Leverage (The Brannock Siblings) (19 page)

"I told you, my father didn't tell me anything. You
killed him before he got a chance to."

Pain exploded in my cheek and my head snapped to the side. I
felt my teeth sink into the side of my lip and the rip of the skin there was
sharp and excruciating. Blood poured onto my tongue and dribbled out of my
mouth and down my chin. I squeezed my eyes shut tightly and breathed through
the pain, not making a sound. Not giving him that pleasure.

"Your father must have left you
something
. He
wouldn't have just hidden all those drugs without telling anyone," he
shouted.

My thoughts shifted to the locket that was still clasped
around my neck. Yes, my father
did
leave me something, but I still
didn't know what it meant and there was no way I was going to tell him. Lucas
would figure it out somehow.

Hopefully.

I spit out the blood that had pooled in my mouth and turned
my head back to face him, keeping my thoughts hidden and my expression
impassive. "Well, he didn't tell
me
anything, you stupid
bastard."

He moved quickly and the pain that burst into my other cheek
was worse than the last. He hadn't been hitting his hardest the first time and
I had a feeling he was still holding back. The sting was tolerable, but the
humiliation nearly did me in, but I'm a Brannock. Hitting me was only going to
dig him in a deeper hole.

"Looks like we are going to be here a while. I've got
all night," he said with an evil grin.

"So do I," I whispered.

***

I was having déjà vu.

The first thing I noticed when I started to wake up was the
smell of dust and ocean, but this time, the rusty scent of blood was present
and stung my nostrils. My head was screaming at me again, but this time, so was
the rest of my body. My face throbbed and there was no need for a blindfold. My
eyes would be swollen shut soon.

I hadn't given the bastard a damn thing and he had been
furious. Desperate. I wanted to laugh hysterically because I could tell he was
figuring it out.

I wasn't going to talk even if I
did
know anything.

The only pleasure he got was from the scream that had torn
from my throat when a much harder blow to my face had jerked me to the side and
my shoulder had popped out of joint. It was definitely the most painful thing I
had ever experienced, but I was grateful for it. The rest of the pain had
dulled significantly compared to
that
, and if I could survive that, I
could survive getting slapped around.

At one point, I had started to tear up, knowing that Lucas
wouldn't find me in time and that he wouldn't ever know that Justin was the
cause of my death. I had despaired and started to feel sorry for myself, but as
quickly as the emotions came, they were thrown out of my mind.

I'm a Brannock
, I had told myself.
No one can
break me, no one can destroy me.

It wasn't long after that when I had blacked out again.
Maybe it was from the pain, maybe it wasn't. Either way, it had been a short
reprieve.

Each breath I took made the cut on my lip throb, but it
reminded me that I was still alive. I cringed when I tried to shift, pulling my
shoulder a little more and causing agonizing pain to shoot through my body. I
whimpered and breathed in and out, waiting until the pain subsided. My ass was
numb from sitting on the hard concrete floor and my back was aching horribly.

He would start again soon.

Would I give in and tell him about the locket? Was it even a
clue for him?

Doesn't matter
, I thought. He isn't getting anything
from me. He'll just have to wear himself out enough before I get another break.

I wanted to grasp the locket in my hand and feel the
intricate detail press into my palm. Would it be the only thing that would
identify me when all this was over and done with?

I didn't have to wonder about an answer because an
unfamiliar voice boomed throughout the empty warehouse.

"It would be a shame to permanently disfigure that
beautiful face, Ms. Brannock. It could be very useful for me in the near
future. Make me a lot of money."

A chill ran down my spine and suddenly, the pain in my body
was a joy compared to the images that ran through my head.

"If you tell me what I want to know, we will make this
quick. Justin here will shoot you quickly and it will be over with. If you do
not tell me what I want to know, I will have to keep you alive, which means I
will be forced to use that pretty face to my advantage. To earn back the money
lost from your father's last attempt to thwart my efforts."

