With a strangled cry, he cut off his words. Dropping his head into his hands, he tried to decide what would be the right thing to do. Now more than ever, he wanted revenge. It wasn't some stranger who tried to kill his baby girl. No, that would have hurt less than the crushing sensation overtaking his heart. How had he not seen it when it was right there in front of him the whole time? Worse, the fucker had been a comfort to Devon when he’dknownthe entire time what he’d done. What a farce!
“I’ll kill him.”
Devon said it so quietly he didn’t know if Chloe heard him correctly, and he didn't care. He stood abruptly, and she had to brace herself on the foot of the bed to keep from falling on the floor as he moved past her.
He stopped outside the door. “You’ll make certain no one goes in or out? No one but Sergeant Hurley or Chief Hemsworth and her daughter.”
“Yes, sir, those are my orders.”
Satisfied they would protect Hailey, Devon made his way back down in the elevator and outside. He knew what he had to do.
He heard her approaching before she spoke. She ran after him, making a lot of noise as her shoes hit the pavement. “Devon!”
He ignored her, taking the shortest route through the forest. He knew what he had to do; find the proof first and then drag the asshole outside and beat the shit out of him. His blood boiled with the duplicity.
“Devon!”
He picked up his pace. Where was the loyalty? Where was the bond, the ties he thought bound them together? There was no getting past this. Not something this heinous. He was more than mad, he was furious; he was pissed. Rage built until his body was engulfed in flames and his breathing turned harsh as he jogged to his destination.
He found the truck first. There was mud on the tires, as was to be expected. That didn't mean anything. He looked inside the cab, finding nothing out of the ordinary. It was when he looked in the truck's bed that he found what he’d been looking for; proof. Overlooked because no one in the shop was a suspect, Devon was sure of it. He knew John wanted the truck, knew he would have found Hailey’s hair clip under a pile of dead leaves soon. Devon also knew who had last used the truck before work at the shop came to a screeching halt.
With his hands in fists, he spun toward the shop and pushed his way inside. A rampage was brewing, showing clear on his face.
His enemy came around the counter. “Devon, what are you doing here?”
“Looking for you, motherfucker,” he seethed.
His eyes widened. “What? Why aren’t you at the hospital with—”
“Don't you dare say her name. I know it was you.”
“No, Devon.” The other man stopped walking, shock evident on his face.
“It was you!” Devon roared. “Don’t deny it! I found her hair clip in the truck you used!”
He ran.
Devon wasn't surprised in the least, and he took off after him. He was a coward, the lowest form of scum, covering his own ass.
Devon was faster.
They crashed, rolled, and dirt flew. Devon’s fist connected with flesh, and he sent up a howl full of heartbreak.
“You fucking bastard! You betrayed me!”
He punched him again. And again. His knuckles were slick with blood, and yet he continued to wail on the man on the ground. Tears ran down his face to mix with the blood and soak the earth.
“How could you do it? How could you?” he repeated with each strike.
“Devon!”
The scream was shrill enough to split the sky. Chloe’s hands were on him, yanking him off his victim and to the ground. “Enough! You’ll kill him, and then you can’t be there for Hailey!”
“He was my family, and he tried to kill my daughter!” Devon shouted at her, blinded by a torrent of tears as he lay in the mud. “He deserves it!”
“Youdon't! You deserve to live by her side instead of in prison! There’s no coming back from this if you continue,” she finished on a whisper which disappeared in the whipping wind.
Bringing his arms up, he crossed them over his face. He couldn't take it anymore. The shattering of his heart was complete. When the panic attack came, he allowed it to consume him.
