Chapter Twenty-One

~Wright~

Wright fell asleep curled into Xander. He'd stayed connected with Wright for a minute after he came until his cock was soft. He pulled out slowly and Wright could feel it leaking out of him while Xander untied his leg and arms. His muscles were a little sore, but it was nothing he couldn't handle. He felt incredible. They showered together, Xander laughing and doing most of the work because Wright couldn't get his limbs to cooperate with him fully. Not that Xander was complaining. He'd put his briefs on while Xander stripped the bed. They worked together to put new sheets on. The weather was warm and they cracked the bedroom window to let the night air cool the room. It smelled like sex and he loved it. They ate in bed and then fell asleep.

Something woke him up. He wasn't sure what time it was, but he was sure it'd been a noise. The room was dark when he opened his eyes. He was still facing Xander but they'd separated in their sleep just slightly. Movement behind Xander, toward the window, caught his attention. At first he thought it was just the wind, but then he saw a face.

And he screamed.

Xander shot up, his hands moving to reach for Wright. He was sitting up, staring at the window. Sure he'd seen that. It was his dad's face in the window. Dark and shadows obscuring it, but he'd seen him.

"What is it?" Xander asked. "Wright, what's going on? Was it another nightmare?"

There was a loud thud toward the kitchen. Then shouting. Someone was in the house. And moving fast. "Get in the closet. Now. Grab your phone and call Patrick or Tracy."

More noises were coming, getting closer. Wright moved, but not fast enough for Xander. He threw one of their phones into the closet after him and slammed the door. Wright's heart was racing. He didn't want to leave Xander out there, to fight off his dad. He needed to help. But he followed what Xander said. His hands were shaking. He could hear screaming. There was a slammed door.

It took him nearly ten seconds to unlock the phone and press the button to tell the voice control to call Patrick. The phone rang three times. Then a fourth. It went to voicemail. He ended the call. There was more shouting, but Wright couldn't understand it through all the doors. He took a deep breath and looked at the time. It was just past midnight. Paxton would still be up. He called her.

"Wright? What's up?"

"My dad is here. Get Patrick, please. Xander went out and- I don't know what's going on, but they're fighting. Please. Hurry. In the guest house."

Wright stayed on the phone but tried to listen. There was something that sounded like glass breaking. A yell. It didn't sound painful, but in his fear he couldn't tell who it came from. Another thud. Cursing.

Tears streamed down his face. He needed to know what was going on.

"No, Wright. Stay where you are. Do not. Dad! Mom! Wake up!"

There was pounding and more yelling but coming through the phone. He closed his eyes and focused on the voices of the family that saved him. The bedroom door slammed open. Wright screamed, unable to control his body. He tried to make himself as small as he could, curled up behind the tote of books and between some clothes hanging up. The closet was small. It wasn't like he was really hiding.

More voices came through. There was fighting just on the other side of the door. Wright continued to cry, trying to remember to breathe. He was barely getting any air in his lungs as the noises played around him. Xander's voice was yelling, but he could tell his dad's clearly too. All the years hearing him yell and cuss was ingrained in his mind. His phone lit up with Tracy's face this time. He didn't even realize Paxton had hung up.

He answered but didn't say anything as he put the phone to his ear. Tracy was talking immediately anyway. "Wright, sweety. Just stay where you are, okay? Are you safe?"

"Cl- Closet." Wright barely got the word out. He screamed when the knob of the closet twisted, but then there was the sound of something being thrown against the door.

"Stay away from him!" That was Xander's voice. Loud and clear. Wright clutched the phone tighter in his hand.

"He's my boy!" his dad spat out. His voice was angry. Flashbacks came flooding back, all the times his dad was mad at him. The times he made him stay in his room while he ranted about how terrible of a son he was. Never once had his dad called him ‘my boy'. It felt wrong now. "I have a right to take him back. He's cost me enough."

"Wright, honey, listen to me. We've called the police. They're on their way. Patrick and Xander won't let him get to you. Just focus on my voice."

Wright tried. But his dad was no more than five feet away from him. There was more shouting and another crash. It sounded like glass again. Maybe their lamp? A loud bang rang out and suddenly there was silence.

Other than Wright's scream. His voice was raw already from the crying and screaming. He could hear Tracy saying something, but his brain wouldn't register. Another loud bang.

