Burning Truths (Consume Me #2)

7. Ryker

Chapter Seven

RYKER

“I feel like a fucking penguin.” West grunts.

He pulls at the jacket of his suit, aggravation laced across his features. My hands run over the pants of mine, trying to calm the hammering organ in my chest, my eyes slide to my brother.

“You made the call?” I ask.

The entire town knows what today is, the past two weeks we’ve been fielding foundation bullshit and hunting down answers of our own. No one’s batted an eye at the professor’s death, hell I forgot Kenna pulled the trigger, until Addington came crawling back to town. Gio found him in a hotel at the edge of Del Mar trying to pull a meeting together a few days after Kenna was snatched. We hoped he would lead us to her, but he was just as surprised as we were. The other council members have been tight lipped about any information related to who may have taken her or how we could find her. That ends today.

“Yep.” West says, popping the P at the end.

His eyes are locked on the moving scenery around us, the limo speeding down the beachside highway, heading to our family cemetery. Juliana is going to meet us there, leaving this ride the only alone time we’ve had since she got here, and I plan to use it.

“You know what we have to do.” I state, pointedly looking at the side of his head until my stare pulls his attention. His normal playboy smile hidden behind tired and sunken eyes. It’s been the longest couple weeks of our lives, but hopefully today we start to gain back the footing we’ve lost.

Brushing off a small piece of lint from my knee, my eyes flash back to him.“Cole would track her if he were here, but he can’t, so we’re going to bring Ally with us. If she tries to refuse, we cut her dad’s throat in front of her.” I say, my words empty, but my threat firm.

He nods once, “G said he heard some muscle rolling into town early before dawn. I think their presence is going to rattle a few cages, but maybe that’s just what we need.”

I rub my lips together, “Use whatever we can to draw them out. No one person could have pulled all of this off. The fire, planting Ally, the snakes in the foundation, Kenna being grabbed.” I pause, my throat catching, “Cole. He told Kenna he found something on his last call.”

I trail off, giving us a moment to swallow down the mess we’ve found ourselves in. Two men in college just becoming the kings of their family's empire. One that was snuffed out by hands from the inside. How did we find ourselves here? Kenna has to be the missing link in the circle of questions that we need answered and just thinking her name has my soul roaring to find what belongs to him.

“Once all the players are in place, I want to start the ceremony.”

The limo slows, making a sharp left turn, West turns from me back to the window.

He nods, “It’ll be one the town won’t forget.”

Tinted windows block the peering eyes lined up and down the walkway, waiting, watching, ready to see what the Stone men have planned. There have been rumors that have circled the town, but none close enough for us to care about correcting. There’s another limo up ahead with an older man standing next to the open door. His hand is stretched out, ready to help the woman wearing deep red heels from the back seat. A dainty gloved hand grasps his, hoisting herself from the leather seat to stand at the edge of the curb. My lip curls slightly at her wide smile.

“Doesn’t she know she’s burying her son today?” West snaps.

My fingers pop under the strain of my fist, but I ignore his comment. We all know why we’re here, so it’s a rhetorical question that doesn’t need a response. Instead I roll my shoulders and slide on my mask, ready to put on whatever show was needed to get the point across. Our ride comes to a stop behind Julianas, but we don’t wait for our door to be pulled open.

Filing out, one by one, we steadily make our way across the lawn until we’re standing next to my mother., I let my gaze slide across the faces surrounding us. Some red and puffy, some masked in bravery, but the ones dipped in fear stand out the most. A sea of sheep waiting for the next orders that trickle down the pipeline. Fucking Christ. My skin itches with disgust. The urge to flee, to scour the world for Kenna. It’s suffocating.

“Wipe that sour look off your face.” My mother snaps. Her velvet voice laced with venom.

West walks over with a solemn look on his face and it’s then that I remember that this is a funeral. Black on black, a wave of people follow us to the site where Cole is to be laid, their footsteps an echo of how empty I feel. G stands off to the left near the front row waiting for us to reach him. He ignores the icy stare from my mother and instead walks up to me and leans in.

“We’ve got him.”

It’s all he says, yet it’s all I needed to know. Breathing in deep, I turn to my right and motion for my mother to take a seat before I finally take my own. Quietly, one by one, the chairs behind us fill. When the Stone’s call for attendance people show up, so it's not until I look over my shoulder that I see people spanning through the isles all the way back to a small valley of graves.

