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“You’re crazy!” I was sobbing now. Eagle wasn’t moving. “I’ll die before I let you have me again!”
“No, you won’t. You’ll come with me because, like all women, you crave life. You’re too soft to actually take your own life. Not when you have the chance of living.”
I didn’t want to die. But a future in the hands of a sadistic madman, a future without even a glimmer of hope Eagle would find me… wasn’t a future I wanted. Owen Asher was the first man I’d ever known who treated me with decency. His club had as well, but Eagle was the first. He was the only man I’d ever willingly given myself to and I’d done it eagerly. Did I love him? As much as I knew what love was, I supposed I did. If our positions were reversed, he’d guard my body with his last breath and that’s what I intended to do with him.
A shot rang out in the night. Milo screamed in pain. Blood sprayed from his body in the night breeze and he fell forward onto the landing. I screamed as I went under. Blindly, I reached for Eagle but he’d floated away from me.
“Help!” I struggled to stay afloat, only surfacing long enough to suck in a breath and scream one single word. The more I fought, the harder it was to keep my head above water.
Someone grabbed my arm and I screamed, lashing out even as I went under again. A strong arm went around my chest and lifted me to the surface.
“Take a breath, Nyla!” The command was stern, the voice familiar.
“Eagle!”
“We got him. Stitches is with him. He’s breathing.”
“What?”
“Stop fighting me!”
I turned my head to see Cyrus behind me, taking us to the shore a short distance from the landing. Sure enough, Eagle sat in the grass while Stitches looked at his head. He didn’t look like he knew where he was, but the second he spotted me, he yelled.
“Nyla!”
“Eagle!” I struggled, needing to reach him more than I needed to breathe.
“Easy girl! You’re gonna drown us both!” Cyrus kept moving with sure strokes. How he managed to drag me along with one arm and swim with the other I’ll never know.
The second my feet touched the muddy bottom, I stumbled to the grassy bank and crawled on my hands and knees the few feet to Eagle. Stitches had ahold of him, holding him back from coming after me. I flung myself into his arms and completely lost my mind, crying and grieving with all the subtlety of a raging bull.
“I’ve got you, baby. You’re safe.” He was trying to comfort me when I could feel him trembling as he held me.
“Me? You were shot in the head!”
“He grazed me. Knocked me silly, but you saved me by turning me face up in the water.”
“I thought he’d killed you!”
“I’m all right, honey. I swear, I’m all right.”
“I want to go home,” I whimpered.
“We need to get you to the hospital, Eagle,” Stitches insisted. “I’m pretty sure you’re good, but I’d rather get a CT to make sure you don’t have a skull fracture.”
“Yes,” I whimpered. “Do that. I’ll go with you.”
“Baby, you’re naked and wet. Let the guys take you home, and I promise I’ll be right behind you.”
“No! I’m not letting you out of my sight!”
“Fuck,” Stitches muttered.
“What the hell happened?” Eagle demanded. “I thought Milo was locked up!”
“Not sure,” Cyrus said as he got out of the water. “If Wylde hadn’t been keeping an eye on him we’d never have known he’d gotten out.”
“He said he locked him in a hole and threw away the fuckin’ hole! What the fuck?” Eagle was livid. Anyone could hear it in his voice.
“Yeah,” Stitches muttered. “That’s not going away any time soon.”
“Not if I can help it.” Cyrus sounded more irritated than angry, but then he wasn’t like the other men at Iron Tzars. I couldn’t process that now.
“I thought I’d lost you.” My strangled whisper was so soft I wasn’t sure if he heard me. I was talking more to myself than Eagle, though. I burrowed as close to him as I could, needing to reassure myself he was really alive.
“You didn’t, baby. I’m right here. Bit worse for wear, but I’m still with you.”
“How did he even find us?”
“Don’t know. But we’ll find out.”
“Is he dead?”
“He will be.” Cyrus looked toward the landing and I followed his gaze. Two men from the club had him on his chest, tying his hands behind his back and his feet together. They’d gagged him, but Milo still struggled to get away.
“They shot him in the belly,” Stitches said. “Not sure if he’ll make it to the barn with the others, but either way he won’t be alive long.”
“Too fuckin’ bad,” Eagle snapped. “I’d like to take him apart slowly. Over fuckin’ days. Months!”