Gun shots.

As soon as his brain put together that it was a gun shot, fear rushed through his body. He stood, needing to know what had just happened. His hand was on the doorknob when it twisted. He shrunk back, wanting to defend himself if it was his dad. But it wasn't. It was Patrick.

"Wright, are you okay?"

His hair was all over the place and he was breathing heavily. He wasn't wearing a shirt. There was a cut across his shoulder, toward his chest. He was bleeding.

"Wright. Are you okay?" His eyes finally focused and he nodded. He wasn't hurt physically, but he couldn't say that for his mind. He could feel himself shutting down, the same unsettling numbness that he was used to for years living in the house with his dad.

"Where's Xander?" Wright asked when he found his voice. He couldn't see anything behind Patrick. He needed to know what happened.

"He's okay," Patrick said. "But I need you to get some clothes and let's go outside. The cops will be here soon."

"Is- Is my dad-?"

"He's… I don't know." Patrick stepped back. It was then that Wright noticed the gun still held in his hand. He looked from it back to Patrick's face. "I'm sorry, Wright, but you need to get out of the house now. Grab clothes."

Wright turned around and looked at the closet. He grabbed one of Xander's shirts and slipped into it. It fell to mid-thigh. He didn't bother with shorts. When Patrick led him out of the closet, he tried to take in as much as he could. Xander's cologne bottles were in disarray on the dresser top. The mirror was cracked. As he thought, the lamp by the bedside was on the floor and broken. The bed was shifted in a different position. He stumbled over his own feet when he spotted the blood on the floor. It was like it'd been smeared, like someone was shot and then dragged out of the room.

He found the source of it when Patrick led him out of the room. Patrick tried to fight him, but Wright had to see. Had to see with his own eyes that Xander was okay. He was kneeled over the motionless body of his father. His arms were moving fast and there were a lot of napkins and other things around him.

"Get him out of here, Pat!" Xander shouted. Wright fell back into Patrick's body. He'd never heard Xander yell before. It was deep and scary. Something crossed Xander's face in the dark of the hallway. His features softened just a little. But he didn't stop working on his dad. "I'm sorry, gorgeous. Just please go with Patrick, okay? I'll be out in a minute once the paramedics get here."

"Is he dead?" Wright asked. He spared just a tiny glance to his dad. He couldn't see his face from the darkness. The kitchen light was on, but with them standing between it, the shadows were too deep. Still, he could see a slightly darker spot pooling on the floor by his leg and the napkins that were drenched over his chest.

"No. Baby, please. Go outside. I'm okay."

Wright let Patrick pull him outside then. Xander was okay. His dad… He wasn't sure how he felt. He'd tried to take him. This family had shot him. Patrick saved him. When they stepped outside, Tracy and Paxton were on the porch. There were red and blue lights in the distance, speeding down the dirt road that connected them to the state road.

"Oh, honey." Tracy ran down the steps and took Wright into her arms. She hugged him tightly. Her whole body was warm and he buried his face into the robe that she wore most mornings. Her fingers carded through his hair and he clung to her. His body was shaking, tears streaming down his face. He could hear her saying easy words, trying to calm him. It wasn't really working. He looked back at the guest house. Patrick had gone back in.

The cop cars and ambulance skidded to a halt behind their vehicles. Wright twisted his body so he could watch the scene unfold before him. Patrick met the paramedics at the door and they jogged into the house. The lights were on now, but he was standing at an angle he couldn't see. The cops were swarming the place, two going in with the paramedics, two standing outside the door. Another started toward them.

"There was a car parked off the road in the field," she said. Tracy's arms tightened around him. Paxton was standing by them now. He didn't even try to pull away. Paxton's hand slipped into his and she squeezed tightly. "There's another officer that stayed behind to look it over. It's a four car sedan. Dark blue. Does that sound familiar?"

"Not for us," Tracy said. He could hear the rumble of her voice through her chest. "Wright, honey. Is that one of his cars?"

"No." Wright lifted his head again when there was movement by the guest house. Xander walked out. He was wearing a shirt and shorts now and Wright noted the blood on his hands and forearms. He pulled away from Tracy and ran to him, ignoring the pang of gravel under his bare feet. The adrenaline was starting to wear off.

