When Dustin had said a few days, Spencer didn't realize he had actually meant a few days. The sun had risen at least three times since she had been there, but she also wasn't sure how long she had been out for. But that third morning, it seemed Dustin finally decided he had enough of waiting around.
Spencer had woken up to rustling in the room around her, snapping her awake and to the far corner of the bed she had so nicely been given. She swore she could feel her heart crack as she saw who was holding it.
"Cole?" Spencer whispered, shock and horror tumbling around each other in her gut. His blue eyes snapped to Spencer, and the words began to stumble from the brunet.
"Look, I know this looks, like, really, really bad," Cole's words jumbled with how fast his mouth was moving. "But it's not what it seems I-"
"Was just leaving, right Cole?" Dustin spoke in the doorway, his demeanor calm but cold toward his friend.
Had they all been in on this? That was the question flipping around in Spencer's mind as she watched Cole leave, so many words left in the air between them. Dustin coughed, pointing a hand to the food Cole had left.
"Eat, we have a lot to get done today."
Apparently there were to be no questions as the door slammed promptly behind Dustin. Spencer looked at the food, her concern of being drugged much lower than her hunger at that point. Eggs and toast, too hard to dose with anything, she thought as she shoveled the food into her mouth.
She waited a few more minutes, trying to hide how hungry she had been. No reason to give the asshole any more power over her.
"I'm done," she hollered, wincing at how hoarse she sounded. The door opened once again, Dustin beckoning her forward without a word.
She had assumed she was in one of the Beck houses, and given the decor and furniture she was right. Every wall contained at least one stuffed bust, all with plaques for who had taken the life. She tried to ignore how many belonged to Dustin. God, she hadn't even suspected Dustin to be this level of crazy. Granted, she assumed it ran in the DNA with how psychotic Malcolm and Teal were. Spencer began to wonder which one was Dustin's dad. Probably Malcolm, she didn't think anyone could stomach looking at Teal long enough to have a kid with him.
Dustin paraded her down to a meeting room, because what stable family didn't have one of those in their home. He pointed to a chair, smiling as she sat, as if he thought she was going to submit that easily.
"What do you want?" That was the question that had been burning in the back of her mind since she had woken up that first day. Sure she could understand Malcolm and Teal being pissed. But Dustin? The only issue they had was her rejecting him, but that seemed pretty mild for this kind of response.
Dustin smirked, a small laugh sneaking through. "You cost my family a lot of money when you wrote that check, you know that? God I could've been retired before I ever had to work. The Taylor's were going to sell us their ranch and we were going to build a casino to rival Rainwater. And you Spencer. You messed the whole thing up."
"You do realize Jackson, you know one of your supposed friends, would've lost everything?" Spencer's blood began to boil. "Sawyer and Jackson would've lost their childhood home, for what? To see Rainwater lose? What kind of sick fuck-"
"You're going to fix this," Dustin interrupted. "You're going to fix this or I'm going to march those bodyguards back onto your fucking ranch and the next people sitting at this table will be Tate and Sawyer. And you won't be able to help them, or anyone else for that matter."
Spencer froze. She didn't speak, trying to reign in her rage. And then it clicked, and she smiled slowly. She looked through her eyelashes as Dustin, staring into his soul from across the table, and let her feline grin grow and grow.
Dustin's own smirk dropped, confusion and annoyance sweeping in to take the place of his satisfaction. "What's so funny?"
Spencer merely shrugged her shoulders, holding her laughter in as her shoulders began to shake. Dustin began to grow agitated, causing her to only laugh more.
"Get her out of here!" Dustin yelled to someone behind the door, Cole rushing in to grab Spencer as she began to laugh so hard tears began to fall.
She let him guide her back up the stairs and to the room before she calmed down almost immediately.
"What the fuck was that?" Cole whisper-yelled at the redhead as she sat on the bed.
Spencer smiled, shaking her head. "The Beck's are broke Cole. Think about it, none of this was an issue until I gave Jackson that check. They had to be surviving on interest from the Taylor's for months! God no wonder Malcolm was all up in my business, Jackson never cashed out the fucking check."
Cole paused, Spencer watched as he processed everything that had happened since then. His eyes grew wide as he realized she was right.
"Spencer, I'm sorry, I don't want to be helping him," Cole spoke up seeing as Dustin was raging loud enough for them to hear him upstairs. "I- Dustin's, he helped my family out a few years back, and now I kinda owe him. It's shitty I know-"
"I've done plenty of questionable things for my family, trust me, I get it. " Spencer smiled as Cole's eyes reached hers. "But if you want out, I can help. But you have to help me first."
