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We fly up the stairs as they almost crumble beneath our weight, but the boys press on, Zade’s hand clutching me even tighter. Sawyer reaches the top first and shoves through an old, metal gate, so similar to all the other ones deep in this twisted fortress. Only this one seems heavier, sturdier even. Designed specifically to keep assholes like Zade and his crew out . . . or in.
The gate creaks and whines, and it’s clear it has been here longer than any of us have been alive. I can barely take a second to ponder the specifics of the old gate before we’re already flying through it and darting up the long tunnel ahead, the creaking still echoing throughout the corridors behind us.
The old lanterns become further apart until they stop completely, leaving us in the eeriness of the long tunnels, so fucking dark I can’t even make out the bold, intricate tattoos that wind up Zade’s arms. There’s nothing to keep us company except the sound of my heavy panting and my feet against the cobblestones. The boys don’t make a sound, and if it weren’t for Dalton’s hand on my back and Zade’s death grip on my hand, I could almost believe I was alone.
We run as my lungs scream for sweet relief, and the further we go, the more I trip over my feet, my aching muscles barely able to hold me up anymore. I struggle to see in front of me, blindly trusting Zade to lead me out of here. We turn a corner, and I stumble in the dark as an arm drags me to the left while my body attempts to continue straight ahead. No sooner have we raced around the corner, Zade wrenches back on my hand, bringing me to a violent halt.
He presses his back up against the wall of the dark tunnel, pulling me in hard against his chest, his hand braced over my mouth, muffling the sound of my heavy panting. “We’re not alone,” he murmurs in my ear as the boys fall in beside us. I feel Sawyer’s arm brush against mine, so fucking close.
Craning my neck to peer into the darkness ahead, I see nothing. My brows furrow, trying to figure out what the hell they’ve all sensed in these tunnels, but I come up blank. Apart from the heavy thumping of my pulse in my ears, I hear nothing. Not even the faintest echo of footfalls or a whispered breath.
“Wha—” I start, but Zade’s hand clamps tighter over my mouth, keeping me silent.
I feel him against me, his lips right by my ear. “Don’t say a fucking word.”
A chill sweeps through my body and goosebumps rise on my skin. I have no fucking idea if they’re from our impending doom or from the way Zade’s breath brushes across the sensitive skin just below my ear.
As the seconds tick by, my eyes begin to adjust, and I find Easton directly in front of me, his gaze intently locked on mine as Sawyer stands to my right, and Dalton to my left.
Easton watches me and the longer his intense stare remains on mine, the harder it becomes to breathe. There’s something about this man, so raw and powerful, it terrifies me. And yet, it has me wanting to peel back the layers and figure out what kind of brokenness I’ll find beneath.
As he watches me, I can’t help but think about the cross engraved on my thigh, his mark left on my body. His possessiveness stamped right there for the world to see. He wanted to claim me, wanted to let Sawyer and Dalton know that he wasn’t going to back down.
Easton is so different from Dalton and Sawyer. He’s a mystery. Silent and brooding, impossible to read. Yet I feel like there’s so much of him to discover. He’s held back on me, but now that my time on earth is limited, I want to get to know him . . . the real him.
Holding his stare, I finally start to relax. My body sinks back against Zade’s, and sensing the change, he loosens his hand over my mouth. Unable to help myself, I reach up and grip his wrist, my fingers curling around it and clutching onto him, needing the closeness and security he can offer while his words replay on a loop in my mind.
We’re not alone.
As if on cue, two men appear out of the darkness, and I suck in a deep breath. My eyes widen as I watch them slowly saunter toward us, completely oblivious to the monsters camouflaged by the dark walls of the tunnels.
The silence is killing me, and the heavy thump of my heart sounds like roaring thunder in my ears. Unshed tears burn my eyes as I think about the fate these men will suffer for simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time. A single tear falls from my lashes and sails down my cheek, landing on Zade’s wrist. I feel the way his body stiffens behind me. It’s as though someone has just stabbed a blade right through his cold, black heart, and he’s realized that this person he’s been so hell-bent on killing is actually just a broken woman with very real emotions.
