Chapter Forty: The Aftermath
"Weasel-face?" I asked, whirling on Vincent.
A strained chuckle left Jack, but it was lost in the background as Vincent and I locked eyes. Everything clicked into place, and I let a slew of profanities fly. It made perfect sense. Lucas had been uneasy about this deal for as long as I could remember. They all had. And once I had been brought in, Henry had been fixated on my every move. It was something we had brushed off on him being a pervert.
"So, this whole deal . . ." Vincent trailed off, eyes narrowing to slits.
"It's been me, the whole time," Jack told him. The look on his face was way too smug for someone who was minutes away from death.
Or should I have said seconds?
In one fluid movement, Vincent slid his gun from the table. The silencer was already attached, so there was only a muted bang as he leveled it at Jack's forehead and fired.
No grand speeches.
No threats.
Just a hole right between Jack's now lifeless tawny eyes.
My stomach rolled, and I had to turn my back on the grotesque scene. Touching my fingers to my mouth to try and stop the reaction, I took a deep breath. Before I had even exhaled, two hands came down on my shoulders. Vincent's touch was gentle, applying just enough pressure to let me know I wasn't alone.
"I'll be okay."
"I should've warned you," he murmured, pulling me back so that I was leaning on him. "Let's get out of here."
He waited until I nodded, and then kept his hand on the small of my back as he led me from the room. Just before the door fell shut behind us, I glanced back. Jack's head had fallen forward, and one could almost think he was just passed out if they didn't know any better. But I did. He would never take another breath. He would never again be able to terrorize the people I cared about. But there was still a pang in my heart for the man I had thought I had known.
"It's okay if you don't know how to feel, princess," Vincent murmured. When I turned my head to meet those steady forest eyes, he gave me a small smile. "They were both real. The man you knew and the man he turned out to be."
"I should be happy he's gone," I said, wrapping my arms around myself. "But I just feel numb."
"It's okay," he repeated, drawing me into his warmth. "The only thing that matters is he can't hurt you anymore."
"No. He can't hurt any of us anymore."
"I love you," Vincent said, tipping my face up to kiss me. I let myself fall into him for just a moment. When we pulled apart, I took a steadying breath. Then I squared my shoulders and headed for the steep stairs leading up into the warehouse.
There were people everywhere. Very rarely had I seen the warehouse this packed, but today was a win for us. We were one step closer to being able to breathe easy again. One more player to remove from the board before we were back in control again. Whatever our next steps were, they would define how things carried on in Valarian.
With the slightest pressure against my spine, Vincent urged me to head to the center of the room. The soft hum of conversation died out as all the attention swung our way. Vincent surveyed everyone gathered, and I noticed our closest friends moving to surround us. Every one of their faces showed a similar frown, but it was Angelica who caught my attention the most.
Our gazes locked, and I answered the unspoken question in her eyes with a nod. Her shoulders dropped, and she let loose a long breath. For just a moment, she let her gaze drift skyward. My own eyes pricked as I realized what she was doing. Turning to face the others again, I let her say her final goodbye to Alana in peace.
"It's done," Vincent said, his soft statement sounding like a gunshot in the resounding quiet. Grim smiles started to ripple through the room, but he was quick to get to the matter at hand. "It's not time for celebration just yet. Jaxon Graham is dead, but we still have the issue of the leak. Juliette got it out of him. It was Henry Kline."
Murmurs spread through the gang as the news sank in. I was still trying to digest the fact that Vincent had given me credit for the information. Just another way he continued to make it evident that I was in this with them. Just as much of a leader as he was. The gangs' eyes ran over me, taking in the blood that spattered my clothes and my hands. I hadn't even thought about it until now.
Blowing out a breath, I crossed my arms over my chest. "We need to decide how we're going to handle this situation. We're neck deep into this deal with Henry. You all have been working on it long before I came into the picture. But the fact remains that this betrayal cannot go unpunished. Jack let us know that he has been behind this deal since it's inception."
"I killed him before we got anything more out of him," Vincent chimed in, stepping to my side. "But, if I had to guess, I'd say their plan was to report the deal to the police when it was about to go down. It would have put me behind bars, and the entire operation in jeopardy just in time for Graham to come in and save the day."
"So, what's the plan?" Lucas asked.
Vincent looked to me.
"We keep Jack's death under wraps for now," I said. My statement was met with more murmuring, and a few outright protests. I held my hand up, and that chatter died. "I know what you all want. I know that you want nothing more than to make it known that we are still in control of this city. But we have the element of surprise on our side. If we play this right, Henry won't have any idea we know he's been two-timing us. He won't have time to escape."
"We go through with the deal as if nothing has changed," Vincent continued. His support radiated through me, and I had to tamp down the smile that wanted to break through. "We set up the exchange, and we wipe out Kline and his entire empire in one fell swoop. He's the last of the people that were loyal to the Graham family. This ends with him."
