Chapter 34

" C ome on, fucker," I grit out. My tongue sticks to my dry, cracked lips and I groan. "Don't pass out. Don't pass out."

I quickly tighten the torn scrap of fabric around my waist and wince, sucking in a sharp breath. The room spins and despite my annoying chants, I still manage to black out.

When I come to, I'm in the exact same position, and the fabric is loose again.

My sweaty brow furrows. Didn't I just tighten this shit?

God. Maybe I didn't. I'm losing track of time, each second blurring into the next as the pain in my side pulses with every heartbeat. My shirt is torn to shreds, the fabric soaked in blood as I try to replace the makeshift tourniquet I've tied around my ribs. It's a poor excuse for first aid, but it's all I've got.

My fingers are slick with blood, slipping as I pull the knot tighter. The pain sharpens, slicing through the fog in my mind, but it's not enough to keep me grounded.

The cell around me is dark and cold, the concrete walls pressing in on me, suffocating.

But it's not the cell I see anymore. It's her.

This is my favorite part of the hell I've lost myself in. In between bursts of pain and sweaty, feverish moments, I see my baby girl.

Ella's laugh rings in my ears, clear and bright, and I can't help but smile despite the pain. The sound of her laughter is like a balm, soothing the ache in my chest, even as my body screams in agony. I close my eyes, and she's there, running through the kitchen, her head thrown back, chocolate brown curls cascading in waves down her back. The sunlight pours in through the windows, lighting up the constellation of freckles across her face, making her glow.

I remember that day so clearly. She was so broken, so down after what that bastard did to her. She couldn't see the light anymore, couldn't find a reason to smile.

So I gave her one.

I just wanted to see her smile. Hear her laugh.

The image shifts, and I'm standing in the doorway, watching as she spins around, a water gun in her hand, her short shorts riding up as she tries to escape the ambush I've set for her. Her laughter fills the room, and it's the most beautiful sound I've ever heard.

"Gotcha!" she yells, and I can't help but laugh with her, the pure joy in her voice infectious.

But the memory fades too quickly, replaced by the cold reality of my cell. The laughter echoes, hollow now, as I open my eyes to the darkness. The pain pulls me back, anchoring me in the present. My side burns like it's on fire, the bullet wound raw and ugly. I can feel the fever creeping in, making my skin hot and sticky, my thoughts sluggish.

I press down on the wound, gritting my teeth against the pain. I need to stay focused, need to keep my mind sharp, but it's so hard. Every time I close my eyes, she's there, pulling me back into the past.

I see her again, this time standing at the stove, her hair pulled back in a messy bun, a smudge of flour on her cheek as she tries to bake cookies. She's concentrating so hard, biting her lip the way she does when she's trying to get something just right. I sneak up behind her, wrapping my arms around her waist, and she jumps, laughing as she playfully swats at me.

"Maddox! You scared me," she says, turning to face me, her eyes sparkling.

"Couldn't resist," I murmur, leaning in to kiss her, the taste of sugar sweet on her lips.

The memory is so vivid, so real, I can almost feel her in my arms. But then the pain crashes back in, ripping me out of the past and slamming me back into the present. My breath hitches, and I force myself to focus, to keep my hands steady as I tighten the tourniquet again.

"Ella," I whisper, her name a prayer on my lips. I have to hold on, have to survive this. For her. For my brothers.

Just the thought of them sends me into another memory. This one is different. This one is a moment between Gage and I, our girl between us.

"Baby, stop, it's okay, you don't have to," I pant, my heart hammering in my chest.

Her eyes fly open, and she shakes her head.

"You are not a monster, Maddox. You're incredible. I trust you with my life."

With every rise and fall of her body, my baby gives me her truth. She's not afraid of me. She's not scared that I'll lose control.

She sees me.

"Show me the darkest parts of you Maddox Luna, I promise I can handle your demons," she begs. "Give me everything you have and don't hold back with me. I want all of you." She turns to lock eyes with my brother. "Both of you. I may be cracked but I'm not broken. I can take it."

I groan, my head falling back. It thuds against the concrete wall and sends sharp pains down my spine. The fever is getting worse. I can feel it clawing at the edges of my consciousness, making everything hazy, unreal.

The walls of the cell waver, shifting in and out of focus. My vision blurs, and I see her again, this time in the living room, curled up on the couch with a book. Her hair is down, falling in soft waves around her shoulders, and she looks so peaceful, so content. At her feet, sits Hunter, a smile on his face as he gazes up at me.

"Come here," she says, patting the space between them, and I don't hesitate, sliding in next to her, pulling her into my arms.

My breath hitches as he curls in on my other side and reaches over my body, dragging her toward his mouth. I lean back, watching Hunter devour my girl, my baby. He's sweet, loving, but God, it's so fucking hot, I can feel my cock throbbing between us. Her tiny hand threads through his messy hair, pulling him closer, keeping him right in front of me.

I jolt as a hand cups my cock, squeezing hard.

