Claimed by the Dark Souls of VHA

Chapter Ten

RYDER

"Are you sure she is even here?" Christian says for the millionth time, earning him a smack across the head from me. Always the same damn question with him.

"Yes, you dumbass. Placing the tracker on her phone was risky, but it was necessary for times like these." Alex states.

We know it was an evasion of her privacy but it was an idea that benefited us, especially tonight. Outing her did place a target on her back so this is one way we can make sure she is safe. Once we saw her and Emma leave before, we knew we had to follow her. She was determined for us to eat our hearts out the way she and her friend were dressed tonight. It was to keep idiots like us hooked. We both nearly lost our sh!t when she walked out of the building looking like s*x on a stick. Scratch that. A goddess.

Thankfully, Alex was levelheaded as always and reminded us about the tracker in her phone. He was more livid with us over the fact that we allowed her to leave campus. What were we honestly supposed to do? Tie her up? I only have him to blame for conversing with Candice during lunch. Even though it was nothing, the way Ava viewed it must have been perceived in a different way. She can claim she doesn't feel anything for him, but it is bullsh!t. She is just as enamored as we are with her.

"There, on the dance floor!" Christian smacks my chest and I send daggers his way while also keeping an eye on her. The way she is moving to the music, swaying her hips, is making me think of ways of cornering her by the bathroom and claiming her. If I could do it that night, I could do it again tonight, but I wouldn't be leaving until I got her screaming my name after making her come all over my d!ck. My d!ck throbs with need and I need to remind myself to stay focused.

"How is it that no matter where she goes, she dominates any room?" Christian asks while ogling her.

"She's a queen that's why. My queen." Alex says while throwing back his second shot. He is so f!cked when it comes to her. F!cking her has surely messed with his head.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the three apples of my eye." Says a voice I have grown up to hate with such an immense passion. He wraps his arms around Christian and I's shoulders while Alex grips his drink tighter which will surely shatter within seconds.

"What the f!ck are you doing here Victor?" Alex booms after slamming his drink on the bar while we slide ourselves out of his hold to get a better look at the person who gives no f!cks about anything or anyone.

"Now, now. Is that any way to speak to your father?" He asks with a sinister glint in his eye but Alex does not back down.

"You are nothing to us you sick bast!rd." Alex spits earning a smirk from Victor.

"I'm glad you grew a pair of balls son, but do not test my patience. Now that you are nearing adulthood, and your two brothers here have already turned eighteen, I am here to collect a debt from all of you for giving your pathetic asses life on this measly planet." He slams his hand on Alex's shoulder, squeezing it, and looks to the both of us.

"We owe you nothing." I retort with venom laced with every word. Like hell do we owe him a single f!cking thing. His mother is the only person we owe. She saved us from him.

"My patience is wearing thin boys. I know you remember how sh!t escalated and I had to beat those attitudes out of you when you were younger." We shut our mouths because we know all too well what we had to deal with before being saved.

"If you don't serve out your debt to me, I will be forced to enact harm to one of you in order to keep you all in line until I get bored of you." A maniacal grin contorts his face.

"Now, enough business talk, how's the p!ssy hunting tonight? I need to score me a tight a*s for....." I watch as he stares at one girl in particular on the dance floor. Our gaze follows his and we all land on Ava.

Like f!ck will we allow that to happen.

We all prepare to lunge before the next words that come out of his mouth have us all baffled.

"Is that my angel?" He says, appearing to look like he has seen a ghost.

"Do any of you know that girl over there in the black satin dress?" We make a collective silent agreement to not give him any information.

"No." I say and his face falls.

"Debt one to be collected. Find everything about that girl. Where she lives. Who she hangs out with. Every. F!cking. Thing. I'll be in touch." He gravitates to where she is and unbeknownst to her, manages to snake behind her and capture her in his hold by wrapping his sleazy hands around her waist. We stand there watching how he whispers into her ear and then pushes her closer into him and his hand crawls up her body to wrap around her neck. Seeing this is making me angry until her body begins to go limp in his arms.

