Page 22 of Legacy

She threw her head back and laughed, making her breasts jiggle. Fuck. “Oh, shove off, Callum. You have no idea what you even want.”

Well, she was right about that.

“Boy, what the hell are you doing with that little girl?” a familiar voice slurred, and Felicity’s face paled. Without thinking, I shoved her behind me and glared at the old man.

“What are you doing here?” I asked my father.

His bloodshot eyes tried to blink rapidly, but instead, he just stared at me, wavering on his feet. “If you want that cat to scratch your itch, I’d look another direction. Young pussy ain’t what it once was.”

I didn’t even realize I was moving until my hand was around my old man’s throat, shoving him against the wall.

“You talk about her again, and I’ll kill you.”

“Just like you think I killed your ma?” Matthew Ashford growled, his voice barely above a whisper.

Though the entire bar had gone silent, with the way that we were positioned, nobody had heard our conversation yet. Only Felicity had heard the cruel words my father had spoken. Frankly, I was grateful for that. My father was already the town drunk. I needed to ensure that his words wouldn’t paint Felicity in any light that could harm her.

When a small hand pressed against my back, I froze. “Callum. It’s okay.”

I didn’t turn to her, afraid if I did, my father would see too much. “Go back to your table. I’ve got this.”

“Callum.”

“Felicity. For once, just do what I fucking say.”

Her hand dropped, and I hated myself, but I needed her away from him. Needed her away from me. Because as I looked down at the hand around my father’s throat, I didn’t see my own. No, I saw his. I saw the hands that had beaten me within an inch of my life when I was a kid. The hands that had wrapped around my sister’s throat. The hands that had shoved my mother out of the car one too many times.

The hands that had never been stopped because nobody had been brave enough to stop him.

“Callum, head back. Let me handle this.” Then Rune was there, and I forced myself to stand back, letting my best friend take care of him.

“You’re not always going to have your friends around you, boy,” Dad slurred once again.

“You’re a weak, old man. Go hide and do what you’re best at,” I snapped.

“Well, don’t do what you’re best at because we both know that will end well.” Dad pointedly looked over in Felicity’s direction, but I didn’t follow his gaze. Instead, I stood there, hands fisted as Rune and Thatcher dragged my father out of the bar. Somebody started the music again, and eventually, the crowd went back to normal. After all, this was nothing new.

The town drunk and embarrassment. The sons of Ashford had decided to make a scene. Shocking.

“Callum?”

I turned to see my sister standing there, Teagan’s eyes full of sorrow. “He’s gone. He’s not going to hurt you.”

“I’m not worried about that. Dad doesn’t matter, and we both know it. Are you okay?”

I reached out and pulled my sister towards me, needing that touch. I was the eldest of us all. The oldest brother of seven siblings. The twins were the youngest, with Finnian and Sterling coming in late and as a surprise. Mal and Bodhi had been the older twins, and when Mal died, our family had shattered once again, leaving behind Bodhi, a twin without his other half.

But below me in age had been the girls. Teagan and Briar. Briar had found a way out of town, with a family and a life out on the road as a songwriter with one of the biggest bands in the world. She had finally found a way to health and happiness.

But Teagan was the one I was closest to. Even more so than Bodhi. Because we’d been in the family of horrors for the longest. And while I’d been the one to protect my family from my father’s hands and words, Teagan had been the one to nurture the rest.

I rubbed my cheek on the top of her hair and let out a breath. “Sorry for making a scene.”

She patted my back quickly before taking a step away. She never truly liked being touched. “You didn’t make the scene. Dad did as always. Do you want to talk about it?”

“Nothing new to talk about. Go hang out with your friends. I’m going for a walk.”

“Don’t find him and try to fuck him up or anything,” she said dryly.