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I was too far to aim, but I ran like I’d never run before, charging in their direction, swinging around so I could take aim at the bastard without risking a bullet ripping through him and lodging itself in Josie.
I watched in horrified slow motion as the man fell, as Josie fell as well, slamming down onto all fours and gasping for breath.
I’d never heard a sound like that in my life before. A high, frantic, almost shrieking gasp that told me how close she’d been to unconsciousness, and then death not too long after.
I reached for her, uttering reassurances as she continued to struggle to regulate her breathing, her whole body heaving as she gasped and gasped, making me think it was partially the strangulation, and partly panic at being so close to losing her life, thinking there was no way she was going to make it.
She clung to me for a long time after as I was vaguely aware of footsteps approaching, making my reach for my gun again.
“It’s me,” Luca said, voice calm. “Is she okay? You okay, babe?” he asked, looking down at Josie after his gaze slid to the guy, his mind already reeling at what I may have interrupted.
“She’s okay. Caught that fucker trying to strangle her.”
“He’s the same guy,” she said against my neck, seemingly unwilling to move back even an inch from me. Not that I could blame her. She’d been with these bastards for hours. She must have been terrified. “The one who attacked me at work. Ow,” she grumbled, her hand raising to her throat that had to feel like she’d been swallowing glass.
“We can ice that,” I told her. I think I have an emergency ice pack in the car.”
My gaze slid to my brother, a bunch of silent questions being asked.
To that, he gave me a nod, which I took to mean we were safe, we’d taken out the threat.
“Come on, baby. Let’s get you out of here, okay?”
“Wait,” she said as I pulled her to her feet. “Massimo?” she asked, eyes a little glassy. “Aurelio?”
“Last update, both stable,” Luca said, giving her a tight smile. “Thanks to you.”
“I didn’t do anything,” Josie said, shaking her head.
“Judging by the blood I see on your hands, hon, you did. And you called Matteo to tell us what was going down. I’m just sorry we didn’t protect you better. That will never happen again. Come on,” he said, waving an arm out. “Let’s get her in the car and heading home. This has been a long night.”
“Oh no!” Josie shrieked suddenly, pulling to a stop.
“What?” I asked, startled.
“My pasta!”
Luca shared a look with me, both of us a little worried about the lack of oxygen she’d just suffered.
“What pasta?”
“I had pasta in the oven at the house. Did anyone take it out? The house is going to burn down.”
“Don’t worry, hon. The house has a bunch of guys there. Someone will have taken it out by now. Can’t guarantee it will be edible at this point, but the house isn’t going to burn down.”
“Oh, thank God. Okay. We can go now,” she said, offering me a wobbly smile as I dropped my arm over her shoulders, hauling her into my side as we followed Luca to curve around the house toward the gate, not wanting to bring her into the house where all the bodies were sprawled out.
She’d endured enough trauma for a lifetime. I didn’t need to pile any more on.
“You okay? Is that helping?” I asked after nestling her in the passenger seat with the ice pack I’d cracked for her.
“Yeah. It’s okay. You can get going,” she said, giving me a tired smile.
“I’ll make you some warm tea when we get home,” I offered, though I wasn’t entirely sure I had any tea.
So before I got moving, I shot a quick text to Sofia, making the request.
“Baby?” I asked about an hour into the drive, sneaking a glance at her as she gazed out the window.
“Mm?”
“Can I ask what happened? You know… before we got there?”
“Oh, I made Detective Hart proud,” she told me, giving me a proud smile, making me again wonder about the oxygen deprivation.
“Come again?”
“Detective Hart. He’s who I went to after escaping your basement,” she told me, making me stiffen in my seat.
“You didn’t tell me that.”
“We have been occupied with other, more fun things,” she told me, eyes dancing a bit, but you could see the exhaustion on her face.
The bruises were settling in on her throat, and it was hard to look at them without feeling a renewed surge of rage for a man I’d already taken out.
“What did he say?”
“He, essentially, told me to be smart. That there was no way my ‘hypothetical’ case was going to make it to trial, and that just put a target on my back. So he suggested I use my head and grow some balls first. Well, no. The balls part, I think that was Detective Carver. Or maybe not. I don’t remember. It’s all starting to melt together.”
