Triple Beat-nook(46)

His brows were furrowed with a fury so intense she had to look away lest she lose her nerve. “Who the f*ck do you think you’re talking to? All you had to do was spread your skinny f*cking legs!”

“Don’t pretend this is about sex. You and I both know it’s a f*cking power trip with you. A way for you to lord yourself over me. Well, guess what Daddy Dearest, I’m not f*cking impressed or scared. You’re a weak, stupid, small man who only feels big when he’s terrorizing women and children.”

Her dad’s eyes nearly bugged out of his head, his breath was coming in loud, harsh pants. She’d propelled him from merely angry to raging, fiery fury. “Shut your f*cking mouth!”

He bent down as she struggled to stand and slapped her again. And this one hurt. Bad. Her teeth rattled and her neck jerked so hard to the left she thought she heard a snap. Stars exploded behind her eyes, blinding her momentarily.

She couldn’t shake off the pain, couldn’t find her way back from the agony. Her legs started to give way and she feared she was going down. If she fell, if she hit the floor, she was done for. She locked her knees.

“I don’t give a f*ck if I go back to jail. All I care about is that the trip there is worth it. I didn’t get to finish last time. This time, I will. I’m gonna make you hurt, Dani. I’m gonna f*ck you up good.”

The fear she’d managed to hold at bay responded to his threat. There wasn’t much fight left in her. Her arms felt like rubber, her brain was still rattling from the last blow and her legs were only holding her up by the grace of God.

“Why do you hate me so much?” She hadn’t meant to voice the question, even though it was one she’d carried around inside her for most of her life. He was her father. She’d seen the other girls in school with their daddies. She knew what that relationship was supposed to look like.

He laughed. He’d taken delight in her question, in knowing that he’d hurt her.

“I know how to shut you up, whore.” It was the only answer she got as his fist flew, punching her in the stomach so hard, she lurched forward, gagging.

His fingers found her hair once more as he shoved her to her knees in front of him. With one hand, he slid the zipper down.

Her chest went tight, a wave of dizziness swamping her. There was a sudden roaring in her ears that drowned out the rest of her father’s hateful, terrifying words.

The sound of a siren pierced the night. Hope emerged.

“Don’t get excited. Cops don’t come here.”

Regardless of her father’s confidence, Dani couldn’t help but notice the siren was getting louder, coming closer.

That was when she heard heavy footsteps pounding, racing up the stairs.

Her dad’s conviction wavered, but there was something in his twisted mind that refused to let go of the goal at hand. Even in the face of arrest.

If he’d been thinking clearly, he would have gone for the gun, would have attempted to get away before the inevitable. Instead, he was determined to finish what he’d started when she was just a girl.

He shoved her back down on the couch, pushing her into the stained cushions. His fingers clawed at her shirt even as she tried to shove them away, fighting to get up. He ignored the sound of car brakes squealing, the siren right outside the window.

She screamed, praying the cops were there for her. If they weren’t, by f*cking God, they would be.

Her father tried to cover her mouth, but she bit his fingers, screaming again.

A loud bang accompanied the front door flying open. Bryson and Aiden rushed into the room. They took one look at her on the couch, bruised and disheveled, and the fear she witnessed briefly in their eyes turned to cold, hard rage.

Dani lay on the couch, every ounce of strength draining from her body as the world began to move in slow motion. She was acutely aware of every single movement in the room. While her body failed her, her senses seemed to take over.

Bryson grabbed her father by the back of his shirt, yanking him away from her. Aiden moved in front of Russell, his fist flying fast and hard. Her dad’s neck flew back as blood spurted from his mouth. Dani could have sworn she could count how many drops were shed.

Then Bryson moved in for his vengeance, using his elbow against her dad’s shoulder in a way that knocked Russell to his knees, “oomphing” loudly, the sound racked with pain.

If she’d had the strength, she would have laughed at her dad crawling on his hands and knees, attempting to escape her beautiful men as they rained down a rapid succession of punches and kicks.