Swallowing the lump in my throat, I turn to see the preacher standing next to an all black casket with gold accents. The body inside no longer my brother but a shell of a soul gone too soon. When the man dressed in all black with a white tie speaks, everyone listens. Eventually he ends his speech and all eyes fall to the box being prepared to be lowered into the pre-dug hole. Crying. So many people are crying. It almost makes me laugh at the irony of the situation. Cole hated it here. Hated the school, the students, and most people. Yet, here we were, listening to people crying over the death of one of us.

Looking over my shoulder, a quick flash of purple hair has me doing a double take. Ally. She’d been warned not to show her fucking face here, but it looks like West might need to get his little toy back on her leash. She’s supposed to be taking care of something way more important, not here where people might see her. Kenna blew up the fact that she was related to Addington and since we had our guys out looking for him, we had her lay low. Gave her a job to keep her little ass busy, but it seems like our bite needs to be worse than our bark.

“Looks like your little rat doesn’t follow directions.” I growl under my breath.

I only speak loud enough for him to hear. Fuck, if Juliana got her claws into Ally, we’d be cleaning the towns streets for weeks. The woman to my right eats college girls for breakfast. Ones that betrayed her sons? I pray for the day Kenna and my mother go toe to toe. If-

Don’t go there.

Shoving down the foul thought that just floated through my head, I stand. My eyes connect to G’s and I give him a slight nod. West moves to his feet and starts to the SUV parked on the other side of the gaping hole in the ground, the hole mirroring the one in my chest. G struts up to Juliana and grips her forearm with a rough hold. Before she can speak, I spin towards her and give her a look that brings her to a full stop. Out of fear? No. Fuck, I don’t think anything scares this woman. Except one thing. Out of fear of embarrassment? Yeah, that’s the only thing that’s keeping her lips sealed shut.

Turning to the town, I give them a wide toothed smile, but it doesn’t touch my eyes. The looks I get back prove that my mask isn’t in place as well as I thought. Sweat starts to pool around eyebrows, some women lean back in their chairs, some of the men look to each other, but they have no reason to be scared. Yet.

“We all know why we called you here today. Cole Stone was killed two weeks ago.” I pause for effect.

No one needs to know the truth. Not right now anyway. The people who do know the truth don’t flinch with the lie.

“Not only will we celebrate his life today while we lay him to rest, but we also bring to light what he wanted us all to know.”

I don’t look behind me to confirm what I already know. West, dragging a man from the back of the SUV by his throat. It’s not an easy task, but West is powerful and has the strength to haul a grown man a few yards. G moves my mother to the other side of the aisle to keep her out of arm's reach, but he stays on her left side so he can jump my way if needed. It’s not.

“Everyone take a seat.”

Several eyes gaze around attempting to find an open chair, but coming up short. My fuse shortens with impatience.

“Sit the fuck down!” I shout.

By the time West reaches me, every breathing fucker around me is either in a chair or on the ground. West drops him at my feet, my eye snapping to his in warning. Red dots play in my vision, the sinister look I’m throwing his way clearly staying I’m not in the mood for his games.

Holding his hands up, he backs away with that playboy smile showing. He steps behind me, standing just to the side so everyone can see him. Our presence is felt. Juliana looks like she’s ready to skin us both alive, but I don’t bat an eye. Instead, I shove my fingers through his hair, clasping it in a punishing grip before yanking his head back.

“Stand.” My voice is hollow, void of all the emotions I’m harboring under lock and key. It wasn’t a suggestion, but an order. One he obeys like a good little bitch.

“I think everyone wants to know your name.”

His knees buckle under his weight, but my hold on his hair keeps him from falling. It doesn’t stop the wince from the pain from crossing his face. I push my knee into the back of his thigh, reminding him that I’m waiting.

“Trey.”

“Trey-?” I prompt. My grasp getting tighter with annoyance.

He clears his throat, “Trey Thompson.” His words are shaky.

Nodding my head, I look from him to the crowd.

“Our friend Trey here works for my family. He’s been one of our hands men for a year or two.” I pause, scanning the faces below me, waiting. Turning back to Trey, I drag his face close to mine until I’m sure he can feel my breath on his skin.

“Trey’s always been really good to us. Right?” I let out a dry laugh. “He’s been so good to us in fact that he brought us a little gift. Something my brother and I have been dying to get our hands on.”

West chimes in, “Hell yeah, he found exactly what we were looking for, and being such a good worker he brought us right to it.”

Murmurs start to pick up, but when we both jerk our heads towards the gathering silence follows. West moves to the side and slowly begins to walk through the isles, his hands lazily placed in his pockets. Juliana watches our every move, confusion painted across her face, but when she catches me looking she swipes it clean, cooling her features in a blink of an eye.