Cole's nod was instantaneous. "Whatever it takes, really."
"Good, here's what I need you to do..."
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The only thing Sawyer saw was red as she watched Jackson pull up the driveway in her car. She calmly stood up, slowly walking toward him until she was out of reach of Ryan and Colby. They scrambled after her when they realized who she was running toward, but they were too late.
"Sawyer-"
That was all Jackson could get out before he was stumbling to the side clutching his jaw in the process. Sawyer couldn't feel the pain in her head, her body pumping adrenaline through her. Ryan scooped her up as Colby ran to Jackson who had finally got his feet under him. He looked at his sister in shock, not bothering to wipe the blood trickling from his split lip. But Sawyer looked at him with no emotion in her eyes. She wasn't even mad, she didn't think she felt anything as she stared at the person who had been her closest friend growing up.
"You're fucking dead to me," she spoke, her tone even and clear. Jackson knew she meant every word, he felt them slice right through his gut. He nodded, he had known it would end like this for them when she had moved to Yellowstone.
"Cole's with her," Jackson's words stopped everyone who had gathered around at the commotion. "She wants two more days, then Cole will tell me where they are."
"You can't just track him?" Colby asked. He held his hands up in defense as the glares turned to him. "What! It's a fair question!"
"Spencer's not stupid, I'm sure she made him turn it off if Dustin hadn't already." Jackson answered honestly before turning to Sawyer. "I really am sorry Sarge. I didn't want any of this to happen, I hope you know that."
Sawyer didn't respond, holding her glare to her brother as he handed the keys to her car to Colby and began to walk away. She wanted to scream, wanted him to feel the betrayal that she felt, but no words came out as he grew smaller and smaller, disappearing down the driveway.
"It's okay Sweetheart," Ryan whispered, his hand running up and down her back. She hadn't realized she was even crying until he wiped a hand under her eyes. "You're gonna be just fine, I promise."
A sob rattled through her. How could she be fine? In less than a week she had lost her family, lost her sister, and had been betrayed by the only person she trusted more than Spencer. She looked up, not to Ryan, but across the driveway to where Rip was standing.
They had all pretended not to notice the red rim to Rip's eyes on the first day, and the growing bags under them today. They all knew he hadn't slept, and that he most likely wouldn't until Spencer was back. And no one said anything when he walked away, back into the main house, up into Spencer's room. But everyone listened to the silence that settled in his wake, coating them in his own despair.
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It had taken everything in Rip to not destroy every inch of Spencer's room. He held back because he knew how pissed she would be if she came back and the place was shredded. But mostly he knew that it was the only piece of her he had, and would have apparently for a while.
He hadn't looked at the ring since he had put it on her nightstand. Looking at it anywhere beside her finger made his heart seize with anger and pain.
A knock on the door stole Rip's attention from the window, turning to see Beth with a sad smile on her face. "Come on, I wanna show you something."
Rip grunted but stood, following after Beth as she walked out of the house, down the back road a ways until they reached the log cabin at the back edge of the ranch. He looked to Beth, his eyes full of questions as she smiled at him but kept walking.
Beth sat on the steps of the cabin, patting her hand on the space next to her. Rip followed along, sitting down, before staring out onto the fields surrounding the cabin.
"You know, I always thought it was gonna be you and me." Beth laughed after a moment, shaking her head at the memory. "But when I got back last year, I could feel something was different. And now, I'm happy things happened the way they did. I have never seen someone love another person as much as Spencer loves you. It almost makes me jealous to think my little sister found the one before me."
Rip chuckled once at that, causing Beth's smile to grow until it crinkled her eyes.
"I'm not gonna lie Rip, Daddy was pissed you didn't tell him you were gonna propose. But between you and me, I think Tiny would've been more of a nightmare if you had asked him. And don't worry, he knows that now. But he wanted you to have this."
Rip turned to Beth, taking the letter from her hands. He opened it, reading it once, twice, and then a third time. His eyes grew wide as they turned from the letter to Beth and back.
Beth smiled as she held out a key to him. "I wouldn't decorate without her though, because you might not live long enough to see it finished."
"Thank you," Rip whispered, his eyes pooling with tears. Something he had become all too familiar with the past few days.
Beth only nodded, pulling him into a side hug. "She's a tough cookie. She's got the best of all of us, don't worry about her too much. We'll get her back and they'll pay for it."
"Yes they will."