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“Callie, I know you must be confused right now. I have no idea what they put you through, but I promise you will never have to worry about them getting to you again. Please stay in the moment with me. I missed you so much. I thought I'd never see you again.” I look over at him, and he sighs. He really has no idea what's going on inside my head.
“That night when you left the house, I should've come after you. I thought you went to stay with Avery, but when I called her and realized you weren't with her, it scared the shit out of me.” Shaking his head, he grabs my chin and forces my gaze to his. “I thought I lost you forever.”
He did lose me forever. Being in his presence has some lingering feelings popping up, but my heart belongs to the guys now. I only loved the idea of Julian, I remind myself. Something was always missing between him and me. The Monroe brothers were missing. I fell for them while I was with them. Seb might be an asshole, but he is the way he is because he wants to protect his family. Things between the two of us aren't perfect, but I respect him. Kyler and Barrett made me fall for them fully, and I regret not telling them sooner.
After a few moments, Julian calls out to the mystery driver, who I completely forgot was there. Who even is he? Just more questions I need to figure out.
“Paul, can you stop at the next restaurant we drive past? My sweet girl needs to eat.”
“Of course, sir,” Paul replies.
Him calling me sweet girl is getting super fucking annoying. He spends the next 15 minutes catching me up on everything that's happened over the last few months. While it's nice to hear about Braxton Falls, it's almost like he's steering the conversation away from any real question I have on purpose. He tells me that Avery has been going out of her mind since I went missing. That's not true. I've talked to her a bunch of times. He's exactly who I thought he was- a liar.
Once we get to this restaurant to eat, I'm going to signal to one of the waitresses that I’m in trouble. If I tell Julian that I don't want to go with him on whatever road trip he is taking us on, there's a chance he might lash out. He's been acting like a complete psycho since he shot Kyler and took me from their house. I'm getting away from him and back to the guys so that I can find out what is going on. I have to hope that they’re all still alive and ok.
We pull up to a small rundown restaurant off the beaten path. Walking in, I notice the sign that says to seat yourself, so I walk over to the booth in the corner by the emergency exit and slide in. Aside from us, there's only one other couple in the place. It's not ideal if Julian does make a commotion, butwith the kickboxing skills Barrett taught me, I should manage just fine. I still wish there were more people here.
The server walks over to us, hands us our menus, and tells us about the specials of the day. I try making eye contact with her, but she doesn't look at me at all. Her gaze is focused on staring at fucking Julian.
Eating is the last thing on my mind right now, but Julian is insisting I eat something. I order a sweet tea, burger, and fries just to pacify him before excusing myself to the bathroom. I just need a minute to myself before I attempt this conversation.
When I walk into the bathroom, I look around, trying to find a backup plan. If the conversation between Julian and I goes awry, maybe I can sneak back in here and out a window. I'm disappointed when all I see is walls. Windows would make things way too easy. The emergency exit next to our table will need to suffice for plan B. I think I can outrun him. I can at least get a far enough head start that I can hide and wait him out.
After washing my hands, I head back to the table to see our drinks have already arrived. I sit myself down and drink half of it in one gulp, not realizing how dehydrated I let myself get. Almost immediately after drinking the brown liquid, I realize something isn't right. My head feels light, the room starts to spin, and before I know it, everything is consumed in darkness.
Chapter 36
Kyler
Someone's in the house. I nod over to Callie for her to stay where she is. I don't want whoever this is to see her. Hopefully, she can tuck into the corner and hide once I get out into the hallway and figure out what's going on.
I grab my gun and go to walk out the door, but before I have time to react, the bedroom door whips open, and I hear a loud bang. I feel a sharp pain in my stomach and look down to see blood oozing out. Immediately my hand goes to cover it but fuck, it's coming out so fast. Everything starts to spin, and I feel a little dizzy. I have to keep myself focused. Callie is still in trouble. Whoever this is could hurt her. My legs begin to feel wobbly as I grab onto the nightstand to try and keep myself upright, but my mind starts to blur.
I look over to Callie and see her pale face full of shock and horror. She lets out a gut-wrenching scream. "Kyler!"
I can't respond to her. I'm right here, wanderer. Everything's going to be okay. I try to say the words, but they don't come out. My vision begins fading in and out. I just need to make sure she's safe, but I don't know what to do. She hasn't stopped screaming for me.
I look back over at the door and see a manstanding there. I can't make out who he is, but thankfully, he keeps his gun aimed in my direction and not hers. I'll gladly take another bullet to ensure she is safe.
He yells out for her and grabs her by the arm, pulling her toward him. Hey, you fucking asshole! Don't touch my girl! I'll fucking kill you! Get your hands off of her!! The words swirl around in my head, but I'm not able to make them come out of my mouth. I feel a shooting pain coming from my abdomen and so much blood. It's all around me. I look up to try to find her again, but I can't see her anymore. I hear her yelling for me in the distance. "Kyler! Kyler!" She won't stop screaming my name. Finally, everything around me fully fades, and the darkness consumes me.
I come to a few minutes later, but I can't move. I see flecks of light coming and going, but I have no idea what is going on. The world around me has a quiet haze to it. From a distance, I hear voices, but nothing sounds like words. Where’s my girl? I need to make sure she’s okay. Fuck, why can't I open my eyes? Why can't I see her? She was just right here with me. The confusion swirls around me, and I remember someone shot me and took her. I swear if whoever took her hurts her, I’ll hunt them down and kill them. Everything goes black again.
Chapter 37
Sebastian
The shooting finally stopped, and everyone who found their way into our house is either dead or has retreated. I search through the top floor one last time, room by room, to assess the damage and ensure nobody is left alive. The first person I spot is Barrett. His head pops out of his room into the hallway at the same time mine does. Good, he's okay.
He and I clear our rooms, shutting the doors behind us to ensure if there is someone left in here, they can't easily run into them and hide. Barrett pops into the bathroom to clear it, and I head to Kyler's room. We keep the door for the fourth bedroom on the floor locked because we didn't want Callie to know it’s actually a spare bedroom, so that room doesn't need to be cleared.
My whole world stops when I breach the doorway of Kyler's room. The scene in front of me is terrifying. Kyler is lying on the floor not far from the bed in a pool of his own blood, and Callie is gone. I'm not even worried about clearing the rest of the house now. If someone is in here, they can come to me. I’ll kill every last one of the bastards.
"Barrett! Get in here now!" I yell out as I run over to Ky to check his pulse. Fuck, it's weak, but for now, it's still there. I grab the top sheet from the bed and push it into his stomach to try and stop some of the bleeding. Barrett runs in and sees Kyler on the ground and rushes over to us.
"His pulse is weak, but it's there. Bring the car to the front door and call Dr. X to tell him we're on our way. We pay him extra to be on call for emergencies like this, so he better be ready." Barrett nods and is out the door in a matter of seconds. X is our own personal doctor we have on retainer. When you work in a field like we do, there’s always the risk of injury. It never hurts to be prepared.
"Ky, can you hear me? I need to get you up." He doesn't respond to me. A minute later, Barrett runs back into the room telling me that the car is out front and X is waiting for us.
