Violent Angel (Pretty Broken Things #1)

21. Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-One

C old hands prodding his ass or unwanted dick? Elliot didn’t know which he hated more. The Nexus doctor he’d known for a good half of his life didn’t bother with small talk, and made things as quick and painless as possible, which made his latex-covered hands a bit more appealing.

But he couldn’t kill the doctor, even if he wasn’t so cool.

Unwanted dick?

Meant someone was gonna die by Elliot’s hands.

So it really was a tossup.

The one thing he was sure of, though? Walking into his loft without having to deal with either for the next month, and knowing he’d be spending that time with Damon, was his idea of total bliss. His man had fucking earned at least a week of tender, loving care, indulging on some pastries and binging his favorite TV shows.

Elliot would even try to watch them with him. Or pretend, anyway.

The cuddling part is what counts .

Ready to do some hardcore cuddling, Elliot grinned as he popped his head into the bedroom. Which was empty. And felt…off somehow. He checked the bathroom, where a single towel sat in the hamper, and his scrub brush lay on the floor of the shower.

Unease set his teeth on edge as he returned to the bedroom and pulled open Damon’s drawers.

Empty. They were all empty.

Slamming them shut, he strode out of his loft, pulling out his phone to call Tig. “Hey, are you home? I need your help.”

“I’m here. Please hang up.” The door to Tig’s loft, the last one on that floor, opened, Tig poking his head out as the line went dead. “I do not like talking in that thing—you should just come get me next time. Even if you drag me out of bed, I think I’d like that better. When it rang I almost threw it out the window—I forgot it could do that… What’s wrong?”

“It’s a phone , Tig.” Elliot sighed at Tig’s blank look. “Doesn’t matter. Do whatever it is you do and find Damon. Something happened. All his stuff is gone.”

Winter’s door, halfway between Elliot’s and Tig’s, swung open. “He’s gone ? As in, he left without telling you?” He ducked back inside before coming out seconds later. With his jacket on and his toolkit under his arm. “Let’s go, I’m ready.”

The elevator dinged and Gerard stepped off, Lux right beside him, holding the leash to his new dog. From the texts his little brother had sent him, the smooth-furred pup was actually a Dogo Argentina, about nine months old, used as a bait dog, but thankfully, not for long. The recovery team had fallen in love with him and volunteered to help Lux care for the dog in any way he might need.

Already, Awolf looked much healthier, wagging his tail slowly as he gazed up at Lux.

But what should’ve been a sweet, happy scene was spoiled the second Elliot saw Lux’s tears. He broke into a run, stopping short when Awolf lost his fucking mind and lunged forward, snarling at him.

“Shh…shh, baby boy. It’s okay, this is Elliot.” Lux stroked the dog’s snout, somehow not getting bit. Continuing forward, he sobbed as Elliot held out his arms. “He’s my brother and…we love him. We need him… Elliot, I’m…I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay. He’s a dog who’s been through a lot.” Elliot hugged his brother and eyed the dog, who’d planted his butt on the floor, giving him a goofy doggy grin. “He’ll have to get better at knowing who to protect you from, but I appreciate the impulse.”

Lux buried his face into Elliot’s chest. “Not because of him… Parker’s… Elliot, Parker’s dead.”

Those words. His little brother needed to not be saying those words.

Dropping his arms, he took a step back, then another, away from Lux. Out of reach, so he wouldn’t hurt him if he snapped.

Maybe I already have.

“He can’t be.” While Elliot’s voice broke, he retreated further and further, swaying sideways until he hit the wall. Blinding tears flooded his vision. He couldn’t see his brother anymore. Couldn’t see Tig or Winter. Couldn’t see Gerard.

And he didn’t want to.

Not if they kept staring at him with sympathy. Those stares made Lux’s words true.

“No! No, you take it back, Lux. Fucking take it back, he can’t be dead!” Covering his mouth with his hand, Elliot sank to his knees, the fear in Lux’s eyes breaking his heart into even more pieces. “I’m sorry…I’m sorry, it’s not your fault. Please…please tell me it’s not Parker. It’s a mistake and he’s okay. He has to be. He…he waited, all this time for me to realize he was my best friend.”

Gerard stepped forward, crouching in front of Elliot and putting a hand on his shoulder. “It is him. Confirmation from the lab just came in as I was picking up Lux to bring him home.”

Red flashed across Elliot’s vision. “You have his body? How long have you—?”

“Only a part of it.” Gerard drew his hand back. “You don’t need the details right now. Why don’t you go out for a bit, get a drink at the bar and clear your head. I’ll brief the others.”

Shoving to his feet, Elliot glared at his handler. “No. I still have to find Damon.”

Tig spoke up in a small, shaky voice. “He’s…at the bar.”

“Fuck, boss. What did you do?” Winter’s eyes narrowed when Gerard rose to his feet and glanced over his shoulder at him. “You’re a manipulative bastard, doing it ‘for our own good’ and all, but you’re usually smoother than this.”

Giving Winter a warning look, Gerard sliced his hand through the air. “ Enough . Leave it alone, I will tell you what you need to know—”

“No, you won’t.” Tig fidgeted with his phone, sidling closer to Lux. Lifting his hood to cover his dark red hair and most of his pale, bruised face, Tig spoke from the shadows. “You don’t think we need to know anything.”

“But it’s too late.” Winter moved fast, too fast for even Gerard to brace himself, and cracked their leader in the side of the head with the butt of his favorite, pale blue Ruger. “Because we’ll figure it out for ourselves.” He caught Elliot’s gaze. “We’re coming with you. If Gerard wants you at that bar in this headspace, he’s not worried about civilian casualties.”

Lux’s eyes went wide. “Is he…is he setting you up? Why?”

