After their late supper at Denny's, Dixie, Joe and Jon made their way back to the hotel. They went their separate ways with the guys agreeing to meet in the gym the next morning. Once inside their own room, they got changed and piled up on the bed to watch a movie. They were both still upset about the turn of events in the last 24 hours and they just wanted to relax together for a while. Jon wanted to ask how her conversation with Colby went but he didn't want to bring it up. She didn't want to bring it up either. Truthfully, she wanted to click her heels and make the nightmare disappear.
Jon found HBO playing Roadhouse so they agreed to watch it. Dixie lay back on his arm and he winced, not going unnoticed by her. She quickly sat up and looked back at him. "What is wrong?"
"What do you mean?"
"Your arm. What's the matter with it?"
"Oh, it's just my shoulder. Kinda sore. Don't worry, babe. Hurt it while ago in a match down at FCW. It never healed right because I wouldn't take the time off to let it. Just hurts sometimes now."
Dixie got off the bed and went to her bag. "What are you doing?"
"Getting the massage oil."
"Dix, you don't have to."
"I know, but I want to. It will make it feel better, I promise."
"I don't want to smell like a fucking strawberry," he chuckled.
She laughed, "Okay, this is not that kind of massage oil. This is aromatherapy oil: German chamomile, wintergreen, clove bud, lavender, eucalyptus, sweet almond and grapeseed oils. To ease your muscles and make you relax. They mixed it for me at the homeopathic medicine shop. Now lay down."
He didn't argue and lay on his stomach as she sat astride his legs. He heard her pop the top, then she got some on her hands, warming it before she started. He groaned when she squeezed the tense muscles of his shoulders. "Babe, that feels good."
She stroked his neck, then down and across his back. He was sighing pleasantly, relaxing under her ministrations. She noticed he got quiet and looked down at him. She saw he had fallen asleep. She smiled at his sweet face, deciding not to wake him to make him move. She got off of him and laid beside him, shortly drifting off to sleep herself.
About an hour later, he woke up and gently shook her. "Dix, let's get under the covers." She barely opened her eyes but nodded. She got into bed and snuggled close to him before she went back to sleep. The next morning, Jon woke up and was surprised to find that his body wasn't aching. 'I guess that shit really works.' He slipped out of bed to go to the bathroom and Dixie woke up when his warmth was gone. When he came out, she smiled brightly at him, loving how messy his hair was in the morning.
"Morning, babe," he said, his voice deeper and raspier than usual.
"Morning. How did you sleep?"
"Like a fucking rock. That shit is awesome."
"That's the lavender. Makes you sleepy as hell," she informed him with a chuckle.
"It worked. I feel fucking fantastic." He crawled back over to her and pushed his lips against hers.
She moaned softly and curled her fingers around his neck. When he broke away, he smirked. "Why don't we start this day off the right way?" She giggled as he jerked back the covers.
"Whatever you say, baby. You're the boss."
After their A.M. lovemaking session, Jon took her out for breakfast and they spent the first part of the day traveling around the city. They both needed a break and had a good time just being together. That afternoon, Joe called Jon to see if he was ready for the drive to Colorado Springs. "Babe, Joe and I are about to leave. I don't know what time I will be back tonight." He wasn't going to tell her about their plans for her ex after the show.
"Okay. You just promise me you will be careful driving in all this snow."
"I grew up in Ohio. I will be, don't worry."
"I always worry, Jon."
"I know, I know. I hate to fucking admit it, but I kinda like having someone who loves me enough to worry about me."
"I do love you and I kinda want to keep you around for a while."
"Hmmm, just a while?" he asked with his eyebrow raised.
"Forever."
"That's better. Now kiss me, woman." He pulled her against his chest and sweetly kissed her lips.
They heard a knock at the door, "Come on, y'all. We got to go, don't be trying to fit in a quickie for the road!"
Dixie giggled and yanked the door open. "You are such a cock-blocker, Joe."
"Yeah, man," Jon agreed.
Joe threw his head back and laughed. "Sorry 'bout that, but duty calls. You two are just animals!"
