Page 25 of Sticks and Stones (FBI Romance/Thriller #65)

“It’s okay, Corby. I’m here,” he said. “They can’t hurt you anymore.”

Couldn’t they?

Because he felt like he was still fracturing apart in the aftermath.

“I’m broken,” he whispered. “They broke me, and I don’t know if I’ll ever be okay again.”

Ethan was aware.

Only, he had faith in the cop beside him. Instead of pushing him, he gave him mercy and grace.

“We’ll get you through this. Take your time and just heal for now.”

Corbin didn’t know how he would get through this.

Honestly, he felt like he was drifting out to sea, and the safety of land was further and further away.

And he was lost.

Forever.

* * * Blackhawk & Cantrell * * *

The Alley

Bull’s Biker Bar

Same Time

When they arrived at the location of Corbin’s assault and where he was dumped, the place brought back memories—some good, and some terrible.

The good was, of course, his time with Ethan, and the bad was how they’d barely gotten out without issues.

Now, Gene knew that there was a damn good chance they’d have to return to this place.

And that didn’t give him that warm fuzzy feeling.

Not.

At.

All.

What happened to Corbin here horrified him, and it tainted the moment he’d shared with Ethan in this place.

Honestly, he was hoping their cover was blown here. Returning would put him in a rage, and he’d likely go off the reservation, so to speak.

Basically, there would be blood.

Deep down, Gene knew that vengeance was way too damn easy, and thus, he wanted to avoid all temptation like strolling into this bar with a need for revenge.

“Hey,” Greyson said. “Did you hear me?” he asked, tapping the man on the arm.

He turned his head when he spoke to him.

“I’m sorry. I was thinking about something else. What did you say?” he asked. “My bad.”

Greyson could feel the tension emanating from the man. He was ready to blow.

So, he made an observation.

“You’re angry.”

There was no hesitation.

Gene nodded.

How could he not be?

“Corbin is like our kid brother. He’s annoying, up our asses, and a mess on a good day, but he’s ours. Now, I’m trying not to lose my mind and break the law. It’s not going to be easy,” he admitted.

Oh, he bet.

There was a fine line to walk when you carried a badge. It was the line between obeying the law, and bending it to balance the scales of justice on your own.

“Jesus, Cantrell. Please tell me that you’re not going to make more paperwork or get your badge stripped away for stupid shit.”

He said nothing.

At first.

“Not if I can help it, but one never knows,” he admitted, maybe sharing a little too much.

Uh-oh.

That made Greyson twitchy.

The last thing he needed was an armed agent going rogue on his watch. That wouldn’t end well for any of them.

“What’s that mean?” Greyson asked. “Because that statement makes me uneasy since I’m in charge of you and your behavior for your stay here in Philadelphia .”

Gene unbuckled his seatbelt, and he refused to go there. The less Greyson knew, the better. What he did know was that Corbin wouldn’t stand up at the trial against those sick assholes.

And he couldn’t blame him.

Gene also couldn’t let that happen. He had to protect his family, and Corbin needed someone to run interference. It would be a melee if Corbin was forced to stand up in front of a courtroom to be grilled.

The prosecutor would blame the victim, and they’d ask if he was gay, and if he liked it. They’d cross all kinds of lines to get the sick fucks free from justice.

Defense attorneys were scumbag ambulance chasers, and he knew it. So, he had to protect Corbin at all costs.

So, now, it was time to play dumb.

“I meant nothing by it. Don’t read into it too much. I’m just angry.”

Yeah, that wasn’t good enough.

Before he could escape, Greyson grabbed his arm and went there.

“No, that was ‘something’ because I know ‘something’ when I hear it, and you’re going to do ‘something’ incredibly dumb, aren’t you?” he asked, making air quotes around the word for emphasis.

Gene pulled his arm away, and got out of Ethan’s Mustang to walk toward the alley. It was blocked off by police tape, and seeing it sent his blood pressure through the roof.

He was shocked the snow wasn’t melting around him from the heat.

What nearly made him stroke out even more was when he saw the body-sized marks in the snow where Corbin had dragged himself to the mouth of the alley to be found.

To save himself.

The only dumpster was all the way at the back of the alley, and this proved that Corbin had fought damn hard to live. The man had really wanted to survive, and now, Gene had to make sure the sick assholes who dumped a living human being in the trash paid.

And paid dearly.

Following him, Greyson didn’t give up.

Not.

Even.

Close.

“I’m your friend. You can talk to me, Gene. This is eating you alive. I’d have to be blind not to see it.”

