Page 42 of Traitorous Lies (Prey Security: Charlie Team #6)

Chapter

Twenty-One

That was the last thing Jax had expected Monique to say.

Seeing the fear and grief in her eyes had his last thread of control snapping away. Jax was trying to do the right thing, trying to hold back, not push Monique too hard too fast, and be restrained in the way he interacted with her.

But not right now.

Not when she was hurting.

Not when he could do something about it.

Gripping her hips, he lifted her off the ground, and she didn't hesitate to wrap her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. Something in him soothed at the easy way she clung to him when she was hurting and needing comfort.

“Why do you think your dad killed your mom?” he asked.

Honestly, now that she’d said it, he wondered why they hadn't considered that possibility already. They knew her dad was dangerous, and her mom disappeared right around the time that the rape would have occurred. Was it possible Monique’s mom had proof of her husband’s crimes and threatened to take it to the police, and he’d had no choice but to silence her?

“He said that my mom became a problem that needed to be buried. It was when I asked him if Mom left because he’d had an affair.

It’s the phrasing, it’s weird … right?” Her storm gray eyes bored into him, begging for him to come up with a reasonable explanation that didn't involve her father murdering her mother.

“I’m sorry, princess, but yeah, it’s a super weird way to say it.

” As much as he would love to coddle her and pretend this wasn't happening, that would only be proving he didn't see the real Monique.

Because the real Monique had it in her to handle anything, especially when she had an entire family at her back.

“He also said that he gave my mom a choice. She could go on her own or with me. I thought maybe he meant he was blackmailing her, that if she kept quiet and left me behind, she could leave with money, otherwise, she’d be homeless and penniless.

But I can't get over the word buried and my fear that he killed her, so that means … it means he thought about killing me as well.”

The utter horror in her voice gutted him, and he didn't hesitate to lean in and brush a soft kiss to her lips. “I want to tell you that there’s no way your dad would have thought about killing his innocent two-year-old daughter, nothing would make me happier, but your dad was okay with my four-year-old niece being abducted and used as leverage, so I think we have to acknowledge that your father is capable of anything.”

“Even contemplating murdering his toddler daughter,” she said, desolation dripping from her words.

“My mom … all my life I've been so angry at her for abandoning me, for leaving me behind with people who didn't really love me.

But … she didn't leave me behind. At least not willingly. She must have made some kind of deal to get him to let me live. She saved my life.”

Tightening his hold on her, Jax nuzzled her neck, wishing he could rip the pain inside her right out of her body so she wasn't suffering. “You had no reason to think your dad would kill your mom,” he reminded her. How could she? It was only a couple of weeks ago when he barreled into her life that she’d even learned her father had been unfaithful.

“You were right about him all along.” Her huge eyes shimmered with tears, and when a stray one slipped free, Jax leaned in and captured it with his lips.

“I was looking at things from a different position,” he reminded her. “But now you know the truth about him and I'm so damn relieved because now I know you're not fighting against me and I can keep you safe.”

“He killed my mom,” she whimpered, and tears slipped down her cheeks. “He’s trying to cover up his crimes by going after your family. He tried to have us both killed in France. H-he didn't c-care if those m-men killed m-me. His o-own d-daughter.”

He couldn’t imagine all the thoughts and emotions running rampant inside her with this revelation.

While his dad had all but unplugged himself from their lives after their mom’s death, there had still been good times the three of them had shared, and he and Jake both knew their dad loved them even if he didn't say the words. Even though he’d been only four when he lost his mom, he knew she’d loved him as well.

While Monique had now learned her mom hadn't left by choice, she’d also learned that the only parent she had wasn't just responsible for fathering a child through an affair, but had raped an innocent woman, committed more crimes to cover it up, and murdered his wife.

“I’m so sorry, princess,” he murmured as he touched kisses to her face. “But he’ll pay for what he did. To your mom, to my stepmom, to you, to all of us. I swear to you he’ll pay.”

His words must have sunk in because while tears continued to tumble down her cheeks, determination sparked in her eyes. “I want to help.”

