Criminal: A Bad-Boy Stepbrother Romance Read online

  My hero, Kaiden.

  My love, Kaiden.

  The thought comes to me unbidden, and yet I know just how true it is.

  Beneath all our fighting and arguing burns real passion that I've been hiding from for so long. All the anger I've felt towards him, all the resentment, it all stems from him leaving me. From the fact that I can't get him out of my life.

  The realization is intense, and for a moment, thoughts of Kaiden fill my mind. Smiling at me after I give some sassy comment and the way he touched his hand along my jaw and looked at me right before he left home. Even the anger when he saw me on his doorstep, begging for a place to sleep now brings a pitter-patter to my heart.

  And just as I'm lost to my pleasant reverie, Ryder's bike turns off the path. I'm too far away to see exactly where he's going, and I start getting panicked until I can see off in the distance a set of headlights.

  I open my glove box, grabbing the gun my dad gave me for my birthday last year. In case of emergencies only, is what he'd said, and this was definitely an emergency.

  I park, my lights still off, and get out of my car as quietly as I can.

  In the desert, sound travels differently, and I take each step as quietly as I can, my high heels left behind in the car, the warmth of the day still radiating upon my bare feet. When we were kids camping out here, we used to listen to the little animals walking around, so I know I have to be delicate.

  My eyes adjust to the darkness, my heart racing as I walk, trying to avoid the few sources of lights. I can see at least two vans and Ryder's bike, probably a quarter mile in the distance, and I move faster.

  "You think you can threaten me?"

  The words reach me and send a shiver down my spine. Ryder.

  "You think you have anything over me?" He's screaming now, but I can't quite make them out. They're behind one of the vans. I start running.

  "You need to be reminded of your place, fuck-head. You are nothing without me. I took you and molded you into a fucking man and you think you can turn your back on me? You think you can tell me what you're going to do, just because that cunt of a sister walks back into your life?"

  I'm close now, just a few feet away, and I crouch down. I can't move to see them without getting in the light of the vans, so I lay flat on my belly, looking under the van at their feet.

  There's four of them. And all of them are facing Kaiden.

  "We had a deal, man! What will Axel say?" Kaiden protests, his voice low and angry, and Ryder laughs.

  "Ah yeah, our 'deal' where I leave your little sister out of this and get you out of your jail time and everyone lives happily ever after? Not going to fucking happen, and Axel will be none the wiser. You went down in a bad deal."

  Ryder’s voice mutates into one of sick cheer that turns my blood cold, "But, Kaiden, my boy. Don’t worry. We do have a very special guest here tonight, so you two can die and rot together."

  He knows I'm here.

  Abigail is here.

  My hands clench into fists, and I stare at Ryder, my green eyes locked on his steely blue gaze. I can't believe what a fucking scumbag he is, and he's the guy that wants me to take the fall for him.

  My lips turn into a sneer, but I don't move an inch. I have to bide my time, let him think he's won.

  "Why're you doin' this, man?" I glare, my arms loose and at my sides, ready for a fight. "I already fuckin' agreed to do everything you wanted, and it still wasn't enough.”

  "Because, asshole. I knew you were gonna try somethin' funny. Guys like you can't be trusted," Ryder said, taking a step closer to me, his gun still in his hand.

  It's me facing off against four thugs, and I have to think fast.

  Where's Abigail? She'll have her car, but we're going to need to get to it, which means we're going to have to run, and we have four guys with guns waiting for us to make a move. They'd love to just shoot us in the backs.

  "I wasn't gonna fuck you over, Ryder. I've been here this whole fuckin' time just waitin' for the day I had to go down for you, to pay my dues, but you won't even give me that? Three fuckin' years I was lookin' at, and I stayed here the whole time, just waiting for it, and now you're saying you didn't trust me? Why didn't you just kill me back then, huh? Why hold this over me 'til now? I could've fuckin' talked at any point and I kept my fucking mouth shut, just like you wanted."

  Ryder's eyes narrow and he paces just a foot in front of my face, hands on his hips, gun at his side.

