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"KJ," I said, trying to focus in the darkness. "Take Sadie and get her secured. We will set up the traps around the property."
The rules of the game required us to find a secured location for our queen, and then she had to be restrained by her hands and feet and tied to something stationary. We could protect her and the site by any means that wouldn't cause serious bodily harm or death.
"Dig that hole a little deeper," I ordered Carter, who was creating random potholes around the yard to slow anyone heading our way down.
We were almost done when a blood-curdling scream of terror ripped through the quiet night.
They found her. I bolted towards the back of the house, not bothering to see if Ethan or Carter were with me. I knew the consequences of them finding her and taking her, and I would kill them before they put their hands on her.
"Sadie," KJ called out, his tone desperate. "Shhh—" I rounded the corner to the back of the house and halted when there was no one but KJ and Sadie.
"Please," she screamed, fighting against the restraints. "Please, no. Let me go. Get them off." Her voice shook with fear, her face wet with tears. I stormed up the five steps stepping onto the porch. My first thought was that this was a joke, but the look on her face screamed that she was terrified. My chest tightened.
What the fuck happened?
"Get them off," she cried, fighting against KJ and the straps around her wrists.
I pulled at the ropes around her wrist franticly, my eyes locked on hers. I freed her hands from the ropes pulling her into me and holding her tightly against me. Her chest heaved as she drew in long deep breaths.
"You're okay," I whispered, my eyes flicking to KJ, questioning him without saying a word. He shook his head, confusion pulling tight at his facial features. "You're okay."
No one said a word for several long minutes.
"Sadie," I said, careful not to startle her.
"No," she whimpered. "Please, I can't." She clenched my shirt tightly in her fist. "Please don't put those on me."
"Did KJ hurt you?" A chill raced up my spine as my mind flashed back to him, asking if we were going to fuck her. My jaw clenched. If he touched her, I'd kill him.
"I didn't," he started, his tone pleading.
"I was talking to Sadie," I cut him off.
"No," she said. "I'm not hurt. Please just don't put those on me."
"Game over," I said, holding her tight against me. "I'm taking Sadie home."
"Jay," KJ scowled. "We will have to forfeit."
"Then we forfeit," I ordered, feeling Sadie trembling against me. "Go let them know we are out."
We'd never forfeited a game before; in fact, most times, we won, but it suddenly didn't feel that important, and if any of my team had a problem with it, I would deal with them later, but I suspected they wouldn't confront me.
With a sigh, KJ nodded, following Ethan and Carter down the steps.
Sliding out of my jacket, I wrapped it around her shoulders.
"No more ropes," I said, brushing my knuckles over her cheek. She drew in a shaky breath nodding before blowing it out. Sadie wasn't the type of girl who scared easily, but she was terrified of being restrained, and I could help but wonder if there was more to the story of her dad that she'd left out that caused this panic attack tonight. Or had someone else hurt her?
Sadie and I had an unspoken agreement that we respected each other's privacy. She didn't ask; I only told her what I wanted her to know, but this was different. I would give her the walk home to calm down, but then I wanted the whole story.
* * *
Opening her fridge, I grabbed the one bottle of water, noting how empty it was. One jar of strawberry jelly, half a loaf of white bread, a bottle of ketchup, and two apples. I'd never seen a fridge so bare, even on the day I finally decided it was time to go shopping because there was nothing to eat.
Twisting the cap off the bottle of water, I sank into the couch beside Sadie, who was staring blankly at the ceiling.
"What was that about?" I handed her the water, and she took it, shaking her head. I knew she wouldn't want to answer. "Sadie?"