My eyes widen but before I can panic, someone's pulling my sweats down, and then…

And then his mouth is on me.

"What the fuck?"

This isn't a memory. This never happened. I've never even seen this happen with anyone but Stone and Gage. We've shared Ella between us. We have memories I could be fantasizing about. But this…

This isn't real.

"Don't you want this?" she murmurs, panting heavily. Her pretty eyes are blown out, her lips swollen. She tightens her grip on Hunter's hair and guides him up and down my cock. "I've seen the way you look at him. The way you watch us when we're together. Don't you want Hunter, Madd?"

Without my permission, my head nods. I swallow hard and look down just as his hazel eyes flick up. He meets my gaze, and in it, I see everything I've been missing.

Every time we argue and push, every time we get in each other's faces. It's been there. His eyes are molten, blown out, filled with so much fucking need, it makes me choke.

"Fuck yes." I groan, my eyes rolling back in my head as he sucks me deeper, swallows me harder. "Just like that, Rockstar. Suck my cock like a good boy and I'll reward you. Do you want that?"

"Oh my God." Ella pants and strips her shirt off. "Get naked, Hunt. I want to see you guys together."

And as he pops off my cock, all I can think is finally .

My body jolts so hard, I slam my head against the wall. Again.

I blink rapidly, taking in the dark room. My eyes flick down toward my lap, finding nothing but a pool of blood and a surprisingly kind of hard cock. I run a shaking hand through my hair and tug on the greasy strands.

What the fuck was that?

I'm losing it. I can feel it, the darkness closing in, the fever taking hold. I try to push it back, to focus on the memories, but they're slipping through my fingers like sand. I'm losing her, losing the only thing keeping me anchored to this world.

The pain flares again, sharper this time, and I gasp, my hand tightening around the torn fabric of my shirt. I'm shaking now, my whole body trembling as I try to fight off the blackness threatening to swallow me whole.

"Ella," I whisper again, but it's fainter this time, the sound barely more than a breath.

I see her one last time, standing on the balcony, the sun setting over the Golden Gate behind her, casting her in a warm glow. She's smiling at me, that soft, sweet smile that melts my heart every time. I reach out, desperate to touch her, to hold onto her, but she's already fading, slipping away into the darkness.

"No. No, baby girl," I whisper, my voice cracking. "Please, don't go."

But she's gone, and I'm left alone in the cold, dark cell, the pain and fever finally dragging me under.

"Isabella," I grunt, trying to shove off the floor as panic claws at my aching chest. "Baby girl!"

"Not quite," a deep voice rumbles. He clicks his tongue. "I've been called a lot of things, but baby girl is a first." My head snaps up and my world spins as I see a dark figure rush toward me. "Fucking hell, don't hurt yourself. Christ, sit down before you die."

"Who…the f-fuck—" My words trail off as darkness creeps in at the edges of my vision.

He sighs and helps me against the wall. I tense, expecting the same harsh treatment I get from my father's men. But it never comes. His hands are kind, his voice oddly soothing.

"I see I should have arrived sooner," he murmurs. "I didn't realize one of you had been shot."

"You d-didn't answer me…" My words slur as I do my best to shoot him a pissed off glare. I know I failed when I see his many lips curve.

"I don't have many lips," he says blandly. "You, however, are about to have none if you don't shut the fuck up."

I bat him away when he starts prodding at my wound. "Terrible joke."

"Not a joke, Maddox," he mutters. How the fuck does this dude know my name? "You may not know me, but I know you and your brothers. I know your woman. Her family. And I know that if I don't get you healed quickly, you're going to die, and all of this will have been for nothing."

I want to ask what the fuck he's talking about, but when I open my mouth, a hacking cough comes out instead of words. He lets out a long, annoyed sound and whacks me on the back a few times.

"I'll have clean food and water delivered to your room shortly," he says, shifting me to my back as the cough eases. "First, I need to clean and tend to this wound. I don't have much in the way of antibiotics, so do us both a favor, and try to keep this clean."

"It's not a room," I wheeze, shoving his annoying hands away. "It's a casket, and I'm going to die in it."

He shoots me an amused look. "Shall I contact Ella, then? Tell her to prepare for a funeral instead of a homecoming?"

"Don't say her name!" I hiss. "She's mine!"

The man rolls his eyes and clicks his tongue as he moves back to my gunshot wound. "Yes, yes. I know. She's yours. Go on, caveman. Beat your chest a little louder. They haven't heard you downstairs yet."

My mouth snaps shut and he hums a sound of approval. It pisses me off. But all my anger leaves me in a rush as he peels my bandage away. Pain, red-hot and icy, steals my breath. Holy shit. That can't be good.

"No, it's most certainly not good." Out of the corner of my eye, I vaguely see him pull something from a small pack. I want to fight him off. Want to tell him to leave me alone. But as out of it as I am, I'm not stupid enough to deny help. Even if it's coming from a random stranger.