"What the f!ck are you standing there for?! He's choking her!" Christian begins to rush forward but I stop him.

"He can't know we know her. She's protected herself before. She'll get out of his hold." I say and just stand there hoping to god she'll break free. Alex is in pure rage mode beside me. His hands are balled into fists with his murderous gaze locked on them.

"F!ck, look! She broke free! She's got Emma!" Christian says.

"Let's get the car, now!" We all make a run for the exit and hop into the car. We screech out of the parking spot while Christian watches the tracker on Alex's phone.

"There!" We speed to where she and Emma are and the brakes screech the car to a halt. Ava goes into defense mode for herself and Emma but Christian rolls his window down.

"Get in!"

******************************************************

"Who is he to you?" I say in a demanding tone wondering why she is bolting.

"He's the reason I needed to run. He wants what is his." Ava says so quietly. My heart clenches in my chest praying she isn't saying what I think she is saying.

"And what is his?" Alex breaks the silence but the tension flowing from our bodies is palpable.

"Me." She answers and I completely shatter on the inside. Christian storms off to his room. Alex takes the drink he has in his hand and throws it against the wall, glass shattering everywhere. He abruptly leaves the apartment, side stepping Ava on the way out, not even daring to look at her. Hurt is etched on her face when she watches as one by one we leave her side.

I move myself away from the door and storm off to my room, allowing her the chance to leave. She basically watched all of us crumble to pieces in front of her and I gladly gave her a reason to go ahead and bolt as she planned minutes ago. By the time I get to my room, I hear the front door open and close, and the sudden need to run after her is at desperation level right now.

We didn't even hear het out.

We just accepted it, like none of what she said made our stomachs turn.

I pace around my room and the words she said begin to process in my head.

"I can't go back."

"You'll serve me on a golden platter to him."

"He's the reason I needed to run."

F!ck!

She isn't his. She's escaped from him. Instead of holding her and promising to protect her, I allowed her to leave thinking she was his, as in his to have. His to own. His to do whatever he wants with and once again bile rises up my throat. I didn't think for one second the words she was saying to us was solely based on fear. I failed her.

We failed her.

I need to find her!

I open the door to my room, grabbing my keys, running towards the door to go search for her.

"Let it go man." Christian says and I make my way towards him. I get in his face and rage has fully taken over.

"Did you listen to any of the words she said? I just replayed them in my head. Her freakout was based on fear. Fear that we would give her back to him when she said she ran from him. The scars on her body! The way she freed herself from his grasp tonight. Come on brother! Wisen up! He hurt her! She's not his, never was. Why would she run if not to protect herself?" The sudden realization garners Christian's attention and hurt flashes across his face. His eyes become glazed.

"We f!ckd up again didn't we?" He falls to the ground running his hands through his hair at a loss.

"Stay here. I'll bring our girl back." I rush out the door and head straight for her room. I knock and knock but no answer.

Please baby. Please tell me you didn't leave.

Where would she go?

Music....music helps her in times of need.

I immediately rush to the music room and notice the light on in there. I walk in and instead of finding her pouring her heart out in song, she is on the floor crying with her face in her knees that are pulled to her chest. I slide to her, pulling her into my arms and she soaks my shirt from her tears. She finally picks her head up and seeing me makes her shake her head.

"No. No. No." She says and I break. She needs to know that I will f!cking protect her with my life. I slide my fingers through her hair and pull her face to mine. I latch my lips onto hers and she rather her body tense, she instantly relaxes in my arms. We are a bundle of raw emotions and I am throwing all I feel for her into this kiss. I lie back on the floor with her still on top of me, and she straddles my lap. I never break the kiss and my hands fall to her hips, moving them against me, my erection straining in my pants.