"Yep, that part is right. My girl is a goddamn tiger. Good thing I have to wear a shirt or you would see the fucking scratches down my back."
She swiped the air and growled, "Ggggrrrrr!"
The guys both chuckled. "Alright, we will be back later, babe. Love you."
"I love you, too. You boys be careful."
"Yes, ma'am. I will take good care of your boy," Joe teased.
Jon shot him a look before kissing Dixie goodbye. "Love you."
"Love you too."
"You love me too, Dix?" Joe asked with big eyes, batting his lashes.
"Aww, of course I do, Joe. Come here!" He leaned down so she could kiss his cheek.
"Call me when you get there."
"We will. Bye, babe."
They left and she shut the door. She decided that she would do some shopping since they were going to be gone for a while. She didn't feel like sitting holed up in their room. Once the guys were in the car, they started going over their plan of attack for Colby. "Okay, so we wait in the parking lot for him then snatch him?"
"Yeah, you drive and I will stuff his ass in the back seat with me."
"Jon, you sure about this?"
"Yep. He needs a beat down. He has gone too goddamn far with trying to get Dixie back. Talking hasn't worked so I am sure violence will."
"If you say so, man."
About an hour later, they made it to the arena and of course saw Colby. Jon thought he was looking particularly smug for no apparent reason. Colby had gone to Claudio and told him that he wanted to go out after the show and asked him to invite Joe and Jon. He told him that he wanted to make up with them, but he was afraid they wouldn't go to the bar with them if he was the one who asked. Claudio told him he would because he thought they all needed to make amends. Colby was glad that Claudio seemed to buy his fake sincerity and he planned on getting to the bar before anyone else to put the rest of his plan in motion.
He made a conscious effort to smile at them and they were both leery. "Why is he grinning like the fucking Cheshire Cat, bro? He is up to something."
"You are getting paranoid. He is probably doing it just to get inside your head. That has become his M.O. lately. Don't let him get to you."
"Maybe you are right. He is fucking creeping me out though, smiling at me like that."
"I have always liked his smile," Joe muttered.
Jon whipped his head around to look at Joe. He shrugged, "Yeah, I know. You don't have to say it, uce."
Three-fourths of the way through the show, they got word that they weren't going to be on TV that night, so the three of them changed into their street clothes. Colby wasn't sure if Claudio had said anything to them yet. He didn't want them to leave for the night and blow his scheme, so he took a deep breath and approached them.
"Hey…"
"What's up, Col?" Jon asked.
"Uh, I just wanted to know, did, uh, Claudio talk to you about tonight?"
"Yeah, he did." Jon got very suspicious when Claudio told him that Colby wanted to have a few drinks and bury the hatchet. He didn't think it sounded much like the Colby of late and he wasn't buying it. He told Joe that they were still sticking to the game plan.
"So…?"
"Sure, we can go have some drinks and talk. Be just like old times." Jon decided if Colby could be phony, he could do it better.
"Great. I will meet you there." Jon wondered why Colby looked like he was in a hurry and he knew better than to let him get out the door first.
"Hey, Col, will you go tell Claudio and Drew where we are going while we finish getting dressed?"
"Uh…yeah sure." He didn't want them to get to the bar before him, but they weren't fully clothed yet, so he agreed, knowing he had time.
He walked off and Jon turned to Joe. "Hurry up, man. We gotta get to the car before he comes out." They jerked their clothes on and grabbed their bags, sprinting towards the parking garage. They got in their rental and drove around to park on the curb at the exit and wait. They didn't want to be in view of any cameras. When Colby came out Joe drove up to him and Jon got out.
"What's up, guys?"
"We want you to ride with us," Jon replied, opening the door to the back seat.
"Uh, I have a car, man."
Joe popped the trunk and Jon took his bags to put up for him. "No, Colby, I am afraid I have to insist." Jon grabbed Colby's arm and twisted it behind him, grabbing the scruff of his neck with the other hand and shoving him in the car. "Drive!" he yelled at Joe.
Jon pinned Colby face-first into the leather seat, with his arms behind him and sitting on his legs. "Get the fuck off me, Jon!"
"Nope. We are going for a ride."
