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Standing there, one arm at her side and the other gripping her stomach, June stares at me.
I rush toward her and take her in. “Princess.”
“Magnus,” she breathes, and it’s like life is blown into my own lungs with the sound of her saying my name.
“Let’s get her out of here,” Simon tells me.
I don’t ignore his arm draped behind her, holding her to his shirtless body. But in this moment, nothing matters more than the fact that she’s okay.
“What the fuck happened?” I say as we’re walking toward the door.
Simon waves at the clerk. “Thanks for letting us use the phone, Boston.”
The man nods and continues whatever the hell he’s doing, seemingly unbothered by the urgency of this situation. But I guess on this side of town, crazier things go down on a daily basis.
“Did you call the doctor?” Simon asks while latching onto the passenger side door and opening it.
I rest my palm along June’s soaked back and guide her into the seat. I shut her in and face Simon. “Yes. He’s on his way now.” I reach for my gun. “If you want to live, you better start talking.”
Simon drags his hand through his hair. "You guys pissed her off and she left. I went after her. We walked a little bit then got bamboozled by multiple vehicles. They took us to a warehouse out near Crescent Valley." He points in the direction. "We both woke up tied to chairs, some bastard named Bronco—that alias sound familiar to you?"
I shake my head and grit my teeth.
“Dude had the same MO as Vincent.” Simon glances away, like he’s recalling a memory. “We managed to break free but not until he had already started.” He motions to the cut along his cheek. “We ran, they were shooting at us. June got nicked in the arm, fell into the water. I dove in after her but…”
That’s when I remember the story I had heard about his sister. She drowned when they were kids in some freak accident. If June’s life being in danger didn’t already frighten him, her nearly dying the same way his sister did was sure enough to instill terror in him.
“Sorry, Beckett.”
June knocks on the window to draw our attention.
“We’ll talk more about this at home,” I tell him. “Get in the car.”
I rush around and hop into the driver's seat, reach for the thermostat, and crank it as high as it will go. I push on June's seat warmer and turn it full blast, too. Anything I can do to rid her of the shivers coursing through her. I reach across and grab her seatbelt, tugging it across her chest and under the arm she holds close to her body.
The fabric is stained red but is no doubt stopping blood from gushing from the wound. Simon made the right choice in taking his shirt off and tying it around where she was shot. And it’s only a matter of minutes until our doctor will assess it to make sure it’s properly treated. That, and the fresh cut on her cheek and the skin that’s torn away on both of her wrists. She must have struggled beneath her restraints, and from the look of the slashes along her skin, she used a blade to free herself. If it were Simon or someone else, the pattern would come from the opposite direction, not the way it is now.
No, my girl fought for her life and saved herself from her tormentor.
And judging by the marks on her forehead, she must have blasted the asshole in the face, too.
Simon has his fair share of bumps and bruises and cuts, too, but June’s are just as much offensive as they are defensive. She wasn’t going down without a fight, and despite that ripping a hole straight through me that she had to resort to that, I’m so fucking grateful for her strength.
I rush back across town, but this time, obeying a few more laws that I broke on my way to her. I still speed and run stop signs, but I do it with more caution as to not put her life in any more danger than it already is.
We pull into the driveway, and I park the car back in its spot in the garage.
The doctor pulls in just after us, his timing impeccable.
“Who is that?” June glances in the mirror.
“Dr. Murphy. Remember him from a while back?”
“What is he driving?” She continues to stare until he gets out of the driver’s seat and approaches.
“He got a new SUV, no need to worry, princess.” I grip her hand and unbuckle her.
“Who’s here?” She looks up at me.