She still just has Christian's shirt on and I slide my hand under it to move her panties to the side and my fingers glide against her wetness and she moans into my mouth. I tug her bottom lip and we just stare at each other while my fingers slide inside of her, making her gasp.

"So wet." I grit, her warmth slicking my fingers.

"Ride my fingers baby." She does as she is told and I can come from the way she is looking into my eyes with her mouth open. I remove my fingers and she whimpers and I smirk while she lifts herself slightly and I push my pants and boxers down, bringing her back to straddling me. I bring her face back down to mine to capture her lips once again. My d!ck aligns with her entrance and she immediately takes all of me into her without hesitation, making us both groan at the same time.

"F!cking sh!t Ava!" She rides me like the queen she is and we are both so close to combusting. Her hair falls to one side of her face and she bites her lower lip. She bends down and licks my bottom lip, tugging at it.

"It was you that night wasn't it? I'd never forget that kiss." She says as she begins to slow down her pace.

"Y..yes." She rises and the loss of her walls clenching around me makes me whimper now, until she slams back down onto me and rides me harder until we are both screaming out our releases together.

She falls on top of me and I hold onto her for dear life. I don't move an inch. I don't move out of her. I just hold her. This girl is my complete undoing and I would travel through heaven and hell to protect her. We finally break free from one another and I compose myself as does she and I sit against the wall as she sits next to me and places her head on my shoulder.

Her being here, with me, settles every nerve in my body. It is like I can breathe better and I revel in the feeling. I kiss the top of her head and she intwines her fingers with mine. We sit there in collective silence.

"What made you sing with me that night?" She asks and I immediately tense. She picks her head up and looks me in the eye.

"It was one of my favorite songs too. The only person to ever hear me sing is Christian but when you were belting out the words, I was instantly drawn to you. Your soul was singing to mine. I knew that moment you were sent here for a reason." She kisses me softly, not asking any more questions for the time being. She knows that I am not the type of person to reveal my innermost feelings, so she remains quiet, accepting the little I give her. I rise to my feet and hold out my hand for her to grab.

"Come on baby. Let's go back upstairs." She becomes wary and I bend down to see her eyes glazing.

"He knows where I am. He won't rest till he has me. I am not going to put any of you or Emma in harms way." I grab her face gently with my hands.

"We won't allow you to run. He doesn't know that we know you. He wants us to find everything out about you so he definitely doesn't know you are here. We will protect you." I say to her, every word the truth.

"How can you be so sure?" She says defeatedly.

"We protect those that we care about." She nods her head slightly and rises to her feet with me. We flip the light off and close the door behind us to head back to my room.

****************************************************

ALEX

The banging on my door doesn't end. Whoever is on the other side clearly has a death wish. I stalk over to my door and open it ready to unleash hell on whoever is banging like a lunatic.

"What the f!ck is your problem?!" I yell as I see Christian standing there with a blank expression.

"Ryder left a while ago to search for her but hasn't returned." He says and I look at him like he had just said something in another language.

"So? You heard her. Our f!cked up father is looking for her. She's his. I'm not getting in between that sh!t show." I don't mean to sound like a d!ck, but going against the devil himself is not how I want my life to end. Christian glares at me like he is about to pounce at any moment and I dare him to. I'd love to feel physical pain rather than this clenching in my chest, my heart knowing that I am being a selfish pr!ck.

Like father, like son, I suppose.

"Ryder thought the same thing until he thought things through like we all should have done. You ever think about where those scars came from? She's scared. Scared of him. Just like we were when we were younger. You of all people should know just how evil he is. Why would she run from him if it were consensual? Even thinking that is disgusting. Bad sh!t happened to her and we portrayed her as the villain not the victim." He says and the truth hits me like a ton of bricks. We willingly allowed her to leave. We placed sole blame on her when it was she who was running from him. I am no better than my piece of sh!t father.

"They aren't back yet?" I ask and he shakes his head.

"Have you tried calling him?" I ask becoming antsy.

