Claimed by the Betrayed Mercenary

Chapter Five

Connor’s POV

Three days, that’s how long I've been sitting in this motel room, eating takeaway delivered by the same spotty faced kid on an electric bike, who I now know is called Rich and is doing this alongside his college course to help cover his tuition fees.

Since our phone conversation, Eva hasn’t reached out again, not even when I instigated divorce proceedings which my lawyer promised he would get hand delivered to her at my damn property, within the next twenty four hours.

The new cell phone I bought to replace the one I shattered lights up, the annoying ring tone that it is preprogrammed with cutting through the silence.

Picking it up, I press the screen to my ear, not even bothering to sit up from the bed I spend ninety percent of my time lying in, staring at the ceiling.

‘Yeah?’ I grunt disinterestedly.

‘Mr Montgomery?’ a clipped voice asks from the other end of the line, ‘this is Xavier Barnett.’

I sit up at the name of my public defender, alert for the first time in days.

‘Yes, this is Mr Montgomery’ I reply quickly, ‘do I have a court date?’

The lawyer’s voice is smooth as he answers me, ‘the DA has decided not to proceed with your case Mr Montgomery, the charges have been dropped.’

I frown in confusion at his words, I beat the guy unconscious, Eva and police officers witnessed what I did, why would they drop the charges.

‘How?’ I demand, ‘why?’

Xavier clears his throat awkwardly, ‘the victim is refusing to press charges’ he tells me. ‘He is stating that it was an accident, that you didn’t mean to hurt him. Mrs Montgomery’s witness statement also attests to the situation being a huge misunderstanding that the police misinterpreted.’

I snort out a laugh, ‘we both know that’s bulls.hit though’ I retort, ‘everyone must know that, he was unconscious, cops had to pull me off him.’

‘Yes, but as neither Mr Vern nor Mrs Montgomery were the ones to call the police, it was actually a neighbour who heard shouting, and their refusal to make a statement against you, the District Attorney has deemed the evidence unlikely to get a conviction worthy of the cost of trial.’

I slump back into the headboard of my bed, the air in my lungs whooshing out. Why would they do that? Why would they lie?

‘You are free to do as you wish now Mr Montgomery, though I must remind you that the restraining order against you is still in effect so you must remain away from the marital home for the time being.’

I nod, even though he can’t see me, I’m not going to court, charges have been dropped against me.

‘Yeah, I got it’ I mutter, ‘and . . thanks . . for everything’ I add gruffly.

‘My pleasure Mr Montgomery, I hope, should we every cross paths again it will be under better circumstances.’

I choke out a laugh, ‘let’s hope so’ I reply, before wishing him well and cutting the call.

I stare in shock at the wall across from me, the peeling floral paper that is slowly coming unglued from the top left corner, held up by a spiders web, the owner of which I have yet to find. The large hole that still taunts me, a reminder of just how far I’ve fallen in less than a week.

Everything around me snaps into sharp relief, I’m no longer bound to the state, no longer waiting for a date to determine my future. The truth follows swiftly, my family is broken, even with her refusing to implicate me, Eva and I are over, there is no coming back from this and honestly, the way she looked at Duke? I don’t think she wants too.

I swallow thickly, my life as I know it is gone, my kid . . well, I don’t have one, never did, she belongs to another man, one who, despite what he did to me, deserves to know his daughter. The thought of the three of them together, possibly in my house, acting like a family, rips through me. They have everything, everything that I wanted, and me? . . I have . . . nothing.

I can’t stay here! The words vibrate through me with the clarity of a bright shining light. I sit bolt upright, throwing my legs over the side of the bed and grabbing my suitcase, stuffing my clothes back inside at the speed of a man running for his life. Once packed, I head down to the reception desk, paying my tab along with a hefty bonus for the damage I’ve left in the wall before hauling my bag out to my truck and throwing it into the back seat.

Climbing into the driver's seat, I start the engine, backing out of the cracked concrete parking space and heading toward the highway. I don’t even know where I’m going, I just know I have to leave, get as far away from this town, these memories as I can.

