Chapter 3

It"s been a long night. More people going to Midnight Heat means more people coming to eat at the restaurant before they go party. I haven"t seen Jason in a couple of days. He"s always somewhere else when I bring his take-out order to him, and I wonder if maybe it"s for the best. Our conversations never turn out the way I want them to anyway.

Besides, silence is what Jason does best. Silence with a menacing look.

I told my mother that I"d close up the restaurant, so I"m checking to make sure everything that needs to be done for tomorrow is set. I go into the bathroom and change from my red Quipao dress into my jeans and t-shirt. I wear the Chinese dress to honor my parents and because The Dragon"s Lair is a Chinese restaurant. My mama says that if I dye my hair black, I"ll look like the perfect porcelain doll, but I like my hair blonde like it is. Sucks to be adopted.

Before I"m ready to go I text Tuck next door so he can come walk me to my car. Jason was adamant about this, and truth be told, I"m still having bad dreams about the incident. I prefer to call it an incident instead of the other scary word, "assault," so that it doesn"t seem like a big deal. But it was. Marcos hurt me, and I don"t doubt he"ll do it again if he gets a chance.

The soft knock on the back door, followed by a quiet "It"s me, Tuck," tells me my security detail is here. I open the door and give him a smile.

"Hey, Tuck."

"Hi, Cassie. Ready to go?"

"Yup."

"Let"s go then."

Tuck never makes conversation when he"s with me and is always vigilantly searching for signs of trouble. I know from my brother Carlos that Marcos is still coming to the card room to play. They watch him while he"s playing and then make sure he leaves the premises. But my brother"s attention is always split between the game and the patrons, just like the night Marcos confronted me.

When we get to my car, Tuck checks that there"s no one in the back and waits until I get in. Then I wave him goodbye and get ready to turn on the car. My phone vibrates, and I see a message from Anne. I'll call her back later. I put the phone away and turn the engine on.

It happens so fast that I can"t really do anything about it. A hand is put over my mouth from behind the seat, and I watch powerlessly as Tuck walks away toward the nightclub.

My hand reaches out to press on the horn, but a sharp blade touches my throat, and I can feel its bite into my skin. I"m too scared to move even if I could.

"I wouldn"t do that if I were you, Cassandra."

Tears flow down my face, and I try to control my breathing because if I take a deep breath, the knife digs deeper into my neck.

"Looks like your little neighbor is making sure you"re safe and sound every night. Are you fucking him?"

I"m trembling, and I"m not sure he really wants me to answer his question, so I stay silent. The knife pushes a little deeper, and I gasp from the pain.

"Get out of the car, you slut. Hands where I can see them."

I open the door and put my hands up. I look around to see if there"s anyone that can help me. This is all my fault. I should have been braver and talked to my brothers and made them see how dirty and corrupt Marcos was.

I"m almost out of the car when he drags me by the arm and throws me against the wall of the building. My breath wooshes out, and I double over in pain. My mouth opens as if to scream, but nothing comes out. He pulls me back up and looks at me like I"m dirt on his shoe.

"You think you can get rid of me so easily?" He snarls.

He slaps me, and I taste blood on my lips.

"Your darling brothers still love how much money I spend in their little card room. They don"t care what I do to you."

He"s got me cornered against the building, so there"s nowhere for me to go.

"I"ll have you tonight, you whore, in this alley where you belong."

"N…"

I want to scream no, but I can"t. I try to get his hands off my shoulders so I can run for it, but he"s freakishly strong. The blade disappears from my throat, but only to be replaced by his hands. He starts squeezing. I try to punch and kick him, but the contact doesn't even faze him. He"s just playing with me. He laughs this incredibly psychotic laugh and squeezes more and more. Black spots start appearing at the edges of my vision, and I scratch his arm with my nails.

He hisses as I manage to gouge his arm, and suddenly, his hands are gone. I start sliding down the wall, and I"m very aware that I have to get away from him before things escalate.

"You bitch. You like it rough, is that it? I can give it to you rough."

I"m sitting on the concrete, trying to figure out how to get out of this, when he starts pulling at my t-shirt.