"He grabbed his keys, not his phone." Is the answer I get.

"F!ck. What if she left? What if she ran again?" I say and Christian goes rigid.

"Then I say we f!cking find her and protect her. Grandma would know what to do."

"We can't rope her into this. She's getting too old for his sh!t. I won't allow him to hurt her either." I say slamming my hand onto the table.

"Then what do we do?!" He fires back and the wheels begin turning in my head.

"We magically erase her from the school system. We threaten everyone who dares to mention a word about her whereabouts here. Those who even mention her name will live to regret it." I pull out my laptop and hack into the school system. I erase her name and the records along with it.

"What about her schooling? Her aunt knows she is here. You clearly haven't thought things through." Christian watches me typing away while he paces my room.

"Then we inform her aunt that she is no longer a student here. If she truly gave a damn, she wouldn't have just dumped her here and left. As for her schooling, I'll make sure one of us is in her classes with her and we stay by her throughout the day. Even at night. One of is or all of us can stay with her either in her room, in mine, or in here." I don't look away from my screen. Hacking into databases and wiping security footage is one of my many hobbies and is a great skillset.

"What do we tell the scumbag when he begins asking about her?"

"We tell him that she was in town, renting a room, and then went on her way. I'll compile enough evidence to lead him far away from here. I got this, you know that." I begin working my magic and it is nearly morning when I gather everything I have to show that bast!rd that she has left town. Christian is sound asleep on my bed and I stifle a yawn but it is no use. My brain shuts down and I lower my head on my desk and close my eyes.

I wake up a while later to the smell of coffee floating up my nose. I open my eyes and see Ryder and Ava standing close to one another, his hand on her hip as she drinks her coffee, unaware of me being awake. Christian begins to stir in the bed and when his eyes open he immediately sees her and jolts right up, almost falling to the ground. He runs to her and pulls her into a hug. She reciprocates the hug and hugs him back.

"I'm so sorry. So f!cking sorry. I can't lose you. I won't lose you." He says and she closes her eyes. He backs away, looking happy that she is still wearing his shirt. Ryder's hand slowly moves back to where it was and I've seen enough.

"Finally come to your senses brother or is she just a one and done until Candice comes back crying for your d!ck?" I say through gritted teeth. Ryder lets go of Ava and storms over to me.

"I don't see you relaying an apology to the girl you say is your world. I apologized, Christian apologized. What about you, huh?" He shoves me and I instantly snap punching him in the face.

"You don't get to f!ck her and then weasel your way back between Candice's legs. Ava is worth more than that skank!" I shout but we are too deep trying to bring one another down to the floor in our wrestling takedown.

"She's not just a one and done you f!ckhead." He says before punching my gut. Strong hands pry us apart and Christian is the one in the middle now, demanding for us to stop our sh!t.

"None of you get to tell me who I can or cannot f!ck. I will be nobody's possession. That is the whole reason why I made my f!cking escape in the first place. I am free to make my own choices. The sooner you all come to terms with that, the sooner we can fix this sh!t and come up with a plan to get that bast!rd far far away from me." Ava says and we both stand there with our breathing erratic. We each go our separate way. I go to sit on my bed as Ryder heads to stand by the wall and Christian sits at my desk.

Ava comes to sit with me on the bed and wraps her hand around mine. She kisses my cheek and I turn my face to her, planting a soft kiss to her lips.

"I'm sorry." I say as my lips are brushing against hers.

"I know." Is all she says before looking to the others. I can see she cares for all of us.

"I think it's about time I tell you about my past, but in order for me to open up fully, I need Emma to be here too." We all eye her with widened eyes and seem to be reluctant with that favor.

"She's the one person that remained by my side and didn't make my life a living hell from day one." She eyes each and every one of us and we all look down in shame, knowing just how much damage we had done.

"I'll go get her." Christian says as he kisses her cheek.

"Thank you." She smiles watching him leave the room.

This is going to be a long day.