20. Jordan

20

JORDAN

Why did every good night end in a pile of shit? I wanted one fucking night with my men, where we enjoyed ourselves and didn’t have some other bullshit happen.

The drive home from the restaurant was good. Vail went down on me while Albert put earbuds in and focused on the road. He even turned the rearview mirror away, so he saw nothing. With the darkened night sky, no one else would either. Except Hartley, who had turned and watched from the front seat as I spilled down Vail’s throat. Vail promptly kissed Hartley afterward to share my cum with him.

Our night was shattered when we arrived home to find Barry waiting in the garage with another fucking note in his hand from Gil. “He used a different courier this time. I asked the woman if she got an address for the sender and would make it worth her while, but she said it was paid for in cash with no information. I described Gil to her. She said it wasn’t him who dropped it off for delivery.”

“Of course not,” I bit out. Gil was a plague on my city, on my life. I needed him gone.

Vail took the note and read it before handing it to me. I hated the way his face went blank, all emotion bleeding from him. Vail had multiple ways he dealt with the emotions Gil brought forth in him. From tears to throwing up to checking out, Vail handled it in the ways he knew how, honed from years of having to put up with abuse.

I looked at the note, reading the words.

Darling,

The cabin is yours now, the deed is in your name. I hope you’ll visit alone and spend time in one of the places I made a home with you. Where we shared countless memories I won’t ever forget.

Nights with my cock buried in your ass.

In your throat.

When I fucked you until you screamed.

Where you slept in my arms.

Where I fed you from my fingers.

You're mine, darling, and always will be.

With love,

Gil

I wanted to crumble it up and burn the fucking thing but it was evidence, which I worried I’d need more of. This was further proof Gil was alive.

“Vail?” Hartley asked, drawing me back to them where I should be focused instead of trying to think of ways to find Gil.

“I’m okay.”

“You’re not,” I said. “Let’s go upstairs.”

Barry followed us, as well as Reghan. The other men would wait for the next elevator and return to their posts or would retire for the night.

I turned to Barry. “No more couriers. Refuse them.”

“If it’s for you?”

“Tell them to contact me another way. The people I work with have my number or yours. They can get ahold of me. I don’t even want to see a fucking carrier pigeon.”

“Yes, sir.”

The elevator stopped along the way to let Barry out.

My concern for Vail grew the longer he stayed in the current state he was in. Like he was here, but wasn’t. How many times had he retreated into his mind where he tried to save what small part of himself he could from Gil? How many days and nights did he wonder when it was going to get worse again? Or if the next blow would kill him?

Reghan stayed by the elevator while we went upstairs. Normally, I had whoever was here for the night move downstairs, so they wouldn’t hear us, but tonight, with Gil having a note delivered again, I wasn’t taking chances. If anyone ever got this far, I had multiple guns stashed in the home. I’d kill whoever tried to get to my men.

Hartley, Vail, and I entered the shower once I got the water hot. I was hoping us cleaning him would bring him back. It didn’t. He stayed in his state until we crawled into bed, putting Vail between us and holding him. Nothing more. It was a way for us to tell him without words we were here for him.

About a half hour after lying down, Vail came around, shifting in our arms. He lay on his back as tears filled his eyes. “Why won’t he stop? He didn’t bother me for so long and now he’s at it again.”

“It’s because of Hartley and me. He sees us as a threat. We’re blocking him from getting to you.”

“I won’t go back to him.”

“We know.” What I didn’t say was willingly. Vail wouldn’t go back to him on his own accord, but if he was taken, abducted, forced against his will, then Gil would have him. It was why I had my men in place. I didn’t want Gil within a block of Vail.

“I have to show him I’m not afraid. That his words don’t hurt me. In here I can let it out. In front of everyone else, I have to appear like everything is fine.” He turned toward me. “I want to go to the cabin in the morning. I want to destroy it.”

I nodded and reached for my phone on the nightstand. Lana would still be awake. I had to verify the property was now legally in Vail’s name, so Gil couldn’t file some bullshit destruction of property claim against him.

Lana replied that she’d get back to me.

“Tomorrow,” I told Vail, hoping everything was in place and I could take Vail and every tool he needed to tear the home apart. I was also bringing plenty of people with me. I wanted the surrounding area scoured. Gil could be out there. Another worry was cameras. If there were any, I’d tear them down.

