As we walked up the sidewalk to the asshole’s home, Jack nearly bolted out of my grasp.
“The fuck, Jack?” I said, pulling him back.
“Stop—listen,” Aiden said, and we all came to a halt. Even though Jack was whining, I could still hear a woman yelling from inside Colby’s house for help.
“Call 9-1-1,” I said, quickly making my way up the steps. Aiden and Kyle were next to me while Bishop stayed back and called the police. I put my ear to the door, then nearly dropped to my knees when I heard a woman pleading on the other side.
“Please stop! Don’t do this! Someone help me!”
Aiden whispered, “Holy fucking shit, is he…”
I turned back and looked at Bishop. He held up one finger, alerting me that the cops were one minute out.
Another piercing scream.
“He’s got a woman in there now!” Kyle stated as he drew his gun.
“Fuck it,” I said. I stepped back and kicked at the front door, causing the jam to break and the door to fly open. Kyle went in first, calling out “Police!” He was followed by Aiden, who also had a gun, though I had no idea where he’d gotten it. Jack and I brought up the rear.
As soon as we were inside, Jack pulled me through the house, with Kyle right next to us.
“Get him,” I said to Jack. “Find the bad guy, bubba. Get him! Get him! Get him!”
We rounded a corner and saw a man holding a woman down on the kitchen table, his hand over her mouth. Her shirt was torn open and her pants and panties were pulled off and on the floor.
“Get away from her now, motherfucker!” I yelled out. “Get away, or I’ll let the dog loose on you.”
Colby looked at us like he couldn’t believe we were interrupting him. “What the fuck are you doing in my house? Get out!”
The woman took advantage of Colby’s distraction and kicked him. Jack lunged and started to bark at Colby, who had fallen to the ground after the woman pushed him away.
The woman scrambled off the table and ran to Kyle, throwing herself into his arms and nearly knocking him over. “Please help me! He’s trying to rape me! Please!”
I heard a commotion at the front door, and then suddenly the kitchen was filled with more cops.
Kyle said something about us being with the Boggy Creek Sheriff’s Department in New Hampshire, but all I could do was stare at the motherfucker on the floor. Jack was only inches away from biting the fuck out of him, barking and snarling. It was like he knew that this was the man who’d hurt Bella. He was desperate to get at him.
“Sir? Sir, you can call off the dog now. Sir!” someone yelled from next to me.
I jerked my head to the side to see a police officer standing there. “What?” I asked.
“We’ve got him, sir. You can call off the K9.”
Nodding, I gave Jack the command for “off.” He whined but let me pull him away from Colby. I turned to see Aiden putting a blanket around the woman who was still crying in Kyle’s arms.
Looking behind me, I saw Bishop talking to another cop. The whole damn thing happened so fucking fast, it felt like the room was spinning. When I looked back at Colby, he was on his feet, his pants up and cuffs being put on his wrists.
“Do you have any idea who I am? You can’t just barge into my house without a warrant! I’ll see you all fired!” Colby shouted.
Our eyes met—and I took in a deep breath, then turned to talk to one of the cops. “I need a moment alone with him,” I said in a low voice.
The cop looked at me with a confused expression. “Why?”
Turning so that Colby couldn’t see us, I stared at the officer. It took less than a moment for him to see the violence in my eyes.
“There’s no way I’m leaving you alone with him,” the officer said, “and I don’t give a shit that you’re a cop.”
“Then you can stay in the room with me.” I glanced at his nametag. “Sergeant Peterson, I need this. Please.”
He rubbed at the back of his neck, then finally nodded. “Two minutes.”
“Thank you,” I said, slapping the side of his arm. He called for another officer to come over and clear out the kitchen while I walked over to Kyle.
“Hang on to Jack for me, will you?”
Kyle had an uneasy expression on his face. “Dude, don’t fuck this up in any way. He’s been caught red-handed. The last thing they need is a charge against a cop so they’re forced to drop the case.”
“I know. Trust me, Kyle.”
Sighing, he nodded, and then took Jack and motioned for Aiden to follow him. Once everyone was out of the kitchen except for me, Colby, and Sergeant Peterson, I turned and looked at the asshole. I reached into my pocket, found the small recorder I had brought, and hit the on button.
“Does the name Arabella Adams ring a bell?”
The color drained from his face.
Peterson already had Colby sitting down in one of the kitchen chairs, so I grabbed another one, spun it around, and sat as well.
Suddenly, a smirk moved over Colby’s face. “Hunter?”
I gave one nod, and Peterson moved to stand next to me.
“What are you going to do?” Colby snarled. “Hit me? Have your dog attack me by mistake? I dare you to lay a finger on me. Then my lawyers will have me out in a matter of hours.”
I placed my hand on my thigh to keep myself from punching the shit out of him. “I have no intention of touching you. It’s crazy, though. What are the odds I’d show up at your house to confront you for raping Arabella, only to find you in the middle of raping another woman? How many other women have you done this to?”
He laughed. “Please. They say no, but we all know they mean yes. Like your precious little Arabella. She wanted me. I could tell.”
I drew in a deep breath, and Peterson put his hand on my shoulder, most likely afraid I was going to do something. But the piece of shit in front of me wasn’t worth it. I knew he was baiting me on purpose. He was banking on me reacting, and I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction.
“Is that what you tell yourself to make it all okay? They want you? So when a woman tells you no, you only hear yes?”
Colby looked away.
“She never wanted you. She didn’t want you to rape her, and she most certainly never asked to live in a world of hell for nearly ten years because of what you did. You almost took her from me—but I’m here to tell you that you didn’t. Arabella and I are going to live out the rest of our lives happy, in love, and raising a family while you rot in jail.”
He looked back at me. “I’ll never go to jail. You want to know why? My father won’t let it happen. So why don’t you go back to your little town and go fuck yourself, asshole.”
I shrugged. “I don’t think your father will be able to make this evidence go away, Colby.”
A deep frown appeared between his brows. “What are you talking about?”
“Guys like you bank on someone believing you over your victim. I’ve seen it time and time again. I’ve also seen what a bunch of fucking sickos you are. But what happens when it’s on video? You raping a woman. Her begging you to stop while you just keep going, because in your sick head all you hear is yes. Daddy can’t make that go away, can he?”