"What is it with you and your friends? You're so worried about who I am, that you're ignoring what's right in front of you."

God, I need to stop speaking out loud.

"And what's that?" I ask through a hiss of pain as he flushes the wound. "If you're not an enemy, then you have ulterior motives. Either way, your help doesn't come for free."

He nods, pulling out some type of cream. Hopefully it makes the pain stop.

"You're right," he murmurs. "I do have an ulterior motive. Quite a few of them, in fact."

This time I get a good hit in when I try to fight him off again, but he quickly pins my hands down. His icy blue eyes are narrowed in irritation as they flick between me and my cell door.

"This is your last warning, Maddox," he snaps quietly. "Shut the fuck up and take my help, or die. Either way, I will finish what I came here for. I'd rather do it with you and your brothers intact, but not if it requires a fight. I will not allow you to get in the way of my plans. They've been written for far too long."

I stare at him for a long moment. A life of abuse and painful lessons has taught me to question everything. Everyone.

But right now, I honestly don't think I have a choice.

I've been in bad situations before. Have had close calls with death. Moments where I was sure I'd been meeting the reaper. This one tops them all. I'm alone, in a dirty place likely filled with infectious bacteria. I have no food, no water, and there's a nasty situation happening in a toilet that doesn't work in the corner. I haven't slept in days. I'm losing track of time.

But more than that, I'm losing my mind, and that's what scares me the most.

"How do I even know this is real?" I whisper, ashamed when my voice breaks. "How do I know I'm not imagining you?"

His eyes flicker over my face, then shudder with something that looks a hell of a lot like understanding. They glide across the cell, taking everything in before sliding down my body.

Then, the fucking asshole twists my nipple.

I open my mouth to let out a sound that'll likely haunt me in my dreams, but he quickly claps a hand over my mouth to silence me.

"Believe me now?" he whisper-hisses. I swallow roughly and nod. His palm tightens for a second before slowly lowering. "Now, are you going to let me help you or not? We don't have much time before you're due in the pit."

"The pit?" I murmur.

He jerks a nod and pulls back. "Unfortunately, yes. While there are many things I've been able to stop, what's coming next is not one of them." His icy eyes flit to mine, and in them, I see genuine remorse. "Your brothers are safe—for now. As for your woman, she's not here, and my sources tell me she's safe as well."

Relief like I've never known before fills me and my entire body goes limp. He chuckles, but I'm too happy to give a shit.

"If I'd have known that's all it would have taken to get you to cooperate, I'd have led with it." He goes back to my wound, but this time, I don't care. I let him do whatever he wants. "I'll have to remember that when I go to Gage next."

That gets my attention. My eyes snap to his. "Is he…are they okay?"

His cleanly shaven jaw pulses. "Okay might be pushing it, but they're alive."

"Fucking hell," I mutter. "Where are we? Can you tell me what's going on?"

"You're at Bayview Penitentiary, five miles north of your home." My brows dip. Why does that sound familiar? "It's an abandoned prison near the northside docks. A place your father has used for years. A favored place for some of his more…unsavory business."

"How did we not know this place existed?" I ask, though it's a useless question. We know nothing of what our father does. We thought we did, but it's clear we only knew what he wanted us to.

"As for what's going on," he continues as he pulls some thread from the pouch. I grimace. Is this guy even a doctor? He shoots me a look and I snap my mouth shut. Fuck. "I'm not a doctor, no. But I've got a fair amount of practice with stitching idiots like yourself together."

"I'm not—" Again, I close my mouth and look away. Yeah, getting shot wasn't my finest moment.

"Like I was saying," he grunts. "All I know is that Augustus has a hard on for your pretty little girlfriend." He holds his hands up before I can say anything, and clicks his tongue. "Before you keep spouting off your ownership, know that I have my own woman who I am incredibly happy with." His throat bobs. "That's why I'm here."

My eyes fly around the tiny cell as if I'll see a woman pop out of the shadows. "Is she here? Did you come for her and find us, or…"

"No," he says quietly. "I saved my Lina long ago. I'm here for revenge."

Something in his words tugs at my hazy mind, but then he starts to sew me together, and all I see is pain. I suck in a sharp breath and shove my arm into my mouth, biting down hard enough to stifle my scream.

"I'm sorry," he mutters. "I'll be done soon, but you'll likely pass out from the pain first. I won't be here when you wake up. Just take care of this and yourself. And when you're finally back home, tell that princess of yours that I'll be coming for a favor soon, and I'll need the full force of Le Milieu to back me up."

"W-what?" I stutter around my skin. Sweat burns my eyes and I try to blink past it, but it won't stop.

He does something that sends hot, agony burning through my veins and I gasp.

"Focus, Maddox. Tell Skylar Moreau that she owes Los Jaguares del Valle a favor. Tell her the Columbian Cartel is her ally and that for this, for you, she owes me four life debts. Do not forget."

The last thought I have before blinding pain takes me under is, who the fuck is Skylar Moreau, and why do I feel like I already know her?