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SAGE
“Stop.”
That one word sliced through the chants. My eyes snapped open to see the glint of the blade inches above me. That voice. It once shot hate through me, but now I welcomed it with everything I had. Niko was standing near the steps, pointing a handgun directly at the man holding the knife. They stopped their chanting and pulled back their hoods as they all stared at him.
“Niko. What the hell are you doing?” Alex growled through his shock.
“Let her go,” Niko ordered in a low voice.
Tension blanketed the room while the men didn’t make a move. The man was still holding the knife above me. Alex took a step toward Niko.
“Are you fucking crazy? Put the gun down. How did you even get into the house?” Alex asked, trying to keep his voice even.
“This house isn’t a fortress like the other one was,” Niko answered, his gaze never leaving the guy holding the knife. “All I had to do was bust through a window.”
“Niko—”
“I said let her go. Unlock the cuffs. Now.”
Beads of sweat formed on Alex’s forehead. Niko’s glare finally shifted to his brother. His hands unwavering as he pointed the gun. His face showed no emotion other than being dead serious. The man holding the knife took a step back.
“You know we can’t do that,” Alex forced out.
“You know what a good shot I am, baby brother. Better do as I say.”
Alex’s glare was filled with hatred and disbelief. “You think you two are going to walk away from this? She knows too much. God, she turned you against your family. Do the right thing and put the gun down.”
“No. I’ll say it one more time. Unlock the cuffs. Now. Or someone is going to get a bullet in the shoulder.”
“You wouldn’t—”
A shot pierced through the air, making me jump. The noise echoed off the walls, and for a minute, all I could hear was ringing in my ears. But the man dropped the knife before grabbing his shoulder.
“You could have killed him,” Alex roared.
“He’ll be fine, besides not being able to use his arm for a while. The next shot will drop him. Now let her go.”
Eric took keys out of his pocket and started quickly unlocking the cuffs that had me trapped on the table.
“What are you doing?” Alex snarled at him.
Eric paused and looked at him. “Your brother’s gone off the deep end. I’m not about to get all of us shot. It’ll be fine. The group will find her. And him.”
Finally, my legs and then my arms were free. I sprang off the table and ran over to Niko. I looked at Alex, but he was still staring at his brother. Shock, anger, and sadness were all over his face.
“Throw your keys. All of you,” Niko demanded.
“Only Eric and I have keys to the house,” Alex said stiffly.
“Yeah, well, I don’t want any of you following us out of here. Everyone throw over your keys.” Niko pointed the gun at Eric.
Everyone except Alex threw their keys across the room, and I hurriedly picked them up.
“Come on, Alex. Don’t make this difficult,” Niko said. I glanced at him, hearing how his voice was shaking.
“I can’t believe this. You’re choosing a girl over me? Over the group? This is our life.” Alex was trying to reason with him.
“That life is over,” Niko stated. “Throw your keys.”
Alex shoved his hand in his pocket under the robe and threw the keys. I picked them up and noticed the copies I had made were on the key ring too. Alex was glaring at me as I stood back up. I looked him right in the eye as I stepped back next to Niko. He looked like he was about to say something, but I turned my face away from him. He wasn’t worth another look—or another word. I never wanted to see him again.
“You’ve just signed your death warrant,” Alex yelled, but Niko ignored him.
“Let’s go, Sage,” Niko told me quietly. He let me go up the steps first and then followed behind, still pointing the gun until we shut the basement door. He took my hand before we ran to the front door. I unlocked it, and once we were both out, I locked it back up.
“I cut some wires under the hoods of their cars. That should give us a good head start,” Niko muttered as he pulled me down the driveway. My eyes widened in surprise when Niko opened the door to my car. The one I had left in Capac.
“You need to drive me to my truck,” I told him as soon as we were both in the car.
“We can get it later. We need to go.”
“No.” My voice was reaching hysterics. I didn’t do all this to leave that book here. “It’s only down the road. Niko, I need what’s inside. Please.”
He ran a hand through his hair and looked over at me. “Fine. But you need to follow me back.”
“Back where?”
He sighed. “The house Geo took you to. The group doesn’t know about it. It’ll be safe for now.”
I nodded, gazing at the house as he pulled away. It felt surreal to be leaving. I didn’t think I was going to get out alive. I turned to Niko and saw his hands shaking as he gripped the steering wheel. His eyes were hard and unreadable.
“Thank you. For saving me,” I said softly.
