“I’m not telling you shit, Stone, because this is the only leverage I have to get answers. I need to understand what happened that night.”
Stone marches to me, pulling me up by my arms. His face comes right up to mine as he yells, “Fine! You want me to tell you what happened? I’ll tell you. Your piece of shit father was going to sell you into a sex trafficking ring. I heard it on the phone right before I barged into your bedroom and bashed his brains in with a hammer.”
My body goes limp, and Stone shakes me like a rag doll. “Are you happy now, Butterfly? You know the fuckin’ truth. You feel like all those loose ends are now tied up with a pretty bow?”
“That’s not all he was doing,” I whisper.
“What?”
“My father was molesting Robbie and me. We didn’t know about each other. Well, I didn’t. Robbie is a whole other story. He’d been aware for years. I don’t know why he didn’t get us out. I’m sure the years of that asshole harming him are what made him lose his mind. My dad not only was harming us but also letting others do it, too. I knew his drinking and gambling was a problem, but until I went to therapy, I didn’t know how many memories I’d locked up.”
Stone’s face goes white before the rage sets into his eyes. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I found out a few years ago. He was drugging me, and I always thought it was a dream when I woke up. He never actually penetrated me. My virginity was intact. I still don’t know the extent of shit he put Robbie through, but I’m pretty sure he got it way worse than I did. He got more and more messed up the older we got until he snapped. When Robbie tried to rape me, it was aggressive. I grabbed a knife and stabbed him in the eye and got away. I went straight to the cops and filed a report. When we were in the courtroom, he snapped, tried to strangle me in front of all those people. He sealed his fate. But I wasn’t safe, so I had to get a new identity. That’s where the name Willis came from. How did you find me, Stone?”
“I saw your picture.”
“Where?”
“Clarissa Matthew. You know her?”
I blink at Stone. “She’s my best friend. We met at college.”
“Yes, well, there is a picture of the two of you laughing with your arms around each other. I saw you three weeks ago. I asked Vance about you, and he gave me the information after Ciaran told him I was on the up and up and wouldn’t hurt you.” Stone grabs my hand and trails a line into my palm with his fingertip. “Vance owns a ton of nightclubs. He’d have given you a job. Why are you working at that dive bar?”
“Because I wanted to do it on my own. Did Vance tell you anything else about me?”
“Not really. I tried asking, but he told me it was your story to tell. I think he’s a little scared of his wife.”
I chuckle. “He isn’t scared of her. He just doesn’t like her upset. About four years ago, I was in a relationship with a not-so-great guy.” I lift my arm. Stone’s jaw ticks as he touches the raised edges of my skin. “He used to beat me, but one night he got really high on some shit or another, tied me up, and burned me. To this day, Vance’s friend Enzo freaks me out because of that Zippo he’s always twisting.”
Stone is silent. He doesn’t say a word but bends and kisses my scars. His lips are so gentle, a complete contrast to the man he’s shown me up till now. “I’m gonna kill the fucker.”
“There’s no need to kill Enzo. He just freaks me out, but he’s a great guy.”
“Not Enzo. I’m gonna kill the motherfucker who thought he could mark you.”
“You marked me,” I say, pointing out the obvious.
“You like my marks. Did you want this fucker to burn you? Was his mark from pleasure and love, or was it from abuse and terror?”
“Abuse. There was no pleasure with Roy.”
“I’m gonna kill him. Once for hurting you, and then I’m gonna kill him for touching what’s mine.”
I pull his face to mine and kiss the corner of his mouth. “There’s no need to kill him because he’s already dead. Vance took care of him soon after I left him.”
Stone pulls away, walking to the wall. I can see his back moving as he breathes. He says nothing for a while, and we just wait in silence together. Then he screams and rams his fist into the wall.
“If you keep doing that, you’re gonna have to buy the building. That’s two holes in less than twenty-four hours.”