  "You wanna know why I didn't kill you, you punk piece of shit? Because you mean nothing to me. Less than nothing. You were just some lost little kid and I took you in as the fall guy, but now you've got your sights on bigger things, huh? Don't think I haven't noticed how protective big brother is."

  He smirks, and I've never seen him look so scary.

  So cruel.

  And I've seen him kill a man. I know that glint in his eyes, the way he was drawing out the moment, savoring it.

  "So now, the game has changed, hasn't it? You have a reason to stay out, and put me away, is that what you think?" He turns, putting the gun square to my chest and though I try not to show it, I feel like my heart has just stopped and my life's flashing before my eyes. He cocks the pistol, his blue eyes hard and cold.

  It's not like it was the last time he had me at gunpoint, asking me if I was gonna narc. That was just a test.

  This is serious.

  But instead, he laughs, and the thugs at his sides don't know what to make of it. They shift, uncomfortably, as they watch their boss and me.

  "You've never been nothin' but a little fuckin' punk that thinks he's got his shit together when you are nothing. Nothing, Kaiden. You hear me?"

  He removes the gun from my chest, nodding at Mustang. "Get the girl."

  I see the boots move towards me, and I try to crawl in further beneath the van. My eyes are blurry and I'm trying desperately not to cry because I can't see and I need to be able to move and think quickly.

  We're a long way from my car, and I swear, I just heard a gun get ready to shoot.

  But when the guy moves towards me, I think fast, pushing my gun in towards the front tire of the van. I hide it from view, hopefully getting it close enough so that Kaiden can get it.

  But how will he know it's there? I won't be able to tell him...

  There's not enough time to think about it. Someone grabs my ankle, and I kick, but he's strong. It only takes him a second to grip me and tug me from under the van.

  I'm still in my work clothes, but I'd taken off my heels to walk, leaving me in a slutty miniskirt and a flimsy top, dirt covering my skin. I scream and kick at the man, trying to struggle free, but it's no use. He's too strong, and he grabs me by the waist, tossing me over his shoulder as if I weigh nothing.

  Seconds later I'm tossed down to the dirt again, right near the front of the van, the five of them surrounding me. Kaiden tries to move to my side, but Ryder holds the gun on him again and he freezes.

  Ryder nods to the man that carried me over and suddenly there's a gun on me too.

  "You thought this was gonna be you getting out, boy?" Ryder hisses, his voice filled with rage. "It's you getting out, you and your little sister, but you're goin' on a one way trip to hell," he says with a scowl. "Any last words?"

  Kaiden's breathing hard, and I can see his face is red from out of my bleary eyes, and he's looking at me with such sadness it's breaking my heart. He looks so sorry, so fucking sorry, and I just want to hug him and tell him it'll all be alright.

  "Yea," he says, his voice softer than I've heard it in so long. "Abby, I never meant to get you into this. Never. I always just wanted to protect you," he says and Ryder laughs, cruelly, as I'm shaking with emotion. "I love you, Princess, you get me?"

  I nod, and the gun at my head cocks and all I can see is my imminent death.

  "I love you too!" I practically screech, my body shaking in the dirt as I cringe away from the gun.

  My eyes are shut and I prepare for the end,
our whole miserable lives set to come to a close, and I can feel this deep, dark pit in my stomach. And at the same time a weight lift off my shoulders. It was a strange, inexplicable feeling that I’m not sure I’ll ever understand.

  The gun goes off… but I’m still alive.

  I look, and there’s Kaiden. He’s slugged Ryder and he’s coming for me. It’s a brief moment of glory, my brother charging in to save me, be my hero once more! I could cry, if I wasn’t already bleary-eyed and in a panic. But it’s all for naught.

  One of the other guys cracks Kaiden in the head, and then the guy pointing his gun at me pulls the hammer back with a click. Kaiden comes to a stop, fearful for my life, and once again… it’s all over.

  I can only watch as my brother is laid into, two guys pounding on him in vengeance for his outburst.

