Escaping the Blackness (A Cooper Brothers Novel Book 1) Read online

  Escaping the Blackness Copyright © 2014 Norma Jeanne Karlsson

  Published by It’s Publishing

  Edited by Progressive Edits

  Cover Design and Layout by

  It’s Formatting

  Cover Photo © CURAphotography / Dollar Photo Club

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  To those flying on mended wings, may your flight only soar higher.

  Dedication

  Dear Readers

  Prologue

  1

  2

  3

  4

  5

  6

  7

  8

  9

  10

  11

  12

  13

  14

  15

  16

  17

  18

  19

  20

  21

  22

  23

  24

  25

  26

  27

  28

  29

  30

  31

  32

  33

  34

  35

  36

  37

  38

  39

  40

  41

  42

  43

  44

  45

  46

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgements

  Coming Soon

  Stay tuned

  About the Author

  Dear Readers,

  Welcome to the world of the Cooper brothers. Four teenage boys found themselves abandoned and without love in Into the Blackness. This series will follow these young men in their early twenties as they branch out and discover the joys and hardships of meaningful relationships.

  Jake, Sawyer, Cole and Dane are all very alpha and have a bit of that hero thing too. And when they love, it’s intense and all-consuming. I’m excited to share their stories with you as these brothers discover what they’re truly capable of in life and relationships.

  I hope you enjoy their journeys along with their fun-loving ways. There’s never a dull moment when a Cooper brother is on the page.

  Happy reading,

  NJ

  “Jake,” I hear in the distance as my body’s moved by male hands.

  I pop my eyes open and take a wide swing at the monster coming for me in the night.

  “Jake, calm down. It’s me,” Nick soothes, moving away from my hovering fists.

  “Shit, sorry,” I apologize, rubbing my eyes with the heels of my hands.

  “We’ve got a situation.”

  The undercover operative within me springs into action. We’re trying to bring down a sex trafficking ring while we pretend to be a wholesome family, me playing the part of a fifteen-year-old high school sophomore. Nick’s more like a father to me than a colleague at this point, but we’re here on a mission and my personal shit doesn’t matter in moments like this.

  “Got a young girl downstairs that just broke out of her ‘dungeon’,” Nick explains with air quotes.

  “Fuck,” I hiss, climbing out of bed and dragging a hoodie over my head.

  “A team’s flyin’ in to an abandoned air strip about forty-five minutes away from here. I need you to run interference with the boys and anyone that might show up here this morning. We need to move out now before we’re racing daylight.”

  I offer him a chin lift as we quietly descend the stairs. My boys won’t wake up. They sleep like the dead. I’m thankful for that right now and need to remind myself of this moment when I’m pretending to be a fifteen-year-old while I’m secretly a fucking adult, annoyed as shit by their lazy asses.

  That doesn’t mean I don’t love the guys. The three of them are my brothers at this point. Months spent living together as friends, we’ve formed a family bond that won’t soon end. Not when they’re the only thing I’ve got in this world other than Kat and Nick.

  We enter the kitchen as Kat’s leading a girl in from the family room. The girl’s absolutely swimming in what I notice are my clothes, making her look even smaller than she appears to be. And while I know I should, I can’t tear my eyes away from her.

  Her mahogany hair’s smoothed back and piled on her head. Her face is shining brightly in spite of darkness lurking behind her breathtaking emerald eyes. She has the features of an angel and the haunted look of a person knocking on death’s door. She’s breathtaking.

  Her eyes are locked on mine. She seems less nervous than when we first walked in, like I’m bringing her a sliver of comfort from whatever demons she’s running from.

  “Hoodie looks better on you,” I say with a kind grin.

  She looks down at the navy waffle-textured material covering her body and raises a questioning brow.

  “It’s yours?” she asks in a whisper.

  “Yours now,” I respond gently.

  “Really?”

  “Sure, sweetheart.”

  Her face flames at the endearment. She’s fucking gorgeous, and the fact that I’m noticing while she’s here in this house after escaping something horrific makes me feel like the piece of shit I am.

  “Thanks,” she says softly, staring at her socked feet.

  “We better move out,” Nick suggests.

  Kat steers the girl toward the garage, and my eyes follow her every movement. I’m worried as I watch her walk away, concerned I’m not doing more to help her other than giving her a stupid hoodie and some sweats.

  “I’m Cara,” she says quietly, coming to a halt and directing her information at me.

  “It was nice to meet you, Cara. I’m Jake,” I reply, striding toward her with my hand out to shake hers.

  She delicately places her palm in mine and I just hold it. I don’t shake it or make a move to let go. The moment is so intimate that I feel like Kat and Nick are intruding. I want them out of this room so I can have time alone with the girl captivating my worthless soul by simply touching my skin. Kat—my other colleague who might as well be my mother for how much I love the woman and would do anything for her—locks her hazel eyes with Nick, silently asking if they should give us some privacy. I wish they would, but I know they can’t.

