7. RONAN

RONAN

SEVEN

S he left.

I stare at my tablet screen while sitting in my car. She's been picked up by someone judging by how fast she's moving now. Honestly, I can't believe she took my phone. It's the easiest fucking thing to track. I'm glad she did though, because right now, I'm in no state to be trying to locate her any other way.

She left.

"Fuck," I hiss out as the blade runs across my arm. I can't remember the last time I needed this kind of release. Probably over a decade. But here I am, line after line, trying like hell to numb the pain. How could she leave? I worship her. I understand her. She and I are on a spiritual level that we won't find anywhere else and she just decided, what? That I'm too much? That I'm too unhinged? She brings a stranger into our hotel to send me into a jealous rage but I am the unhinged one?

Staring at the screen, I light a cigarette while trying to ignore the burning in my eyes. I cried. I don't cry. I haven't since one of the first times my father rammed his cock down my throat. But I did cry when she left. I feel as though I can't breathe. I know it's only been a week, I know it's fast, but what am I supposed to do? Deny what's happened? That I've fallen over the edge for her? Pretend like she and I aren't soulmates until a respectable amount of time goes by? Fuck that. I'm a grown ass man and I know what I'm feeling and I've never been into societal norms.

She's so sorry.

Sorry—fucking wonderful. Sorry is perfect. Sorry is great. Please Everly, be sooo fucking sorry. So sorry for walking into my life and giving me hope for the first time in my fucking life just to rip it away. I felt seen, I felt able to breathe and she… well, she's sorry. So mother fucking sorry. She will be, if she thinks I'll just tuck my tail between my legs and leave, she's wrong. I will follow her to the ends of this world and the next. I will be in the shadows, watching. What? She expects to go on and live a normal life? She expects to date? Fuckkk my angel isn't that stupid is she? Certainly not. She has to know I'll kill every one of them. And if she doesn't know, she will when she notices none of them seem to come around after the first date. I will burn this world, Heaven and Hell down for her. But in the same breath, I will burn her world as well. Nothing about my love for her is selfless or giving. It's possessive, dark and all-consuming. And I'll stop at nothing to keep her as mine and only mine.

Tapping on the screen, I unlock my phone from my tablet and turn on the microphone so I can hear what's happening wherever she is. I hear the loud truck engine, she must be in a semi, fucking wonderful. I don't hear any talking as I continue to drag my blade over my arm again.

It's insulting that she seems to ignore how deep my devotion, my obsession for her runs. It's also insulting that she pretends to fear the idea of us more than a fucking over the road trucker. I mean, I adore her but this here is precisely why I cannot allow her to be on her own. She's in a semi-truck and she's under the impression that I'm truly going to turn my back on her and move on. What do I need to do to get her to realize that there's no going back. I will never be the man I was and I'm okay with it as long as I have her, without her… well, I'm here, seeking relief and obsessing.

Obsession is a double-edged sword, slicing through my sanity and leading me down a path of self-destruction. The more I fixate on my desires, on her, the deeper this blade cuts into my soul, leaving behind a trail of destruction and despair. My obsession with Everly consumes me completely and it will for eternity. I will give her anything, I will do anything for her. Except let her go. I refuse to give her that. If she's gone, then… what am I? Who am I? I can't go through another day, hour, minute, second with her being away from me. It can't work this way and I don't know how I am going to get her to realize that I need her, I need her more than I need anything. My heart beats only for her. She can think what she wants, she can be afraid of her mutual obsession for me, that's fine, I'll allow it. But she will do it while beside me.

I exhale my pull from my cigarette as I stare at the tracker. It doesn't take long for me to figure out whose truck she's in once I hear the driver call in on their radio. A simple—illegal—search from an acquaintance and I've found his CDL, the license plate on his truck and oh that's interesting —his next scheduled stop is a truck-stop owned by someone with his last name. Why would he schedule a stop like that?

"Where are we going?" Everly's voice is a punch in the chest. She sounds scared, and her voice is watery. Had… had he?—

"No," I snap, my head shaking back and forth. "No, no, no, no." I can't, I can't think that. If I do, I'll kill everyone and burn every city until I get to her.

"Shut your whore ass up," he grunts and I take a steadying breath as I put my car in drive and take off down the highway. They're ten miles ahead of me and I need to be calm as I approach the truck. I can't rush out there, he could have a gun on Everly and I wouldn't be able to get to her before he shot her.

"Fuck you," Everly spits back as an angry sob wrecks through her. It both destroys me and makes me proud to know she's still fighting. "I swear to god if you don't let me out I will kill you."

There's the skin slapping skin before the driver— Bucky Reynolds grits out, "I'm going to take personal pleasure in knowing that once I get you to the stop, the rest of your life will be spent knowing that I fucked your little ass until you vomited from the pain." I nearly lose my hearing and vision at the rage building inside me as I press down on the accelerator.

"Fuck!" I scream, punching my steering wheel as I will my car to go faster. I'm cutting him apart, slowly, so he feels everything. I'm going to force him to eat his own intestines and choke on his dick.

"Yeah," I hear her spit and I'm assuming it lands on his face. Angel, I love your fearlessness but not when I'm not there to stop him . "Well, I'm going to take personal pleasure in knowing that no matter what happens to me, my big, mean, scary boyfriend will stop at nothing to find you, and he will rip your heart out and make you eat it." Her…boyfriend? I rub my chest as an odd sensation wraps itself around my heart and squeezes.

"Yeah?" He huffs and I hear him putting his truck into park. "And where's your big scary boyfriend now, huh?"

I'm five minutes out, and when I get there, it's going to be a fucking blood bath.