I look over at my brothers and anger and worry is etched onto the their faces too. I never told them my suspicion about what Paul has done to her, only the state Liam found her in, and I抦 sure like me they have come to the same conclusion. If I don抰 say it aloud ?that our own uncle raped her ?then maybe it won抰 be true.
We all look at each other with relief when Liam抯 car turns into the driveway. Conor pulls the passenger door open as soon as the car rolls to a stop and takes Jessie into his arms. She抯 still unconscious and he cradles her limp body to his chest and carries her straight into the house.
I don抰 get a good look at her, but I do notice her lip is bleeding and she is only covered by Liam抯 coat. I shove my hands into my pockets to stop myself from pummeling the gravel driveway to relieve some of the rage that is thundering around my body.
Liam jumps out of the car and jogs toward me. 揝he抯 still out,?he says as he watches Conor carrying her into the house with Mikey on his heels.
揑 know. We抣l check her over and see if we need to call a doctor. You did good, kid.?
He nods and his eyes brim with tears. 揟hat cunt raped her, Shane.?
揑 know,?I swallow before I wrap my arms around him. It hurts so fucking much to think about. But Liam has said it and now I know it抯 true. I will make Paul Ryan pay for this if it takes every second of the rest of my life to do it. 揃ut she抯 safe now, and we抣l make him pay. I promise you.?
He looks up at me, his eyes red and full of a trust in me that I don抰 deserve. I push down all of the emotion that is desperate to spill out of me. Now is not the time. 揅ome on. Let抯 go make sure she抯 okay,?I say, and then we follow our brothers into the house.
We have prepared the largest bedroom with the en-suite for her and Conor has laid Jessie down on the bed. Her hair is stark against the white cotton sheets. He抯 pulled Liam抯 coat over her to cover her. I can hardly bring myself to look at her when I think about how badly I have let her down. I feel so much anger and guilt and pain and I don抰 know which one to process first.
揧ou think we should call a doctor??Conor asks.
I walk to the bed and sit beside her. Lifting her hand in mine, her skin is warm to the touch after the heat of Liam抯 car and her pulse is strong. The cut on her lip has stopped bleeding. I open Liam抯 jacket and see the bruises on the tops of her thighs and rage threatens to spill out of me, but I swallow it down. There will be time for that soon enough.
揑 think she抯 just knocked out. Let抯 give her a few hours to wake up and see how she is. You all okay with that??I look around the room at the three grief-stricken faces of my brothers.
They all nod their agreement.
揧ou think we should dress her??Mikey asks, his voice cracking with emotion.
揘o,?Conor snaps. 揝he抯 unconscious. He already violated her. We should let her come round first. Who knows how she抯 going to react when she wakes up? We have no idea what he抯 done or what he抯 told her.?
That he might have filled her head with lies about our role in this is eating away at me too. What if she thinks that I led him to her? I can抰 even begin to deal with the guilt and the anger of it, so I focus on what I can do. 揙kay,?I nod. I抎 prefer to put a t-shirt on her so that she is at least dressed in something familiar when she wakes up, but it抯 clearly something Conor feels strongly about and I let it go.
揕et抯 get those cuffs off her at least. Then we can leave Liam抯 coat around her and pull the covers over her,?I suggest. 揥e抮e going to need some supplies for when she wakes up. There抯 no food or anything in this place.?
揑抦 not leaving her,?Conor snaps.
揘or me,?Mikey adds and Liam nods his agreement.
I look around the room at the three of them. None of us wants to leave her. I have always tried to be selfless when it came to my brothers, but I can抰 now. I need this. 揑 can抰 not be here when she wakes up. I need her to know that I didn抰 hand her over to him,?I say, the words sticking in my throat so hard I almost choke on them. I feel like I抦 going to break down if they make me argue with them about this.
Silence fills the room as they all stare at me. I know that each of my brothers is in as much turmoil as I am. Each of us is battling to keep a lid on our emotions because she needs us to be clear-headed right now. They all want to be by her side and make sure she is okay. They want vengeance as much as I do, but none of them have the guilt of being the one who allowed the Wolf to take her from right under his nose.
揙kay,?Liam says eventually as he taps Mikey on the arm. 揥e抣l go. Come on. We can be there and back in an hour.?
Mikey stares at me and there must be something on my face that makes him agree too, because he stands up and walks out of the room with his twin.
揥hat if she thinks that I handed her to him, Con? What if she thinks I knew all along who the Wolf was??I choke on my words because the thought that she might have been lying in that cold room all alone, or even worse when that twisted fuck was raping her, thinking that I had let it happen, makes me feel like I can抰 breathe. If I never get the chance to do anything else in my life ever again, I need her to know that I would die to protect her.
揝he won抰，？he says with a frown.
揌e had my fucking room key!?
揝he won抰 think that, Shane. She knows you wouldn抰 do that to her.?
I pull up a chair and sit beside her bed while he removes the cuffs from her wrists with the bolt cutters. I wish that I could believe him.
Conor and I sit watching her for almost an hour before she finally starts to stir. I edge forward in my seat and my heart hammers in my chest as I wait for her to wake up.
Her eyelids flicker open and the first thing I see in them is sheer terror. She turns her head and looks directly at me. The fear that still lingers in them breaks me.
揓essie,?Conor says softly. 揧ou抮e safe, Angel.?
揥here is he??she says, her voice hoarse as she looks around the room like a frightened rabbit trapped in the paws of a lion.
揌e抯 not here,?he reaches forward and takes her hand but she pulls it from him.
揑t抯 just me and Shane,?he adds.
揝hane??she looks back to me. The confusion and the fear in her eyes almost rips out my heart. Then the tears start running down her face and I bow my head because this is all my fucking fault.
Conor is up off his chair and sitting on the bed beside her. He takes her hand again and this time she lets him.
揌e came for me,?she whispers. 揌e said he抯 your uncle.?
揌e is our uncle, Jessie. But we had no idea he was the Wolf,?Conor says.
揇id you know??she directs her question to me and that she would even ask hurts more than I can stand.
揘o.?
She stares at me and I can抰 tell whether she believes me or not. I figure she抯 still feeling the effects of whatever drugs Paul gave her because her expression is almost blank now and completely unreadable. 揥hat happened? How did you find me??
揝hane realized who the Wolf was after he took you. He had Liam follow him and he found you at that farmhouse and brought you back.?
揕iam is here??the light flickers in her eyes at the mention of his name.
揧es. And Mikey. They抳e just gone out for some supplies. They抣l be back soon,?Conor replies.
揂nd you抮e here,?she frowns as she reaches out and touches his face. 揙r am I dreaming??
揘o. I抦 here, Angel,?he whispers. 揑抦 never leaving your side again.?
She smiles at him. I watch the two of them together. I am relieved that she is safe and that she seems okay, at least physically, but I am hurt that it抯 Conor she still turns to, and that it was the thought of the twins that made her come back from whatever hell she was just in.