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Taking another deep breath, I force my eyes open, blinking a few times so I can focus a little better, but this time, I settle my stare on Axel who is already staring intently at me.
“Take the fucking shot, Ax,” I repeat, firmer this time, and the world slows.
His hand flexes around the gun, his tongue flicking out as he considers his options. Kincaid’s chest rumbles with a chuckle against my back, the sound piercing to my ears as he clenches my fist tighter. The tip of the blade presses into my neck, nicking the skin. Ryker inches forward, considering whether to get his gun back or not, but none of that matters.
A cold glaze drops over Axel’s features, his decision made as he aims the gun up by an inch. The laughter stops, the hold on me softens at the same time a boom rings out, and a bullet flies in my direction.
Kincaid ducks, leaving me to stand on my own wobbly feet as I accept my fate, falling backwards as the world goes black.
THIRTY-ONE
Emmett
Wind whipsby us as we speed down road after road. My foot is pressed down so hard on the accelerator pedal, I’m surprised it hasn’t broken through the floor of the SUV. Fear creeps down my spine as I put more and more distance between me and the woman I love, but hopefully cutting the distance between me and my sister.
My heart is torn, split between the two people it beats for. Anger zaps through my veins, and I slam my fist into the steering wheel. “I’m never going to forgive myself for driving away from her.”
“Emmett, you and I both know she would never forgive herself or us if we didn’t,” Shift states from his seat beside me. I know it’s true, but it doesn’t ease the tension rising inside of me.
I grunt in response, no words summarizing my thoughts as I pray for the SUV to go faster. The quicker I get back to the compound, the quicker I can hopefully be free to race back to Scarlett.
My mind replays everything we watched and heard on the setup Shift had put together. When she pieced together where Emily must be, my heart soared, but then I realized the distance between the two. My soul plummeted when Ryker gave the order I couldn’t dare speak.
Shift and I were to leave, while the three of them stayed to get her out.
After watching her put on a show for him, luring him in with a web of bullshit to release Emily, I could barely breathe. I was sure the end was coming, ready to cause a damn riot in their compound, but when he opened the doors to the basement, my blood ran cold. The sound of her breathing became more labored with every step she took down there. We were already packing and ready to hit them hard when she said Declan's name.
Fuck.
It’s causing me more pain that Shift left the camera feed with the others, leaving us blind. It’s a blessing and a curse all at once. I need to know what’s happening, but fear would pull me off the road and away from my current assignment. That would only make the distance between us mean nothing at all, and I need to trust the other guys.
Swerving between cars on a busy afternoon wasn’t how I was planning on spending my time, but when I finally see the compound up ahead, none of it matters. I hear Shift murmuring on his cell beside me, and the gate opens in time for me to not brake, before we come skidding to a stop at the compound doors.
I don’t switch the engine off, I don’t shut the door behind me, and I don’t look at anyone or anything until I’m through the main door and have eyes on Declan. He’s sitting in a booth with his father and some of their men. As I charge toward him, the thud of my boots hitting the ground is masked by the bass from the music. I see a flash of Maggie in my peripheral vision, but brush her off for Shift to handle as I grab the back of Declan’s cut and yank him from his seat.
“Where the fuck is she?” I growl, pushing him toward the table behind him as he bends backward, arms up in surrender between us.
“What the fuck, Emmett?”
“Where. The. Fuck. Is. She?”
“What are you talking about?”
Rage slams through me at his bullshit attempt at playing dumb. “I will carve out your organs one at a fucking time, before severing your dick and making you choke on it if you don’t tell me where the fuck she is in the next ten seconds.”
“Boys, what the fuck is happening right now?” Graham grunts as the music cuts out and the room goes silent.
I tighten my hold on Declan as I glare at his father. “Fuck off, Graham. Your son’s been working with Kincaid the entire time you’ve been here.”
“What?” His shocked grunt isn’t a surprise, it was obvious he had no clue.
“Yeah. Just like Molly was, but we wanted to see how things played out. Unfortunately, your time’s up,” I snap, pulling Declan back up as I snarl in his face. “Now, where the fuck is she?”
“I still don’t know—”
Screw this motherfucker.
Rearing my fist back, I smash him in the face. The crunch that sounds out and the blood that instantly pours from his mouth and nose is nowhere near as satisfying as I had hoped.
