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The frown creasing Beck’s face became a scowl.
“What are you waiting for?” Liam asked him. “She’s getting away, mate.”
“I can take a hint.” Beck grinned. “I’ll give you all some privacy. Back in a few.”
“Try to leave her in one piece,” Hammer called after him.
After shooting him a dirty glare, the doctor hustled out the door, taking the levity of the moment with him. The guilt and pain that had wracked Hammer the instant he’d discovered Raine missing returned.
Finally alone with the two people he loved most, Hammer wrapped his arms around Raine, thankful that Liam was on the same page, embracing her as if she was his everything. “Let it out, precious. Give your pain to us.”
Their reassurance seemed to break the dam holding in Raine’s emotions. She sobbed for endless moments. Neither he nor Liam let go. Instead, they whispered how glad they were that she was safe, that she’d found a way to survive, that they loved her.
Long minutes later, Hammer kissed the tears from her cheeks, then Liam placed a tissue beneath her nose. She stared up at his partner with those beautiful blue eyes.
“Blow, Raine,” Liam instructed.
She didn’t protest or argue that she could do it herself. She simply let Liam pamper her—no questions asked—because they both needed it. Hammer sent her an approving smile.
“How are you feeling, love? Is there anything we can get you?” Liam asked in that tender voice that always made Raine glow.
“I’m fine.”
She put on a brave face, but Hammer saw through it.
“Tell him the truth,” he pressed.
Raine laced her fingers through his. “Right. Honesty. Communication.” She blew out a breath. “I’m sore everywhere. But the pain tells me I’m alive. And I’m so thankful to be out of that horrible place and away from that monster forever.”
Hammer clenched his teeth as he inhaled a deep breath. “So are we.”
“God, yes,” Liam seconded. “Would you like to talk to us about it, love? Or is it too soon?”
“We’ll help you through this no matter what,” Hammer assured. “Lean on us. I swear to god we won’t let you down again.”
“Neither of you let me down. I went running out of the club instead of waking you up. I didn’t think anything so terrible would…” Raine’s chin quivered.
“Shh.” Hammer leaned in and gingerly touched his lips to hers, careful not to disrupt her stitches. “It’s all right. Tell us how to help you.”
Raine blinked as if unsure what she needed, then swallowed. “I don’t know where to start. Every minute seemed more and more horrific. I was so scared.” Her voice cracked but she continued. “H-he told me he’d been raping my older sister for years, and she let him to protect me.”
Hammer silently thanked the woman for her tragic sacrifice. But he couldn’t say he was at all surprised to find out that Raine’s sister had suffered under Bill’s hand.
“Oh, love,” Liam moaned. “It must have been awful.”
“Then, instead of taking her to the airport to leave for college, he k-killed her. He just took a knife and…” Raine sobbed out in a gut-wrenching wail. “He couldn’t wait to tell me that he’d killed my m-m-mom, too.”
Shoving down his wrath and wishing he could kill the dead man all over again, Hammer perched on the bed beside her. Liam did the same. Together, they wrapped their arms around her and held her until she slowly regained enough composure to carry on.
“I don’t even know where their bodies are.” She sniffed. “The only one who truly escaped was my brother, but I don’t know where River is or what’s happened to him.” Then what little self-possession she’d managed dissolved. “I thought once you two found me that all the bad stuff was over, but god, the EMTs came and…”
Raine pushed against them as if suffocating. He and Liam both eased back, exchanging a worried glance. Hammer suddenly realized Raine didn’t need their physical comfort as much as she needed to vent the torment bottled up inside her.
“They bagged my hands. I couldn’t touch anything until the police came. They took the bags off but scraped under my fingernails to ‘preserve evidence.’ Then they examined all my bruises and bite marks with so much pity in their eyes I wanted to scream. They took pictures of every single inch of my body, poking at me and making me pose for them as if I were some kind of freak. When they finished scrutinizing every crack and crevice, I felt as if all the loving marks you two had left on me were tainted and disgusting. I couldn’t even say one word in our defense to make them understand.”
Hammer took her hand as the words spilled off her lips. He had to clench his jaw so he didn’t lash out in rage. Liam’s expression bled self-reproach and anger as he skimmed his fingers up and down her arm. Neither of them knew what to do, except listen and offer comfort.
