Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 67975 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67975 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
We wait.
And wait.
Until I finally hear them approach. I grip Karen’s hand as hard as I can and squeeze, and we both try to keep our breathing steady by hanging onto our breaths as much as we can.
“Where the fuck did they go?” one man barks. “We need to split up. If we don’t come back with somethin’ we’re goin’ to cop it.”
“They’re too fuckin’ fast. Keep moving, they’re getting too far ahead.”
The two of them keep running, and only when I can’t hear the rustling of their boots do I exhale and release Karen’s hand just a little.
I can’t see her in the shrubs, but after about ten minutes, we move out just a little, so we’re able to see each other but not be in complete open bushland.
“Are they gone?” she whispers.
“I don’t know,” I tell her. “I think they’ll probably come back around, so we can’t be certain.”
“We should go back toward the shed and get into the car. That’s the safest option right now,” she tells me.
It’s not a bad plan, but I can’t be sure how close the men are. If we get out and run, they might hear us, and we’ll never find a way out.
But staying here, waiting for Alarick, could be just as dangerous.
I glance down at my phone, there are missed calls and texts. Alarick has gotten my messages. He’s on his way, which means I think staying here is going to be safest until we can be sure that we have back up.
“I think we should stay here,” I say softly. “If we’re seen, we risk getting shot. Alarick and the club are coming, once they’re here, we’ll be safe. For now, this is our best option.”
Karen nods. “How will they find us?”
“I’ll give him basic directions, they’ll figure it out.”
I text Alarick and tell him approximately where we are, and how many men, and then we wait.
We wait and we pray.
Hoping we get out of this alive.
19
FLICK
“Spread out,” I bark. “Find them. You see two men, you fuckin’ shoot without question.”
My men spread out and we start scouring the bushland. I curse myself over and over as I walk through the dense scrub. I shouldn’t have trusted that King’s place was secure. I let my guard down for just a fucking second and look what happened. King is gone and my girl is in trouble, all because I assumed we had one fucking space in the world that Dax couldn’t find.
“Briella?” I call, trenching through, wondering how the fuck they managed to run through this.
I hear shots in the distance, and I spin around, aiming my gun. I hear loud voices, yelling, and then more shots. My men have found them. I listen for a few minutes more, and then keep calling for Briella.
Ten minutes pass, and then out of a large shrub stands Briella and Karen. Both of them are scratched up, much like the time Briella escaped from Dax. As they step around the bush, I see blood pouring out of a wound in Briella’s leg. Someone has shot her.
“You’ve been shot,” I rasp, rushing over to her and grabbing her face in my hands.
“It’s just a graze,” she says, looking flushed, hot and sore.
“Need to get you back before you keep bleedin’ everywhere. Are you okay?”
She nods, and I look to Karen, who looks a lot more worried and shaken up than Briella. “You good?” I ask her.
She shrugs, and her hands are trembling. “I don’t ...”
I take her hand, Briella’s hand, and lead them out of the bushland and back toward my dad’s shed, where two men are being held by my guys. The two aren’t familiar to me, but they are both bloodied, and one has blood pouring from a wound in his thigh. It also looks like the guys have given them a touch up on the way through, judging by the look of their faces.
“We got ‘em both, boss,” Cohen says, shoving one man forward, but keeping his hand curled around his shoulder.
The man’s hands are bound behind his back.
“Bring them back to the club,” I order. “Kendric, scour the area and see if you can ...”
I trail off.
I haven’t told them about King.
Haven’t told them why Briella and Karen are here.
Haven’t told them a god damned thing.
I’m about to break something to them that’s going to cause uproar in my club.
But I have no other fucking choice.
“See if you can see King.”
Cohen’s head whips toward me and he murmurs, “What?”
“King is alive, and this is where he’s been stayin’. You need to see if he’s still here, if not, Dax has him.”
“King is alive?” Samson asks, his voice full of shock. “What ...”
“It’s a long story, I’ll explain it when we get back to the club.”
“You’ve lied to us this whole fuckin’ time?” Cohen growls.