Chapter 37

37

LINCOLN

T he next week is a blur of festive celebrations and painkillers before suddenly it's another new year and everyone is preparing to go back to normal. Logan has just left to head back to New York taking Lily, and his parents with him. Zack and all the security guys left before New Year's Eve so they could celebrate in the city, and the Deckers went home the day after Christmas, which means the house is back to mostly being quiet.

Everyone is heading back to work tomorrow which means we all enjoy one last dinner together, before Elle and Marcus take Cassie up to bed, and I help Jace clear the table, before he excuses himself too, eyeing Asher and I with something less than annoyance, so I'd say we are making progress.

Locking up for the night, we head upstairs and when we reach the top floor, Asher pauses in front of my room, his eyes flashing over to his own door warily. He has spent the night in my room every night but with Logan between us, and I woke up most days to find he had already slipped out to enjoy the morning with Cassie. I know this thing between us is still new, but it's not casual and he needs to understand that.

"Don't even think about it, Dark Pri nce," I quip, opening my door and holding it open for him. "You're sleeping with me," I demand, ignoring my lingering pain, and pulling him into my room roughly.

"Just sleep?" He asks, a dark, lustful glint in his eyes, that I am learning I have become obsessed with, and I think now that it's just the two of us I might be able to push the boundaries a little.

Logan watched me like a hawk all week, forcing me to rest, and most nights were spent reading or watching movies, and much to my dismay having two men in my bed was somehow very PG-13.

"That depends, are you going to be a good boy or not?" I question, pushing him slowly toward the bed, while undoing his shirt.

"Which one do you want me to be?" He tosses back, and fuck, my cock twitches in my jeans, begging to be set free.

"Oh I want you to be really good for me, Dark Prince. In fact, I want you to get in my bed and fuck my face, while I fuck yours. How does that sound?" I ask, pushing his shirt off his body, and savoring the way he allows my hands to skate across his shoulders.

"Honestly?" He shudders, relieving me of my own shirt and pants, before coming up and kissing me roughly. "That sounds hot as fuck, now get on the bed."

I position myself on my non-injured side, sliding my cock out and stroking it fully to life, as I watch him round the bed and discard his own jeans and boxers. Then I reach out and guide him to lie upside down facing me, putting his cock at my mouth, and mine at his.

"Remember, no holding back, baby," I muse, dragging my tongue up his length and getting it nice and slick.

"No holding back," he grits in agree ment, swirling his tongue around my tip, and I groan.

Then we suck each other off, lazily at first, lapping at one another slowly and sensually, until we are both begging and pleading for more. Only then do we pick up the pace, fucking each other's mouths with vigorous snaps of our hips, until we are both coming with a loud moan.

We take a shower together, once again taking turns washing one another, before falling into bed and succumbing to exhaustion, and to my surprise we both sleep all the way through until the next morning. Something I haven't done since I was a child, and from the look of surprise on Ash's face when he wakes up with me, I can only presume it's the same for him.

Breakfast is a busy occasion as always, with everyone coming and going, but with a stern warning from Ash that I am not to go to work today, I find myself just watching everyone with a sense of gratitude. Elle was right, I may not have asked for this family, this life, but fuck I sure am grateful that I have them, and it. I wouldn't change it for the world, and that's how the next couple of days go, everyone rushing off to do their thing, and me making excuses about working from home.

Yet by day three I am going insane, so I wait for everyone to leave before me, and then I get dressed and sneak into the office. Eliza greets me with a coffee and a smile, and it feels good to have a sense of normalcy again.

That sense only lasts approximately thirty-seconds, because before I can escape to my office, Asher is storming from his. "Lincoln, what the hell are you doing here?" He bellows, not looking happy to see me in the slightest.

"I work here," I reply innocently, but of course he just ignores that and grabs me by the arm, hauling me away from the front desk and towards his office.

"I thought I told you to stay home and rest," he snaps, glancing down to my side, as if he can see directly through my shirt and suit jacket.

"Ash, I can't stay in bed any longer, it's driving me crazy. I promise I won't push myself, but I am not going back home."

"Fine," he relents, shaking his head in annoyance, before his hand comes up and rests against my cheek. "Are you sure you're okay?"