Heavy equipment would be needed to do real damage, but I could arrange for it afterward. Vail would be given the first swing. If it made him feel better to take his aggression out on a location that held horrible memories for him, I would do whatever I could to make it happen.

Vail was the first one out of bed in the morning. Hartley and I were up most of the night from Vail tossing and turning, waking up in tears multiple times. I wasn’t sure if he was aware he did it. We were there for every instance, holding him, assuring him he was safe. Now we had to drag our asses from bed and witness him tearing apart his past. I could sleep later. I wouldn’t miss this for the world.

Dressed in a pair of jeans and a T-shirt with a sweater over it, Vail looked like he had the best night’s sleep. Energy poured from him before he left the room. If I thought his smile was genuine, it would have been infectious. But Vail was trying to show us he was okay.

Lana had texted to say the property was Vail’s. At least that was one hurdle out of the way. Gil couldn’t come at him for destruction of property or breaking and entering.

In the closet, I found a suit I wouldn’t mind if it got ruined and put it on. Vail could be the only one ripping into the walls, but if he wanted help, Hartley and I would join him.

Hartley entered the closet to grab a pair of jeans. Vail was already downstairs. He said he wanted to assist Irene with breakfast.

“Do you think this is a good idea?” Hartley asked. “What if he gets hurt?”

“Physical wounds will heal. If this is what he needs to help mend the internal ones, I’m all for it.”

“True. I just hate seeing him like this. He went from one extreme to the other.” Vail had told us he’d been through countless therapy sessions. I was glad he had a person to talk to about what had happened to him.

“Vail will be okay. We’ll see him through and give him anything he needs. Whether it’s more therapy, a safe place to let out his fears, or a sledgehammer and a saw to tear down what used to be a place of abuse for him.”

“You talk about destruction so easily.”

“Yes, well, I’m all for ripping down and building anew. Vail once told me he was reborn from the ashes. This is him taking another step to reclaim what was stolen from him.”

“He’s stronger than both of us.”

“That he is.”

We found Vail downstairs, standing near the counter, talking to Irene while petting Tahoe.

“There you are,” he said. “Irene made French toast.”

“Thank you,” I told her.

The three of us took our seats to eat. There was no conversation while we did so, though I saw Vail’s smile slip until what remained was stark fear.

“Vail.” I reached for his hand to get his attention.

“What if I can’t do it?” he asked. “We could go there, and I won’t be able to do anything.”

“Then you do nothing. We’re here for whatever you need. If that means we take a ride and you stare at the cabin for four hours, then so be it. If you want to drive a sledgehammer through every interior wall and window, we’ll be there for that as well.”

Tears pooled in his eyes. “We’re bringing tools?”

“I didn’t think you’d want to use your bare hands.”

Vail stood from his chair to lean over the table and kiss me. “Thank you.” Then he did the same to Hartley. “You two being here for me means more than you know. You both have jobs you should do today, but you’re helping me.”

“We’ll always be here for you,” Hartley said. “No matter what we’re doing, you’re more important.”

He gave a watery smile and sat. “Let’s eat before Irene yells at us for letting the food get cold.”

Irene brought over a pitcher of orange juice to refill our glasses. “Nonsense.” She brushed a kiss over Vail’s forehead. “You take your time.”

“Where was that attitude when it was just me here?” I asked, trying to lighten the mood. Anything to make Vail smile more.

“If I didn’t get on you to eat, you would have starved most days, not paying a bit of attention to your body and what it required. You’d run yourself ragged. These boys are good for you. They keep you healthy and on time, which you should be for my meals.”

I hated being told what to do. Every part of me rebelled at the act. For Irene, I’d tamp down my growl and the urge to remind her she worked for me and not the other way around. She’d tested me many times over the years, knowing how far she could push me. With her, she could push me clear across the fucking state and I still wouldn’t fire her. The woman was a gem and one I would hold on to for as long as I could. Few people could put up with my moods.

It wasn’t only her either. I had men who worked for me who could find employment with another. Money wasn’t the only important factor. Yes, I paid them well, but they could earn the same elsewhere. I built a place of loyalty, rewarding those who stayed true to me and were there when I needed them.

What I never expected was to find two partners who would take my moods, my behavior, and see past what I said, what I projected. They peered deep into the heart of me, where I was hurting and keeping myself from loving another. They pulled me from my self-imposed shell and made me see how amazing we could be together. I’d be here for them for whatever they desired. They were mine and I loved them with every fucking fiber in my being.