"Marcos, no! Stop it."

"You need to learn your place. You DO NOT get to dump me."

I try and get up, and he just shoves me down and then kicks me in the stomach. I curl up on my side, and he starts kicking me with an intensity I"ve never seen before. I use my arms to protect my stomach, but he just keeps kicking. I feel a rib or two crack, and it pisses me off, but I can"t seem to fight him. When he thinks he"s got me subdued, he pulls me by the legs to stretch me out and starts unbuttoning my jeans.

This is going to happen, and I"m not going to be able to stop it.

***

Jason

Tuck just told me that Cassie left, and I breathed a sigh of relief. I checked the monitors in my office, and after a few minutes, I saw what looked like someone dealing drugs in the club. I had Althea call the police while I went down to the dancefloor to intervene. I"ve seen this guy before at the club, so I"ll have to do some quick talking to make him understand that there"s no dealing in my club. If he gets the message, then he can leave before the police arrive.

I quickly move to the floor and weave my way through the dancers to find the culprit. I grab him by his shirt and give him my meanest look. My teammates say it"s horrifying and I"m hoping it works tonight. I don"t really want to have to rough this kid up so he doesn"t come back. Even then, there"s no assurance that he"s more scared of me than of his boss, and he"ll be back before you know it.

"I"ve called the police. I"ve got footage of you dealing drugs tonight. Don"t come back here, ever."

I see Althea waving at me from the back, and then I smell the stench of urine. This guy is so frightened of me that he's emptied his bladder. I drag him by the collar and meet Althea and some police detectives in the back area of the club. We all know the drill, and in less than twenty minutes, they"ve taken him into custody.

Back in my office I check my phone to see Cassie"s location. Normally, after she"s back home, I ride my bike and watch her window for a bit. I know—a stalker move—but I can"t help myself. I need to know she"s safe. But her location is still back in the restaurant parking lot. A feeling of dread goes through me, and I run out the back door of the club.

The 300 feet between our buildings has never felt longer. I search for her car, and I almost miss them because Marcos is kneeling in front of her, undoing his goddamned pants. I"m still too far away when I see him get on top of her. The rage that overcomes me is so great I see red and sprint to reach them. I grab him and punch him in the face, once, twice. I want to kill this man, but Cassie is so silent and still.

I have a decision to make. Do I take the time to punish this motherfucker, or do I get help for Cassie? She"s the most important thing in my life, so I give this piece of scum a hard enough punch to knock him out and then throw him to the side. I reach for my phone and send 911 to my team. I turn to Cassie and really see her. She"s partially naked and vulnerable. Her arm is misshapen and bloody, but so is the rest of her.

My hand goes to her neck, where there"s a lot of bruising, and I gently check for a pulse. I sigh in relief when I feel the faint beat. I take my jacket off and drape it over her body while I wait for help to arrive. Tuck and Althea find us, and they know how bad it is because I"m completely shaken. It feels like an eternity for the police and the ambulance to arrive.

The police ask for my statement, and when the paramedics have Cassie in the back of an ambulance and are preparing to take her to the hospital, I try to go with her, but they deny me. Frustrated with the entire situation, I follow the ambulance on my bike. The ride is horrible as I"m terrified for Cassie and riddled with guilt that I didn"t take care of this monster the first time he showed violence against her.

Once at the hospital, I know I need to tell them I'm family, or they won't give me any information. So when I approach the nurse's station, I tell them I"m Cassie"s husband. Fortunately, I know her birthdate from Carlos. One night, after drinks, he shared how much older he was than his sister. The husband/birthdate combo is the golden ticket that permits us to sit with her while we wait for the doctors. A lot is happening around us, and they take her for X-rays and other exams.

They are evaluating the severity of her broken arm. My head is filled with images of her bloody and bruised. And she was so pale. I don"t know what I would do if I lost her. She"s the only true light in my life. The only pure thing that"s ever touched me. If only I had ever shared that with her.

