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Dale tried to call out for his Daddy to come in from outside but no words came out.
It was no good. Dale felt himself paralyzed by fear. The thought that Benson either knew where he was or was getting closer to finding out was too much to handle. Suddenly, the entire feeling around Dale’s morning had flipped. This felt like a nightmare, except it was all too real.
All Dale could do was whisper the same words over and over and over again…
‘Help me, Daddy. Help me…’
Chapter 16
Kipp
Kipp was covered in sweat as he entered the house. There wasn’t much that could beat the feeling of working up a sunrise sweat, and it was something that kept him feeling good and ready to take whatever any given day might throw at him.
But what was most pressing on Kipp’s mind in that moment was discovering whether his darling young guy was still asleep or not…
‘Dale? Are you up?’ Kipp chuckled, very much suspecting that his darling Little was still buried beneath the bed covers. ‘You’re missing the best part of the damned day!’
However just as Kipp was about to head for the bedroom and coax his boy out of bed, he heard a voice coming from the kitchen. It was Dale. And he sounded upset…
‘Dale!’ Kipp said, urgency in his voice. ‘What’s…’
As soon as Kipp stepped into the kitchen, he could see that Dale was clearly very upset. For now, any inquest could wait. Kipp knew that he needed to wrap his strong arms around his Little and make him feel safe.
Dale would talk when he was ready.
‘My darling boy, you just take your time,’ Kipp said as he felt Dale’s heart pounding against his chest. ‘However long you need. It’s okay. Daddy’s here. You’re going to be fine. I promise.’
As Dale’s heartrate slowly returned to normal, Kipp had his suspicions about what might have been wrong. Sure, it could have been suddenly waking from a bad dream. Or it might even have been a painful knock against the corner of the big breakfast table.
But there was a far likelier reason – and it was very much centered around Dale’s awful ex-boyfriend, Benson.
And Kipp’s hunch was confirmed as soon as Dale opened his mouth and began to reveal all about Benson’s most recent message.
‘Daddy, I just don’t know what to do,’ Dale said, wiping away a fresh tear. ‘I can’t keep changing cell phone numbers. And what if he finds out where I live? What if he already knows!’
‘Baby boy, I know you’re upset,’ Kipp said, his voice loving but a surge of anger bubbling just underneath the surface. ‘Benson has no right to treat you like this. And I’m going to put an end to it.’
‘But-’
‘I’m going to put an end to it alltoday.’
With that, Kipp made a quick call to Marshall and arranged for him to head over to the ranch to look after Dale and be there for him. It was time to drive to the city and pay Benson Rose a visit that he would never,everforget…
The truck’s engine roared as Kipp powered out of Eagle Ridge and onto the freeway. It was going to be a long drive to the city, but Kipp knew that this couldn’t go on for a single second longer.
Benson would soon have an angry Daddy to contend with, and Kipp was willing to bet the ranch on the fact that the sniveling bully would fold like a deck of cards. Dale needed to be able to live his life and walk around Eagle Ridge without fear. He would never truly settle there until he knew that Benson was going to back off for good.
Kipp didn’t care that Dale had been in a relationship with such an asshole, or whether he did indeed owe him money. That was all beyond the point. Everyone had a past, and Kipp more than anyone knew that.
All that mattered to Kipp was that Dale would soon be able to live his life in the way that he wanted – and if that meant doing whatever it took to remove Benson from the picture, then Kipp was more than willing to be the man to make it happen.
Soon enough, the tree lined streets and mountainous backdrop that Kipp called home was long gone. In its place were the bright lights and towering skyscrapers of the city. Kipp had spent time in many of the major cities across the US and the rest of the world. It was nothing new or intimidating to him.
Kipp might have come to prefer the relaxed pace and friendly atmosphere of a smalltown like Eagle Ridge, but being backamongst the hustle and bustle did bring back some memories from days gone by.
However this was far from a social visit.
This was about seeking out Benson Rose and, if it came down to it, maybe destroying him too…
