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He cannot be in any kind of state when I leave here tonight that means he can come for her.
I hold a palm up and indicate Rose to stay still, and she nods.
I whip my head back toward Julian. He’s holding something that the other guy has handed to him from inside the Range Rover.
Nausea gut punches me as he raises the black hoodie to his nose and inhales with a perverse groan.
“I wonder if she tastes as good as she smells.”
My reserve snaps. He’s got his filthy fucking fingers on her things. He’s smelling her.Vanilla and petals.
The one scent in the world that calms me. The abuse of that one thing is what finally pushes me over the edge until all I can hear is my own pulse thundering in my ears.
“You’ll never fucking find out!” I storm out from my hiding place, only meters away, and go straight for his legs, barrelling into him and bringing him to the ground with a satisfyingthunkof bone cracking against concrete. “You’ll never lay one disgusting finger on her! Or anyone else, you piece of shit!”
I pound his face with my fists. Each hit like sweet fucking therapy to my soul. Therapy for the words he said that night, all those years ago. The comments he made about Jasmin. The realization that men like him exist. Vile, despicable predators that will take what isn’t theirs and feel nothing while they do it.
Euphoria spreads through my body with each connection my fist makes. But this wasn’t part of the plan. He should have just opened the fucking container. Then everything else would have been put into motion.
Julian laughs, spitting blood up into my face, momentarily blurring my vision. Long enough that his piece of muscle he brought with him can land a punch into the side of my head, knocking me off balance and allowing Julian to roll out from beneath me, still laughing as he spits more blood onto the floor.
I jump to my feet and position myself between the two of them and the gap between containers where Rose is hiding.
“She’s not here. She left that in my car.”
Julian’s on his feet again, and he scoops Rose’s black hoodie up from where it’s fallen to the ground.
“You wish that were the truth.” The corner of his mouth lifts, and his eyes glitter as he looks over my shoulder. “Nice boots.”
All the air leaves my body in a rush. I don’t want to turn around. Because I know. The dread threatening to make my heart stop inside my chest is enough to know.
“I’m sorry, Dax,” Rose whimpers.
I turn, meeting her wild eyes from where she’s being held with her arms behind her back by Julian’s other guy. A guy whose face looks like it’s taken its fair share of beatings in its lifetime. He grins at me and one gold tooth glints.
“Get your fucking hands off her!” I yell, sweat running down my back as I advance on him.
He pulls a gun from his belt and presses it to Rose’s temple.
The click of the safety being released signals the sound of my soul breaking as I freeze.
No. No, no, no.
“Let her go. You can take me,” I spit as I whip my head back toward Julian.
Where the fuck’s the backup?They’ve got a fucking gun to Rose’s head, for God’s sake. How is nothing happening?
Realization settles in my gut like lead.
They’ve left me here to rot alone.
I wanted out. I told them… I wanted out. I should never have let them talk me into it. Finish the job, they said. You’ll get what you wanted. Julian out of the picture. You’ll be free, you’ll get justice.
And it’s all I wanted.
Once upon a time.
Before her.