My eyes roved over those gathered, and I saw the determination set into every one of their faces. They may have wanted to stake Jack's head to the front of the building, but they knew we were right. The worst thing we could do to Jack now, would be to let his legacy die with him. No fanfare, no mourning. Just another light extinguished in silence.
"Arkin?" The brunette looked up at the sound of my voice. "Find Sebastian Rathbone. I want him dealt with as well."
He nodded, and without a word pulled out his phone and headed out of the warehouse. Sure, Sebastian wasn't as big of a player as Henry, but he was still someone Jack had considered a friend. He was the one who had actually taken the shot that killed Alana. He also knew one of my pressure points, and I wouldn't allow him the chance to push it.
Devyn walked up to me then, as if she had known I was thinking about her.
Vincent nudged me in her direction as he continued to talk logistics with the gang. The rest of the planning would be up to then. I needed to decompress.
Devyn wrapped an arm around my shoulders and angled me toward the stairs leading up to the apartments. Without a word, I leaned into her as we walked. Angelica fell into step beside us, and together we headed up to Vincent's.
No one said a word as I unlocked the door. Angelica made a bee-line for the kitchen. Devyn didn't hesitate to continue on to the bedroom. When we got to the bottom of the stairs, I managed to pull away from her enough to lead the way. Her eyes took in the bedroom for the briefest of moments when we emerged. Not even bothering to say anything, I headed into the bathroom.
Devyn was with me again only moments later. Brushing past me, she turned on the faucet in the bathtub. She let the water run until steam began to billow through the room, and only then did she take stock of what was sitting on the ledge of the tub. She spotted the bubble bath Vincent had bought me in my first week here and poured a hefty amount into the water. The scent of lavender wafted around the space as the air turned balmy.
"Strip," she ordered, standing with her hands on her hips.
"Excuse me?"
Her eyes rolled so far I was tempted to tell her they'd get stuck that way. "I've seen that vacant look in your eyes before. Strip. You need to relax."
Grumbling about how bossy she was, I did as she instructed. I tried not to think about how much blood was crusting up on my skin. Devyn moved to take every piece of clothing I peeled off. When I was completely naked, she nudged me in the direction of the bath. Sighing, I stepped into the tub and hissed at how hot the water was.
"Suck it up," she told me, taking a seat on the edge of the counter.
"I really hate you sometimes," I muttered. Slowly, I lowered myself until I was completely submerged up to my neck. My eyes slipped closed. Bless Vincent and his choice to get a deep soaking tub.
"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked, her voice soft.
"Not really."
"Well, if you do, I found Vincent's stash of liquor," Angelica said as she breezed into the room.
I cracked one eye open in order to see the bottle of tequila and three shot glasses she was holding up like they were trophies. Devyn and I both chuckled as she came to sit on the floor between the two of us. A feline smile curved her lips as she lined the glasses up and filled them. At some point between when she had left us in the basement and when we had finally come back up, she had found the time to shower and change as well. Her burgundy hair was slightly damp, and not a speck of blood marred her skin. When I reached for the shot she offered me, bubbles stuck to my hand and arm. She handed one to Devyn as well after making sure I wasn't going to drop mine.
"Cheers, girls," Devyn chirped, raising her glass. "We made it."
"For now," I mumbled before tossing back the shot. Devyn reached into the water just enough to flick some at me. I glared at her. "What?"
"Don't give me that."
"Jules is right," Angelica said, eyeing Devyn as she poured herself another shot. "This fight isn't over."
"Listen, I know I'm not as involved as the two of you, but I am still involved. And I'll be damned if I'm not going to celebrate when we win. I know we've still got some shit left to handle, but that doesn't diminish what we've accomplished today."
Angelica and I glanced at each other. She raised her brows as me, and I just shrugged before turning back to my best friend. Devyn's dark brown eyes were blazing, but I knew what she was doing.
"You can be pretty wise when you want to be," I teased, instead of calling her out for trying to cheer me up.
"Somebodies got to be the sunshine with you two doom-and-glooms around."
"Hey!" Angelica exclaimed, reaching forward to swat at Devyn's knee. "I resemble that remark."
Devyn laughed, and the sound was so light and carefree that it helped a weight lift off my chest. Angelica passed out another round of shots, and once I could feel the tequila warming me from the inside out, I grabbed my loofa and began to scrub away the left over grime that was still clinging to my skin. Thankfully, it seemed like my clothes had taken the brunt of the blood. There was some caked under my nails that I scrubbed at, and before long every last reminder of Jack was swirling down the drain.
