He's too much like our father.
That was the problem. They were both too much like dear old dad.
She put her hand to her shoulder, to the wound that was still bleeding. She was covered in blood, they were near the edge of the water, and he knew there were plenty of gators out there. He could hear their cries. "Let's get out of here." He took another step toward her. He was just going to have to grab her and pull her to his car. He wanted her away from that death-soaked place. Right the hell then-
He lunged for her. But Dawn jumped back and fell into the water. She sank like a stone and his heart stopped. In the next second, he was diving off that dock after her. No way was he going to lose Dawn. Not her. Not her. The words were a mantra in his head. He swam until he touched her, until his hand wrapped around her body, and then he kicked them up to the surface. He felt something brush against his body but he didn't stop. The gators were there, he knew the blood and thrashing would just be drawing them in closer, and Tucker knew that he was getting Dawn out of that water.
He pushed her toward the dock and helped to heave her body up onto the old wood. Water streamed down her body as she crawled across the rotting dock, and Tucker hauled himself right up after her. He reached for Dawn.
Jason's laughter froze him.
"That was impressive," his brother said. "Very hero-like, the way you dived in after her."
Tucker was on his knees. Dawn was about two feet away from him, and Jason...he had a gun pressed to her head.
"This isn't how I planned things." Jason's left hand swiped at the blood that fell from his busted lip while his right held that gun against her temple. "But it can still work."
Tucker didn't look at Dawn's face right then. He couldn't.
"You knew it would happen," Jason said. "Only a matter of time, for us both. The urge was always there. The violence-it's a rush, isn't it?"
His hands fisted at his sides. "Let her go."
"You won't believe what I've learned. I want to show it to you. Share it with you. But this one..." He jabbed the gun into Dawn's temple. Dawn didn't make a sound. "She's messing things up. You think I didn't see it? Even years ago, you watched her too much. But you didn't touch her. Hands off, right, bro? You broke that rule this time, and everything changed." His shoulders slumped. "So maybe it's your fault this is happening to her."
"Jason..."
"It's your fault she's dying."
Tucker reached his right hand beneath the leg of his wet jeans. He grabbed for the knife he kept there, but he made sure not to let his brother see the weapon.
"She has to die. I mean, if I let her go...she'll run to the cops. She'll tell them what happened. They'll lock me up. You don't want that to happen, do you?" Jason demanded, a desperate edge creeping into the words. "You don't want me in a cell? A cage?" His voice roughened even more. "We've both been in a cage before. We swore neither of us would go back."
///
Yes, they had sworn that.
"Choose." Jason stared straight at him, his eyes glittering. "Choose right now and let her know it. Tell her the truth that we've always both known. Blood is thicker than anything else. Blood binds."
Tucker rose to his feet, making sure to keep the knife behind him and out of his brother's sight. "Blood comes first." Those were the words their father had battered into their minds.
Jason nodded and he lifted the gun away from Dawn's head.
"Tucker?" she rasped his name. "Please, don't..."
"You do the honors," Jason said. He offered the gun to Tucker. The guy was smiling at him, as if this was some kind of game.
It wasn't a game.
Dawn tried to crawl away.
Jason yanked her back. He locked one hand around her throat. The other still held the gun, but now the barrel was pointed down at the dock.
"She's more of a fighter than I thought," Jason murmured. "Sometimes, they don't fight at all. They just beg."
My brother is a monster. And Tucker had let this happen.
Dawn was clawing at Jason's hand, but his brother didn't even seem to feel the pain. He just stared straight at Tucker, that stupid smile on his face as he choked Dawn.
With his right hand, Tucker reached for the gun. But at the same time, his left hand came up in a rush-and he drove that knife straight at his brother's chest.
Jason let out a bellow as he staggered back. He freed Dawn and she scrambled away.
Tucker snatched the gun from Jason. Then Tucker twisted that weapon around in a fast, practiced movement, aiming it at Jason even as his brother yanked the knife out of his chest.