The light shining down on me looked brighter than before and
burned my eyes, so I stopped trying to open them. He was standing in front of
me, but I couldn't find the energy to look at him and make sure I remembered
his face. The man was going to find a reason to keep me alive whether I told
him what he wanted to know or not. He would do it for his own sick pleasure.

"I'm positive you are not a virgin since you've been
playing house with Shade, but my clients still pay top dollar for a pretty face
and a body like yours."

I shifted again, trying to take some weight off of my back,
but the movement pulled on my shoulder and I groaned. I hoped to go unconscious
once more which made me smile.

"Go ahead and hit me again, Justin," I rasped
breathlessly. "But make sure you use
all
your strength this time.
You know, just to convince me you're actually a man and not a scrawny little
bitch who doesn't want to break a nail."

I heard footsteps start pounding toward me and flinched a
little. I had pushed too far, but I could give a rat's ass. Then Banetti
started laughing. It was too great of a laugh for such a horrible man and I
tried to remember how sexy Lucas looked when he laughed. How his dimples popped
out and made my knees weak. How his hands felt on my skin.

I could remember everything so clearly, it was agonizing.

"Rains, wait a minute," he chuckled. "You are
so like your father, Ms. Brannock. William was always such a humorous
man."

I clenched my teeth at the sound of my father's name on his
voice. "Don't you dare say his name you fucking piece of shit."

His laughing stopped suddenly and the room was finally so
deadly silent, you could hear a pin drop. The sound of the ocean just outside
was quiet and the gulls had shut up for the night. The only thing I could hear
was the angry rush of blood through my head and my own unsteady breathing.

"Now that's no way for a lady as sweet as you to talk.
I could destroy your little Lucas, Ms. Brannock. So easily," his voice was
calm and dangerous, my heart thudded, but I kept my expression neutral.
"He is already under suspicion. I could make that suspicion turn into
certainty. He would be locked up in prison for the rest of his life. I have
many friends there."

My mind raced with images of Lucas in handcuffs and an
orange jumpsuit.
No!
I screamed in my head. He didn't deserve that.
After everything he went through as a kid with a mother who didn't give a damn
about him, losing a father who hardly knew him, and the struggle to stay so
incredibly stoic through it all. I had to find a way to fix this.

"It would only take a little push is all," he
added.

I finally forced my eyes to open and peered through the
narrow slits I had made. It took a moment for the shadow in front of me to
solidify.

Frank Banetti.

The man was tall and his shoulders were broad. He looked
powerful in his Armani suit and the tattoo peeking out of his collar brought an
air of danger into the room. He was handsome with his dark skin and nearly
black hair. His dark brown eyes were sharp and I knew this man had seen and
done things that few others had. His hands were clasped in front of him and a
giant ruby sat on the middle finger of his right hand.

So cliché
, I thought with an inward laugh.

Justin sat in the metal folding chair to his left, a grimace
on his face and his hand gripping the 9mm tightly, the same kind that Lucas
carried, anticipating the opportunity to shoot me, I'm sure.

I looked back at Banetti whose expression looked bored and
at the same time desperate. I couldn't tell which one was actually real. I
grimaced as pain ran up my spine with the deep breath I took. The Brannock in
me came out and I must have a death wish because the only response that I
voiced was one I'm sure would seal my fate. "Then I hope you and Justin
end up cell mates. You make a cute couple."

I literally heard the snap of the thread Justin had been
holding on to. He was ready to be through with me and it made me smile. He'd
think twice about messing with my family next time.

I heard the now familiar scrape of the chair as he shot out
of it, but I didn't keep my eyes open long enough to see the priceless
expression on his face. The pain had started to tear through me and my breath
was coming short. I would black out before he got too many hits in.

Then a familiar voice cut through the room and my head
started to spin.

"Touch her again and I'll tear your balls off and shove
them down your throat!"

Lucas.

My heart thudded to a stop and I shifted, deliberately
causing the pain, to make sure I wasn't dreaming.