I nod, leaning into his touch. "I'm fine, Dark Prince, I promise."

He opens his mouth to respond, but another voice cuts in between us. "Oh, I'm sorry are we interrupting," a female asks, and when I look I find Eliza leading one of Asher's clients towards his office.

"Sorry, Mr. Blackwell, Mr. Donovan," Eliza rushes out. "I didn't know you were busy," she adds, blushing slightly, and I realize how weird it might be for her to see me with Ash when she knows I'm also with Logan.

"It's fine, Eliza, thank you for bringing Miss Banks back," Ash responds, ever the professional businessman, as he takes a step away from me.

"We'll finish this later?" I ask, eyeing him carefully, and he nods.

"Yes, we certainly will," he replies quietly, before focusing on his client. "Miss Banks, right this way," he greets her kindly, but his eyes stay on mine until they disappear into his office together.

I keep my word, staying seated in my office as much as possible, and I go about the rest of my work week in the same manner, much to Asher and Logan's dismay, but it helps me feel better. Yes, my side is burning something fierce, especially given I will only take the meds I have before going to bed, by the time Friday comes, I am more than ready to have a weekend off my feet again despite my wound seeming to be healing well.

I head to my SUV, shooting a text off to Asher to ask how long he will be at his meeting, and then try to call Logan but he doesn't answer, though it's still a little early. When I get back to the house and head inside I find Elle, Cassie, Marcus, and Jace, all standing in the kitchen eating snacks.

"Superman!" Cassie yells excitedly, holding her arms out for a hug, as I toss my phone and keys on the island and pull her into my arms for a cuddle. "You got a special delivery," she coos, gesturing to a pink box on the counter, as I pull back.

"Did the princess buy me a present?" I ask, sliding the box over to me, and opening it to reveal a superman-themed cake that has a smile spreading across my lips.

"Woah it's a cake, mommy!" Cassie squeals, getting excited, but when I look between the three of them, they look just as surprised as I do, so I can only guess it's not from any of them.

I reach for the envelope inside just as my phone rings.

"Lincoln," the person on the other end greets me, and I frown in confusion, pulling the phone back to look at the contact name.

"Lily, is that you?" I ask in confusion, not sure why she would be calling me, she never does, and even Elle frowns my way as she looks between me and the cake.

"Yes, I'm looking for Logan, is he there?" She asks, sounding upset, and I'm already shaking my head.

"No, I haven't seen him all week," I reply, knowing she should know this. She sees Logan during the week more than I do, given they live near one another. "I texted with him early this morning, but I haven't heard from him since then. I just tried to call him but he didn't answer, so maybe he's still in class."

There is a long pause before she replies softly, "No, he didn't have class. Today is our parent's anniversary, he never misses it, he wouldn't, I think something's wrong."

With my eyes still staring down at the cake, a sickening feeling washes over me, as I hold the phone between my shoulder and ear, and rip open the envelope in my hand to find a note.

Did you think you beat me?

All you did was raise the stakes…

Cutting off the call without another word, I dial Logan again, and again, and again, all of them going unanswered, then I dial Asher and his phone goes straight to voicemail. An uneasy feeling starts in the pit of my stomach, as I reread the words three times before their meaning sinks in.

I can hear Elle repeating my name, trying to get my attention, but all I can do is mutter in response, "I raised the stakes."

Everyone starts to move around me, and I vaguely hear her shouting orders down the phone, as Marcus leaves the room with Cassie, and Jace pulls out his own phone to check on Riley, all trying to make sense of what is going on. Yet all I can do is reread those damned words, and know that for whatever reason, this is far from over, and if Billy wasn't the one behind all of this, who is?

Two hours later, we're all situated around the dining table with the house on lockdown. Arthur and Helen came first, I'm guessing Lily called them, and despite whatever panic they must be feeling, they instantly took Cassie to her bedroom to keep her occupied. Zack sent a few men to watch the Deckers, before he arrived with Lily and Max in tow. Some of the other security guys are also here watching the perimeter of the house, as I go over everything that's happened. We don't know much right now, just that both Logan and Asher are unaccounted for .

There are countless files stacked up in front of us, including the images of the five men who were killed by Billy, and the other note I received at the office. I haven't spoken, not a word, because where do I even start? How do I even begin to tell my family that we might lose them both, and that it's all my fault?