"Wh…what are you gonna do to me!?" Colby squeaked, panicking.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" Jon said maliciously.
"Are you gonna ra…rape me?"
"Oh hell no, but I am sure you would love for Joe to. Can't speak for him but, you can't rape the willing, Colby."
"Jon…" Joe warned.
"Oh God, just let me go, you asshole!"
"Um…no. It is time you paid for your sins. With your fucking blood."
Jon pulled Colby's belt off and tied his hands, then took a surprise out of his pocket: a ball gag. He stuffed it in Colby's mouth and fastened it around his head. He sat his butt down across Colby's legs to keep him from moving and laughed. "It's ironic…that gag is Dixie's. One of our many toys we replaced after you threw our bag of goodies away. Fitting don't you think?"
Colby let out a muffled cry and Jon just chuckled. "You're not fucking getting away so stop squirming."
They drove about twenty minutes outside of town before Joe found a side road to take. He drove until they stopped seeing houses and he pulled over. Jon opened the door and got out before dragging Colby out by his feet. Colby slid down the threshold, scraping his face as he hit the ground.
"Stand up."
Colby shook his head. "Stand up and take your beating like a man, Lopez!"
He shook his head more furiously, his eyes wide. "Fine. Joe, get him up." Joe pulled his arms and jerked him to his feet, hooking his arms with Colby's. There was a look of terror on Colby's face that Jon was almost ashamed to admit that he liked. Jon swung his fist and landed an uppercut to his abdomen. Colby's wheezed and doubled over, the breath knocked out of him. Jon took off the gag, "I want to hear him fucking scream!" Colby was struggling against Joe, trying to get free. Joe couldn't let himself focus on Colby's ass grinding into his groin.
Jon grabbed his head and kneed him in the gut several times, making him gasp for air and drop to the ground. Joe let him go, and Jon was yelling as he punched and kicked Colby in the stomach, ribs, back and legs. "That was for Dixie, and for me and for Joe and whoever else's lives you tried to fucking ruin! You fucking worthless, spineless bitch! You treat Dixie like shit then get mad when she comes to me, and now you fucking want her back!? Fuck you, sorry bastard! You let Joe fuck you and then you practically rip him open and hurt him when he just wanted to fucking make things right!? Oh and don't forget calling him a faggot when you are the little bitch too goddamn afraid to admit what you really fucking want! I should break your scrawny fucking neck and do the world a favor!"
"Jon!" Joe yelled.
Colby had curled into a ball and was screaming as blow after blow hit him. He was terrified because he had never seen Jon like this. There had been flashes before where he saw Jon could probably get very violent when pushed, but he never expected this. His entire body hurt, sharp pains coursing through him every time Jon kicked him. Jon punted the back of his head and Colby saw stars, until another blow came and he was knocked out.
Joe saw that Colby went limp and he grabbed Jon. "STOP! Jon, is he unconscious!"
"Fucking good! Son-of-a-bitch deserves it!"
Joe knelt down and shook Colby to try and wake him up. When his eyes flitted open, he recoiled, his brown eyes full of fear. "Please don't hit me too, Joe." The look he gave Joe broke his heart.
"Come on, Joe. Let's leave him here."
Colby's face fell and he begged, "No, Jon, please, you can't leave me here. Don't do this. I'm sorry, okay."
"I sure as fuck can. Leave your pathetic ass here to die and get eaten by bears or eaten before you die which is even better."
"We can't leave him here to die."
"Just why the fuck not?!" Jon was blinded by rage. "He deserves to suffer. He deserves to die. Good fucking riddance!"
"Because…because I love him, man. I know he fucking deserves it, but I love him, Jon." He looked down at Colby and he was staring up at him, shocked and with tears falling. He couldn't believe his ears that Joe just said he loves him and was protecting him from Jon. "I could never live with myself if I let him die."
"And if he tells the fucking cops? Can you live with that shit?"
"He won't, will you?"
"No. Just don't kill me. Please. Joe…?" Colby pleaded.
"No, don't do that, Colby. Don't look at me like that and say my name like that. Just don't."
