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Despite wanting to barge in, I didn’t know the layout, and I didn’t want a bad move to get her killed. Taking a single deep breath, I let it out and turned the knob. What I saw made my stomach churn. They were all kneeling around her where they had her tied spread-eagle to eyebolts in the floor. A blonde woman crouched next to her with an intricately decorated dagger and a silver bowl etched with symbols I didn’t recognize.
“Help me!” Sloane screamed as she tried to thrash with her legs that were restrained. The second my movement caught her attention, she froze, eyes wide, face pale, and mouth hanging open. The others in the room barely had time to register her sudden lack of fight.
Raising my weapon, I sent a bullet through the back of one guy’s head. When he fell, I recognized him as the guy who had been hauling Sloane away from Niara’s. That got the attention of the other two real quick. They rose and made a move toward me. Pulling up the unusual fire I’d absorbed, I shoved it at them, knocking them on their asses, though it didn’t seem to otherwise affect them. I fired a bullet at each of them, but I wasn’t able to get good aim while concentrating on burning through the ropes tying Sloane to the floor.
Not waiting to see if I missed, I swept her up as Evan, and the others flanked me. Her gasp of pain ended in a whimper. At that moment, I was extremely thankful for Raptor’s family’s support. Especially since I would’ve been fucked if there was someone else with them that I hadn’t noticed.
“You okay?” I breathlessly asked as I rushed back to the stairs, Evan at the lead.
A single sob was her only answer as one hand cradled my face and she stared at me with wonder in her tear-filled eyes.
Fuck.
Unable to stop to check her out, we raced down the staircase, feet pounding the treads this time. A frustrated scream rose over the sound of our footsteps.
Evan tried the front door at the base of the stairs. It wouldn’t open. Not wanting to go back through the house only to have to make our way to the car out front, I threw flame at the wood, burning through the center. He plowed through it, and the rest of us were hot on his heels. We didn’t look back as we all burst out the front door and ran for the car.
Without pause, I ripped open the door to the back seat. She cried out when I set her down and my teeth ground. Evan and his crew watched as I placed her in as gently and quickly as possible.
Anger roared through me that she was hurt. As I closed her door, I spun toward the house, and with narrowed eyes, I torched the fucker. Ensuring the flame knew to remain contained on that home, I dove behind the wheel, started the car, and had it slammed into Drive with the tires spinning before my door was shut.
“You’re alive?” Her tremulous voice was barely a whisper from the back seat.
“Yeah, baby, I’m here.” Our gazes locked briefly in the rearview.
Her sniffles hit me like a shot to the back. If I could keep her from feeling another moment’s fear or sorrow, I would. Because her pain was my pain.
“We have to see if Niara is alive!” she suddenly demanded as she winced and breathed in short panting breaths.
“What?” I shouted in exasperated disbelief. My eyes darted to the mirror again to make eye contact with her before I refocused on the road and took the next left to get out of the neighborhood. Headlights appeared behind us, and I tried to see if it was them, but it was too dark to tell. I wasn’t sure if they had escaped the fire.
“She was unconscious, but I think she was still alive! I need her!” She clutched my shoulder, and a jolt of awareness shot through me.
So not the time to be horny.
“She’s fine. She happily gave me her car keys.”
“Oh, thank goodness, but I need to get her. Please. I also feel like Voodoo is hurt. I’ve never experienced such a blinding pain in my arm. It was so bad I thought they broke my arm. Then I realized I was feeling his pain. Don’t ask me how I knew; I just did. I’m going to need Niara’s help for him as well,” she begged. Headlights in my rearview had me feeling paranoid.
My teeth ground as I clenched my jaw. Fuck, she knew how to get to me. The thought of Voodoo not being okay made my stomach cramp. I hadn’t had time to see how bad the wound had been. The vehicle was several blocks behind us, but that didn’t mean anything.
“Shit,” I muttered, realizing I would be giving in.
Cranking the wheel, I took the next turn with squealing tires and backtracked to the condo complex where Voodoo had been wounded. The same spot was open, and I parked Niara’s car and jumped out. In no time, I helped Sloane out of the vehicle. I wasn’t leaving her alone for a second.
As we burst through the front door, I heard her gasp of surprise at the blood on the entryway floor.
A pistol came around the corner of the kitchen, and I skidded to a stop, the barrel mere inches from my face. Relief hit me when I saw it was Raptor who held the weapon.
“Jesus,” I gasped. Sloane recklessly rushed around me to the back room, and Raptor dropped his arm holding his weapon. After I filled him in on what had happened, we followed her.
“Are you sure you guys are okay?” she demanded as she took in the scene. She’d obviously already asked once. Rooster was sitting on the floor, back resting against the wall. He had a bag of what looked like frozen carrots to his head. Niara was at the bedside where Voodoo lay.
“They’re fine,” Raptor answered for them from behind me.
“What the fuck are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be holding shit down at the clubhouse?” I asked, so surprised he was there that I momentarily forgot I was talking to my VP. His cocked brow was enough to put me in my place.
“Sorry,” I muttered.
