Chapter 246: Monster
- RORY -
I’m too stunned to move, but I’m vaguely aware of Raya asking me what’s wrong. Slowly, I back away from the railing that overlooks the ground below.
What if it’s really true? That Raya and I attract trouble or... or something. There has to be an explanation for this. Otherwise I’m just losing my mind.
"Roar, you’re freaking me out," Raya says, grabbing my arm. "What’s wrong? Did you see something? You’re shaking, talk to me."
"It was him," I manage, still staring in the direction where the two guys were walking even though it’s no longer visible from here. The deck is obstructing it.
"Him who? The guy from your cabina?" She says, looking back the same way I am. "Come on, let’s get Dex."
"Not the guy from the cabina." I shake my head. "It looked like Josh from the pool, but there was someone else with him, and..."
Raya stares at me, waiting, and finally I tear my eyes away from where they were. Right there. Just below. The man with Josh was laughing like... like he hadn’t destroyed my whole teenage years. Like he hadn’t left a scar over more than my body, but over my life, too.
"And?" Raya repeats, waiting.
How do I tell her? Maybe I shouldn’t tell anyone. I can just pretend that I didn’t see him. But what if we run into him this week?
"Maybe he was the one from last night," I mutter to myself. "There can’t be more bad guys, can there? It’s too much of a coincidence. It had to be him."
"Rory." Raya grabs hold of my shoulders, giving me a little shake. "What bad guy? Who did you see?"
I was just telling Luci about him, so it’s possible that I’m imagining it. How could it possibly be him? At this resort of all places? And after all this time?
"If you don’t tell me, I’m going to go after them to see for myself," Raya says, finally drawing my attention with the threat.
"It was Hansen," I croak the name, grimacing as it leaves me. I haven’t said that name aloud in a very long time.
Hansen. Hansen Rykard. The boy next door.
Raya freezes and stares back at me. And then I see something that I’ve never seen before—pure hatred filling my sister’s eyes.
She takes off across the deck toward the steps, and I’m so stunned that it takes me a second to realize what she’s actually doing. She’s going after him.
"Raya!"
I run after her and then stop, eyes cutting back toward the cabina, wondering if I shouldn’t run that way instead and go tell Dex what’s happened. But then what if Raya catches up to them during that time? What if something happens to her?
"Shit, Raya!"
She’s already down the steps, streaking through the trees toward the beach. Her towel is swinging behind her like a cape or a tail—teasing me with the flash of color that will allow me to follow if I can at least keep up enough to see it.
Finally I make it to the bottom of the steps and dart after her. She isn’t that far ahead. But where are these mafia guys that are supposed to be our security? Isn’t this exactly why they’re here? For moments just like this?
I glance over my shoulder to see the big guy in black huffing and puffing after us, looking like he’s having a really hard time. Great. He’s probably not that much use without his gun, because he clearly can’t keep up.
In front of me, Raya breaks past the tree line, arriving out on the beach and whirling around, looking for which way they went. I’m almost to her when she takes off again, apparently catching sight of them.
"Raya! Come back," I call, trying to grab hold of her.
Meanwhile, the water is crashing along the shore with dark skies in the distance just like yesterday. Another rainstorm is coming. And here we are running between the beautiful resort, feathered and shaded by green, and those approaching dark clouds out over the open ocean.
"No," I gasp, stopping short when Raya finally reaches them. They caught sight of her and stopped, making the final leg of her pursuit quick work.
My sister doesn’t waste any time. I watch in horror as she launches herself right at the monster, attacking him without any preamble. Because it really is him: Hansen. I wasn’t imagining it. The monster from my nightmares is here in the flesh.
But now he’s older. And bigger.
It obviously doesn’t deter Raya. She’s a ball of fury--arms swinging and clawing and pushing--and all I can do is watch, unsure of what to do. But when Josh tries grabbing hold of her, I snap out of the fear caging me. Raya wiggles loose from the supposed intern, continuing to yell obscenities at a stunned Hansen who has scratch marks streaking down one side of his face.
When I make it to them, shoving Josh to the side, I try to focus only on my sister--on getting her away from the monster. I can have a panic attack or breakdown or whatever the hell I need to afterward, but right now I have to protect her. She’s obviously not herself.
Hansen catches sight of me, and ice skitters up my spine. The recognition in his eyes is immediate.
"Don’t look at her!" Raya yells, shoving him again.
For some reason, he’s taking it without any retaliation, but I’m sure that will change. I reach to pull her away but find myself falling backward, thrown to the ground by an emotionless-looking Josh. Intern my ass. Clearly he’s some kind of accomplice.
The sand makes it awkward to get back up, but I scramble the best I can, returning to my feet only to see Hansen finally losing his cool and backhanding Raya into the sand.
"I’m going to kill you, you bastard," I growl, going straight for him.
Gone is the fear. In its place is an invincible rage bright and hot and powerful, spurring me forward.
The memory with this monster is still vivid. Hansen Rykard in my basement, holding me down, undeterred by my screams. He took without permission and gave me this scar in the process. If only I had Luciano’s knife with me so I could finally return the favor.
I launch myself at him just as Raya did, taking him down to the sand and hitting him. And hitting him. And hitting him.
It’s exhilarating, my fists connecting with the hard, angular bones of his face. His stupid handsome face that hides all of the depravity and ugliness inside. There’s a crunch when I connect with his nose, and then the horrid masculine hands that were apparently trying to take hold of me finally succeed, and he flips me onto my back.
The bastard is angry now--angry and bleeding--holding my arms in a bruising grip against the sand as he glares down at me. But there’s no more fear left in my body to extract. All that’s left now is rage.
"Hello, baby girl," he says, spitting blood next to me. "I’ve thought about your sweet little ass for a long time, and here you are. All grown up."
He smiles, teeth stained with blood, and then he’s gone—yanked away. When I sit up, it’s to see a thunderous Dex holding him by the throat. A short distance away is the mafia guy huffing and sweating, but Josh is cowering in his grip.
"Rory!" Raya slides into the sand next to me and takes my face in her hands. "Oh my god, did he hurt you?"
I shake my head, chest heaving. "No."
She proceeds to inspect me like I’m a child, looking over my upper arms before moving on to my hands. They don’t look good. My stitches came open, and I’m bleeding again. But I don’t even feel it. Adrenaline is dancing in my veins like a live wire, keeping any pain away for the time being.
"Did he hurt you?" I ask her in return, pulling my hands into my lap.
"Nah," Raya scoffs, helping me up. But a red mark is blooming on her cheek where I saw the bastard hit her.
"Saul and Luciano are informed," mafia guy says to Dex who looks moments away from committing his first murder. It’s probably only the few witnesses gaping at us that have kept him from following through. "They’re on the way. Maybe we take this to one of the huts?"
"Good idea," Dex says, voice cold. "We’ll be needing some privacy."
