Just like I expected and just like I planned for, three of Skull’s men spill like cockroaches out of their little hideout, and storm toward the cage. I rise to my feet as they open the cage and walk toward it.
“Skull wants to see you,” one of them says. I don’t know who.
I nod as I step from the shaky canvas and onto stable ground. “I know.”
I reach for my shirt and throw it on. As I pull it over my head, I stop. One of a Skull’s thugs approach with Emily tucked under his arm. My heart stops beating. My lungs freeze and my stomach drops.
Shit. Fuck.
I knew Skull would want to see me after the fight, especially since Emily told him I was looking for Joel, but I didn’t expect Emily to come too. That’s why I stashed the gun with her.
The plan was to walk out of here without complications. Well, like always, shit just got complicated.
I reach out, snatch Emily’s wrist and pull her up against me and away from Skull’s man. Her small frame trembles against mine.
“I’ve got her,” I tell him, and he flashes me his palms.
“Alright. You got her.”
I hold her close, but not close enough for it to tighten the shirt and reveal the outline of the gun. As we walk, she glances up at me with terrified eyes. Her fear hits me right in the chest and I lose my breath. You’re going to be okay. I won’t let anything happen to you. Since the words I want to say are caught up in my throat, all I can do is offer her a comforting smile and pretend it’s all part of the plan.
And I know when sadness curves her eyes, she sees right through it.
***
Skull’s beady black eyes survey us cautiously as Emily hides half her body behind mine. I hate being in his presence. My teeth ache I’m clenching my jaw so hard.
“Don’t you two look cozy?”
He’s smiling, but I can see the bitterness in his eyes and hear the jealousy in his tone. Skull’s out of his mind if he thinks he truly owns Emily. Money and power aside, what woman could ever want him for who he is?
He rests his ankle on his knee and drags a pointed dagger across his lip. Five of his men decorate the room, waiting patiently against the walls. All of them carry handguns—knives too, I bet. Fuck. I need this to go smoothly because I don’t have the firepower to take them all on.
“What do you want?” I ask, impatiently rubbing my fingers against my palms at my sides.
“Ooh. Hostility,” he grins. “I expected as much, I suppose. I’m really sorry about your brother. I truly am.”
Don’t go there. Don’t fucking go there.
I scoff. “No, you’re not.”
He leans back on his little wooden chair, tapping his dagger on the top of the table beside him. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
“You got me. I’m not sorry at all.”
“Then why waste your breath?” Kitten chimes in.
Her fear can be heard through the tremble in her voice. I really wish she wouldn’t draw attention to herself. Skull feigns shock, his tattooed lips curling into a perfect ‘o’.
“She speaks.” He lowers his knife to the table and extends his arms. “Why don’t you come take a seat, Kitty-Cat?”
A hot flush passes over me at his horrid pet name, and somehow, I manage to suppress my more violent urges. Just.
When she doesn’t move, he smooths his palms over his mahogany slacks, and pats his thighs. A few more minutes, I tell myself. Hold out on your urge to kill him for a few more minutes.
Emily gently squeezes my arm before stepping out from behind me. All I can hear is a humming in my ears and a single repetitive, solemn word echoing in my head.
Shit.
Shit.
Shit.
As soon as Skull discovers the gun I planted on her she’s dead. What was I thinking? She barely moves from my side, when I grab her face with one hand and plant a hard kiss on her mouth. While one hand cups her face, my other hand slips under the back of her shirt and onto the grip of the gun.
Her entire body tenses and I stroke her cheek comfortingly with my thumb as I pull it from the waistband of her shorts and move it behind my back. Thank God, none of Skull’s men stand behind us.
I remove my lips from hers and give her a little shove in Skull’s direction. Wide eyed, she glances over her shoulder at me, and I give her a nod of my head. I try to convince myself that whatever Skull says, whatever he does, it’s okay. It won’t matter in a couple of minutes.
All eyes are on Emily as I slip the gun into the back of my own waistband and conceal it with my shirt. Instantly, breathing becomes easier.
