Knock Down, Drag Out / Book One

Chapter Twelve

Darcy knocked on Lylah's door and waited impatiently for her twin to get up. Maddox had kissed her on the forehead and left in a rush as soon as she had woken up, refusing to tell her where he and Elijah were headed. The rest of the guys just avoided the question every single time she asked it, making her upset. She just wanted to know if they would be alright while they were out but no one wanted to answer her.

"Unless you're bleeding, dead, or dying," Lylah snarled, yanking the door open to see her sister standing there with a frown on her face. Darcy made her way into the bedroom and flopped face-first onto the mattress. Neither one of them were morning people and it really showed at times like this.

"You, uh, you okay?" Lylah asked, shutting the door and making her way to the bed. Darcy rolled over and put her head in Lylah's lap when she sat down, nudging Lylah in the stomach with her head so she would get the hint to play with her hair.

"Maddox left with Elijah about an hour ago, and no one will tell me where they went. I'm worried about them."

Lylah ran her fingers through Darcy's hair, leaning back against the headboard. Her twin worried over everything and she knew it was only a matter of time before she started to panic. A knock sounded on the door, pulling her from her thoughts. She shoved Darcy's head off of her lap so she could get up and answer it. Ruby was holding a tray full of food and offered both women a huge smile.

"They won't tell me where Maddox and Elijah went either, so as punishment I made us breakfast and told them they had to eat cereal. Scoot your skinny ass over."

Darcy sat up in the bed and moved over so Ruby could set down the tray. Delicious looking omelets and orange juice were passed around, all three of them eating in an easy silence. They could hear muttering and loud crashes coming from downstairs, and it made Darcy smile.

"Darcy's in love with my son," Ruby said casually, taking a sip of her orange juice and patting Darcy on the back when she started to choke on her bite of food.

Lylah reached out to thump her twin upside the head, laughing hysterically the entire time. She had known Maddox was different for her sister and seeing her panic when the truth came out was hilarious.

"For the love of God, stop laughing!" Darcy was mortified, her cheeks burning a bright red. This was not how she wanted to tell her twin, she wanted to cuddle up underneath the blankets and whisper the secret in the dark like had done when they were little girls.

"Oh, shut up. Spill!" Lylah demanded, glaring at her twin when she shoved the last of her omelette into her mouth so she wouldn't have to talk.

Darcy took her time finishing her orange juice, taking slow sips until the glass was empty. Lylah yanked it out of her hand and set it on the nightstand so she wouldn't be tempted to run from the conversation under the guise of taking the dirty dishes to the kitchen.

"None of it makes sense. I've only known him for a little while but I do love him. It's like it's easier to breathe and the world gets a little brighter every time I'm around him. But he doesn't feel the same way about it," Darcy shrugged, picking at her nails.

Ruby reaches out to grab her hands so she wouldn't hurt herself and Lylah shook her head at her twin.

"How do you know? Have you talked to him about it?" Darcy shook her head at Lylah's question and blinked away the tears that had gathered in her eyes. She was so tired of crying over every little thing but the last few days had put her through the ringer.

"For someone who's supposed to be a genius, you're kind of an idiot. Fucking talk to him about it."

She was still thinking about Lylah's comment when Maddox and Elijah finally got home that night. They looked exhausted, but weren't showing any signs of being injured and the weight that had been pressing down on her chest finally lifted.

Maddox pulled Darcy into a hug and just held her, pressing kisses against the top of her head. She wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head against his chest, basking in the comfort he offered her.

"We need to ask you some questions, baby. You and Lylah. Up for it?" Maddox asked quietly, leading Darcy to the couch and pulling her into his lap when he sat down. She nodded her head at him and Lylah made her way into the living room when Elijah waved her out of the kitchen.

"We need both of you to think about if any male showed Darcy a little too much attention before she started getting those packages. Anyone ask you on any dates or make you feel uncomfortable? Anyone that maybe came to visit you more often than they should? People bringing you gifts for no reason?"

Maddox raised an eyebrow at Elijah when both women started laughing but his friend just shrugged his shoulders. Looks like neither one of them got what was so funny.

"Since I specialize in trauma, I work mainly in the E.R. and see hundreds of patients every day. We live in New Orleans. They're all a little weird. I get asked on dates at least four times a shift. I have patients and family members bringing me presents weeks after I treat them because they want to do something nice for the doctor that helped them. I could make you a list of everyone who's done that but it would be hundreds of people."

Elijah pulled a folded up sheet of paper out of his back pocket and handed it to Lylah, who sat down beside Maddox and Darcy. She unfolded it and stared at a picture of a man in a baseball cap, his face halfway turned towards the camera. She held it out so Darcy could see it, too. A tattoo was just visible over the collar of his shirt and Darcy leaned in close to the picture to make out what it was.

"Oh my God!" Lylah flinched when her sister yelled in her ear and dropped the picture onto the coffee table. "Blonde hair. LSU cap. A fucking rattlesnake tattoo on his neck! Lylah, we know who it is!"

Darcy watched as realization dawned on Lylah, her twin snatching the picture back off the table and staring at it.

"Steven? You're telling me that this is Steven? The one who broke down crying when he hit the stray cat in the parking lot? The one who lets little kids put stickers on his equipment? That Steven?"

Darcy nodded her head vigorously. She understood why her sister had such a hard time believing that Steven could do something awful like stalking and hurting Landon. He seemed far too kind, like he didn't possess a mean bone in his body.

"That's who attacked Landon. We got his image off of the security footage at the rec center. How do you know him?" Maddox asked gently, not wanting to upset Darcy all over again. Finding out who was responsible for making her life a living hell had to be seriously fucking with her head.

"His name is Steven Lambert. He's a housekeeper at the hospital. We've known him for years. He asked me out a few months ago but I said no. Hospital policy is no dating coworkers, plus I just wasn't interested. We've grabbed coffee together a few times in the cafeteria on my breaks when Lylah wasn't able to come with me."

Maddox pressed a kiss against Darcy's temple when he felt her shaking. "Don't worry, baby.
We'll give Jaxon his full name and tell him that he's the guy. He can get a D.N.A. sample from him and we have him attacking Landon on tape. He'll go away for a really long time."