Chapter 22

At some point,in the middle of the night, I roll over in bed and reach out for Lux. But she's not there. Rising up onto one elbow, I glance over at the bathroom, expecting the light to be on, but it's dark. In fact, the entire room is pitch black.

Where the fuck is she?

My pulse instantly kicks up a notch, even though I know logically, she's probably just down in the kitchen, getting something to eat. I have several ex-Navy SEALs posted around the perimeter of the house 24/7, switching out every four hours. No one is getting through that.

So, yeah, I'm sure she's fine. Still, there's a heavy feeling in my chest. It's nothing, I'm sure. Just paranoia. And yet, I find myself rolling out of bed, and heading down the back staircase to find Lux.

When I get to the kitchen, Christian is sitting in the breakfast nook, eating a large bowl of cereal, watching something on his phone with his headphones on. He tilts his chin up in a silent greeting as I enter, then goes back to shoveling cereal into his face.

"Yo," I say loudly.

He pulls his headphones off one ear. "What's up?"

"Have you seen Lux?" I ask.

He glances around the kitchen. "Nah, man. Isn't she upstairs?"

I push a hand through my hair. "We fell asleep earlier, but when I woke up, she was gone. I thought she might be down here grabbing something to eat."

Christian shakes his head. "I haven't seen her."

The back door opens, and Lucas and Jackson step in from outside. When they see Christian and me, they both stop short.

"Oh, good, you got my text," Lucas says.

"What text? I've been asleep and now I'm looking for Lux," I say. "Where the hell have you two been?"

Jackson flashes me an annoyed look, then walks to the fridge and pulls out a bottle of water. "We just left Exeter House," he says, twisting the cap open and then taking a swig of water. "Nathan's body was discovered about an hour after we got there. Thankfully, we'd already connected with Byron, so we were able to stage things before the police were called—"

"Hey-O," Ash says, stepping through the back door.

Goddamn.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" I ask, annoyed. It's the middle of the night, for God's sake. Is nothing sacred?

Ash lifts his hands and glances around like he's confused by my question. "Lucas texted me. He said we all needed to talk. I considered ignoring it, but I was awake anyway, so whatever."

Lucas sighs. "Yeah, I thought we should all get our story straight in case the police—"

A faint crash echoes through the house, cutting him off. It sounded like something heavy was knocked down, or fell.

"Lux?" I instantly sprint into action and head toward the sound. And, fuck, but my thoughts race as I move down the hallway. Did Lux pass out? Did she fall?

Somewhat frantic now, I peer through each open door as I pass. She's not in the ballroom, the bathroom, or the living room. The only room left to check is the study.

With the guys behind me, I push through the study's double doors, and I'm instantly confronted with my worst fucking nightmare.

My brother has Lux by the throat, the barrel of a gun pressed against her cheek.

Time screeches to a halt, and my entire world feels like it's caving in, crumbling right beneath my feet. Lux's face is red, and tears stream down her face. He's choking her and she looks ready to pass out.

"James, get the fuck off her," I say, a rage rising up inside me that I've never confronted before.

Somewhere in the background, I can hear the guys whispering about whether or not they should alert the ex-Navy SEALs outside.

Hearing my voice, James's hand eases off Lux's throat. The second she's free, her hand flies to her neck, and she sags, sucking in several gulps of air. Then James half-turns and trains the gun on me.

Fine, I'll take it. Anything to shift his focus away from Lux.

I take a step forward, holding my hand out, palm up. "Give me the gun, James. This isn't you. You don't want to fucking do this."

He turns to face me fully, Lux still trapped behind him. His gaze shifts from me to the rest of the guys, his wild eyes sweeping over their shocked expressions. I don't think they've ever seen James this manic.

"Why are you all here?" He asks, squinting like he's trying to sus out our collective motive for being here. "This is a private-fucking-matter, guys."

My gaze shifts back to Lux, and she's up against the desk, using the edge of it as a guide to slowly inch away while James is distracted. Smart girl.

"We need to talk about this, James," I say, taking another step forward, ready to tackle him, if I need to. James and I have fought many times over the years like brothers do, and we're pretty evenly matched physically. A gun adds a whole new and very fucked-up element, though. "Come on, man. What the fuck are you doing?"

