Little Light of Mine (Club Decadence) Page 13

  Elena craned her neck back to look at him. “Both of us?”

  “Damn straight.” He slid down so he was lying next to her and could look into her eyes as they spoke. “I’m trying to deal with all of this too, little light. I have it locked down right now, but I am full of rage and guilt. But we’ll get through this together.” He leaned forward and kissed her tenderly.

  “What do you have to feel guilty about? I should have turned to you after-,” her voice broke and she couldn’t finish her thought as the horrible memories returned.

  “Why didn’t you baby?”

  “I was afraid you’d kill him, Dex.”

  “I want to. I want to hunt the bastard down and strangle him with my bare hands for what he did to you.”

  “No Dex. Don’t you see? That’s why I didn’t tell you.” She sat up and rolled to her knees. “Promise me you won’t go after him.”

  “I can’t make that promise, baby.”

  “Then this was all for nothing. If you go to jail I will have failed and the past two years will have been wasted.” She started sobbing again. Her small fists twisted in his shirt as she frantically tried to get him to see things from her perspective. “Dex, please don’t let him ruin your life, too.”

  “Christ!” He gripped her tighter, her words and tears breaking his heart. “All right, little one, I promise not to kill him. But if I get my hands on him I can’t promise not to beat the shit out of him for what he has put you through.”

  Relieved, she relaxed into his arms, her hands smoothing the wrinkled wet mess she had made of his shirt.

  “Do you have flashbacks often?” At her nod he growled, “I’m so sorry, baby. I wish I’d been here to protect you. I keep thinking how it could have been different if we got married before I went back. You’d have been out of the house and safe from him here.”

  “We can’t change the past, Dex. Believe me, I’ve thought about how things could have been different so many times.” Her hand stroked his worried face as she gazed tearfully at him. “Don’t dwell on what could have been. It will drive you insane.”

  They lay together quietly, holding each other, for a long time until the doorbell rang again. “The guys are arriving for our meeting. Do you feel up to it?”

  “Will you stay with me?”

  “Try and stop me.”

  True to his word, Dex didn’t let her out of his sight. In fact, he held her on his lap throughout the entire meeting. Megan sat next to her and kept pouring her more water and urging her to eat. She was seven months pregnant and her maternal instincts were already in high gear. She held Elena’s hand; squeezing and petting her when she thought the conversation turned upsetting.

  Lil T arrived and took the empty chair beside Dex and Elena. “How’re you doing honey?”

  “I’ll be all right, T. Thanks for saving me.” She remembered him breaking down the door to get to her. “Has anyone told Megan about her office? You did a number on her door, putting your big size fifteen’s through it, just like in the movies.”

  “Size seventeen,” he corrected with a smile. “But in the movies the hero saves the girl, right?” T’s eyes were filled with pain as they rose to meet the man’s behind her.

  Elena knew without having to be told that the news had spread beyond today’s assault. It was horrifying that everyone knew her shame. Even with all the therapy she had while in rehab she still felt dirty. She knew it was her own warped self-image, but she worried that others would think less of her. A silent tear rolled down her cheek.

  Lil T captured her hand and kissed the back of it affectionately. “None of that now, honey. We are gonna find the bastard and make him pay.” She nodded, but remained silent. She was afraid her voice would give out if she tried to speak. “Dex told me you used some of our moves on the bastard. I can’t wait to see the video. I guess all our hard work paid off, eh Bruiser?

  “Thank God for small favors, I always say, but I thought you and Rick took out that camera in my office.” Megan asked suspiciously as she once again squeezed Elena’s hand.

  “We did, sweetheart, but Cap had us put it right back in.”

  Cap came up then and pulled his pregnant wife out of her chair, sat in her place and pulled her down onto his lap.

  “Have you been spying on me, Captain?”

  “How do you think I knew you were working all those times when you were supposed to be resting? ESP?” Cap squeezed her gently, his big hand sliding possessively to rest atop her distended belly.