Justin must have gotten pretty close because his foot
brushed against my leg and I opened my eyes and saw him towering over me and
facing to the side with his gun pointed out in front of him.

I turned my head as painlessly as I could and squinted into
the darkness. My heart started to beat frantically and relief coursed through
me.

He's here!

Justin narrowed his eyes, then stepped back. "What the
-"

"Get the fuck away from her, Rains," Lucas' voice
demanded. "I've come to give you what you want for her release."

Banetti stepped to the side to position himself slightly
behind Justin. "And what is it that we want, Shade?"

I could finally see his shadow just beyond the circle of
light and I thanked God that I would get to see him one last time before I
slipped into oblivion. The pain was becoming too much to bear and dark spots
were forming in front of my eyes. I resolved to tell him how much I loved him
regardless of who else was in the room and how bad of timing it would be.

"Me to drop the case, the drugs that Brannock moved,
and the chance to get away with it all and walk out this door without a bullet
in your head."

Neither of them spoke, but Justin kept his gun trained on
the target. "Why aren't you in jail? How did you find us?"

Lucas stepped into the light and glanced my way, pain and
anger crossing over his face as he took in my appearance. I tried to smile at
him, but the cut on my lip made me gasp before I could. His eyes darkened and
his fists clenched at his sides. I noticed he didn't have a weapon on him and I
wondered why he would show up without one.

"I was never
in
jail. It was just a way to get
you to think I was out of the picture. Guess it actually worked."

Justin snarled and took a step closer to Lucas, "Don't
worry, you'll be out of the picture completely very soon, along with your
little piece of ass. Guess I shouldn't mention the chick that mauled you the
morning after her father kicked the bucket."

I smiled, remembering how I had messed up his hair from our
little make out session. I couldn't stop myself from commenting. "That was
me
, asshole."

Justin didn't turn my way, but he didn't have to. He was
already screwing himself enough if the sight of his wavering hand was any
indication.

"You aren't very good at kidnapping either, Rains. Got
a tip from patrol that you were headed this way," he said, turning his
eyes to Banetti who looked furious.

"I don't believe you!" Justin shouted. He looked
like he was going to be sick.

"Doesn't matter," Lucas muttered calmly.
"Everyone knows you're the leak, asshole. I'm just glad I get to see your
face when you realize how deep in shit you have buried yourself."

Justin stepped back from Lucas, toward me, his gun now
steady, and he smiled. "And I get to see your face when you realize you
came here for nothing."

Banetti, who looked every bit the calm criminal he had been
since I opened my eyes, pulled out a sleek silver gun and pointed it at Lucas.
He didn't look like the type of man to hesitate and I wasn't going to just sit
by and let the love of my life be shot down without doing something.

I looked around into the shadows, trying to search for
anything that would give me inspiration. A slight movement behind Banetti made
me blink, forcing the dark spots that had invaded my vision to fade.

"Wait!" I shouted and watched them all freeze. I
needed to buy some time for Lucas. "If I tell you where my father hid the
drugs, will you let him go?"

"Ash," Lucas warned, but I kept my eyes on
Banetti, trying not to glance at the continued movement behind him.

Frank Banetti smiled and nodded.

Lie.

I wasn't stupid enough to believe they would let either of
us go, but I went with it.

"Okay." I sighed and moved my eyes to Justin who
was now standing to my side and trying not to look at me, but was having a hard
time which is exactly what I wanted. I needed to distract both of them.
"They're at my father's house. He has a compartment in his closet."

Banetti laughed, "You are a horrible liar, Ms.
Brannock."

Lucas shook his head in amusement, which ticked me off
because, seriously, now was not the time.

"Fine then, answer me this. How the hell do you guys
expect to find them if Lucas and I are the only ones who could possibly
know?"

"Don't you remember the last little while we have spent
together, Aislinn?" Justin sneered. "I was being merciful. I wouldn't
mind spending more time trying to get it out of you."