Yes, yes, it was.

Some of that rage was directed at the bad guys, and some at himself. Since coming here, Philadelphia has been making him into something that he didn’t recognize.

And that worried him.

Gene wasn’t some mercenary vigilante, but this city…it was testing his resolve. He couldn’t imagine any other city pushing him to his limits like this one.

“Talk to me.”

He pointed.

“How am I supposed to look at this and not be angry?” he asked Greyson. “They hurt him in ways he’ll never forget. With each case like his, and I’ve investigated plenty, I get angrier. That’s why I wanted out of Vice.”

Greyson saw the drag marks, and it made him ill thinking about it too.

So, he warned him.

“Don’t ruin your career over this. Think carefully about the future before you let it make you into a monster.”

He looked over.

“Thanks, Mom. I hope you never find yourself in the same position of having to choose between your badge and your family. It’s a damn difficult place to be.”

Greyson was worried.

“Oh, shit. You’ve already made up your mind,” he stated.

Yes, yes, he had.

This wasn’t going to court.

He was returning to Bull’s , but he was returning as their worst nightmare.

Bet.

On.

It.

Every single person who touched Corbin, and destroyed that innocence in him, had a serious problem.

HIM.

Since he knew Corbin was going to wash away the evidence, they wouldn’t be able to lock this case down in court. One asshole would blame the other, and they’d blame someone else, and all that would happen was Corbin would be humiliated and broken.

Like he wouldn’t make Ethan face that, he also wouldn’t make Corbin face it.

Gene was going to have to face the cold, hard truth. Philadelphia was going to be the death of him.

Without another word, he headed back toward the end of the alley. It wasn’t open on the other side. There looked to be a smoking area right outside the back door, leading into the shithole.

It would be the perfect place for the scum at Bull’s to dump a dying man, close down the establishment, and call it a day. From back here, no one would hear Corbin screaming for help.

In his head, he pictured the man being hoisted into a garbage truck, tossed away, and never seen again. That did NOTHING for his temper.

As he scanned the area, what caught his eye was the mattress beside the dumpster.

Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a pair of gloves, and pulled them on. Then, and only then, he grabbed the mattress and pulled it from where it sat.

On it, there was blood.

Nothing had to be said. They knew where the blood had come from, and how.

He turned and looked at Greyson, and something dark brewed inside of him that he’d never encountered before. Gene hoped he could push it back down, but this made it damn difficult.

“I don’t like that look,” Greyson admitted.

Gene was honest.

Greyson said he was a friend, well, he was about to emotionally trauma dump on him.

“Yes, I’ve already made up my mind. I’ll turn my badge in if that’s what I have to do. When you have to hunt me down, out of friendship, just give me a head start.”

Jesus.

H.

Christ.

Greyson rubbed his temples.

“For the love of God, Cantrell. Don’t admit that to anyone,” he said. “You’ll go to jail.”

Coming to Philadelphia taught him one thing.

It was survival here.

So, he faced the man.

“If your younger brother came to you and told you that he’d been assaulted and dumped in an alley to die alone, what would you do?”

Greyson stood there and said nothing.

“Well?” Gene asked. “You said you were my friend. Now, we’ll see if that’s true or not.”

He sighed.

Greyson was honest.

“I’d find them and make them pay. Only, I’d snipe them from a half a mile away and not get my ass caught.

You, on the other hand, are thinking about beating someone’s face in during a bar fight.

We are two different people. One of us is going to leave DNA all over the place, and force his friend to arrest him, and the other is going to police his brass and walk away into the night. ”

Gene ignored him.

All he wanted was to get the fuck out of that alley before he kicked in the door and broke another law.

“I need to get into the dumpster. Corbin was found naked. If they tossed the mattress, they tossed his clothes,” he said, jumping and catching the lip of the dumpster. Using all of his upper body strength, he pulled himself up and to the top.

The entire time, Greyson watched.

It wasn’t lost on him that someone was strong. Most of the time, Gene was calm and cool, but now, he was running hot. He just deadlifted his whole body without breaking a sweat.

And he was no small man. He pitied the people who did this to Corbin. Reckoning day was definitely coming for them.

Now, Greyson had to consider what he’d said.

Was he a friend?

Was he enough of a friend not to arrest him?

God, but he hoped this didn’t go south.

At the top, Gene stared into the dumpster. That’s when he saw Corbin’s things—or what he assumed were his things.

“There’s ripped clothes at the top. We have biker pants, a vest, and a pair of boxers.”

Greyson waited.