“I don’t know, but I intend to find out.” Latching on to the anger for clarity, Eliot looked around at what remained of Eros’ Eight. Men he could trust to have his back, even against Nexus. “He’ll have a crew there. You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to, but—”

Flashing him a deadly, icy smile, Winter beckoned Tig over and headed for the stairwell. “We’re coming. If your boyfriend fucked up, I want to memorize what’s left of him when you’re done. I’ll paint you something to hang up on your wall.”

“Aww.” Tig smiled, gaze locked on his phone. “That’s sweet.”

Keeping his dog close to one side with a whispered command, Lux pressed his other side against Elliot as they descended to the first floor, Winter far enough ahead to already have a car ready and waiting.

Climbing in shotgun, while Lux got in the back with Awolf and Tig, Elliot opened the window to let the bitter cold wind wash over him on the drive. He imagined Parker here with them, leaning between the seats and speaking quietly, calmly, as they came up with a plan together.

“Gerard will warn them as soon as he comes to. Our training is damn good, but they’re trained to take us out if they need to.” Parker’s voice was a gentle warning in the back of his mind. “Let’s make sure they don’t see us coming.”

Elliot nodded and turned to Winter. “Hit the gas. We need to get there before Gerard can warn his crew.”

Inclining his head, Winter picked up speed. “Good idea.” He huffed out a laugh. “You do know we might all end up in reconditioning for this, right?”

“I don’t give a fuck. Do you?”

“Nope.”

The car skidded to a stop in front of the small bar, a building that’d been around for over a hundred years and looked it from the outside, but was pretty nice on the inside. Out of the car and through the doors before anyone had a chance to follow, Elliot stopped to let his eyes adjust to the dim lighting. Ignored the bartender asking if he wanted anything and scanned the small, afternoon crowd.

Every Nexus merc stood out to him like they held signs above their heads, none so much as glancing in his direction, but definitely aware of his presence. As he moved deeper into the bar, several stood, taking positions closest to the groups of civilians.

He almost laughed, but the fact they believed he’d kill innocent people kinda pissed him off. His kills were always chosen with care, even if they weren’t sanctioned. Gerard should’ve known better.

But when Elliot looked at the dance floor, his feelings of hurt and betrayal toward Gerard were overpowered by something so much worse. The sight jolted him like electrified rebar, tearing through his guts, impaling him while shocks wrecked the rest of his body and stopped his heart.

Damon was here. He was safe, he was alive…

And he was dancing.

With Gael.

Grinding against Damon, Gael—who obviously wasn’t dead—whispered something in Damon’s ear. They both looked right at Elliot. Or more, Damon looked through him, before taking Gael’s hand and walking right out the front door.

The Nexus mercs all watched him, tense and ready for his next move.

But he gave them nothing.

I have nothing left to give.

Unless Winter and Tig felt like playing with them, they were all about to have a really tame night.

“Hey, you can’t have that dog in here.” The bartender stumbled backward when Awolf bowed his head and growled, sounding more like an actual wolf than a dog. “Holy fuck, I don’t think you should have that dog at all, kid. He’s—”

Lux tilted his head in thought. “Very hungry. You should be quiet, he doesn’t like it when I’m upset.”

“What do you want to do next, my man?” Winter squeezed Elliot’s shoulder. “Tig can lead us to wherever Damon and Gael are going, or we can stay here and drink and cause some trouble. I’m with you either way.”

“Me, too.” Tig glanced around the bar like he wasn’t sure where he was, then brought his focus back to his phone. “But they didn’t go far. The motel down the block.”

I’m gonna be sick.

Lux bared his teeth like a delicate mirror of his agitated puppy, and spun around to face Elliot. “This doesn’t make sense. Gerard wanted you to see them together. Why did he lie about Gael being dead? Why would Damon mess with him when he loves you?”

“He doesn’t fucking love me.” Elliot motioned to the bartender. “Get me a bottle of whiskey.” He pointed to one of the vaguely familiar Nexus mercs. “Put it on his tab.”

The merc inclined his head, then seemed to study Elliot and the rest of Eros’ Eight for a few seconds. His lips moved, and the tension immediately went out of the room.

An order had been given to stand down.

Lux poked Elliot in the center of his chest. “Don’t fucking say that. You know he loves you, but you’re giving up because it’s easier. Because losing Parker hurts and you don’t want to hurt anymore.”

“And what the fuck is wrong with that? What’s the point in torturing myself?” Elliot nodded his thanks as the bartender slid the bottle across the bar. Uncapped it, and took several long, burning gulps. “Parker is dead . He’s…” Another gulp of whiskey caught in his throat. He gasped, tears spilling down his cheeks. “Fuck, he’s dead. And the one person I would’ve gone to, who I wasn’t afraid to let see me like this, decided I’m worthless.”

Stealing the bottle, Winter tipped it to his lips, then handed it to Tig. “Lux is right. This whole thing feels fucking weird.” His lips curved. “But I know how we can get us some answers. My toolkit’s in the car.”

Answers. Yes, that’s what I need .

Elliot wanted to avoid the pain. To numb it with alcohol, then maybe go find a bad guy to kill. He wanted to avoid all this emotional shit he had no fucking clue how to handle.

But what he needed was the truth, no matter how ugly it was.

Whether or not Damon loved him back, Elliot wouldn’t deny his own feelings. He loved Damon too much to walk away without knowing why.

And, in the end, the truth would help him decide what to do next.

Because Damon had been right. With how deep he’d allowed his man into his heart, Elliot wouldn’t ever let him go.

Not alive, anyway.

But I might be able to find some closure if you’re dead, babe.

I still think you’d make a really sexy corpse.