"Son."

My stomach lurches at the term of endearment, nothing warm or loving in his tone. Just tactical coldness, malice that runs deep. A smile laced with it. I instinctively tuck Atlas further behind me. My father stands broad with his hands behind his back, his men flanking at his sides- I recognise a few of them but make no move to show them that, they're just twisted memories wrapped in too much trauma. I just stare blankly into his eyes, my eyes. The same cold blue shade that twinkles in the growing darkness.

My skin crawls just being in his presence but I keep my eyes on him, I refuse to look away no matter how much pain and anger surges through me. What I would do just to snap his neck In two right now, especially when he's dragged my girl into this.

"It's good to see you." He steps closer so I push my spine straighter, smothering a growl. I've got six inches on his five-foot-eleven frame and rest assured I'm using that to my advantage. There's a power in height that nobody ever seems to use for good advantage, only bad.

Moving away from him and all his toxicity has put a new view on looking at him now and everything I feared in him before makes me want to laugh. He's got nothing on me. He's puny in comparison to my build and I'm sure I could take him down and snap him in half.

"Who am I kidding," He laughs humorously, "No it's not. You look... happy." He tries to peer around me and a snarl settles on his scarred face, his jaw lined with a five o'clock shadow and an aggravated red line that runs from his cheek down to mid-neck. He looks nasty, he looks scary and mysterious but the worst thing is he looks legendry in this world, the more scars you have the more respect you have. "It's good to see you again Atlas Grove."

I freeze and turn slightly to see Atlas' pinched eyebrows, her hand squeezes mine tighter as fear seizes her.

"I-I... we've never met before" She pushes her chin up and makes confident eye contact with him for a few seconds before her anxiety creeps back in and forces her gaze to my back. I squeeze her hand back but fuck am I proud right now. It doesn't matter how long she held it for, she had the confidence to look my father in the eyes and speak to him. She's come so far from the Atlas Grove who walked into lockers and ran away red if you tried to talk to her.

"Ah. The mall." He bends down at the hip so he's closer to her eye line. Intimatding fuckwit asshole. I move in front of her so his eyes are looking onto the black of my shirt. "You kept looking around Atlas... thought you might be going insane?" An eyebrow hikes up on his temple, a snarl growing.

"You... you were following me that day." She murmurs leaning into my back. My father pulls up to his full height, looks me dead in the eyes and nods, teeth bared in a full-blown grin.

I'm going to fucking kill him. I'm going to-

I swing my fist up in anticipation of hitting his nose but come up short when a set of hands grabs my arm first. Tiny pale hands with baby blue pained nails clutch my forearm. My chest heaves watching the cruel smile curl further across his lips, his men moving in closer hands at the edges of their slacks ready to grab what's tucked into their waistbands or pockets.

"Blaze." She whispers into my back, "It won't help anything. This is what he wants." She's still clutching my arm, it's so tense I'm sure the blood vessels will burst, her two hands can barely fit around it.

"Oh, well would you look at that." He laughs sadistically, "You never bow down to anyone, never have, never will. I had such high hope for my son but you wouldn't even bow to me, such a disappointment." He sneers, digging the knife deeper into my chest, "But this Blonde beauty... well she's got you right where she wants you. Must be good pussy to give up all the other girls that frequented your company right?"

My vision recedes into a burning red target and I rip free of Atlas and my eyes zero in on one thing. My fists fly and blood pumps through my ears completely unaware of everything around me. My fists pummel into his face and body in no combination, mad, frantic and impulsive. It's not until I'm dragged away and held by two of his men I realise what I've done.

The men hold my arms behind my back pulling so tight they might as well dislocate my fucking shoulders, I look to my right where a single man is holding Atlas in a similar position. She looks straightforward, not daring to show any fear at all. Only I can see the slight tremor in her hand's bound behind her or the tightness of her jaw. Her eyes are glassy but she doesn't dare cry, not now. My girl is stronger than I am. And I've fucked up.

My father is laughing, blood dripping from his nose and mouth. He wanted this. He fucking wanted this.

"Point proven. Just like me Blaze. Same blood. Same temper. You could have done so much with me. You have underlying potential. You would have been the best fighter in the ring, best racer on the track, my successor in every way."