I always knew something like this could happen. Fear was engraved in my soul before I was even old enough to know what it was. I was raised by blood-soaked hands who knew only how to inflict pain, and no matter how hard my mother tried, I knew I didn't deserve her love, just like she didn't deserve to die. No, that was my fault. I kept her in the dark to protect her, but instead I failed her, just like I've failed them, and now I'm going to lose them too. They tried their best, but at the end of the day, even a monster in love is still just a monster.

"Superman," Elle says gently, slipping into the free seat on my left. "We need to know what's happening here, we can't help find them if we don't know what's going on."

I can't even bring myself to look at her, and when she slides her hand onto my arm, I snatch it away, pressing my hand to the center of my chest like it might ease the aching pain there.

"It's all my fault," I tell her, not seeing the point in denying it. "I did this to them. They told me to be careful, to stop, but I didn't listen," I force out, ignoring the pounding of my heart, as everyone in the room starts to listen closely.

"What's your fault, Lincoln? What did you do? What didn't you stop?" Elle pleads, and when I still don't look at her, she reaches out and grabs my chin in her hand, forcing my eyes to her. "Lincoln we're family, there isn't anything you can tell me that I won't understand. We're bonded, you and me, remember?" I'm sure she sees the emotion shining in my eyes, just like I see it in hers, and fuck does it slice right through me.

It wasn't supposed to be like this, th e war was over, she fought and she won, and she deserved her happy ever after, not this.

Yet still I nod stiffly, slipping out of her hold, and reaching for the first file on top of the others. The thickest one . When I put it in front of her, she glances between it and me until I nod, and then she opens it, slowly flicking through page after page, each containing the name and photograph of all the men I've hunted.

She opens her mouth to ask who they are, but I cut her off. "I killed them, all of them." I don't bother sugar coating my words, or even trying to lie, we are way past that now, and I know the time for keeping secrets has come to an end. "My father was a serial killer, he used to torture, rape, and kill women in the basement of our house. He was the perfect family man in public, but whenever my mother would go out of town, he became the monster I knew him to be. At first I would hide in my room, pretending it wasn't real. Those were the easier nights, the harder ones were when I was forced to help him clean them up. I can't remember their names or faces, just the look on my mother's face the night she caught him and he killed her. Then I killed him." I reveal my history to all of them, without a trace of emotion in my voice because none of it matters anymore, not without them. "Since the end of the war I've had this need, this hunger, just like my father, so I started hunting," I say, nodding towards the file in her hand. "Turns out there are a lot of sick men in and around Black Hallows just waiting to pay for their crimes."

The silence that follows my statement is filled with tension, and I can feel them all sharing looks, but my gaze remains fixed on the table, until Zack asks, "Where are all the bodies?" Not a surprising question, since he always runs cleanup for the group, and my stare flicks up to him, before I move it to find Jace, who I can see putting things together in his mind, yet still he doesn't reve al my secret to anyone.

"I had a cabin in the woods, I would watch them, learn their routines, and then take them out there and make them disappear. It was the perfect setup." I rub my hands over my face, not caring for the deep dive into my life, not even with the people I trust most in the world, but still I slide forward the first note and photograph for them all to see. "I came home from the wedding to that waiting for me at the office, and I knew the cabin was compromised, so I called Jace and he helped me make it disappear."

Both Elle and Marcus snap their heads towards him, but he holds my gaze, his loyalty unwavering.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Marcus asks, looking slightly offended to be left out of the loop, but more concerned than anything else.

"You guys just got married, you don't need to be dealing with this," I sigh, wishing that all of them would just let me go so I can deal with this the only way I know how. "Hell, I thought I'd already dealt with it, or at least I thought Ash had."

"Was that the cleanup he called for?" Zack cuts in, and Elle's eyes go wide.

"What damn clean up?" She yells, still not having all the pieces to put together, and I exhale, rising to my feet.

I reach for the other file, the one with the photos of the five men Billy killed, and then I lay them out on the table. "After I received the note I went hunting for who sent it," I start off, tapping on the last picture of the guy who hand delivered the note. "He dropped it off with Eliza at the front desk of the office, and then a week later he was dead, and all roads led me to a man named Billy Powell," I add, quickly reaching for the file on Billy and grunting as pain shoots up my side.