  “Hm? What does that stand for? Extremely sneaky pain-in-the-”

  His hand came up and clamped over her mouth, cutting off her curse. “Nope. Extraordinarily severe punishment, which is certainly in your future. I’ll just add this to your post delivery tally, Angel.” He kissed her blonde curls as he winked at a fascinated Elena. “And if you don’t start behaving, I’m going to need another notebook to keep up with all your black marks for sass and naughtiness.”

  Megan huffed in mock indignation as she leaned back against her man, her hand joining his on her belly, their fingers entwining. The men at the table chuckled at the adorable, but extremely pregnant woman. They knew she had long since wrapped their fearsome Captain around her little finger.

  Elena was riveted, charmed by their easy, teasing banter. They obviously loved each other and had a marriage like she and Dex could have had. Luis had robbed her of so much. Her eyes misted with regret and she discretely brushed away her tears with her fingertips. Dex, astute as ever noticed.

  “It’s gonna be OK Elena. I promise.” Dex murmured his reassurance into her ear as he pressed his lips tenderly against her skin. “We all want to support and protect you. No one here thinks less of you for having suffered all that you have. Remember you were the victim. And every man in this room is itching to get a hold of that son of a bitch. But they’re gonna have to wait in line because he is going to learn first from me what happens when someone touches what is mine.”

  She looked around the table at the assembled team who were nodding in agreement at his words. These big strong dominant men were pissed. Abuse of any defenseless woman by a bigger, stronger man ticked them off, but especially when it was one of their own. The irony was not lost on them however that the tools of their trade not only included guns and grenades but paddles, crops and floggers as well. That was one of the reasons they had opened The Club, to provide a safe environment for their members and to prevent the abuse that can happen in unstructured BDSM play. They also wanted to keep out the gawkers, weirdoes and out and out assholes that used BDSM as an excuse to abuse. They were committed to a lifestyle with strict rules of conduct and safe, sane and consensual play, consensual being the key.

  In addition to the Rossi team, they were joined by Detective Angela Hixson from the SAPD. She was also Megan’s cousin and was present to take Elena’s statement. A BOLO had already been issued for Luis Lopez with the description and still shots Rossi had provided from their surveillance feeds.

  Dex started the meeting. “Ok, tell me what you’ve got. T?”

  “I lost him down on Fifth Street. It’s farmer’s market day and there were hundreds of people. He could have turned down any of those alleys.”

  Dex looked at the police detective who shook her head, as she had nothing to report yet.

  Not having much else to go on, Cap asked, “Where do you want to go from here?”

  “Elena does not leave my sight until we find this asshole. Cap, you’ll have to get someone to cover for me. I was leaving for Colorado tomorrow on a lead on a new skip. Jason or Kyle should be able to handle him.” Cap nodded and Dex’s eyes turned to Rick. “I need security set up here and at her parent’s house - phones, video and a man on them, in case he makes contact there.”

  “Done.” Rick agreed. “What can you tell us about Luis, Elena? Friends, co-workers, hangouts?”

  “The two creeps that he hangs out with are Bobby Mancini and Eduardo… I don’t know his last name. I’ve already gi
ven you their descriptions. He doesn’t have any other friends or a girlfriend that I know of. He hasn’t been to see Papa in months, since well before his stroke. He doesn’t call so we never know when he’ll show up. That’s about it.”

  Dex looked down at Elena and delivered some bad news. “We are going to have to tell your parents something,Chiquita. They’ll wonder about the security and they have to know that Luis is a threat.”

  Elena nodded and looked down at her hands. A teardrop dripped off her cheek and splashed on the back of one hand. He pressed a kiss to her temple, “I know this is hard, little one but I’ll be right there with you.”

  Dex and Elena arrived at her parent’s home about eight that night. Elena was visibly shaking and Dex had to pull her from his car. “They have to know what he’s capable of Elena. It’s vital to their safety.”

  “Just the assault and what he said about not being blood kin, Dex. Promise me. I couldn’t stand for them to know the rest.”

