“We’ll come back for Mom tomorrow but for now, she’s safe.” I hate lying to him but I have to get him out of here. When he nods, I release him and go to the closet, grabbing my backpack before I start shoving clothes in it. When it’s full and I’m dressed, I zip it up and turn back to Clay as I throw it on my back.
He shifts on his feet, looking between me and the door and I shake my head, pointing to the window.
“This way.”
He glances at the door. “Are you sure, Luke?”
“Hey, I’m your big brother. Would I ever lie to you?”
He shakes his head. “No. Never.”
“Smith?” someone asks, jerking me awake, and I blink into the harsh overhead lights of the clubhouse as I open my eyes. Blaze arches a brow and glances down at the half empty bottle of whiskey on the table in front of me and I sigh as I lean forward, grab it, and raise the bottle to my lips. “What’s going on, brother?”
I shake my head, tears welling up in my eyes as I remember leaving Quinn in her office hours ago. “I…Fuck. It’s all fucked, Blaze.”
“What’s going on, Smith?” he asks, his voice taking on a serious tone as he sits down next to me and I take another swig of liquor.
“My brother….” It’s all I can choke out without a deluge of unbearable emotions drowning me.
“Did something happen? Is he okay?”
I shake my head. “Quinn was raped a couple years ago. That’s how she got pregnant with Brooklyn.”
“Okay…”
“They never caught her rapist.”
His brows furrow as he studies me. “Where the hell is this going, Luke?”
“Clay is the man who raped her. She saw him at the baby shower and recognized him instantly.”
“Oh, fuck,” he whispers, running a hand through his hair. “Jesus Christ.”
I nod, taking another swig of whiskey. This damn thing was full when I started drinking but it’s still not enough to dull the pain.
“What are you going to do?”
I let out a humorless laugh before pouring more alcohol down my throat. “I’ll let you know when I figure it out.”
Chapter Nineteen
Quinn
I stumble out of the bar and press my hand along the rough brick of the building as I stop and lean against it, sucking in a breath before I drop my head back and stare up at the few stars that I can see through the city lights. Music pumps from the bar as the door opens again and I fight back a smile. Despite my reluctance to come out tonight and the rough start to our evening, I’m glad my girls talked me into going out with them. It’s exactly what I needed after moping over my breakup with Danny for the past couple months - not that I regret it. Ending things was the right choice but I had our future mapped out in my mind and losing that has left me feeling a little lost. Tonight feels like the start of something really good though and for the first time in a while, I’m excited for what’s to come. Grams signed EQA Events over to me last week and officially retired. I’m scared to take the business she built from the ground up into my hands but I also haven’t felt this alive in a long time - before things ended with Danny - and it tells me I’m finally on the right track. Hell, I would even be open to dating again if the opportunity presented itself so I think that means I’m doing all right.
A scraping sound draws my attention back to the door. There’s a man by the door but he’s completely oblivious to me, staring at the sidewalk and smoking a cigarette so I turn back to the sky as a warm breeze brushes over my skin. I should get back inside before the girls come out looking for me. My head is still spinning though and I think I’m about ready to call it a night. I push off the wall and turn toward the door but before I can take a step, two large arms wrap around me and I scream.
“Shut up,” his voice hisses in my ear as a hand clamps down on my mouth and he starts pulling me away from the door. I search for the man that was smoking a cigarette, hoping he can help me, but the sidewalk is empty. I scream against the hand on my lips and kick my legs, trying desperately to escape. He’s too strong. My heart thunders against my rip cage as he pulls me into the alley on the side of the bar and tears sting my eyes.
“No!” I scream as soon as he uncovers my mouth. He lets out a grunt as I continue jerking against his hold. Pain explodes in my chest and my vision blurs as we fall to the ground. He pins me to the concrete with one hand around each of my wrists and my chest feels tight. “Help!”
“Shh,” he whispers, leaning down over me and taking a deep breath. “Mm, you smell so good.”
I buck my hips, trying to throw him off me. “Help!”
He shoves my dress up to my belly and a sob tears through me as I thrash and kick, my stomach rolling. No, this can’t be happening to me right now. As I stare up into his dull blue eyes, and the vacant expression on his face, a wave of icy coldness hits me right in my chest.
“Please don’t do this,” I beg, tears flowing freely down my cheeks. He smiles.
“Don’t worry. I’ll make it good for you.”
He moves my hands together and uses one hand to press them back against the concrete as he reaches behind him and pulls out a pocket knife. My stomach drops and my chest feels heavy as my pleas turns to sobs and I jerk against his hold. His gaze falls to my panties and the cold feeling that started in my chest is seeping into the rest of my body. I shake my head back and forth, silently begging for help. When he slices through one side of my panties with the knife, I sob again and my body stills as he slices the other side. He meets my eyes and smiles as he pulls the panties away from my body. His hand starts creeping down my stomach and I gag.
“No!” I scream, jerking forward in bed. Gasping for air, I grip the blanket as tears pour down my cheeks and images from that night continue playing in my mind.
“Breathe, Quinn. Just breathe,” I whisper to myself, focusing on each breath I draw into my lungs as my heart rate slowly returns to normal. Once my breathing returns to normal, I fall back to the pillow and release a breath, tears welling up in my eyes. It’s been three days since I told Lucas the truth and I haven’t heard from him once since. Not that I can blame him. I knew as soon as I found out who Clay was that we were in trouble but I guess I stupidly hoped that maybe he would choose me. God, how selfish is that though? Lucas and his brother have been all each other had for so long and then I just wanted him to choose me? I never stood a chance.
Brooklyn lets out a cry from her room and I sigh as I turn to the baby monitor and watch her stand up, bracing her hands on the edge of the crib. Sighing, I fling the covers off my legs and glance out of the window as I stand. Sunlight streaks across the floor and I wipe away my tears, shoving my emotions into a box so I can be bright and cheery for my little girl. Fake it ’til you make it and all that. Brooklyn yells from her room and I grab my silk robe off the end of the bed and pull it on as I leave my bedroom and walk down the hallway to Brooklyn’s room.
“Good morning, gorgeous girl,” I sing as I step into her room, trying desperately to hang on to my smile for Brooklyn. She lets out another yell when she sees me and rattles the side of her crib. “Well, you’re feisty this morning, aren’t you?”