Devyn reached over and flipped the hot water back on, adding more bubble-bath as the water refilled. Now that I was clean, I could just let the water ease some of my still-tense muscles. This wasn't the first time Devyn and I had done the bubble-bath therapy sessions. We had been naked in front of each other more times than I cared to count over the years. But I was surprised that I felt just as at ease with Angelica around. As if she had always been there.
It made me wonder what our group would have been like if there was a fourth.
"If you're comfortable with it," I started, leaning my neck against the lip of the tub. "I'd like you to tell me about Alana. I've heard about her from Vincent, but I want to know about who she was outside of just his sister."
"She would have loved you," Angelica said, a sweet smile breaking across her face even as tears gathered in her eyes. "Anyone that could make Vincent light up the way he does around you would have been her favorite person in five seconds flat."
And then she launched into story after story about the woman that I would never get to meet, but desperately wished I could have. It was like a dam breaking open, and I wondered how long Angelica had been keeping these stories to herself. Wondered if she had ever shared any of them with Vincent, or if they had just shut each other out after they lost her. Too wrapped up in their individual grief to be able to help each other through it.
My money was on the latter.
The story of how they met was such a meet-cute even Devyn couldn't stop herself from gagging a little. Angelica just made us take another shot for being a 'pair of love-hating assholes.'
"I'm sorry, you expect me to not roll my eyes at the fact that the first time she met you was when you caught her before she could face-plant coming down the stairs?" Devyn asked, pierced eyebrow arching
Angelica's whole face went the same shade as her hair. "Heels and those old stairs didn't mix. It's why we had them redone."
Devyn snorted, and I flicked a healthy dose of water at her.
"And just what is going on in here?"
All three of us turned our attention to the doorway, where Vincent was leaning with one shoulder against the frame. His eyes found mine, trailing over the bit of skin he could see peaking out above the water.
"We're having girl-time. Get out," Angelica told him, a pout on her face. Her cheeks were still a little pink, though I couldn't tell if it was from embarrassment or the amount of tequila we had all consumed.
"Angel, this is my bathroom. You get out." He may have been speaking to her, but his eyes hadn't left mine. There was a heat simmering in his eyes, but it was outweighed by the concern showing on the rest of his face.
Devyn's eyes flicked back and forth between me and the man at the door. With a smirk, she grabbed the half-empty bottle of liquor and hauled Angelica to her feet. The red-head stumbled a bit, and Devyn wrapped an arm around her waist to steady her. With a nothing more than a wink sent my way, she eased Angelica from the room. Vincent broke our staring match to watch them go. Their quiet bickering drifted back to me, but I didn't try very hard to decipher it. Once the soft sound of the front door shutting echoed through the apartment, Vincent crossed the room to kneel next to the tub.
"Hi," I murmured, blinking as I gazed up at him. The buzz was hitting me with a vengeance.
"Hi," he responded, that familiar ghost of a smile dancing around the edges of his lips. "How're you holding up, princess?"
"I'm realizing I'm drunk, and I can officially be charged with accessory to murder. I'm doing great."
The laugh that rumbled through his chest caused my toes to curl. He cupped my cheek in one of his hands, running his thumb along my cheekbone in slow strokes. "You were incredible today."
"Now you're just trying to flatter me."
He shook his head before reaching for my shampoo. He moved so that he was behind me at the head of the tub. He pressed against my shoulder, urging me under the water. I didn't even hesitate. When I came back up for air, he gave me a moment to get resettled. I heard the cap on the shampoo snap open, and then close a few seconds later. When his fingers began massaging the soap into my hair, a low moan escaped my throat.
We didn't speak as he doted on me. And I didn't question it. Vincent somehow always knew when I needed him to comfort me, versus when I needed him to push me. He knew how much killing Jack was going to weigh on me. Just like Angelica and Devyn did. They were all taking care of me in their own ways, and I realized how immensely lucky I was.
Another soft touch had me dunking my head again. Vincent made quick work of rinsing out the shampoo before moving to work the conditioner through the ends of my hair as well. He laid my hair across one of my shoulders so it could sit, and then he leaned far enough forward to kiss my cheek.
"I love you," I told him, turning my face to capture his lips.
"As I love you," he said, pecking my nose before moving to sit next to the tub. He offered me his hand, and I took it within a second. "To the death, Juliette."
I grinned, leaning my head back as I let a sense of peace settle over me. "However slow or swift it may come."
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A little late, and a little longer than chapters have been to try and make up for it! PS - I apologize for any typos. Its very late/early and I'm tired lol.
I know this isn't a super action-filled chapter, but I hope you enjoyed it all the same. They all deserved a breather, and I'm glad I got to flesh out the girl's relationship a little more before we wrap everything up.
Two or three more chapters and an epilogue guys. That's it. We're almost done. So, you know the drill!
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Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed it!
<3Always,
Erin