"Lift up your shirt," Elle suddenly demands, standing to her feet beside me as I turn to her about to refuse, she pushes on, "Don 't fucking try me right now, Superman, lift up your fucking shirt." I move to do as she says, unfastening the buttons, but she steps forward and snatches it open herself, gasping at the angry red scar that greets her. "Oh, Lincoln," she chokes out, blinking back tears I don't deserve. "What happened, tell me please?"

I turn back towards the table, reaching for the picture of Billy, not missing the way everyone's eyes drop down to the souvenir he gave me. "I went after him, but somehow my intel was off. I killed a few of his men before he landed a cheap shot and I escaped," I explain, shoving my shirt closed. "I wasn't going to show up here bleeding, and chance running into Cassie, so I went to Ash, he patched me up and let me sleep it off."

"Then he went after Billy," Zack cuts in, connecting the dots, and I nod.

"Yes, Ash killed him," I confirm for the sake of everyone else.

"Killed him?" Seb snorts. "He fucking annihilated him until he was unrecognizable, and then carved out his heart and took it with him."

That actually brings a smirk to Elle's face as she mumbles fondly, "Yeah, that sounds like him." Before she looks between his photo and the note. "Then what?"

I shrug. "Then we thought it was over, every avenue I looked into led to Billy, and Ash took him out. I thought it was done, finished, until today."

Both our eyes stray over to the cake, and then suddenly she is snatching up both notes and studying them closely. "Whoever this is, they called you Superman, that's my name for you, who else would know that?"

She's right, I hadn't even thought about the fact that they called me that, I was too focused on the cabin and what it meant. I look between everything on the table, and even more fear and worry starts to churn inside of me.

"Whoever this is, they are coming afte r me, they know me" I claim, picking up both notes and studying them. "The first note was dropped at the office, showing they could get to me at work, the second came here, showing they know where I live. They could have taken any one of you," I add, as the pain in my chest intensifies, and Elle connects the dots at the same time as I do.

"They took Ash and Lo because you care about them," she says, watching me carefully.

"I more than care about them," I snap, and she nods, having already come to the conclusion from the way I am reacting, but I can't help it.

They're gone, Logan and Asher are gone, and we might not get them back. That realization has me slumping back into my chair in defeat, pain flowing through not just my side, but my heart too. I can't do this, I can't lose them. Elle watches me the whole time, and it only makes it worse, because if I lose them, so does she. Arthur and Helen lose a son, Cassie loses a father, no, losing them is not an option. I'll die before I accept that fate.

"We can't lose them," I whisper, and Elle slides her hand back into mine.

"Then let's find them," she replies simply, not wiping the tear that falls down her cheek, as she focuses back on the files spread out on the table. "You know, I thought Logan was exaggerating when he said these guys look like you," she adds, flicking her eyes across the five victims I didn't kill. "They all look like you in one way or another," she remarks, and I take in their blond hair and green eyes, one of them even has glasses, but it just doesn't make any sense.

"Maybe it's tied to one of the men you killed, revenge perhaps?" Max cuts in, his eyes wary and never straying too far from Lily, who is tucked under Zack's arm and hasn't said a word since she arrived.

"I was careful in leaving no trace behind, but it's worth a shot," I say, not sounding convinced at all, not with how much panic I am feeling.

As always, Elle steps up. "I want every person in this town with a criminal record looked into. I don't care if it's murder or tax evasion, if they've got a damn parking ticket I want to know about it," she commands, separating all the men I hunted into smaller piles, and then giving them out to the security guys. "Check out their next of kin and all known associates, people talk and I want to know what they are saying," she tells them, and they nod, heading out to hunt instantly, but all I can do is remain seated.

I pick up my phone and call them both again, swallowing the bile that rises in my throat as both phones are now going to voicemail.

Where the fuck are they?

Elle then turns her focus to me. "You and I are going to find where this cake came from and who sent it," she demands, searching my sorrow-filled eyes with her own. "Are you with me, Superman?" She asks, and for the first time ever I realize I love this girl like she is a part of me, just like I did my mother.

"I'm with you," I breathe, squeezing her hand, and she smiles.

"Good, then let's go hunting."