  “You’re gonna fuckin’ watch her die, prick! But not before we make you pay for that lil’ show,” says the guy over me, who moves over just enough to strike out with a kick into Kaiden’s side. And it’s like I can feel every blow that lands upon my big brother, twinges of guilt and sympathy pain wracking my body.

  I can’t wallow in the pity for long, though because I notice that the man’s hold of the gun has wavered. He’s watching Kaiden now, not me, and the gun I left beneath that van is so very close…

  I can rush for it, but I remember something I heard on TV long ago: the human eye picks up on fast motion far quicker than the slow. So instead, I’m cautious, and though it hurts me to do so, I let Kaiden take a few more punches and blows. A cracked rib too, by the sound of that crunch, and I’m so damn sorry for him.

  But it’s better than having no chance at all.

  My hand reaches beneath the vehicle, searching through the sand and dirt for the feel of my gun. For a moment I worry that I’d placed it too far out of reach, but then… oh yes, the cold press of steel to my fingers and palm.

  I’ve got it!

  I pull it out, slowly, slowly… don’t rush Abigail, don’t blow it. I raise the weapon, point it at the man over me— the only man still holding his gun at the ready then— and squeeze the trigger.

  The kick on the gun comes as a surprise, even though it shouldn’t. I know what to expect, my father taught me, but I’d never fired at a human before, and maybe that’s what really gives it the kick. I pull the trigger on him, then I point at the other guys.

  “Leave him alone!” I scream, my voice sounding manic, insane! I’m nearly out of my mind at this point, watching Kaiden being beaten, knowing that they might’ve done serious harm to him already, or worse.

  And while my threat got them to still, the guy I just shot wasn’t out of the picture.

  The shot was near point—blank, but I didn’t kill him. Not even close. My bullet struck his shoulder, maybe only grazed it, and while blood gushed, he wasn’t going down. He'd dropped his gun since I’d wounded the arm that held it up, but that didn’t stop him from hitting me with the other fist, and my world spun from the rough blow.

  “Kill that fuckin’ bitch,” came Ryder’s cruel voice, sounding tired of the whole affair.

  We had been so close, and now it’s all over. I close my eyes, waiting for the sound, but where I fell, my big brother came to pick me up.

  In the brief moments of my almost-glory, he got up. His fist sent a spray of red from the one man’s face as he took the handgun from him, a mere moment later and two shots rang out. One man was definitely dead, or just as well as.

  Kaiden is like a wild animal; he’d become a force of nature itself, and with a fury and rage that surpasses any I’d seen, he lets loose a roar and comes for me.

  Comes to my rescue.

  He strikes down that piece of shit, putting another bullet in him, then another. Kaiden isn't taking risks, not like I did. Sympathy only put us both in danger, and he’d learned from my flash-in-the-pan attempt to rescue us both.

  I scramble for my gun in the dark, but Kaiden, oh Kaiden… he's wrath incarnate. He's standing up, tall and strong, gun pointed at the once cocky Ryder.

  “You shit, you think this is ov—” Ryder’s cocky words are silenced by the pull of Kaiden’s trigger. The boom of the gun shot drops the man, and the insufferable asshole is down on his back, clutching his wounded neck and screaming in agony.

  Kaiden advances on him, gun still aimed for his head. And he pulls the trigger again.

  “No Kaiden!” I cry, but it clicks. And no boom follows.

  It clicks again, then again.

  “You don’t fucking touch my sister!” Kaiden shouts, leaning to one side as the gun is now useless, but his body is still sore and smarting from his beating. Instead of a bullet, he plants the heel of his boot into Ryder’s face.

  I don’t know where we are or how long we’ve been driving. It’s still night, but even without the streetlights, I can see the pain etched on Kaiden’s face. Blood is caked beneath his nose, and he’s holding his side. His shirt is torn in a few places, and I know I should be more concerned, but honestly...

  That was the hottest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.

  It’s always been a constant thing with us. It’s not the first time he’s kicked someone else’s ass for me, but it might be the first time he’s been beat while doing it. I shake my head. I know the thoughts are inappropriate, in more ways than one, and I just try to focus on the road. It’s so quiet, but I don’t feel safe being anywhere near Ryder.