He crashed into Xander's body, barely giving him time to react before he was jumping into his arms. He wrapped his arms and legs around him. Xander hesitated for only a second before he wrapped his arms around his body and held him tight. "God, I'm so sorry Wright. I forgot to lock the door earlier. I'm sorry."

Wright buried his face in his neck. He was crying all over again. He could feel Xander walking but didn't have the strength to look up again. Xander's hand rubbed circles on his back. Tracy was still talking to the female cop.

"… He called my daughter and she woke us up. My husband grabbed his gun and ran over to see what was going on. I don't know what happened, but he was in there for a few minutes before we heard the shots."

"And how many times did he fire the gun?"

"Twice," Xander answered. Wright could feel the rumble of his voice more than hear his voice. He tried to focus, needing to know what happened. "The man was in the living room when I made it out of the bedroom. He charged me with a knife, but I was able to knock it out of his hands. We fought. He socked me good in the jaw and made it into the bedroom. That was when my brother came in. I fought him away from the door, but he was gaining the upper hand. My brother charged him and the man swung. Then he kept swinging, aiming toward me since I was closest to the closet door where Wright was waiting. He fired once at his leg, but he didn't stop. He knocked me against the door and that's when Patrick fired a second time, in his shoulder.

"I directed Patrick to get Wright out safely and I dragged him out of the room and grabbed whatever I could to apply pressure to the wound. He lost consciousness, but his pulse was still there when the paramedics took over."

"Very detailed," another person said. It was a man, by the sound of his voice. Wright was starting to get sleepy again. All of the adrenaline and fear was dissipating quickly. "And sounds like self-defense to me. He's been in hiding since we put a warrant out for his arrest so we're locking him to the gurney and taking him to the hospital in the city. We'll need to take more statements, but we can do that tomorrow when its less hectic. Get everyone inside and cleaned up, okay? I'll call Patrick tomorrow morning."

"Thank you, Ryland. We appreciate the quick response."

Wright lifted his head and looked at Xander. He had a bruise on his jaw, a cut on the corner of his lip. He moved his hand to trace lightly over the skin. "He hurt you."

"It's okay," Xander said. "I would take a hundred punches to keep you from ever getting hurt again, Wright. I love you."

"I love you too," Wright said. He leaned forward and kissed against his lips gently. He didn't want to hurt him.

"Go ahead and get inside," Tracy said. "Get cleaned up. I'll get Patrick to grab some fresh clothes for both of you. Paxton and I will make some snacks. I'm sure none of us are going to get much sleep, but at least try okay?"

"You don't have to do that," Wright said. He wiggled slightly to get Xander to let him down. He leaned against him heavily, though. The last thing he wanted was to be separated from the man that saved him. One of them, at least. "You have already done-"

Tracy's eyes were shining in the moonlight around them. He reached out his hand to take hers in his. "I want to do this," she said. "Now go, get upstairs. I don't know if Victor is awake or not."

"We'll be quiet," Xander said. "Thank you, Trace. I love you."

"Love you too. Both of you."

Patrick walked out of the house before they made it fully up the stairs. Xander left Wright with Paxton for a moment to turn around and hug his brother. Wright could feel fresh tears in his eyes. They were still close enough to hear him.

"Thank you, Pat. I don't know what I would have done if you didn't show up."

"Don't worry about the what-ifs now," Patrick said. He wrapped his arms around his brother. Watching the two of them, grown burly men, hug and share their emotions so easily, reminded Wright that this was his family. These people just put their lives on the line to protect him. Without a second thought. He'd never felt more a part of something in his entire life.

They all turned to watch as the paramedics and cops exited the house with the gurney. There was an IV bag one of them was holding. The man on the gurney- he didn't even want to think of him as his dad or father anymore- wasn't moving. None of them moved until the doors to the ambulance were closed and all but one of the cop cars started driving away. Wright knew they needed to get some sort of formal statement or photos for a report.

Without much warning, Wright was surrounded by the four of them. Xander's arms were around him, pressed tightly front-to-front. Paxton, Tracy, and Patrick joined. A family hug. He had a family. One that protected him and loved him, made him feel safe even in the middle of a crisis. All of these thoughts swirled in his mind. He wanted to say something as they continued to hug each other and him. But nothing seemed like enough.

"I love you all."