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“You lit the house on fire?” I whisper, panic starting to seep in.
“I told you, no one will take you from me. This is the only way.”
“You’re insane,” I snap. I jerk my knee up and at the same time, slam the palm of my free hand upward against his nose.
Porter releases me instantly as he groans and doubles over. I don’t waste a beat and rush out of the room and right into an inferno.
Heavy smoke fills the room along with the fire. I cough and try to see past the raging fire. I don’t know where I am, but I have to find a way out of here. I can’t be caught in this blazing building. I won’t die. Not today and not without telling Scythe just how much he means to me.
Moving through the house, I do my best to avoid the fire, but it’s everywhere.
Suddenly I find myself tackled to the floor.
“You won’t get out of here, Josephine, I won’t let you go,” Porter snarls and starts laughing manically. “We’ll be together forever. You’re mine. You’ve always been mine. Mine. Mine.”
Oh my God.
Kicking at Porter, I spin to my stomach and reach for something. Anything to get him off me. Away from me.
Finding a paint tin, I reach for it. I don’t care the metal singes my skin. I grip the handle, and with all my strength, I hit him with it, knocking him away. I clamber to my feet and stumble forward, coughing. My vision becomes a blur, and all I see in front of me is flames. I don’t know where the door is, and I feel like I’m going in circles, but I can’t be. Can I?
The crashing sounds mix with that of the flames. I look up to see the ceiling starting to cave in.
Tears spill down my cheeks, and my knees give out beneath me. This is it. This is the end. My only regret will be that I never told Scythe how much I love him.
CHAPTER28
SCYTHE
“Careful, brother,” Styxx remarks, holding Josephine’s head steady.
“Fire and EMS are arriving,” Beast announces as I lay my woman on the ground a good ways away from the blazing house.
We no sooner got her out before the whole damn thing collapsed in on itself. My anger rages inside me. I don’t know if anyone else was in the house, but at the first sight of the flames, my only thought was getting to my woman and praying like hell she was alive.
“I’ve got a pulse, Scythe,” Styxx informs me, just as two paramedics drop-down next to us. We move away enough to give them room to work.
Buzzing in my ears starts to become overwhelming as I watch them work. I hear my brothers talking to the firefighters, telling them we didn’t know if anyone else was in the house. They explained what happened and that we’d been there to get Josephine away from the asshole who kidnapped her. They keep it brief but give enough to satisfy any and all questions for the time being.
The EMS crew put Josephine on a backboard and transferred her to a stretcher before starting to the ambulance.
“Go with her,” Beast states gruffly. “Imma stay behind. Make sure to find out about Porter.”
I nod and start after my woman when I hear the most precious sound I think I’ve ever heard in my life . . . Josephine gasping for air.
“Josephine,” I yell and rush forward, pushing one of the paramedics to the side. “You’re safe, baby, we got you out of there.”
“Aaron,” she croaks.
“Right here, Freckles.” I might hate hearing my name at any other time, but right now, it’s a fucking blessing.
“I love you,” she murmurs and passes out.
“Sir, it looks like she’ll be okay. Just smoke inhalation, and some small burns, but we’ve got to get her to the hospital, have her checked out,” one of the paramedics informs me.
“I’m riding with you.” I nod, informing them, leaving no room for refusal.
There’s no way I’m about to let my woman out of my sight. Not now. Not ever. Fuck, I’m never letting her anywhere out of my grasp.