I’m fine as Kitten enters Skull’s personal space, and I’m fine when she turns around to sit on Skull’s lap, but the second the bare skin of her thighs touch his, and Skull’s smug black eyes flick to mine, I’m mad.
Subtly, I drag an uneasy breath through my nose and hold it before expelling it through my lips. Calm. Calm is good. I ignore my fists clenching at my sides as they urge me to slam them into something.
“Is there a problem?” Skull asks, his smile so big it splits his face in half.
I swallow hard and it hurts my throat. I can barely talk, I can barely breathe.
“No.” My voice is dark, tainted by rage. “There’s no problem.”
I dig my bare toes into the concrete as I fight to stay put. His hand, covered in graphic bone tattoos, glides down the length of her hair as he pats her like she’s an animal. I grind my teeth. He’ll pay for degrading her like that. I’ll make sure of it.
“Your brother won a place in my crew. Did you know that?”
I nod. Of course he won. I didn’t doubt that for a second.
“He was an impeccable fighter—easily the best I’ve seen.”
I nod again.
He grips Emily’s shoulders and pulls her back against his chest so she’s leaning on an angle, exposing a small strip of flesh just above the buttons to her shorts. Her eyes focus on the ceiling and her face is pinched, displaying just how uncomfortable she is.
“He killed for me. I’m talking brutal kills in cold blood.”
Emily glances at me. Her eyes rounded with shock.
“I’m aware of what crimes he might have committed while working for you.”
Skull’s hands brush down her sides and the tips of his fingers dance along her warm exposed flesh, making her shiver. A hundred angry wasps tear from my stomach and zip around my ribcage. The gun scalds my back, begging me to use it.
“And how does that make you feel, Officer Stone?”
I shrug. “I’m suspended. I don’t care what he, you, or anybody else does. It’s none of my business.”
“You’re not undercover?”
I shake my head. “I’m just looking for my brother. Tell me where he is and I’ll be on my way.”
“I already told Emily—”
“I know what you told her and I don’t believe you.”
He arches a brow, his lips still curved with a smug grin. Whatever he’s done with Joel, he’s playing it close to his chest.
“You should. He betrayed me and I don’t take something like that lightly.”
I grit my teeth, then relax. “Exactly.”
He angles his head, tracing one of the buttons on Emily’s shorts with his index finger. “Exactly?”
“We both know you’re not the kind of guy not the kind of guy who deals with betrayal as quickly as a bullet to the head. No. You seem like more of a...”
Emily’s body tenses as he dips the very tip of his index finger underneath the hem of her shorts. I watch as he does it before finally dragging my stare back to his.
“...torturer.”
A second finger caresses the flesh just below her hips. If he goes any further, I’ll shoot his fingers clean off his hands.
“You wanna know how he betrayed me?” Skull asks, and I shake my head.
“He fell in love with my woman. I killed him while she watched, and I keep her around so that she remembers it every time
she looks at my face.”
“Why are you telling me this?” I ask.
“Because your brother owes me a woman.” His tongue slips from between his lip and traces the shell of Emily’s ear, making her shudder. “Yours will suffice.”
His hand slips between her legs and she gasps, jolting forward. That’s all I can stand. I whip the gun out and—BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! Emily screams as the goons that flock around Skull crumple to the floor and I turn my gun on him, pointing it directly between his eyes. There goes my plan of not wanting to waste bullets. Five gone, just like that, leaving me with only two. Skull removes his hand from Emily’s shorts and exposes his palms to me.
“I’m not here to pay my brother’s debts, Skull.” I lower the gun to his shin. “Now, are you gonna tell me where he is or do I have to shoot you in the leg?”
He narrows his eyes. He’s not scared of a gun. I bet he’s had hundreds pointed in his face.
“You’ve got 30 seconds before more of my men get here, Pig. You’d better put a bullet through my fucking head or I’m going to make you wish you had.”
