Page 74 of Fighting Salvation

Bás kept quiet and was hauled to his feet where he was taken down and out the back door onto a lit footpath which led for around half a mile to what looked like a rock formation. When they got closer, he could see it was an entrance of some kind.

He guessed this was where he kept his prisoners. The lights lit as they walked through and he paid close attention as they moved through some kind of anti-chamber and then there were four cells. Rock made up three sides with steel bars at the front and the ground was also rock. Three of the cells held men, which from the state of them, had been there a while. They were filthy, emaciated, and had cuts and wounds in varying degrees of healing all over their bodies. One man looked up at him and despite his physical state, Bás could still see the fire in his eyes. These men were fighters, and he wondered why they were being kept alive.

He was shoved to his knees in the fourth cell, and the man on his left kicked him forward so he fell face down.

“Ready for a little fun?”

His laughter told Bás he was going to enjoy this but he’d picked the wrong man if they thought beating him would break him. As the blows started, Bás laughed and kept on laughing. Even when the pain made him want to pass out, he kept his focus and pushed it away.

“Crazy mother fucker.”

The goon on the right kicked him again, knocking him against the rock. His eye was closing from the blows but he could see the two men across from him watching him intently, and he recognised the white hair and beard on the one man and knew exactly why they were being kept alive.

“We need to stop or we’re going to kill him and Hansen will end us, too.”

The man who’d been speaking pulled his mate back and glared at him. “This fucker needs to quit laughing.”

With that, he drove his boot into the side of Bás’ head and then it was darkness.

Chapter 22

“Any news?”

Val looked up from the sofa where she’d spent the night going over every single piece of information they had. Nobody had slept except Lotus, and that was only because of the pill Hurricane had forced her to take. Val knew the relationship between Rykov and Lotus had been complex but it had been full of love on some level, and definite respect. “Lotus, hey.”

Val lifted the blanket off her legs and reached up as her friend fell down beside her and into her arms. Val held her close and rubbed her back, much like a parent would a child when they were sick.

“Do we know anything yet?”

“We know where they took him and we’re working on a plan. By we, I mean Reaper, Jack, Bein, and Duchess.”

“Where is he?”

“On a previously thought barren island. Evidently, Jack tagged Niall with a tracker Will built which is untraceable. They’re using some kind of covert surveillance to see exactly what we’re facing when we get there.”

“Bastard needs to die.”

Val rubbed her arm. “He will. We won’t let him live another day and hurt anyone else.”

“I was vile to him.”

The anguish in her voice broke Val’s heart. “Don’t do that to yourself, Naz. He knew you cared about him. Anyone could see that.”

“He died saving me and my last words to him were that I hated him.” Her voice was thick with tears. “And it wasn’t the first time he’d saved me either. He was there after Rhea Winslow almost killed me. He nursed me back to health and gave me this life.”

Val didn’t know the details of what their relationship was or wasn’t but it was clear Lotus was heartbroken over Rykov’s death. “He cared about you and saw something worth saving and he knew you cared about him, Naz. Don’t beat yourself up over what could have been. It won’t help. Your responsibility now is to live the life he gifted you to the fullest and make him as proud in death as he was in life.”

“I will. I’ll be the person he thought I was and I’ll avenge him.”

“We all will, sweetie.”

Footsteps thundered toward them as Hurricane came into the room. “Hey, we have an update.”

Val jumped up and Hurricane looked at Lotus with worry in his brown eyes.

Lotus moved into his embrace and offered him a weak smile. “Don’t look so worried, big guy. I won’t fall apart again, promise.”

Relief poured off Hurricane as they walked into the large kitchen. It was early morning and only twelve hours since Bás had been taken but it felt like weeks since she’d kissed him and felt his arms around her.