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“I’ve been trying to figure that out for the last twenty hours while strolling through the tunnels, looking for a signal, and beating on doors, hoping somehow, someone would hear me.”
We reach the ladder again and they gesture for me to go first. If the vibe right now wasn’t so fucked, I’d assume it’s so they could look at my ass. Not this time, though. These guys are on a mission, and for once, it doesn't involve me.
“Come with me,” Crew says, taking my hand.
I look down at it, then to Jagger, and finally back to Crew. “Why?”
“Because I’m not leaving you alone. There’s a good chance whoever knocked me out is the same person fucking with you. I told you, Scar. If you want our help, you will be with us at all times. I never even should have left you last night.”
I laugh grimly. “I was fine. It seems you’re the one who needs protection.”
Crew draws in a deep breath, still pulling my hand. “Let's go.”
A glance over my shoulder shows Jagger shrugging his shoulders at me. I guess I'm going.
ChapterTwenty-Five
SCARLETT
“You’resure Riley got the message from Victor?”
“Positive. She said she’s fine and she’ll see you later today.” Crew picks up his phone, types something, then slams it down. “I’ve gotta go knock some sense into Neo. Stay here,” he says, referring to his room.
I’m sitting cross-legged on Crew’s bed, wearing his tee shirt. Which is where I woke up this morning because no matter how hard I verbally fought, Crew wouldn’t let me leave. This time, I didn’t resort to physical fighting because he was being far too nice to harm. I did make him sleep on the floor, though.
It’s surreal being here. Like I don’t belong. A fish out of water. But, I won’t pretend I don’t feel safe, because I do. As much as I hate what these guys have done to me, I feel safe with all of them. For some reason, they want to scare me, but I don’t think they want to hurt me.
A knock at the open door has me straightening my back. “Hey,” I say to Jagger, who’s poking his head in.
“Where’s Crew?”
“I guess he went toknock some sense into Neo?”
Jagger crosses the room with jerky steps while rubbing his inked arm up and down. He’s shirtless, wearing only a pair of gray gym shorts. His hair is messy, and if I wasn’t so tense right now, I’d probably be drooling.
Half of his ass cheek plants on the bed beside me. “Wanted to let you know, I talked to Neo and he said Maddie’s doing good. Her blood pressure has been stable. No change, but I suppose that’s a good thing, right?”
His words are like music to my ears. “That’s great. I’ve been so worried about her.” I place a hand over his. “Thank you, Jagger.”
A smile lifts his lips. “Sleep okay?”
I’m not sure when we went from threats and insults to small talk, but the abrupt shift in the atmosphere that surrounds us is giving me whiplash.
“Yeah. Slept great. You?” It’s a lie because as much as I’d love to push the past away while engaging in small talk with Jagger, or any of the guys, I still get the feeling this is forced. Therefore, opening up about how I didn't sleep at all is pointless.
“Not a wink. There’s so much going on, ya know?”
I nod. “Yeah. But you expected all of this.”
“The games? Yes. This other shit? Not so much.”
“Well,” I say, ready to be the optimist in a situation I should be bitching about, “today’s the last day of the games, so hopefully, things calm down after The Gathering.”
He nods in slow movements, biting his lip. “Yeah, I don’t think that’s happening.”
I don’t either. Something tells me things are going to get worse before they get better. Much, much worse.
His hand rests on my leg, and he squeezes it gently. “Be safe today, okay?”