  “There are pictures and video out there, Elena. That means there is always a chance they will find out.”

  “Dios mio. I couldn’t stand for them to see.” She looked up at him with tear-filled eyes, “or you Dex. What they did to me.”

  “Elena, you’re the victim here. This wasn’t your fault and it doesn’t affect how much I love you. It will be the same for your parents.”

  “I’m not ready, Dex, please.” She clung to him trying to get him to agree, desperate for his support.

  “All right, honey. But you are going to have to tell them eventually.”

  As he escorted her to the door he got a strange feeling. Jonas was on duty tonight he knew because they had passed his truck parked down the street. He would have been watching for any suspicious activity but he was just one pair of eyes. Rick had installed a silent alarm that afternoon while her parents were out of the house. The full tech crew was due to install the rest of the security including the cameras once they had explained the situation to Elena’s parents. But something didn’t feel right in his gut and he issued a warning. “Wait a minute, honey.”

  But Elena had already used her key and let them into her parent’s small, ranch style house. The lights were off which she found odd. She stood in the open airway turning back to see what was wrong when an arm wrapped around her throat from behind. She was dragged inside the house and something cold and hard pressed against her temple.

  A familiar voice echoed through the room. “One wrong move and I shoot your little whore, Sargent.”

  As they stood in the dark entryway with only a slim sliver of light from the street, Dex saw Luis holding a gun to Elena’s head. Fear consumed him as he read the desperation in the other man’s face.

  “Come in and close the door.”

  He backed a safe distance from Dex, the whole time pushing the gun barrel against her temple.

  “Easy Lopez, what do you want?”

  “I’m here to pick up a little stash I have hidden, then me and my little sister here are going to take a little trip.”

  “That’s not going to happen, Lopez.” Dex’s voice was like cold steel. Hard and inflexible.

  “I’m the one who has the gun here, asshole. I’m calling the shots.”

  “If you shoot her you’re dead. You won’t make it past the front door because right before I separate your fucking head from your shoulders, I’m gonna rip off your disgusting prick and shove it up your cowardly, rapist ass.” His eyes didn’t leave the gun and Luis’ trigger finger.

  “I could always shoot you instead.” Luis turned the gun on Dex and Elena stiffened.

  “No, don’t shoot him.” Dex met her eyes and she read the silent instruction in his expression. She knew he had a plan. She had to distract Luis so that Dex could disarm him or carry out whatever he had in mind. She remembered her defense training and how to get out of the choke hold position. She looked back to Dex and gave a barely perceptible nod.

  “I’ll give you three seconds to let her go, Lopez. One.” Dex didn’t flinch as Luis laughed at him.

  “Two.”

  “I have the gun,Cabrón!”

  Before he could count to three, Hector Lopez appeared around the corner with his shotgun raised to his shoulder. He startled all three of them as his gravelly voice shouted one of the few words he was able to: “No!”

  It was just the distraction Dex needed. He charged the other man, grabbing his gun hand pushing it up and away from both him and Elena. He slammed his wrist against the wall and the gun clattered to the floor at their feet. The two men struggled, fists flying and furniture overturning as they fell to the floor and grappled for position. Dex had about twenty pounds on Luis who was a surprisingly scrappy fighter, but Dex was able to get him in a vulnerable position on the floor. The momentum shifted when Luis pulled a knife from his boot and held it against Dex’s jugular.

  Both men froze as Elena’s voice penetrated the sound of their harsh breathing. “Drop the knife or I’ll shoot you dead you bastard.”

  Luis looked at her over Dex’s shoulder, stunned. Elena held his own weapon on him and it was pointed straight at his head. She even seemed to know what she was doing. “You wouldn’t shoot your own brother would you, little sister?”

  “You can count on it. Drop the knife. And don’t call me that anymore, you pig. I am not your sister.” Luis moved the knife away and dropped it. Dex immediately slid it across the floor and out of reach. He then stood and went to a trembling Elena.