Jon saw the worry on Joe's face and his anger cooled. He looked down at Colby and spoke softly. "Fine. I won't leave you to die in the snow. You can thank Joe for saving your insignificant life. But hear this, you open your goddamn mouth to anyone about what happened tonight; if I have to go to jail because of you, I swear to God what I fucking did to you will be NOTHING compared to what the fuck I will do to you. And Joe won't be there to save your ass." He landed a right hook to Colby's jaw, knocking him out.
"Why did you do that?" Joe asked.
"Make it harder for him to remember what happened." Jon grabbed Colby's watch, wallet, keys to the rental, and phone, and then stuck them in his pocket. He reached under his shirt and grabbed Dixie's ring as well. "Won't be needing that any fucking more."
"Now what the hell are you doing?" Joe questioned.
"Making it look like a robbery. Since you won't let me fucking kill him, we have to make this shit look legit."
"Jon, you should be glad. Do you really want his blood on your hands?"
"His fucking blood is already on my hands, dude."
"You know what the fuck I meant. You didn't come out here to kill him in the first place. You let your anger get the better of you."
"Maybe you are right. Fuck it. Just get him in the fucking car."
Joe picked him up and put him in the back seat, brushing the blood-matted hair from his face. His tan skin was marred with darkening bruises and scrapes from Jon knuckles. Blood was drying from his nose, eyes and lips; even running down his forehead from a gash on his scalp. Even with that, Joe still thought he looked beautiful.
Jon noticed the way Joe looked at Colby and was a little surprised. "Look, man, you want to ride back there with him?" Jon asked, his voice softer.
Joe answered, barely above a whisper, "Yeah." Jon shook his head, thinking to himself that he may have underestimated how deep Joe's love for Colby went.
Joe put Colby's head in his lap and wrapped his arm around Colby's chest. He stroked Colby's cheek, part of him knowing he had some of it coming, but the part that loved him only wanting to protect him and take care of him. He didn't think he would ever get the chance to hold Colby in his arms again so he was going to savor every moment. It wasn't the way he would have liked, but it was as close as he had let them be since the truth of their indiscretion came out.
Jon was angry, but that much madder at himself for losing all self control when he starting hitting Colby. He thought about how Colby tried to weasel his way back into Dixie's life, how he hurt Joe, and how he felt when Colby somehow convinced Dixie to marry him, and he was overcome with fury. Joe was right; he never intended to kill Colby when they went out there but in the heat of the moment, it sounded like a viable option.
"Joe, I am going to drive through the hospital and drop Colby off."
"What?"
"Look, I am not explaining this shit to anyone, so when we get there, push him out."
"Jon, man…"
"We don't need the attention or anyone that recognizes us seeing us with him. Trust me. Just throw his ass out of the car. Guys used to do that on ODs and shit because they didn't want to be around when the cops got there."
He gazed down at Colby and sighed, "Okay, if you think it is best."
"Sorry for kinda losing it back there."
"It's fine. I understand. I'm not mad at you."
"Thanks. Hey, I am going to call Dixie. We need an alibi if Colby does decide to tell the cops."
"You think he will?" Joe started to panic.
"I think I can't trust a fucking word out of his mouth, so yeah." He picked up his phone and called his girlfriend. When she answered, she could tell by his tone that something was wrong.
"Hi, babe."
"Uh, hey Jon. What's going on?"
"This is gonna sound weird, but I need you to do something and not ask a lot of questions."
"Okay, baby. Anything you say."
"I need you to get dressed and leave the hotel."
"What? Why?"
"I promise I will explain later, but I can't right now. Just please, do it. Go to IHOP and Joe and I will meet you there in like an hour."
"Jon, you are going to tell me what the fuck is going on, right?"
"Of course, Dix. But right now, please do what I am asking."
"Alright. I will. Please be careful."
"Always. Love you."
"I love you too, Jon." She hung up and wondered what he was up to and why he was acting so strange. It was an odd request to make of her but she did what he wanted. She called a cab and met it downstairs, asking the driver to take her to IHOP.
Jon saw the ER entrance and pulled through the ambulance bay. He stopped and Joe opened the door, dragging Colby out with him. He sat him on the ground and jumped in the passenger's seat before Jon sped off. They drove a few miles until Jon found a bad looking neighborhood and parked the car.
