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Haidyn releases my wrists, and I bring them to my chest, trying to shield myself from Saint.
“Take her home.” Haidyn gets to his feet. “I’ll cover for you.” He stands and walks away from us, heading back toward Carnage.
“Come on.” Saint gets off me and grabs my hand, pulling me to my feet. I stumble back from him, and he stands before me, staring. I blink the fresh tears streaming down my face, trying to stabilize myself on my shaking legs. He steps forward. “Ash—”
I take another one back.
Reaching up, he runs his hands through his hair. “I need you to understand something…”
“Don’t touch me.” I manage to get out through the knot in my throat.
He places his hands out wide. “You can’t stay here, sweetheart. I have to take you home.”
I shake my head, wrapping my arms around myself.
“Listen to me, Ashtyn,” he commands, his voice so harsh it makes me flinch.
My watery eyes lift to meet his dark stare.
“Either you willingly leave with me, or I tie you up, gag that pretty mouth of yours, and drag you from these woods.”
Drag? As in with a rope around my neck? The blood rushes in my ears. How did I not know what Saint was capable of? How could I have ever felt so safe around him? How many women has he hurt? Killed? What will it take for him to do the same to me? I remember my father telling me what he must do if I didn’t bleed for him. I never stopped to think about it until now. That only due to pure luck, he hasn’t done to me what he just did to that woman.
He reaches down and undoes his belt, and my heart leaps in my chest. “Ok-ay…okay.” I swallow. “I’ll leave with you.” If I allow him to tie up and gag me, I won’t have a chance.
SAINT
Haidyn had tossedme the keys to a car that he has here because the last thing I wanted to do was put her on the back of my bike to take her home.
She follows me back to Carnage, and we get into his car. She sniffs. “Where do you want to go?” I ask. I can’t take her to the house of Lords because I have to come back here, and I don’t want her there without me.
“My place,” she whispers.
I’m not sure how much she saw. Haidyn just messaged me that he was with her, and she was in the observation room. I want to ask her, but I’m just going to assume she saw all of it by how she reacted.
Reaching over, I touch her thigh, and she jumps. “Ash—”
“How could you do that to her?” she asks softly.
I sigh. “We have no control over what our fathers order us to do.” It’s true. When we run Carnage, we’ll have full say, but until then, we will do as we’re told.
“How long will you keep her in that?”
“I’m not sure.” Again, that’s up to her husband. He was the one who brought her in tied up in his trunk.
“What else will our dads have you guys do to her?” she wonders.
I run a hand through my hair. “They…” I stop myself, unable to finish that sentence. The truth is our fathers won’t touch her. It’ll be everyone else who gets their piece. I can’t say I feel sorry for the woman. She deserves it. The innocent aren’t sent to Carnage.
“That was her husband, right?” she whispers. Again, I don’t answer. “What if she’s pregnant?” she asks softly.
“Carnage is no place for a child.” That’s the only way I can think to respond to that question. I’m not saying it’s right, I’m just saying that if she is, I can’t save her or the baby. It’s up to her husband since he’s the one who turned her in.
“How could he do that to her? He’s supposed to protect her.”
“Lords don’t marry for love.” Some do, but it’s rare, and she already knows that. She’s just trying to justify what she saw.
She doesn’t ask any more questions. Instead, she sinks further into the passenger seat. I pull up to her house, and she’s out before I can even open the driver’s side door.
