The knocking is harder and louder as I continue to walk. The quiet pop of a gun with a silencer on it is something that I will never forget the sound of. I don’t hear it break the lock, whoever did it has terrible aim, or maybe it’s just Ro prepared his house for just this. So, I turn and rush back upstairs.
“Fuck.” I mutter to myself as I pick Linc up and look at him, trying to remain as quiet as I can. “Jagger, I need you to go in here with Linc okay?” He looks up at me, and I can see that he’s picked up on the fear I have. “Take my phone.” I reach into my pocket, unlocking my phone, and pressing onto it with shaky hands and searching for the passcode, turning it off quickly, and then I hand it to him. “Call your mommy, call your daddy, call Ro, call anyone who will answer, okay?” He nods his head again, still with fear in his eyes. “But Jag, listen, this is very important. It’s going to get loud. People will be yelling. There will be noises. You have to remain quiet. Only call when it gets quiet again, okay? And for whatever reason, do not come out of here, unless it’s me, your mommy or daddy, or Ro, okay?”
“Okay.”
“When do you call?”
“After it’s loud when it’s quiet.”
“Good and keep Linc calm and quiet. Okay?” he nods again. Placing my finger over my mouth I make the shushing sound as I open up the hiding spot. “Be really quiet, okay?” I tell Linc before he nods again and I lean in, hugging him, and pressing a kiss to his forehead. “I love you boys.” I whisper to them as I bring them both in close for a tight hug, knowing that the possibility of me never seeing son, or either one of these boys again, is likely.
But I’ll die to make sure that they both survive. I hear the door open downstairs and I rush over to the nightstand, pulling out the notebook and I scribble a quick couple of sentences before I reach over, putting the notebook underneath his pillow. Just as a precaution.
I hear quiet whispers downstairs and then footsteps on the stairs. Quickly, I slide underneath the bed, hoping that somehow, I’ll luck out and they won’t find me.
Even though they’re not the smartest.
I see the feet in the room, and I pray that Linc doesn’t get scared, that he doesn’t start crying, that Jag is keeping him calm and quiet. The feet walk around the bed as I’m trying to remain as quiet as possible. Trying to just, at the least, lure them out of the room so that when the boys get scared that they don’t find them. I see a clear shot from the bed to the railing of the staircase and I know if I can make it there that I can land the jump, I’m most likely going to fucking hurt myself, but it will be worth it, worth it to get them out of the house.
As quietly as I can I slide out from under the bed, taking a deep breath, and pushing myself off of the floor.
“What the fuck!” Kidney shouts before he tries moving towards me to stop me, but I immediately turn and start to run towards the banister.
Easily enough, I hurdle over the banister, and I can see it, I can taste the fucking fresh air as I get all of the men outside, away from him. I’ll sacrifice myself any day for the little ones.
But I’ve always just been lucky enough.
As I’m falling my head is snatched back as it slows my progress just enough as the grip tightens in my hair. I scream out in pain as the strands rip from my scalp, and I’m dangling in the air above the living room by my hair. I’m sure the grip weakening as strands are pulled out of my head.
“Let her go.” I hear his voice and I freeze as I fall down to the ground in front of J. “Sadie.”
“Joel.” I glare back at him making him laugh.
“You ready to go back home?”
“This is my home.” I tell him making him laugh out loud.
“What, with Ronin?” He laughs louder.
“Yes, with Ro.”
“He’ll betray you just like he does everyone else. Make everyone turn on you.”
“Funny enough, quite the opposite has happened.” This time I laugh out as I hear the footsteps on the stairs joining us in the living room. “It’s funny how people decide to stay loyal to an actual leader instead of a piece of shit like you.”
It’s been months since I’ve been hit in the face and I almost forgot what it felt like, but that reminder is not quite what I remember at all. Slowly I exhale, not wanting to give him anymore of a reaction, as I look back up at him. “Joel, you can do whatever you want to me, but you’re not going to break me.”
He laughs as if he’s testing me.
“You can’t break something that’s been broken for as long as I have.” He grips ahold of my hair as he continues to pull me towards the door, only stopping as I feel metal circling my wrists, and then I’m being shoved out the door.
I watch as all the men follow us out of the house, and I’m shoved in the backseat of an SUV before the door slam shuts behind me. The rest of the men pile into the surrounding other SUVs, including J into a separate one.
I’m sure, that he thinks if Ro comes up on us now, he’ll follow the one with J in it, thinking that I’m in it as well, meaning that I’ll be at the clubhouse waiting for him when he gets home.
I turn around looking at the house as we pull away from it, I quietly let tears fall down my face for a moment before I shove my emotions back down as I think of the boys in the wall.
I’m sorry.