My finger twitches against the trigger. I want to. I want to so fucking bad...but then I’d never find Joel.
“Twenty seven.” He warns me.
“Come here, Kitten.” I shout, holding out my hand.
She slides from his lap and runs over to me. She’s breathing fast, borderline panicking. “Get the door.”
Nodding, she opens the door and we back out of it. Most of the crowd has dispersed. The ones that remain stand still, watching us in shock. I grip Emily’s hand and fucking run, pulling her along behind me.
People stare at us as we run past, and it’s not long before the door behind us is pulled open.
“Don’t just stand there!! Fucking kill them!” Skull shouts, his voice cracking with rage. “A hundred grand to whoever brings me that pig’s fucking head!”
Thirty, vicious, money hungry fighters launch themselves after us. They’re fast, but we’re already ahead. The concrete walls beside us are a blur. The dim lights over our heads flick by quickly and soon we’re in the washroom area.
“So not going to miss this place,” Emily pants, and I chuckle out of exhaustion.
Thankfully, it’s not much further to the gate and I’m fucking praying Marcus has kept his end of the bargain. If he hasn’t, we’re dead.
Sure enough, the gate was unlocked, the chain and padlock lying in a heap on the floor. Relief floods through me like a river that’s burst its banks.
I shoot the bar, blasting the slice of metal that usually holds the padlock in place.
“Go!” I shout, tugging Emily in front of me. She dives through the gate and I zip in after her, closing the gate behind us. I see the first line of fighters break free into the tunnel, coming straight for us. My nerves ram into my throat and my hands shake as I grab the chain and wrap it around the bars. Emily is right there with the padlock. Our fingers tremble as we try desperately to clip the damn lock into place.
“Come on.” I urge her and she swear under her breath.
“Shit!” Kitten shouts, falling back onto her elbows as they slam into the gate, throwing me rearward too. I scurry backward, my heart bruising my ribs, and I glance at the lock. They shake the gate and its rattle echoes through the tunnel, but it doesn’t open. I exhale. We only just managed to clip the lock in place before our pursuers slammed into the gate. They shake it like panicked monkeys, cursing and swearing, but the lock holds strong.
We did it.
Groaning, I pull myself to my feet and help Emily up.
“We need to keep going.” I pant.
We start with a jog, then break out into a sprint. I don’t know where this tunnel goes or where we’ll end up, but we keep on running anyway, leaving a mass of panic and anarchy in our wake.
Break Free
Emily
“Ahh.” I throw my head back breathing deep and inhaling clean air for the first time in two weeks. “So that’s what fresh air tastes like.”
Jai hunches over, resting the palms of his hands on his knees. His breath comes hard and fast, like mine. My lungs burn and my legs feel like jello. I haven’t run that fast in a long time. In a strange, nonsensical way, running for your life is kind of fun.
I don’t know where we are. We’ve run for well over an hour and a half since we emerged from a manhole in the middle of a random road. We didn’t slow then. We kept running, breathing so fast that we recycled the stagnant air already in our lungs. It isn’t until we slow to fill our lungs with fresh air do I taste the difference. I relish in the crisp coolness of it as it soothes my insides.
I glance over my shoulder as I clench my own hips. Skull might have already started looking for us, but he won’t find us here. I think we’re safe for the night.
I tilt my head toward the night sky and smile softly as a drizzling of raindrops wet my cheeks, cooling my hot skin. I’ve always loved the rain. I love the way it sounds. I love the way it falls freely, landing where ever it wants like nothing can stop it. I suppose nothing can stop it. Rain is badass!
“Why are you smiling?” Jai pants, straightening his back and tilting his head to feel the cool rain on his cheeks too.
“It’s rain,” I chuckle and he looks at me. “You’re being rained on.”
Under the bright streetlight and against the black cover of night, the rain resembles a thousand tiny sparks of fire. They pour over Jai and he looks striking as the sweat that drenches his green tee forces the fabric to cling to his torso. He points his chin to the sky again and smiles as it patters against his overheated skin.