  “We need to take you to a hospital,” I say, but I don’t glance at him. I know a hospital is the last place he’d want to be after a fight like that. I’m pretty sure one of the conditions of his bail would be that he can’t be involved with those people or alcohol or whatever anymore.

  “I’ll be fine,” he instantly replies, though he winces a little. “I just need a place to lay low. We should be far enough away, but if you see an all-night pharmacy...”

  He trails off, and I nod obediently.

  “Just rest back,” I say, adrenaline still coursing through me and making me more lead-footed than usual.

  Mile after mile of road spreads out, California desert on all sides as I make my way west, towards our old town. It’s not that I want to go home, but I just don’t know where else to go, and I’m craving the comfortable, the familiar. All I have on me is a hundred bucks in tips, and instinctively, I know there’s no going back to our trailer.

  Ryder’ll have people looking for us, and I glance at Kaiden.

  His eyes are shut, and though his lips are still pulled into a sneer, he’s absolutely gorgeous. Everything about him, even in his pain, just screams out for me.

  I lick my lips, my heart beating so loudly in my chest.

  “You saved my life,” I murmur, not even sure if he’ll hear me. The words hang between us, and I drink the entire situation in, trying to cope with what just happened. I have no idea what Ryder is capable of, but now I do, and I don’t know what to do next.

  “Right back at you, Princess,” he says in his gravelly husk of a voice, so raw and harsh after the night we just had. “If you hadn’t given me the distraction, it’s likely they would’ve just put me down on the spot before I had a chance to turn the tables.”

  He winces again, his thick, muscular arm draped over his battered side as he sits there beside me in pain. He’d taken a brutal beating from four big, strong guys and still has it in him to turn things around and save us both. This is a miracle, all things considered, and judging by the fact that I heard a crack or two, he has at least one broken rib beneath his bloodstained shirt.

  I stare ahead, desperate to keep my mind off of just how damn attracted I am to him right now. We’ve spent so many years running from one another, running from our desires and God only knows what else.

  And look at all the good that’s done us?

  He’s facing prison time, and we’re both on the run from a killer.

  “We can head back, go home,” I say distantly, but he shakes his head with a groan.

  “No need.”
>
  I look at him, my brows furrowed.

  “I knew what I was getting into, Princess, and that I likely wouldn’t be coming back. I transferred all the money I had saved over the years into a safety deposit box in your name.”

  “My name?” I ask, drawing in my lower lip, and he nods.

  It’s not just the pain of the beating getting to him.

  “I’ve done some stupid things in my life, Abby, but I saved every penny. I couldn’t tell anyone about it, I couldn’t pay my bail with it because I didn’t get it legally. So mom and dad went broke, and I was just sittin’ on money I couldn’t spend. So a few months ago, I set up some safety deposit boxes in your name.”

  I can’t believe what I’m hearing.

  There’s a part of me that’s so mad, so outraged that maybe there was a way mom and dad didn’t have to sell out my future to bail him out. But it’s tempered with gratitude.

  “How much?”

  He swallows with a wince and his breathing is a bit off, but he looks at me and rests his hand on top of mine.

  “When I transferred it, there was $1.5 million.”

  I must have heard that wrong.

  I slow down for a second before I remember we’re on the run and speed up once more.

  “Over one million dollars?”

  He smirks, proud of my surprise, but he looks like a scolded pup at the same time. He won’t meet my eyes, and he nods more seriously.

  “Kaiden, what the fuck? How did you get over one million dollars?”

  “Working for Ryder, doing odd jobs on the side... taking the fall for him. He wasn’t happy about that last one and I knew he’d try something eventually. Then I invested it in some other projects a guy I know out of state was involved in, before taking everything out and putting it in your name, Princess.”

  I don’t know what he expected my reaction to be, but I’m dizzy and disoriented, and have to blink to clear my eyes.

  “You’ll have to be careful with what you do with it, I mean… no matter how this all goes down, it’s still suspicious money. You gotta be smart. But hey, I know I can count on you to be smart. Always could,” he says, smiling just a little at memories past, even as he sits there in such obvious pain.