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“That was the asking price,” Christopher tells them, “but I’m open to more offers.” The smirk that graces his expression has my stomach plummeting to my feet.
“I’ll put down an easy ten.” A man—who looks nothing like I pictured a monster to look like—steps forward. He shrugs off his jacket and hands it to me. I can’t tell why he’s being kind, but I glance at Christopher before he offers a nod for me to take the offered item.
Tentatively, I take it and slowly slide my arms into the large jacket, which threatens to drown me. His appraisal doesn’t last long, not like the others, which confuses me. Most of the men in here are leering, whereas he’s given me something to cover up. Suddenly, Christopher’s hand grabs my neck, pulling the hair at my nape and dragging me against him, until I’m shielding him from the gun that appears out of the kind man’s waistband.
My heart attacks my ribs, and I let out a scream that bounces off the walls. The man holding the gun doesn’t seem at all perturbed that I’m in front of his mark. Instead, he grins.
“Do you think I’m scared of filth like you?” he sneers at Christopher who tightens his hold on me. Christopher's fingers dig into the flesh of my hip, and the other feels like it’s tearing hair from my scalp.
“You going to kill the girl?” my captor challenges with a haughty chuckle. “Because if I do this,” he speaks, then suddenly shoves two fingers into my butt, where the man holding the gun can’t see, and I cry out.
A shot rings out, deafening me, and the man holding me goes down as a scream peals from my lips. I’m shaking, shivering as I look down at the body that’s shaking on the expensive carpet.
My captor’s body is on the ground, the blood oozing from his shoulder, and I realize the bullet wasn’t fatal. Unfortunately. Fear grazes over my skin, knowing he’s not dead, only wounded.
Seconds later, I’m being dragged away from the scene before me and shoved into a small room where I’m blinded by the darkness until light springs from the lightbulb overhead, and I’m met with familiar brown eyes.
Chapter Nineteen
JD
Her shock is clear.
She doesn’t move for so long, and neither do I because I don’t want to scare her. The eyes that have haunted me for months are right before me, staring a hole through me. She’s so beautifully perfect.
“Songbird?” The moment I whisper her nickname, she falls to her knees, and I’m right there, wrapping my arms around her. I’ve prayed for this day since the day I left, and now that she’s in my arms, I don’t know what to do with myself. And I don’t know how to make her stop shaking.
Fear has clearly rattled her, but her sobbing, shaking frame has me holding onto her as if she might disappear if I move. I stay still, holding Autumn like a lifeline, but I have a feeling I’m the lifeline in this situation.
“JD?” Her voice is croaky, the agony of what she’s been through dripping from my name like a plea. Her watery eyes gaze up at me, and I can see the happiness mingled with sadness as she watches me. I love this girl, she’s everything to me, and I don’t know how I would’ve ever lived without her.
“I love you,” I tell her, my voice breaking on the words because I can’t focus on anything but her. I know we need to get a move on, get out of this fucking place, but for now, all I can see is her. “We need to go.”
I pull her to her feet. Her body is nothing more than a puppet for me to control, but all I want is for her to be safe. The door flies open, and Jackson pins me with a glare that tells me we need to move. And I do, I pick Autumn up into my arms and walk through the rooms until we’re near the hidden back exit where all the other girls are.
“Stay here,” I tell her. “They’ll keep you safe. There’s something I need to do.” Her wide eyes find mine, and I know she’s scared. It’s written all over her face, but I reach for her cheek and gently graze my thumb along the smooth skin.
I can hear the gunshots ringing out as Marlin’s men enter the main club area, and I know I need to get in there. The screaming, the shouting echoes around us, and I have a feeling it’s not going to end any time soon.
I move through the house with men shouting and women screaming, but nothing can compare to having just had the woman I love being in my arms again.
When I reach the doors, I pull out my Glock, making sure the safety is off. Moving stealthily toward the room they had Autumn in, I duck for cover as I pull the trigger, hitting two men as I crouch down. Thankfully, we got most of the girls out. There are a few more being held by the goons who work for Marlin, but I know the team will get them out safely.