Sitting in the waiting room, I consider whether or not I should tell Cassie"s family about this. That should be a no-brainer, but I"m not sure even how to send that first message. They"ll know tomorrow that she didn"t get home after closing down the restaurant, and they"ll start to worry. I can"t do that to them, especially Mrs. Lee. So I dial Carlos. He sounds groggy like he is already asleep.

"What"s going on?"

"You need to come to the hospital," I say. I don't even recognize my own voice.

"Why?"

"Just come. Don"t tell anyone. I"m in the waiting room on floor 8."

After thirty minutes, Carlos comes through the sliding doors. The nurse has already told me that they"re moving Cassie to a private room, and I"m just waiting to tell her brother what happened.

"Why am I here, Jason?"

"There"s no other way to tell you this. Cassie was attacked tonight by Marcos Solis."

"Fuck! How is she?"

"They"ve just finished tending to her. They"ve put her in a private room."

"How bad?"

"It was bad, Carlos."

"I got to tell my family."

"Wait, don"t do that just yet. I want to ask Cassie what she wants to do."

"I can"t keep this from my family."

"And I"m not asking you to. Just give your sister a chance to say what she wants."

He looks at me dubiously but stays quiet. He knows there"s going to be a reckoning. I told him what would happen if Marcos hurt Cassie again, and I didn"t make false promises.

"I told them I was her husband so they would give me information about her."

He starts pacing across the waiting room. Thankfully, it"s empty. And we wait until one of the nurses approaches.

"Cassandra Dalton"s family?"

We get up and wait for the news.

"She"s all set up. You can go see her. Room 808."

We locate the room stand outside the door.

"You go in," I tell Carlos.

He doesn"t hesitate and goes through the doors. Not even five minutes pass when he"s out telling me to go in.

"She wants to see you."

I go in and find her with her eyes closed. Thinking she"s probably asleep, I pull the chair next to the bed closer so I can sit with her for a few minutes. Dare I pick up her hand? She seems so broken right now, and I don"t want to hurt her. But my need to feel a connection to Cassie is greater, so I reach out and hold her hand in mine. It"s cold, and her fingers look pale against mine.

"Jason."

"Shhh. It"s okay. You"re okay now."

Her eyes are open, and there are tears there. Seeing her like this makes my blood boil.

"Everything hurts," she croaks.

"I can get the nurse to give you more painkillers."

She nods, so I try to go get the nurse but she grabs my hand. Her touch is light like a feather, but she"s not letting me leave. There"s a strength in her that I admire so much.

"Stay."

I nod and sit back down. Thoughts are swirling around in my head. The cops will come to take her statement in the morning. I don"t know how to protect her from that or if I should at all. But I"m worried Cassie won"t press charges. The last time Marcos hurt her, she insisted it wasn"t an assault, and she didn"t let me call the police.

I don"t know that I can let her get away with that again. Marcos Solis is dangerous, and he"s not taking their breakup well.

After a few minutes, I check on her and she seems to be sleeping. I have nowhere else to go, and even if I did, I would stay here, watching over my angel. I nod off, but after what must be an hour or two, someone shakes me awake. It"s Carlos, and he"s looking distraught.

The nurse comes in to check on Cassie. This wakes her up and she looks worried when she sees that Carlos is in the room.

"Cassie. Jason didn"t let me tell the family. Can I call them now?"

She looks at me and nods in thanks.

"I don"t want them to see me this way, Carlos."

"But they"ll be worried."

"The only one I want to see is Mom. Can you get her here?"

Her voice is raspy, and she seems tired. Carlos nods and leaves to get Mrs. Lee. The nurse leaves, and the room is silent for the longest time. I"m not a man of words. What could I possibly say to make her feel better or safe?

"Thank you, Jason."

"I was too late, Cassie."

She shakes her head. "It was going to get worse."

"Are you going to press charges?"

"You"re worried that I won't?"

"I know you."

"This is…" she hesitates, "this is different. I"ll press charges."

The nurse returns with something for Cassie's pain. The medication makes her groggy, and pretty soon, she"s unable to keep her eyes open.

"I"m sorry, Cassie," I whisper.

But she"s already fallen asleep.