"Don't listen to him, Blaze." Atlas murmurs, he glares at her and she lets out a high pitched whimper as The guy pulls her arms tighter, gathering some of her hair to yank. I grunt trying to pull away from the men, my fathers got his bait. He will use the one person I love the most to get to me. He's already followed her around... for fucks sake. I've dragged her into the worlds biggest mess. "Whatever you are... are thinking Blaze... ignore it... just ignore it. I know... I know who you are..." She pants through the pain, looking deep into my eyes. Love and devotion shining brightly through her irises.

"Let her go. Let her fucking go! Hurt me. Not her, she has nothing to do with any of this." I scream pulling, my shoulders screeching and griping inside me. "Please. Just let her go. What will it take for you to go?! What will it take for you to leave us alone! Me, Atlas, mom, gemma. What do you want!? What will it take for you to just go!" I shout and huff, my throat on fire. I will do whatever to make sure he leaves my family alone once and for all. I don't even understand why he's back. From his use of past tense it's obvious he's given up on recruiting me back to New York, his eyes linger over me. He assesses me with a heaviness leaking into his features, almost like defeat.

He draws closer to me, wiping the blood that dribbles from his mouth on his wrist, just below his obnoxious watch. Rolex probably.

"That's why I'm here kid. Look, I couldn't give a shit about your mother or your sister, honestly, I couldn't give a shit about you either. I can see past... your defiance... in trying to get you to come back to us- even I do think it's the best place for you. We could rule together Blaze, or we could've at least had you not chosen all this shit." He looks pointedly at Atlas while I try to numb the sting of his words. Power. That's his play. And all I've ever been as a pawn in his game. "You see, Blaze, I've run into a... a little problem. It would seem we've been being... watched. The authorities are watching us like hawks right now. We've had shipments intercepted, spies working their way into our ranks and far too many raids throughout my various enterprises. Blaze. They're building a case against me." He prowls in the small face, scratching his stubble and for the first time actually looking worried about something. Lines crease his forehead and the ones around his eyes alert me to the bags nestling darkly under them.

"Shocking. A criminal being hunted by the police. What does any of that have to do with me?" I huff.

"Well, since the last time we saw each other you were being dragged to court which subsequently resulted in you being cleared of any crime related to me and the ability for your mother to take you and fuck off halfway across the country and slap me with a fucking restraining order it means if this gets any further you won't be dragged into this as an accomplice but... a witness." His eyes narrow retaining that cold unfatherly demeanour. "Which brings me to why I'm here. But first I want to remind you that I know everything about your little plaything here... I've followed her around before with no qualms and I will do whatever is necessary to make sure you comply with what I'm about to ask."

I glance at Atlas again, the same tears sit in her eyes but don't spill, she holds her head as high as she can like she's walked this road a thousand times before. A road I told her she'd never had to walk again.

"I'll do it. As long as you stay away from her." I growl.

"I hold her, your mother and your sister in my palm ready to crush if you step a foot out of line. If I even hear you're thinking of giving evidence to anyone Blaze I will take care of them and then you. You keep your mouth shut about me. If anyone asks you anything you say you don't know. Do not talk to anyone who comes knocking. Keep. Your. Fucking. Mouth. Shut. Do you understand?" He's nose to nose with me, the smell of liquor rests on my cheeks.

"That's it? That's what you want? Me to keep my mouth shut?" I ask slightly confused. That's all he's dragged us here for? You've got to be fucking joking me. "Are you actually fucking joking me? That's it? That's all this shit is for! I couldn't give a flying fuck whether the police are on your tail. I don't want anything to do with you at all, I want you to fuck off and to ensure this I'm getting another restraining order on you that will reach to my entire family, Atlas included. I want zero to do with you and that includes talking against you or on your behalf. I don't want to be sucked into your fucking world again, I left it behind years ago and I am not going back to that place. I will neither speak for you nor against you so just fuck off and never come back." I spit every word, venom weaving its way into the atmosphere. He considers me for a moment like he doesn't quite understand, indecision weights were heavy on his face. Usually, when he wears this expression he's close to resigning or ripping someones head off. "It's not that hard to fucking understand." Now it's my turn to smile.