"Dude, what the hell are you doing?"
"I told you, it needs to look like he was jacked." Jon got out and popped the trunk, going through Colby's stuff. He knew if Colby did try and press charges, they had to make it look like he was lying to set them up, so they had to have every detail sewn up. Jon ripped the ID tags off his bags so they couldn't be identified and threw everything else in the dumpster. He decided to get rid of the wallet somewhere else so the police couldn't put two and two together. He threw the keys in there as well, not wanting to go back to the garage and take the chance of being seen by the cameras. Growing up in the hood had taught him a few things that were coming in handy and Joe was a little worried that maybe Jon had done this before.
They got back in the car and Jon programmed the GPS for Denver. Once they were out of town, he sped, trying to make their time up. When they made it to IHOP, they saw Dixie sitting in the back with her Kindle, drinking coffee. She was getting worried when she hadn't heard from him but relieved when she saw him and Joe walk through the door. He nodded at her, but they went straight to the bathroom. She watched him, confused and wondering just what had went down in Colorado Springs. She noticed the blood on his hands and hoped it didn't mean what she thought.
They came back out and Jon slid in next to her at the booth. He leaned over and kissed her, sighing when she hugged him tightly. "I have been so worried about you two. Now you tell me what is going on."
"Okay, babe. Let's order then I will. I am hungry."
"Me too."
They motioned for the waitress and gave their orders before she walked away. After she brought them their coffee, Jon started. "Alright. I told you I would tell you what happened. Just please don't get mad and yell at me. I don't think I can take it tonight."
"Oh my God, y'all killed Colby! Oh. My. God! I was afraid that would happen! That was where the blood came from!"
"No, babe. No. Calm down. I didn't kill him."
"TOh, thank God. Okay, anything else, I can handle. Go on."
Joe sat in silence and let Jon do all the talking. "I uh, well we, sorta like kidnapped Colby."
"You WHAT?" she screeched, looking between the both of them.
"Shhhh. Babe, let me finish. We did, but only so I could beat his ass. He fucking had it coming. Anyway, we threw him out of the car at the ER so he ain't gonna die. That was when I called you. I wanted to make sure that if he was stupid enough to tell anyone, we would have an alibi."
"Jon!"
"I know, Dix. But I couldn't let him get away with the shit he pulled and how he was doing you. You are my woman. I promised to protect you and take care of you, and as a man, I can't stand for this shit. I should ask you for this or use you like that, but you are the only one I can. Remember, us against the world. Well, Joe and us."
"Joe, you were in on this too?"
"Yeah." He didn't want to say too much, not knowing how Dixie would react to finding out how much he really loved her ex.
"Babe, are you mad?" Jon asked, his big blue eyes fearful that she was angry, disappointed or scared. He didn't like it when she was pissed at him but he never wanted to let her down or for her to be afraid of him.
"I am not mad at you, Jon. Colby did deserve it; I just don't want to see you in trouble. I wish you hadn't done it though. I told you before that you would destroy him in a fight."
"We won't be in trouble. I have covered my tracks so if he does say anything and the fucking police talk to you, you will be able to tell them that you left the hotel to meet us and can confirm we were in Denver when Colby was dropped off at the hospital, see? All you have to do is tell them what a liar he is and how he was using getting beat up as a way to set us up."
"Do you think that will work?" Dixie wondered.
"Yeah, I do. Besides, if I have to go to jail, he won't live to testify."
"Jon…"
"Sorry, babe, but he won't. I am sick of playing with this fool. He isn't fucking coming between us anymore and he isn't going to hurt you anymore."
Joe decided then and there that he had a better plan. He wasn't going to let Jon kill Colby, but he had to protect himself and Jon at the same time. He planned on going with them to Vegas and doing some investigating of his own, hoping to find out the truth about what happened and hopefully help them all out of the web that was spun around them. He had a sneaking suspicion that Jon was right and Colby had orchestrated the whole thing at the casino because things happened just a little too perfectly. He was going to get to the bottom of it.