“I am.”
I extend my arms, letting the cool water hit as much of my body as it can. The water is clean—or at least it’s cleaner than the water that leaked from cracks in the tunnels. This water falls straight from the heavens. It’s as pure as it gets.
Fuck, it’s good to be alive!
I shut my eyes and try desperately to calm the burning in my lungs. Nothing helps, but it’s okay. There are far worse things that could be happening to me right now. I’ll take scorched lungs over Skull any day.
As the rain morphs from a drizzle to a downpour, I catch rivulets of it on my tongue and swallow, hoping to ease my scorching throat. It feels nice, but it doesn’t relieve the pain. Again, in this moment, I don’t really mind.
Jai exhales, pulling me from my own head. “We have to keep moving.”
My knees threaten to buckle at his words. I can’t keep going. Now we’re out of the immediate danger zone, my body is seizing up.
I groan, dropping my arms and slumping my heavy shoulders. “I don’t think I can.”
He turns around and slaps his back, gesturing for me to get on. “I know where we are. I’ve got a plan.”
We’ve run the same distance. If I’m tired, then I’m certain Jai is exhausted. He fought a giant not long before we ran for our lives.
“I’m not getting on your back, Jai.”
He glances over his shoulder at me. “Why not?”
“I don’t fancy eating a mouthful of concrete,” I say, showing him my busted elbows. “I’m damaged enough.”
I tore them open when the fighters slammed into the gate and I fell back. They’ve been stinging for hours now, growing marginally worse every time a drop of salty sweat rolls across the split skin.
Jai turns around to face me, his head tipping to the side like an adorable puppy. It makes me smile.
“You think I’d drop you?”
I shrug. “I’m not willing to find out. You must be exhausted.”
“Not even close.” He smiles. “I could take on a bear.”
I laugh. “Is the entire criminal underworld not enough for you? I can walk.”
Jai’s smile pulls wider, exposing his teeth, as he looks away and laughs. As quick and as glorious as the laugh comes, it blows away in the crisp breeze, taking his smile with it. In his worried stare, I see cogwheels turning. It’s not often I s
ee through the stoic front he puts on, so when I get a glimpse of his human emotions, I find myself mesmerized. He’s a beautiful man.
Inhumanely beautiful.
I step closer to Jai, the raw soles of my feet screaming as I press them against the asphalt of the empty road. His eyes flick to mine. The blue I have to imagine, since his irises are hidden by shadow.
“He’s going to come looking for us, Emily. He’s going to come at us with everything he has…”
The grimness in his voice…it hits home and the weight of the situation crashes against my shoulders. Our little victory, our escape, will be short lived. In the morning, a mere couple of hours away, the real fight starts.
I swallow, unable to moisten my parched throat, and nod. “I know.”
He turns and offers me his back, this time not saying a word. Not wanting to fight him, I grip his shoulder and jump on. My thighs wrap around his hips, my arms around his neck. Despite how tired he is, I feel supported and protected—even more so when he tucks his arms under the back of my aching knees. Despite the rain, his body is warm and welcoming.
“I’m going to keep you safe, Kitten,” he says, his back vibrating against me. “From tomorrow I’ll keep you out of trouble.”
I frown. “From tomorrow?”
He nods and from the side, I spot a cheeky smile breaking through. “Tonight we have a car to steal and a house to break into so…tomorrow.”
I laugh as he sets off down the road, heading in a direction unknown to me. A few steps in, I rest my chin against his shoulder and close my eyes.
“Tomorrow it is.”
***Sneak Peek***
On The Run
Emily
The cold wind blasts through my hair, causing sharp, black strands to whip across my face. My heart slams into my ribs over and over, and the ruthless pounding drums through my ears, vibrating across my brain. Out of sheer terror, I clench the strap of the seat belt as it bites into my torso. Squeezing my eyes shut, I pray to a God I suddenly believe in.
Jai’s warm, damp palm glides over the top of my knee and rests on my thigh, pulling me from my thoughts.