"Excuse me for feigning some level of confusion. I'm not under the illusion that I am by far one of your favourite parents and I presumed you would have thrived in the prospect of going against me in the eyes of the law." He looks genuinely puzzled and draws his eyes along me again like I have some elaborate plan he can't work out.

"That's where you and I differ. This is why you're wrong," I take a deep breath, clarity moving the fog in my mind. I look across at Atlas who gives me a beautiful small smile, "I'm not like you, I'm not fueled by the same anger. I'm fueled by something so different, something you don't have the capability to understand and that is why I will do whatever to protect my family, the ones I love and the ones that love me. I'm not you. I never was and I never will be. The sooner you fuck off and leave us all alone the better." He watches me for a moment more before nodding at the men behind Atlas. She gasps as they release her, stumbling forward. I reach to grab her but I'm still held back. My dad approaches me and before I hear Atlas shriek his fist is driven into my jaw and the men let go. I don't stumble, I stand straight. It was a pathetic hit, I've been hurt more in football.

"That's a warning Blaze. Remember, I'm watching you all." He eyes me and then Atlas before turning and walking back to his car. He turns with one leg in the back, "Don't forget, you're a criminal too son."

"No, you're wrong again. I was a kid being manipulated by a monster into what he thought he could make me." I stand triumphant a smirk lifting my throbbing jaw. He snarls once and slides into the back. The engine starts up and we watch as the car disappears out of view before I turn to Atlas. She looks at me and the tears finally drop down her cheeks, I've got my arms around her in a few strides and pick her up. She wraps her legs around my waist, clutching to my neck. I bury my face in her hair, vanilla and coconut soothing the open wound bleeding inside me. I clutch her as tightly as I can to my chest, warmth seeping through my shirt, I can feel her heart beating erratically against mine. "I'm so so sorry my love. I am so so sorry." I whisper against her neck. She pulls back slightly and clutches my face, furrowed eyebrows. Her cheeks are a healthy red to match her rosy lips, cheeks glistening with tears from the blue pools that brighten every inch of her gorgeous face.

"Shut up." She laughs through her tears and presses her forehead against mine before she gasps and pulls back, her face taut. "Oh my god, he hit you. Are you okay?" She tilts my jaw up and assesses what is probably a very small welt.

"I'm fine. That's probably the least I deserve for dragging you into this shit." I hold her up with one hand and palm her cheek with the other, wiping the tears.

"Oh shush. You don't deserve anything Blazey. Are you okay, you can't listen to anything he said. He's talking shit okay. I don't blame you for any of this and I'm so proud of what you said." Her hands stroked my cheeks. I might not have believed most of what he said but it is my fault for dragging her into this. I've put her in so much fucking danger, my father is unhinged. I have no idea what the fuck he'd do. "Are you really not going to speak against him?" She questions, no accusation in her gentle voice.

"I'd do anything to protect you. Anything. And I'm done with that part of my life. I'm making a promise to myself and us that I'm only looking to the future." She smiles and nods, fresh tears lining her lashline. "Fuck butterfly, I am so so sorry. I am so fucking sorry." My lungs tighten and I rest my head against her shoulder, wet coats my own cheeks involuntarily. "I'm so sorry." She holds me, running her hands up and down my back, whispering into my ear. Her fingers splay into my hair and over my neck.

"I love you. This is not your fault okay. We're in this for the long haul, you're stuck with me Beckett you miserable ass." I eventually look up, her plush lips curve into her freckled cheeks. Beautiful, she's so fucking beautiful. I crash my lips onto hers, savouring the sweet taste of her for the rest of my days. A soft whimper escapes her as our movements grow more frantic, aching desire builds low inside of me and when we finally pull apart her cheeks are flushed and her lips red and swollen. Her blonde hair is fluffy from where my hand tugged at the strands. She nibbles on her bottom lip and I swear I fucking harden just at that. "What do we do now." She whispers.

"I don't- I can't..." I sigh. I can't go to B's now. I just can't be around people, anger still simmers deep down and I don't want to pop off and hurt someone.

"Hey, it's okay. I get it." She pauses and breathes deeply before she says, "I'm driving." I frown, she hates driving. I've only taught her the basics and they make her nervous.

"Where are we going?"

"Neverland." She giggles and sniffles back the remaining tears as I drop her to the floor and clutch her waist, pulling her tight against me.

⭐️😂