AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Her stomach churning from that horrible combination of odors, she sank to the ground. Suddenly, the sour scent of alcohol surrounded her, sucking the oxygen from the room and driving her into a distant, terrifying memory. Bodies pressed in around her, loud music overwhelming her ears. After that, blurred chaos ensued as people tore at her hair, her clothes, her skin. A scream she barely recognized as her own pelted her eardrums. A blurred face materialized in front of her, focused on her. She blinked. Blinked again. The security guard from the club?
A cold wave washed over Seyla’s skin. She sucked in air, closed her eyes and concentrated on the Lord’s Prayer. It had helped her through the pain and frustration of rehab. It would help her now, too.
/////
Jax kneeled in front of Seyla, shoving away the destructive panic that would render him useless if he allowed it. “Seyla?” he whispered.
It echoed another moment that haunted him from years earlier. His heart spasmed at the memory of opening Matt’s front door to find her there all those years ago, more vulnerable than she was now, her eyes closed. Bloodied and broken, she’d somehow made it to the top of the steps to ring the doorbell priorto collapsing. He’d scooped her into his arms and ran screaming into the house, fear propelling him into the backyard where Matt’s immediate family gathered around a fire pit, roasting marshmallows.
No more than a kid himself, Jax hadn’t thought to check if she was alive or if he should move her. Terror had overtaken any rational thought.
He had no idea what had happened to her. Her clothes were torn, her skin bloodied, cut and bruised. As young as he’d been, even he could tell some of her bones were broken. And her hands… It was the first time injustice-fueled rage had overtaken him, when he’d seen what some evil individual had dared to do to her beautiful skin. To this sweet, beautiful girl.
That anger had driven him to become a weapon himself, capable of defending innocent civilians from those who would attempt to harm them. She’d driven him to become the man he was today, and he’d use every skill and tool he had in his arsenal to protect her.
Starting with that insider information from Rich.
Jax buried the past again and sat on the floor of the tent next to Seyla. Her thick black lashes lay against her cheeks. Beautiful didn’t come close to describing her. Enchanting was more like it. Like some fairy tale. The desire to kiss her seized Jax without warning. Taking anything from her without permission was out of the question, though. He gently smoothed her hair around her face. Her eyes fluttered and he froze. He dropped his hand as soon as they opened.
“Jax?” Her gaze flew around the room to orient herself.
He put his hands in front of her to help her up. Seyla smacked them away and worked her way to a standing position on her own. “I’m okay.”
“What happened?”
She pressed a hand to her forehead. “I-I wanted to get away from the crowd. Maggie showed me this place. He must have seen me when I ducked in and followed me.”
“Who?” Jax tamped down the anger to keep it from seeping into his voice. He’d save that for whoever had bothered her.
“Travis Yoder.” Seyla lowered her head, still in her hand, and sighed. “The truth is…I went on a few dates with his nephew, Ethan. That's who drove past us in the truck the day we ran into you on the trail.”
Was she embarrassed? He already knew the name of the guy. Uncle Sam had used his connections to run the plate number. The only thing he didn’t know was why the guy looked furious.
“A mutual acquaintance set us up. I wanted to get to know people when I first arrived here. A colossal mistake, obviously. I think he went to the church for the sole reason of picking up women.” She gave a harsh laugh. “On our last date, he drank several bottles of beer.” Her eyes flicked upward to meet his. “The same kind as the bottle we found on the trail.”
“So it could have been Ethan shooting at us on the trail?”
“It’s possible. He’s a hunter, and I know he has access to his uncle’s house. Travis has a lot of guns. Ethan could have used one of those or his own.”
“Uncle Sam’s buddy has good information indicating Ethan’s involvement in at least one of Travis’ illegal businesses. Why is he mad at you, anyway?”
“He blames the loss of his job on me. Travis fired him because of what he told me. After Ethan started drinking on our last date, I became uncomfortable and decided to leave. That’s when he mentioned his uncle’s lion and tiger hybrid. He said it didn’t appear as scary as he’d thought it would, since it was skin and bones.” Seyla rolled her eyes. “What did he think I’d do? I work at an animal sanctuary.” She frowned, shaking her head. “After that, I got any bit of information I could from him. Then I toldhim I had to go. We called in the authorities, who removed the liger and ultimately placed it at our sanctuary.”
“Understandable.”
“Travis became livid, most likely because it cost him money. There are rumors around town that he sells canned hunts for endangered species under the table. He said I’d pay for using his nephew and taking his…property.” She shivered with what resembled revulsion.
His sentiments exactly. “What did Travis say this time?”Keep calm, Jax.
“He threatened Baron and me.” Seyla gestured in the sanctuary’s direction. “The liger. He said he’d get him back, dead or alive.” Her voice cracked, giving away the level of concern for the animal.
“Wait here a minute.” Jax jumped up. He stepped outside, scanning the crowd surrounding the booth. No sign of Travis. He rotated his jaw, the muscles tight from being clenched, and texted Matt. Then he returned to Seyla.
“Is there anything else you need to tell me?”
Tell me the truth. Please.
Seyla’s gaze dropped to the floor. Her hands smoothed the bottom seam of her top. A minute passed before she lifted her head. Her eyes met his. Indecision played across her features for a moment, and then it evaporated. A bottled up sigh dropped her shoulders. “Honestly? There’s a lot.” Seyla glanced at the floor again, pursed her lips and fixed her gaze on his. She hauled in a resigned breath, her collarbones standing out against her tan skin with the effort. “I can’t let anything happen to Baron. I’ll tell you everything I know.”