“Trey, the people want to know what you got us. I mean, it’s something that’s worth sharing!” I yell in enthusiasm.

“I- um- I-.” he trails off his eyes turning glassy as he continues,, “I’m sorry.” His words start to spill out. Pleading. Begging. The words ‘please don’t’, trigger something deep in my chest, knowing that Kenna could be screaming those same words. Boiling rage floods my system.

My fist slams into the side of his face, blood flies out, coating my suit,blending in with the black.

“Don’t worry, Trey. We didn’t take your gift without bringing our own.”

I jerk my head to the side, calling G over. He releases my mother, leaving her standing there to bathe in silent rage. Coming to a stop at my side, G pulls out a long carving knife and drops it in my hand. The town audibly gasps, but no one moves a muscle. They may not want to witness what’s about to happen, but they respect us enough to stay in their place. Even the cops of Del Mar keep their nose out of our business.

“West, how much do we appreciate our little gift?” I ask, my gaze focused on the man before me.

Trey slides to his knees, pleas fall from his lips, his skin glistens with fallen tears..

West has made his way to the back of the group, but I can still see the top of his head.

“You bleed, I bleed.” Is all he says.

It’s a reminder that you cut one, you cut all. You betray one, you betray all. What you do to one of us, you do to all of us. That’s what we’re instilling here today.

“You bleed, I bleed.” G and I repeat at the same time.

“Trey, you bit the hand that fed you and now you owe a piece of you to us. I’m here to collect that. I’m leaving you with your life, minus a pound of flesh. Let this be a learning curve we avoid next time. Our family is not to be mistaken for weak. Our enemies may have pretty little lies, but the truth is in the crimson we spill today. In the same spot we lay our brother, a son, down to rest. Our pain is yours.” I lift the knife in a show that only my brother acknowledges.

G uses both hands to hold Trey’s head steady. Using my free hand, I pull the skin away and hold it tightly while I use the other to slice in one swift movement. Trey’s piercing scream shoots through the open space, but no one moves. No one breathes. And then Trey’s being dragged back to the SUV by G and one of his men, minus an ear.

Holding the only part left of Trey over my head, I hold the eyes of several town members. “You can’t hear shit if you don’t have an ear to put to the ground. Let this be a lesson on who you’re betraying. Addington, or Adler as some of you know him, has been brought to the foundation for us to handle. The one and only thing anyone should be focused on is finding Kenna Kingston.”

West has made it back up to me and Juliana remains in her place with wide eyes. Blood doesn’t bother her, but I’m guessing the name Addington wasn’t one she thought she’d hear. Which is why I made sure to use both. Turning back to the crowd, my stare catches on someone off near the treeline. Blue hair.

“I want Kenna Kingston delivered back to us in one piece by the end of the week or pieces of Del Mar will be scattered across the ocean floor.” I roar.

With those last words I walk off, leaving them in shock while Juliana heads to the limo with her tail tucked between her legs.

“That was quite the show.” Oakley quips.

She has a bright smile on her face. This woman loves a little torture. She’s leaning against a large oak tree with a tall man on her left and a small curvy female to her right. Oakley’s dressed in leathers, which is why we were warned about a little muscle rolling into town.

“Bout damn time you got here.” I snap.

I’ve used my last bit of patience for the day. She must see the darkness behind my eyes because she moves to West.

“West Stone, player by day, big dick daddy by night.” She winks.

The male beside her grumbles, dragging her into his side, but his small grin never leaves his face.

West being, well, West licks his lips and looks the guy up and down. Oakley takes the opening and introduces him as Havoc and the girl as Haven, his sister.

“If you need more skin for your collection all you have to do is ask, baby.” His words are gruff, but his stare is on Havoc not Oakley. West has always been comfortable in his own skin, so it doesn’t surprise me that he’d try this shit, but I don’t have time to break up a fight if one breaks out. Instead, Oakley pushes off the tree and steps into West's chest, looking up at him with a sly grin.

“When you learn how to fuck me like Havoc then give me a call, but until then, I have enough to fill any hole I want.” She leans up and kisses him on the edge of his jaw.

Havoc grunts before snatching her away and stalks off. Haven has her eyes glued to West, but he just flashes her his crooked smile, a wink, and follows behind Oakley. Haven lets out a sigh that isn’t meant for me to hear, so I pretend I don’t and move to follow the three fuckers up ahead.

“I’m not caught up on everything, but if you want us to find your woman, I’m your girl.” She sticks her hand out for me to shake and then walks with me back to the others where we load up and go back to the apartment. Ally better fucking be there or I may just let Oakley have a little fun.