I drive, eat and sleep, over and over again for days, that’s the routine of my life, my focus only on putting distance between me and the pain. Road after road, One state blurring into another as I pass jurisdiction lines. It takes me a while to realise that I’m subconsciously heading to Maine. As soon as I comprehend my direction, it’s as though I always knew, it’s the only place I can go, to the one person that knows me, the real me.

My little sister Hali and I are far apart in age, but we’re as tight as two siblings can be. Our parents, the waste of spaces that they were, treated her like crap, even tried to make me their golden child, but I wasn’t having it. Anything they bought me, I shared with my sister, if they tried to exclude her from something, I’d refuse to f.ucking go. When they wouldn’t pay for her to learn to drive, I used my wages to get her a licence and took her out when she passed. I cut both our asshole parents off as soon as Hali left home, I didn’t need their toxicity in my life. The only thing they gave me that I wanted was the one damn thing they resented so once she was gone from them, I had no problem cutting them out like a damn cancer.

My sister is a damn rockstar, despite our parents, she went to college, got a scholarship and worked where she could to cover her tuition. I sent her what I could from my wages which wasn’t a damn lot, but she always appreciated everything I sent. I was the one that sat in the crowd when she graduated, so damn proud of my little sister, beaming brightly as she shook the hand of her dean and accepted her diploma.

I have her address memorised, as soon as Hali moved to her new home, I made sure to keep track of where she was living. I visited a couple of times, hated that damn apartment that she was calling her home, but she wouldn’t accept my help anymore to get somewhere better. Stubborn ass said I’d done enough for her and every damn penny I put in her bank she sent right back to me, she couldn’t return the care packages I posted to her though.

Her life went to s.hit after she left her job because of some handsy asswipe superior. I wanted to come down and knock his teeth out, but Hali told me to let it go.

She didn’t tell me just how bad everything got with her company and the d**k who managed her building until it was over. Things spiralled out of control, and I hate that I wasn’t there to help her. I would have been, but with a pregnant girlfriend, and my job, she didn’t want to worry me it seems so she kept it to herself.

The upside was that she met a f.ucking awesome guy, Gage Cadell. I liked him the moment I met him through a video call, didn’t stop me warning him that if he hurts my kid sister, I’ll end him, though I wasn’t seriously worried.

He looks at my sister the way she deserves, like he’s f.ucking lucky to get a moment of her attention, which he is. I can see that his world revolves around Hali’s happiness, I don’t think there is a single thing she could ask for that he wouldn’t try to give her.

The thought of my sister’s relationship opens up the gaping wound wider in my chest, she has what I thought I had, a partner who loves her completely.

When I turn into the estate that houses my sister and her boyfriend, I punch in the code that Hali sent me when they moved in, just in case. The gates swing open and I drive through, following my navigation system along unfamiliar streets, the ache in my chest growing worse with each second until I’m desperate. I need my sister, I need to see her! Where is she??

Reaching the property, I barely acknowledge the décor, or the cars around me, I only have one thought in my head, I need to see my sister.

Hammering on the door, I don’t stop until it swings open, Gage’s deep voice saying something in surprise that I don’t hear.

Shoving him out of the way, my shoulder slams into a second man ho grabs me before releasing me again as gage tells him it’s OK.

I stumble through the house, searching desperately until I fall out of the back door, my eyes finding Hali, who gasps as another man steps in front of her.

‘It’s OK’ I hear her state, ‘he’s my brother.’

Arms wrap around me as I sink to the ground, my legs giving out on me, Hali’s familiar perfume wrapping around me, sapping the last of my strength.

‘Connor? Connor!’ Hali calls out desperately as she holds me, ‘what happened? Is it Eva?’

I try to draw in breath but my lungs won’t work properly, working

my throat, I look up at my younger sister, as tears start to fall unbidden.

‘My little girl, Hali! My precious baby,’ I force out, making myself say the words that I’ve been avoiding for so long, ‘she’s . . . she’s not mine!’