Page 71 of Sticks and Stones (FBI Romance/Thriller #65)

“It wasn’t one man, Will. Unfortunately, it was multiple men. They found out he was a cop, and tried to kill him. They left him for dead afterward.”

That was so much worse, and Will couldn’t imagine what his man had been through. Now, Will wanted to puke, but he wanted to be strong for Corbin first.

And he would be.

Bet.

On.

It.

“I hope they rot in hell. Better yet, find them and point me at them. I’ll hurt them in ways they never thought possible. They can’t get away with this,” he said.

He smiled.

Yeah, Will was meant to marry Corbin. That was love right there.

How did he know?

Oh, maybe because Gene would say the same exact thing. Love made you want to cross the line for your person.

As for the men…well, he and Gene had handled that. As far as anyone was concerned, justice had been done, and if any of them ever got out, they’d finish the job.

For family.

“That’s handled. Don’t ask questions because we can’t give you answers,” he admitted, hoping he understood.

Will didn’t bat an eye.

“Good. Thank you for doing that. I know that it couldn’t be easy for a Fed.”

Actually, it had been—for family.

Ethan changed the subject.

“Corbin’s only mistake in this whole thing, is that because of us, he held back.

He could have been married to you had we not told him he was insane.

For the record, he was right. He’s stupid in love with you still.

It’s the rape that’s talking. It’s the damage they did to him that’s talking.

The second he broke it off, he went to go hide.

That killed the last part of him that kept him sane.

He’s going to spiral without you, and Gene and I can only do so much. ”

Well, Will would fix that.

“How bad is it? I know he tells you and Gene everything, so I’m going to say that since he’s staying with you, that you know the details—other than what you just told me.”

At first, Ethan wasn’t going to tell him everything. Only, Corbin would hide, and he needed someone to hold him up and be strong. He needed this man not to be shocked when he saw his body.

This man was willing to fight for Corbin, and Ethan would give him the tools to do it.

Knowledge.

That was a damn strong weapon, next to love.

He shared.

“Five bikers did him dirty. They branded his body with a skull ring, and they beat him to Hell and back. They stripped him, tied him to a bed, and hurt him. They dislocated his shoulder, and broke his arm. On top of that, they left him to die naked in a dumpster, and Corbin had to drag himself to the street to get help. He nearly died in the process.”

Will was disgusted.

As a prosecuting attorney, he saw a lot of horrible things that people did to each other, but five men raping his man…

That was so sickening that it made him see red.

Leaving him to die in a dumpster alone like he was trash?

He was a treasure.

Corbin was his everything now, and he’d make sure the man understood that.

Ethan continued.

“After the assault, they realized that they went too far to use him as a trafficking victim. The intent was to use his body as a drug mule and sex toy for some pervert buyer. He got lucky. Because they ‘broke’ him, he was spared being sold for sex. We never would have seen him again until his remains showed up.”

At that, tears filled his eyes. They were a mix of sadness, rage, and horror.

Ethan knew the feeling.

They had felt the same way over this.

“That’s horrible. Oh, my poor Corbin. That makes me ill. I can’t imagine how scared he had to be. How hard he had to fight to get help.”

Yeah, him too.

Both him and Gene were sickened that they hadn’t been there to help him when he clearly needed it. That changed now, and they’d never let him fall again.

Ethan shared the rest.

“Corbin is a fighter. You ask how bad his body is…it’s bad, Will. It’s going to take years to heal, and I’m not talking about the physical injuries. I’m talking dealing with the rape and psychological damage. He needs to go to therapy for this.”

Well, Will would be there.

In fact, Will would go with him.

“Please don’t force your way back into his world if you’re going to ever leave him. Please don’t hurt him. I’m putting my faith in you, and I rarely trust people. I can count on one hand the people I trust. You’d be the sixth.”

Will shook his head.

“I won’t leave him. I’d marry him and never have sex again. There’s more to a relationship than that. I want to be with him as his partner. I want to make breakfast for him, watch movies with him, and I want to come home from work and have sushi and wine on the couch.”

Ethan listened, and he believed him. As someone who spent all day being lied to, as he investigated, he could tell when someone was being genuine.

Will was.

The man kept going.

“The sex is amazing, but I can live without that. I can’t live without him.

That’s what Corbin isn’t thinking straight about.

Love is more than lust. Love is the foundation of something great, and what we have is great, Ethan.

I’ve never felt anything like it before in my life.

The second I saw him in his parent’s pub, I knew. In that moment, he was the one.”

That was what Ethan hoped he’d say.

“Tell him that. Oh, and when he asks how you got in…lie your ass off, Mr. Prosecuting Attorney, or I’m going to the gallows. We’ll be out interviewing, so you’ll have to talk him down from the ledge.”

Well, Will would do that.

Anything in life worth living was worth fighting for, and Corbin was exactly that.

Will needed one thing.

“Can I hug you?” he asked. “Because I know how difficult it was to make this choice to tell me. I know how you’re trying to protect and save him, and frankly, I need a hug myself. I’m scared at how close I came to losing him.”

Honestly, he didn’t mind. Ethan let him, and he patted his back.

It wasn’t as awkward as he expected it to be. In fact, it felt nice.

Their family circle was definitely getting bigger.

“Be there for him. We can protect him, but we can’t protect his heart. He’s given that to you, and that’s the most precious thing you can trust a person with as I’m learning.”

Oh, Will would.

“I’ll protect him and love him until my last breath,” he stated. “I’ll die loving him.”

That was what he needed.

“You’re a good friend, Ethan. Thank you for coming here to tell me. Now, I can face Corbin, and help him through this. I’ll make sure he knows I’m sticking.”

That was all Ethan wanted.

“Love supposedly fixes everything. If you love him like you say you do, you can pull him out of this, Will. Gene and I love him, but it’s not the same kind of love.

He needs a partner who won’t be shocked or horrified when he finally feels comfortable talking about it.

That’s why I told you. You need to know what you’re up against so you can be there for the hard moments.

There will be plenty of them as he fights to get back to where he once was. ”

And he was grateful.

Will was honest.

“He loves you and Gene. When he talks about you both, he tells me how amazing you guys are, and how you’re his brothers.

He is right. He has some amazing family, and I’m grateful for that.

Thank you, Ethan, for having his back. I’m glad he can hide behind you until he’s strong enough.

Now, he can hide behind the three of us, together. ”

It was the least he could do.

“I’m heading back if you’d like to ride with me,” Ethan admitted. “I grabbed coffees, and I have one in the car for you.”

He smiled.

“You knew I’d come back?”

Blackhawk was honest.

“I had faith. If anything, I learned from someone I love that faith is an important thing.”

That was all he had to hear.

Will grabbed his jacket, pulled on his shoes, and rode shotgun with Ethan back to the condo, holding the coffee and bagels on his lap.

And the whole time, he knew that he was going to find a way to get through to Corbin.

Or die trying.

Some things in life were worth it.

And Corbin was one of those things.