Nomar was upon her in two strides, reaching down to jerk her from the floor. She slammed into his body with force, colliding against his hard muscles. He tried to hide it, but his hatred of her didn’t eliminate the attraction he’d always felt for her. Playing on that could be her only way out.
The yellow minidress had lost the battle, rolling into a tight band around her waist and revealing her lace strapless bra and matching thong. Nomar gripped her exposed ass, holding her tight against him.
“I know you want me dead, but I’m not going to make it easy foryou.” Jemma writhed and twisted in his grasp, trying to force her way out of his vice grip.
Nomar lifted her from the ground and rammed her against the wall. His body grinding against hers, pinning and trapping her, as his hands gripped the sides of her face, forcing her to look into his soulless dark eyes.
“Preciosa, I don’t want to kill you,” Nomar said. His lips twisted into a sardonic grin, revealing his sinister intentions. “No, death is too kind for you.”
One hand dropped from her face and reached into his pocket. She followed his movements, watching his hand reemerge with a syringe dangling between his fingers. The contents of the vile sent panic hurtling through her.
“No! Don’t do this!” Jemma screamed. She beat her fists against his arms, chest, and shoulders. He stumbled back, trying to avoid the blows. She had a sliver of a chance as she regained her balance and stood against the wall. Her opening to get away closed as quickly as Nomar’s left hand jabbed hard into her abdomen. Pain exploded through her body as she doubled over. The next blow was more devastating. His fist connected with her skull, causing dark stars to blur her vision. She lost control of her movements, crumbling to the floor. Her mind went blank as she fought to breathe, gasping and panting.
Nomar squatted in front of her. “I’m going to take your entire life away, Preciosa. Make you desperately crave the one thing you’ve worked your whole life to stop,” Nomar taunted, holding the syringe toward her. “You’ll be a strung-out drug addict and my personal whore. You will beg me for hits. You’ll do anything to get your next fix.” Nomar’s smile grew wider. “Everything you cared about will fade away. You’ll only care about when I’ll deliver another one of … these. To satisfy the intense cravings that will control your body and your thoughts.” He pressed the plunger on the syringe, pushing a single drop of the narcotic to the tip of the needle. The liquid trembled, then oozed down the side and dripped over his fingers.
“Get the fuck up!” Nomar thundered.
A sob caught in Jemma’s throat, but she didn’t move. She couldn’t move. The pain was too intense.
Nomar yanked her arm, almost pulling it out of the socket. Excruciating pain hammered within her, making it impossible to focus or think. Nomar wrapped her in his tight embrace.
She could barely push the words from her lips. “Please … don’t.”
“Begging is useless. But this will help with your pain. It will take it all away.” Nomar moved the syringe closer to her neck. The needle seemed impossibly long, filled with a substance that would destroy her. Maybe cocaine. Or worse, fentanyl.
Jemma’s pulse roared in her ears, her vision narrowing as the syringe loomed larger, gleaming as Nomar brought it to rest against her skin. The sharp sting pierced her neck, promising instant oblivion. A tear slid down her cheek as she leaned back, resigned to her fate.
She’d thought she was ready for this.
She should’ve known better.
The door to the storage room opened, and a dark silhouette loomed in the narrow hallway.
Familiar eyes rested on hers.
Rocco had come to help her.
But he was too late.
Chapter 14
Blinded by fury was real.
The club disappeared, bathed in shadows as Rocco honed in on the threat. He plunged forward, entering the hallway. Easing the door open, he slipped inside and moved quickly toward the target, making no sounds as he crossed the room. His instincts hadn’t been wrong.
The man he’d seen Jemma with on the dance floor now had her pinned against the wall, trapping her. She looked dazed and disoriented. Her body was listless as her eyes locked onto the syringe pressed against her neck. What worried him the most was that she didn’t struggle or fight back. Whatever he’d done to Jemma had rendered her unable to get away.
Closing the distance between them, Rocco kept to the shadows. He’d need to time his attack perfectly to maintain the advantage. He didn’t know if Jemma could see him. If she knew that he was here to help. Or if her brain could only focus on the disgusting things the bastard was screaming at her. A sick, twisted monologue of what he’d do to her sexually once the drugs were in her system.
What the fucker didn’t know was that his plans were about tobe wrecked. Rocco leaped forward and snaked his arm around the man’s neck, jerking him backward. Jemma collapsed into a heap on the floor.
“Fuck!” The man growled. “Let me go!”
Grabbing the hand holding the syringe, Rocco moved it swiftly toward the man’s chest. The needle plunged through clothes and skin with ease.
“No …” the man’s words were a desperate plea as he thrashed and bucked. He fought to remove his hand from Rocco’s grasp, but Rocco was stronger, fueled by a need to punish the bastard for trying to hurt Jemma.
Rocco pressed against the man’s thumb, forcing him to inject himself.
