Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 84294 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 421(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84294 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 421(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
Her eyes squeeze closed, and big fat tears escape between those beautiful lids. “Please, Jax,” she whimpers. “Just get me out of here. Please.”
Shit. I latch onto her bindings, but pulling on them only makes it worse. It’s then I notice her bloodied fingers and cracked nails, and I realize she was trying to get herself free.
“He has a knife in his pocket,” she tells me with absolutely no emotion in her tired voice.
I press my lips together, hating the idea of leaving her right now, but I have to. I have to do this for her. Dashing up the stairs, I find the guy I left knocked out cold on the hallway floor and quickly search his pockets to find the knife. I give him a swift kick to the ribs before I flick it open and see Cassie’s blood still staining the blade.
I fly down the stairs two at a time, desperate to get back to Cass, and I do my best to put her injuries out of my mind so I can focus on getting her out of her bonds and to the hospital. I slip the blade as gently as I can under the fabric and free her wrists before moving to her ankles. All four binds leave deep bruising on her skin, and I can’t help but wonder if they’re this bad because Cass had been fighting against them, or if they were that tight in the first place.
She tries to sit up but cringes in pain, and I gently push her back down. “Don’t move,” I tell her. “Let me find your clothes and then I’ll help you.”
“They’re destroyed,” she whispers with a broken sob before nodding toward a raggedy pile near the bottom of the stairs. Realizing they aren’t worth saving, I still race over to them and grab a slip of fabric before handing it to her with instructions to hold it against her wounds to try and stop the bleeding, but all that does is make her hiss in pain.
Slipping my jersey over my head, I help her to sit up before pulling it back down over hers. The jersey comes down over her body and bunches at her waist so it will at least come down past her thighs when she stands. Hopefully that will offer her some kind of comfort, but I doubt she will feel any until she’s out of this place and in the safety of her own home.
“Come on, babe. Let’s go,” I tell her softly, bending down and gently scooping my hand under her knees. She automatically wraps her arms around my neck and allows me to lift her.
The movement jostles her, and she cringes in pain, most likely from the cut through her tattoo. I make my way up the stairs, being careful with my movements, and turn my back as I walk past the fucker who did this so she doesn’t have to see him.
As I walk through the house, the front door is flung open and Cassie’s brothers pile through, looking as imposing as ever. They take in the scene before them and relief washes over their faces until they have the chance to look her over properly. I see the moment their eyes take in the bruises and the blood covering her legs. Instant rage takes over them with Logan and Carter disappearing first.
“He touched her?” Sean demands.
“Not sure how badly,” I explain as she cries silently in my arms.
His gaze finds Cassie’s, and she looks away, too ashamed to meet his stare. Sean’s heartbreak is obvious as he takes a breath. “Get her to the hospital.”
With a nod, he follows after his brothers, but I call out after him. “I’ll give you ten minutes before I call the police. I want that fucker behind bars.”
He doesn’t acknowledge me, but I know he heard me. Confident he has this under control, I make my way out to my truck knowing that Sean is the brains behind this operation. He’ll be able to rein in his brothers before the cops arrive and leave without anyone the wiser.
The cops will storm the place and find enough evidence to put him away for a long fucking time, and if they somehow fail and that bastard gets free . . . Well, he’ll have me and the boys to deal with then, and I can guarantee he won’t get away with his life.
I gently slide Cassie into my truck and make sure she’s comfortable before heading around to my side. My engine still rumbles from when I bailed out of it, barely remembering to put the truck in park, and before she has to look at this place for one more second, I take off to the hospital.
We’re a few minutes in and the silence is killing me. “Do you want to talk about it?” I ask, hesitantly.