The Devil's Debt

Instinct

Ice's POV:

I watched him go upstairs and up to his room. Isa told me she was uncomfortable, so me and the boys are keeping watch. Now that I think about it, there is something kind of off with Jake.

Tomorrow, he's not leaving my sight.

It's 3 a.m. Milo and Carter stand at the island as we talk.

"She said she was uncomfortable with Jake." I say.

"She told me the same thing after you guys came back down." Carter says.

"What's gotten into him?" Milo says.

"I don't know. I've got a feeling it's because Ky's not here. I know he wouldn't try anything with her if Ky were here."

"He's always been a bit scared of him." Carter says.

"Yeah. You're right." Milo says.

Carter sighs.

"I'm gonna go up to bed. I'm exhausted." he says.

"Alright. G'night boys." I say, standing up straight and walking out in front of them.

They follow me upstairs and I stop in front of Isa's door when I get an off feeling. The door's cracked open.

"She never sleeps with her door closed." I say, my eyes narrowing.

"What?" Milo says, walking up next to me with Carter coming up behind him.

"She never sleeps with her door closed." I say, opening the door.

What I see makes my heart sink to my feet. In a blind rage, I turn on the light and as Jacob puts on his pants, I punch him square in his face.

The boys pounce on him and they beat him as I get up to check on Isa, my angry expression now soft and concerned. I look into the bed and the sheets are covered in blood and Isa lies there unconscious with tears falling from her eyes.

I turn away to find a towel to put over her naked body as I pick up my phone to call 911.

"Hello?... Yeah, I just found my sister unconscious. She's just been raped, I don't- I don't-" I say in a panic, wrapping the towel around her and holding her in my arms.

"What's the address of the incident, sir?" the operator says.

I ramble out the address and I see Milo get up, shaking his hand with bloody knuckles.

"Milo, get her some underwear and a bra, please, now." I say, my mind clouded with fear and anger.

"The ambulance are on their way."

"Thank you." I say, hanging up the phone.

I look at my hands and they're covered in blood. I put my ear to her lips and she's still breathing.

"We're gonna get you some help, Is, okay? Hang in there."

Milo brings me some underwear and a bra and I clip her bra on above the towel before pulling it down to put it on her bare skin.

I put her underwear on underneath the towel and after a few minutes, flashing lights flash outside.

"Milo bring him to the base. Put him in the dungeon. I'll take care of him later, meet us at the hospital. Carter, go start my car and wait there for me. I'll bring her to them."

"I'm on it." Carter says.

He runs out and I pick Isa up, running her to the ambulance trucks outside. They pull out a stretcher and they put her on it, then I run to my car to follow behind them.

When we're at the hospital, I walk up to the receptionist.

"Bancroft? She just got checked in, right?" I ask in a panic.

"She did. We need a minute to get her settled and run some tests. You'll have to wait, sir." she says back to me.

I sit down in the waiting room and Carter sits next to me. I sigh, sitting back in my chair.

"She's gonna be fine, Ice." Carter says.

"I promised Kyzer that I'd protect her. He was counting on me. And then this happened."

"It's not your fault."

"But I could've.... done something."

"You couldn't control this, Ice. As much as I hate that it happened, we couldn't have know it would happen."

"Ky's gonna kill me."

"Ice. Stop putting so much pressure on yourself."

"Isa was just raped, Carter!" I whisper violently at him. "She was just raped upstairs while we were dowstairs, in the same house, Carter. By someone we trusted, someone Isa probably trusted too. Does that not make you feel some sort of guilt? At all?"

He looks off, and sighs, shaking his head.

"Yeah. Yeah, it does. Knowing she was so close and that we never knew until it was too late, yeah, it does. But you have to understand that we couldn't have know that he would do that to her. We couldn't predict it, nor can we change what happened, as bad as I wish we could. Just stop being so hard on yourself about it."

I shake my head, looking down at my hands.

"I guess you're right." I say. "I'm just... I'm still sort of in shock, I can't... process it right now."

"I understand. I'm still a little shaken up too. I just hope she's okay."

"Yeah. Me too."

A couple minutes later we're called to the front. We get Isa's room number and we head up to her room. She's on the same floor Ky's on.

I open her door and she's lying there, stirring awake. When she sees us, she holds her arms out as she begins to cry and sob.

I open my arms to her and I wrap her in a tight hug, letting her tears run onto my shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, Isa. I wish I would've known." I say, burying my face into her shoulder.

"I don't want to see him again." she says, sobbing hard on my shoulder.

"You won't. We'll take care of him." Carter says, rubbing her other shoulder.

With one arm wrapped around me, she rubs Carter's hand, looking for any sign of comfort she can get.

The door opens and in walks Milo as he shoves his keys in his pocket. He kneels at Isa's side and grabs her hand to hold it in both of his, putting it to his forehead as he rubs her arm.

"Was.... was this my fault?" she mutters into my ear.

"No. No, don't ever think like that. This wasn't your fault, Isa. Jacob was a fucking perv. I just wish I'd seen it sooner. You didn't provoke him in any way, and I'm so sorry that you feel that way."

"Are you sure?" she asks.

"I would never lie to you, Is." I say back. "God, I'm sorry."

After a few minutes of us hugging, we pull away and I check on Isa to make sure she's okay. She looks up at each one of us and sniffles as she begins to speak.

"I am so happy that I have you guys. I love you three like my own brothers, and I'm glad Ky has friends like you next to him. I love you guys." she says, tears falling from her eyes.

"We love you too, Isa." I say back, giving her a warm smile.