  I can’t peel myself away from Cara. The room is charged, making our breaths shallow and slightly labored. Something in the air changes when you meet the missing piece to your soul. I know I’ve just met mine and in order to keep her safe, I have to let her go. For more reasons than anyone in this room knows. Cara’s running for her life, and I’m running from mine.

  “Have a safe flight, sweetheart,” I order like she’s my woman, soft yet commanding.

  “Okay,” Cara responds with the same blush from earlier dotting her cheeks.

  I move my free hand to push a loose strand of hair behind her ear, and she shocks the shit out of me by not flinching or cowering, but leaning into my touch. It takes every ounce of self-control I possess not to rip her to my chest, say fuck the mission and hide us off the grid. A few minutes with her, and I’m ready to give up the only solid thing in my life to keep Cara safe. I need her out of this h
ouse before I do something I can’t take back.

  “Bye,” I whisper as Kat approaches to move Cara away.

  “Bye, Jake,” Cara whispers back and offers me a small smile that warms my black soul.

  Kat pulls Cara into the garage as Nick moves to me.

  “I’m gonna end whoever hurt her,” I seethe.

  He claps me on the back.

  “I’m lookin’ forward to it, bud,” he says through a chuckle.

  I’m mindlessly rubbing my palm over my heart, the same hand that held Cara’s. There’s a warm burn tingling all the way to my fingertips. Cara seared me with her chilly, delicate touch. Fuck me.

  “Feels good doesn’t it?” Nick asks, heading toward the garage.

  “Huh?” I grunt in a bit of a daze.

  “Your hand feels like it’s on fire, right?”

  “I guess so,” I answer in a shrug and drop my arm to my side, embarrassed by my childish behavior.

  “Feel that every time I touch Kat. No better feeling in the world.”

  “Doesn’t that make me a sick fuck? She just got outta God knows what and I’m creepin’ on her,” I huff and run my hand through my messy blond mop.

  “You made that girl feel good for the first time in years. Don’t beat yourself up over that. I’m so fuckin’ proud of you right now, I’m considering adopting you.” Nick beams a broad smile at me, his pride evident in his typically stoic features.

  I feel all the color drain from my face at his assertion. He has no clue what Kat and he mean to me. How much time I’ve spent wishing I had parents like them instead of the sick fuck I grew up with.

  “Shit, Jake—” I cut off his apology with a slight shake of my head. He doesn’t understand my reaction, and this isn’t the time to get into it, but I need to say something.

  “That’s…I…Thanks, Nick. That means more to me than you know,” I say softly. “You better head out. I’ve got things here.”

  “I meant what I said, Jake. I know you’re a grown ass man, but I feel like you’re my kid too. I’m proud of you every day and not just on the op. Know that,” he says confidently.

  “Dude, you gotta quit or I’m gonna start cryin’ and shit’ll get too intense. But just know, I feel the same. I’ve never had this.” I gesture around at the house, forcing my emotions to the back of my brain. “If I ever got to have a dad, I’d pick you, no doubt. But seriously, you gotta get outta here.”

  We both swallow thickly and lift our chins as he makes his way into the garage. It takes a while, but when he finally drives away, I sag against the wall. Then I race to the bathroom and puke up everything I ate for dinner hours ago. Once I’m dry heaving, I pull my shit together and go wait for further directives or for some idiot to show up here looking for Cara so I can blow someone’s brains out and release the tension that vomiting can’t touch.

  I met the lost piece of my soul today and I set her free, because in order for her to survive, Cara can’t be in my life.

  No one can.

  “Sawyer, if you don’t put me down, I’m gonna shove my foot so far up your ass you’ll have to get pedicures instead of visiting a dentist!” I threaten through clenched teeth.

  He smacks my ass once before righting my feet on the floor. My hands immediately shove his broad chest making him stumble back a few steps.

  “Oof,” I grunt as my midsection is plowed into as I’m heaved over another annoying shoulder.

  “Dane,” I growl.

  “Tell us where you’re goin’ and we’ll stop this game,” Dane responds lightly as though these three haven’t been tossing me around like a ragdoll for twenty minutes.

  “We’ll have to change tactics if she won’t talk,” Cole says to his brothers.

  I’m hanging over Dane’s body limply. I need to maintain my energy for tonight. I can’t overexert myself with the Cooper brothers if I’m going to be on my game. And I will be on my game.

  “The rest of the grad school applicants and a few first-year grad students are goin’ out for drinks. I’m meeting them,” I relent.

  “That wasn’t so hard, was it?” Dane quips like he’s talking to a child.

  He slides me down his wide body…and I mean wide. He’s built like a Mack truck, at least twice the width of me. Dane’s worked at his body and it shows with every rippled muscle.

  “I’m not a kid, Dane. I’m two years older than you. I’m a fuckin’ adult where you still behave like a fifteen-year-old. I don’t need to explain my daily comings and goings to you,” I sneer while tying my long hair back on top of my head.

  “Cara, you know how this works,” Sawyer says with that deep, commanding tone that says he’s in charge.