"Roman, leave us the fuck alone," he yells, spit flying from his lips. He's drenched in sweat now, and I can't help but wonder if he's managed to get his hands on some kind of substance. He just looks so unhinged.

He walks up to me slowly, bringing the gun up and pushing it against my forehead.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! What the fuck? Hold on," Lucas says, stepping forward. But I hold my hand out and stop him from approaching. I don't need James panicking, and shooting my best friend, too.

"It's okay, Lucas," I say, my gaze never leaving James. "He won't shoot his own brother. He wouldn't do that."

James shakes his head. "You don't get it, Roman. It's her. Only her. Nothing. Else. Matters," he yells the last three words, bending at the waist like the words are being ripped from his soul. Then he sucks in a breath and straightens. "Lux is the only good thing on this rotting piece of rock that matters," he whispers.

That's one thing we agree on.

In my periphery vision, I see Jackson slowly making his way around the sofa on my right, headed toward Lux. Lucas is still behind me, and Ash and Christian are on my left, creeping forward, flanking me.

I can feel what's happening. The guys are positioning themselves, getting ready to tackle James and take him down.

That's a bad idea. They know James. They know him well, but they don't know this version of him. And I've only seen it once before—two years ago, when he got into that fight, and nearly killed that kid. At the time, I just thought it was an extreme reaction to a dumb insult. It was a weird, shocking moment. But that was it.

Really, it was the first sign that something was wrong. Very wrong. And everyone in James's life missed it. Everyone, including me. And I'm his brother. I'm supposed to know him better than anyone.

"You need help," I say, the gun still pressed against my head. "Let me help you."

He stares at me like he's trying to figure something out. "Are you trying to fuck my woman?" he asks darkly. "Is that why she was in your bed?" He glances over his shoulder at Lux, then back at me suspiciously. "You want her."

"This isn't about her," I answer. "It's about you and your mental state. Let me help you, brother."

He shakes his head, the movement broad and frantic. "Nah, man. Nah." He takes a step back and points the gun at Lux. "You don't get it. Lux and me, we're going to be together. That's all I need." He swings the gun back around and points it at me again. "And I'll stop anyone who gets in the way. Even you, little brother."

I don't even know this person standing in front of me. This isn't the guy who protected me from my dad, who took the beatings, so I wouldn't have to. That guy would never threaten me like this.

"She's pregnant," I say. "And the baby is mine."

"Roman!" Lux gasps, but I hold my hand out to reassure her. I know what I'm doing. James will be thrown by that comment, and it'll set him off balance.

And…if I'm honest, there's also a part of me that wants him to know Lux is mine. Irrevocably.

"What the fuck did you just say?" he yells, his eyes narrowed to slits as he glares at me. Then he turns abruptly and looks at Lux, lowering the gun to his side. "Is that true? Are you Roman's fucking whore?"

In that split second, with his back turned, I tackle him. He goes down hard, and I grapple with him, trying to get the gun out of his hand, praying it doesn't accidentally go off. He punches me in the face and twists, trying to throw me off him, but I manage to get a few blows in.

When it's over, I have the gun, and I'm standing over him. I comb my fingers through my hair to smooth it back from my face, sweat dripping from my temples. I'm breathing hard, sucking the air into my lungs as I train the gun on my brother.

He's on his knees now, and he leans forward, wincing with the motion, a grin stretching across his face. There's blood on his teeth, and when he speaks, his voice is a low, raspy whisper. "Lux was mine first, Roman, and I won't stop until we're together. In life, in death, doesn't matter. She belongs to me."

It's never going to end. He's never going to let her go. I see that now. It only takes me a split-second to make a decision that I know will alter my life forever. A decision that will give Lux her life back.

I finch as police sirens wail in the distance, getting closer by the second. One of the guys must have quietly called 911. I can sense the guys behind me, supporting me, each one practically vibrating with anger and impatience.

I lift my chin and look down at my brother, the gun trained on him. "You're never touching Lux again, James. I won't let you."

Then I pull the trigger.