  “Give me the gun, baby.” Dex held his hand out for the weapon, she still had her finger on the trigger and it was aimed for a headshot just like he’d taught her.

  “NO! I want him dead.” Her voice shook as she relived every vile and disgusting moment of her rape. “I can still feel his filthy hands on me Dex. I can’t shake it.”

  “Baby, please give me the gun. We’ll lock him up and throw away the key. He’ll pay.”

  She started to weep and the gun wavered as she spoke haltingly, memories flooding her, as she looked at the man responsible for her pain. She forgot her parent’s presence as her traumatized mind tried to suppress the horrifying memories, but they came spilling out. “He raped me in my own bedroom, Dex. I had to suffer the humiliation of sleeping in that room, night after night, reliving his violation. He hit me, kicked me and broke my ribs. I want him to die so I don’t have to look at his disgusting face, ever again.”

  Dex watched Elena close her eyes tightly and knew this was a sign she was going to pull the trigger. He lunged for her, knocking her arm upward as her weapon discharged, once then a second shot rang out. The room reverberated with sound, the report of the weapon, her mother’s screams and a loud crash as the front door slammed open and against the wall. Elena cried out as he pried her shaking fingers from around the gun and pulled her against his chest.

  As her mother’s piercing screams continued, they looked at her and found her hovering over a collapsed Hector. Beside him lay a bleeding Luis with a gaping hole in his chest the size of a fist. Maria was rambling incoherently in Spanish as she sobbed hysterically over her husband’s body.

  “Papa!”

  Dex released her and she ran to kneel next to her father, her eyes and hands running over his slender frame searching frantically for signs of an injury.

  “Holy shit, Dex. What the hell happened?” Jonas stood in the open doorway taking in the scene. “Jack alerted me that you had a situation. I think I need to talk to him about his tendency for understatement.”

  Dex walked over to Luis’ body and leaning down touched his fingers to his throat checking for a pulse. Of course, he didn’t expect one but he felt the need to verify that fact. He stared at the huge hole knowing the wound hadn’t come from Elena’s 9mm but from Hector’s shotgun. Her father, not Elena had killed him.

  Dex wished to God it had been him to pull the trigger instead. He stared down at the bloody corpse of Luis Lopez and felt nothing but hatred and disgust. His fists clenched and his body shook with barely
contained rage as he thought about how this vile creature had raped and abused the most precious thing in his life. He should have felt vindicated by his death but he felt cheated instead. He wanted to make the bastard suffer as she had. His death had come too easily, and it made him want to rail at the injustice of it all.

  Elena rose and stared at him over the dead body. Her eyes locked on him as she read the emotions raging just below the surface. “Dex, it’s over.” When he continued to stare at the dead man at his feet she pleaded. “Please,mi amor. Look at me.”

  She saw Jonas approaching out of the corner of her eye. He was there to provide whatever support the two of them needed, even if it meant taking down an out of control Dexter Russell. His light blue eyes rose to hers and she could see him struggling to control his fury. She lifted a hand to him in supplication, “Please, come to me Dex. We are free now. He can torment us no longer.”

  He stared into her deep brown eyes for several minutes and she watched him slowly battle the demons that were waging war inside him. “This pathetic excuse for a human being didn’t deserve to breathe the same air as you, let alone touch you.” As he looked at her she saw his features slowly begin to soften and his body relaxed just a fraction, but she knew then that he was back in control. “I feel cheated out of causing him the same excruciating fear and pain that he did to you. But for you my love, I will walk away and try to take comfort in the knowledge that he will surely burn in hell for what he has done to you. I only wish his suffering could be more.” That said, he looked at the corpse with contempt and spit on the floor beside him. He reached for her still outstretched hand and guided her around the expanding pool of blood on the floor, bringing her safely to his side. Looking at his friend who was only an arm’s length away he assured him, “I’m under control now Jonas, you can stand down.” Jonas nodded and Elena sent him a grateful look that spoke her silent gratitude.