  I flick my gaze over to him, studying his espresso eyes. He really believes he’s still responsible for me. He made a promise six years ago and not a day has gone by that he hasn’t made sure he’s kept it. I’m sick of that fucking promise.

  I know it means everything to these guys. I know how much it hurts them too. I refuse to live the rest of my life obeying a promise I had no part in, yet it’s dictated almost every day since then.

  “Jake’s gone, guys. It’s time for you to accept it and move on. I’m done living my life within his missing shadow. I’m goin’ out tonight. Alone. I’ll be back later,” I state plainly.

  “This isn’t about Jake,” Dane scoffs. “This is about you. We love you, Cara. We protect you because we love you, not because we told Jake we’d keep you safe.”

  I know they love me. I love them. I love them so deeply I can’t describe it with words. I wouldn’t be where I am right now if it wasn’t for them. They’re the reason I was able to escape the blackness of my past. I owe them everything for that. But I don’t owe them my freedom. I fought too hard to make sure I have it, and I won’t relinquish it to anyone. Never again.

  “I’m safe, guys. I’m always safe. You know that,” I urge them to see me as I am right now not that scared, broken kid I was six years ago. I’m not her anymore. I carry her with me, but I’m not her.

  “We can keep you safer,” Cole insists, his soft blue eyes imploring me to understand.

  “I need my own life. I don’t wanna fight you guys every time I do something outside your scope. If I get in this program, I’ll be here in Chicago while you’re all still in Kansas City. It’s time to change this dynamic.”

  Dane’s honey-hued eyes are staring daggers while his massive chest heaves with labored breaths. Cole’s gaze in on his feet, bowing his six feet five inch frame in defeat. Sawyer’s rubbing the back of his neck, trying to figure out a way to argue with me. He always argues.

  “Have a good night. Call us if you need us,” Sawyer says, stunning the rest of our group.

  “Okay,” I reply shakily due to shock.

  In six years I’ve never gotten a pass from the Cooper brothers. They’re always at my side. The only time I got a reprieve with them was when I had a boyfriend. Though, the first year I dated Colton we always had a Cooper shadow lurking around us. But once they decided Colton was trustworthy, they let us have our relationship in peace. It was a nice break. Colton didn’t lord over me, but he sensed it was important that he kept me safe. So even in our relationship, I never really spent time alone.

  I need a break.

  Especially tonight.

  Cole and Dane have switched their stances and are now glowering at their brother. They won’t challenge him on this. Not because they don’t challenge him—they do—but because they trust him when it comes to me.

  “I’ll see you guys later. Love you,” I say before turning on my heel and hurrying out of the apartment before they change their minds.

  I slip through the kitchen of the main house and into the garage without being noticed. If the rest of my family spots me, I’ll never get out of here.

  I yank the door open on the black SUV and smother a scream with my hand.

  “You scared the shit outta me,” I seethe.

  “You wanna tell me why your rifle
’s in the back of my ride?” he asks with no judgment in his thick whiskey and tar voice as he waits for my response from the passenger seat.

  “Not really, Kieran,” I huff.

  “All right, then I’ll change it from a polite fuckin’ question to this…Tell me why your rifle’s in the back of this motherfuckin’ SUV.”

  There’s my crime boss cousin. He doesn’t scare me. Kieran Delaney would never hurt me even though he’s capable of violence in ways movies are made about. But he’ll have his crew on my ass and fuck my plan up one side and back down the other.

  Shit.

  “I wanted to hit the range with Shannon while we’re here,” I lie.

  Kieran’s murky blue eyes study me. He’s not tense in the least. I don’t know if he’s anything but calm at all times. There’s a cocky swagger to my cousin that comes so easily, I find myself jealous of him sometimes.

  “Did your sister bring her rifle?” Kieran asks with a quirked brow.

  He knows I’m lying.

  “I’ve been workin’ on my long shots. She’s been teaching me so she doesn’t need hers.”

  “Since you’re goin’ out, I’ll keep it here for you. If you get pulled over with that, you’ll be in trouble.”

  He swings his fighter’s body out of the SUV and rounds the back, meeting me as I run there.

  “Kieran,” I plead.

  I can’t tell him the truth, and I can’t let him take my rifle.

  He grabs my chin and forces my gaze to his. I still struggle with eye contact. Not all the time, just when I’m uncomfortable. Old habits die hard I guess. His lightly scarred face reminds me that Kieran knows what fighting demons looks like. He knows what escaping the blackness takes.

  “Who’s your mark?” he questions softly.

  “Please don’t,” I beg, shooting my gaze back down to his chest.

  “Cara, I can’t let you out in my city on some vigilante mission without details. I won’t tell your sister, your brothers or your parents. I won’t tell the Cooper brothers or their parents. This shit stays between us, but you’re not gettin’ out of my house without tellin’ me what you’re up to.”

  “He has to die,” I whisper.

  Kieran’s rough fingers tip my chin more until I meet his murky blues.