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"You leave her alone, Grimes," Jo-Jo snarled. "Sophia doesn't belong to you. She never has, and she never will. "
Grimes turned to face her again. "It seems that you've forgotten something too, Ms. Deveraux. That I take whatever I want, and that whatever I want is mine. And I've been missing Sophia for a very long time now. "
"You aren't leaving here with her," Jo-Jo snarled again.
"Not as long as I'm still breathing. "
Grimes regarded her for a long moment. "Well, I have to admire your protective instincts, if nothing else. But this problem has a very simple, very easy solution. "
"And what would that be?" Jo-Jo asked.
He smiled, showing off his perfect teeth again. I knew what he was going to do, but before I could move, before I could react, before I could fucking stop it, Grimes reached into his suit jacket, pulled out a gun, and shot Jo-Jo in the chest.
Chapter Four
The bullet punching into Jo-Jo's body tore her loose from the men who'd been holding her. She gasped in pain, and her head snapped back against the wall, but she didn't go down.
So Grimes shot her again.
This time, Jo-Jo's bare feet slid out from under her, and she crumpled to the salon floor.
Bria, Sophia, and I all surged forward, struggling to get free of the men who were guarding us, but a ball of Fire magic flashed to life in Hazel's hand. She spun around in the middle of the salon, laughing, the skirt of her red dress rippling out around her like waves of blood.
"Give me a reason," she said, smiling at us all in turn, her magic making her eyes gleam with a dark, sadistic light. "Any reason at all. "
I looked at Sophia, but she shook her head at me. She didn't want Bria or me to get shot - or worse, if Hazel had her way. I ground my teeth together in frustration, but I stopped fighting. I had my family to think about, and there was too much danger of Hazel burning Bria or
Sophia to death before I could kill her. Not to mention the fact that Grimes and the rest of his men could open fire on us at any second.
Sophia realized that I was standing down - for now - and she carefully pointed her right index finger at Jo-Jo, then raised her black eyebrows at me in a silent question.
She wanted me to save her big sister, no matter what happened to her in the meantime. Sophia was willing to sacrifice herself for the rest of us. She knew that the sooner Grimes and his men left with her, the sooner Bria and I could help Jo-Jo. My heart squeezed tightly, but I nodded back at her, telling her that I understood.
Grimes stared down at Jo-Jo, his face perfectly calm and composed. She was slumped against the wall, her skirt up over her knees, her legs sprawled out at an awkward angle. Her breath puffed out in short, painful, ragged gasps, and her hands pressed tightly over the two gunshot wounds in her chest. Blood oozed out between her fingers, dripping down and painting ugly crimson roses on her pretty pink dress. Scarlet specks also covered the white pearls around her throat.
I hoped that she might reach for her Air magic and heal herself with it, but I realized that I didn't know if she could actually do that. Even if she could, maybe the pain was simply too great for her to concentrate on her magic, or maybe using her Air power now would sap what little strength - and life - she had left.
When Grimes was sure that Jo-Jo wasn't going to get up, he gestured at some of his men. "You four, stay behind and make sure that Ms. Deveraux dies, then follow us back in the second car. I'm rather tired of knowing that she's alive. "
His gaze focused on me, then on Bria, and he smiled again. "There's no hurry, though. I got what I came for, so take a few minutes to amuse yourself with these two, if you want. Just be sure they won't be able to speak to anyone about it after the fact. "
The four men let out dark, delighted chuckles at the thought of raping and killing Bria and me, but they weren't nearly as cold and sinister as the black rage beating in my heart. I ignored the men and looked a
t Bria.
My sister's blue eyes blazed with anger. I nodded at her, and she nodded back. We knew what we had to do now.
Grimes stuffed his gun back under his suit jacket, then gallantly flipped his gray fedora back up onto his head.
He leaned forward and mockingly tipped his hat at Jo-Jo. She glared at him as best she could, but her eyes were glassy and slightly unfocused with pain.
"I would say until we meet again, but we both know that's not going to happen," Grimes said. "But don't you worry, Ms. Deveraux. I'll take real good care of Sophia for you. Just like I did before. In fact, I plan to give her my full attention in the days and weeks ahead. After all, we've got a lot of lost time to make up for. "
Jo-Jo made a strangled sound, but Grimes had already turned his back on her.
He stepped through the salon doorway and crooked his finger at the two men still holding Sophia, who tightened their grip on her and started dragging her toward the doorway. Hazel stood to the side and watched, that ball of Fire magic still burning in her hand.
But Sophia wasn't going without a fight. She grabbed on to one side of the doorframe, holding on with one hand and stretching the other out to her sister.
