirit of true evil.

Only in the end, there was a beacon of light.

A conclusion to the games that had haunted us since the day we were born.

Some would suggest we hadn’t changed, that we couldn’t learn from the horrific mistakes, but for us, we’d finally found salvation.

In the form of three beautiful women who’d awakened our souls.

* * *

Six weeks later…

“You’re really never going to see her again?” Xander asked as he wrapped his arm around Jessica. Her baby bump was just starting to show, the woman glowing.

I took a sip of my drink, staring off into the distance.

“You need to go see her,” Sara stated as if she was commanding me to do so. Zach’s wife was very much that way, forceful and unforgiving.

Like someone else I knew and loved.

Someone I had set free.

“She’s better off without me,” I said. It was the same thing I’d been telling myself for almost six full weeks.

The fucking rest had been a terrible blur of dealing with police and trying to keep our stocks from tanking, which they hadn’t. In fact, the notoriety had had the opposite effect.

People were crazy for news of trainwrecks, especially when there were prominent members of society as passengers.

At least the speeding train was leading them straight to hell.

While at least eight of the men on Cain Demarco’s list had died in the course of thirty years, those remaining alive were ceremoniously being charged in the murders of at least a dozen women and from what I’d read, there were more indictments and more victims’ murders that would be pinned on them. The news had detailed the gruesome acts, Cain serving as butcher for body parts for souvenirs.

It was still unfathomable to anyone who didn’t have a dark side running through them.

“You’re full of bullshit, Wilder. You need her like she needs you.” Zach leaned back, his hand firmly placed on Sara’s knee.

“He’s right,” Xander said as he grinned. “She completes you like my woman does for me.”

“Aww. That’s so sweet. Just remember that in the middle of the night when it’s your turn to change little Michael’s diapers.” Jessica playfully punched him in the stomach.

“Michael?” I asked, lifting a single eyebrow.

“Surprise. We’re having a boy.” Xander was beaming.

“Congratulations.” I could tell the three of us were thinking the same thing even if we’d never openly admit it. Praying that the cycle wouldn’t be repeated.

No, it wouldn’t because we were determined to be decent human beings from here on out.

“That’s what you found. Happiness and love,” Jessica reminded me. “As long as you’re not pigheaded enough not to see it.”

“Me?” I pointed at my chest, trying to keep a smile on my face. How many nights of sleep had I lost in thinking about my Lady Butterfly?

More than I could count.

“Did you know she’ll be at the courthouse today? She’s in front of another grand jury that’s open to the public. You should drop by and say hi.” Zach was baiting me, something he was damn good at.

“Right. I don’t think so.”

“Such a chicken,” Xander chided. “What do you have to lose?”

“She won’t want to see me. It’s been too long.”

“Love doesn’t have a timetable,” Sara reminded me.

I shook my head, thinking about everything we’d shared. A laugh formed in my throat. “I wish I could, but I love her enough to let her go.”

That was true.

For the most part.

However, I’d thought of nothing else but spending the rest of my life with her, building on what we’d shared.

I only feared it was all about the darkness we’d both craved.

“As a wise man once told me,” Zach said in passing, “if you don’t go for what you truly want, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life.”

I had few regrets, and certainly not driving Cain Demarco into hell where he belonged.

However, there was one and that one would haunt me for the rest of my life.

But it had been the right thing to do.

Hmmm… Since when had I ever done the right thing?