“You’ve done your part,” he assured her. Once they had an address of where to meet with her dad, he and his brothers would take over, do whatever was necessary to ensure the safety of all of them going forward, even if that meant ending her father’s life.

“You don’t know him like I do. If Cassandra and I don’t show up, he’s not going to hang around and give you and your brothers free range to get to him.”

“There is no way on earth I am allowing you to meet up with the man who killed your mother, who threatened to kill you, too, even though you were only two years old at the time, and who would have been okay with you dying as long as he silenced me. No way.”

Arching a brow at him, she met his gaze squarely. “Did you just say you wouldn't allow me to do something?”

“That’s exactly what I said.”

“And you don’t think that’s a little controlling of you?”

“Not when we’re talking about your safety.”

“So you're not going to apologize for your alpha caveman behavior?”

“Absolutely not. I'm not going to lose you,” he said simply. And honestly, it was that simple. He was fighting to win her back, he wasn't handing her over to a man who wouldn't hesitate to end her life to protect his own.

“You're impossible.” She huffed, but he sensed she wasn't all that unhappy with his attitude to her safety. “But, Jax, Cassandra and I are going to need to be there if you want a chance to get my dad.”

“Don’t want you in danger,” he said softly as he pressed his face to her neck and breathed in her sweet scent. The thought of using her and his sister as bait made him feel ill, even as he knew she was more than likely right.

“It’ll be okay, Jax.” Her fingers stroked his short hair, and he ate up the comfort she was offering, knowing what a precious gift it was given how strained things were between them.

“You're right. It will be.” Lifting his head, he forced himself to pull it together. If he wanted Monique to be safe long term, he might have to make this small concession. “There is no way in hell I am letting your father take you away from me.”

“I know you won't.” Her quiet tone spoke volumes. There wasn't a flicker of doubt in her eyes. While she might not trust him to keep her heart safe, she definitely trusted him to keep her body safe.

Baby steps.

They’d taken a few more of those today .

“Then we’d better get inside, call the others, and work out a plan.

You and Cassandra won’t be meeting your dad alone.

The whole family is going, and this time your dad isn’t going to win.

We have our entire futures at risk. Our whole lives since we were tweens and teens have been working toward this moment.

We have the answers we always wanted, and now we’re going to get proof from your dad that he and his buddies set up my dad and stepmom. ”

“Your family deserves to finally be able to move on, Jax. To be able to look forward instead of back.”

“They do. Cooper and Willow, Cole and Susanna, Connor and Becca, Cade, Gabriella, Essie, and their unborn baby, Jake and Alannah, Cassandra, they all deserve to have the futures they deserve. A future I hope I might be able to have with you if I haven’t already completely ruined my chances.”

As he held her in his arms, her body still wrapped around his, their faces so close he could feel the warm puffs of air with each breath she took, he could see the internal battle she was having between her heart and her head.

He believed he still held her heart, it was her head that he needed to win over.

“One step at a time, Jax. First, let’s take down my dad, then we can worry about us,” she finally said.

It wasn't the answer he’d hoped for, but it also wasn't an outright no.

For now, that was going to have to be enough.

November 14 th

6:18 A.M

Never in her life had Monique been this scared.

Of course, she’d been scared in France, when she realized they were going to be run off the road, and when they were kidnapped, when they were walking through the forest not knowing if they’d find their way out, and when they saw the footprints.

But all of those things had just happened.

There had been no choice on her part. She was just thrust into the situation and left to deal with it.

Unlike this.

This was something she had chosen. Something she knew she had to do, not just for Jax, Cassandra, and the rest of their family, but for herself as well. For her mom.

No matter how terrified she was, this had to be done.

It was the only way to have a future without remaining in hiding and constantly looking over her shoulder, wondering when the next team of assassins was going to come after her.

Jax said he wanted a future with her, and she wanted that, too, only she was still scared of getting hurt.

First things first, though, because if they didn't take her dad down, then none of them were going to get a future, and that was something she wouldn't allow to happen.