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“You stupid bitch!” His gun swung towards me and I flinched, but Gabi had gotten back up and before he could point it directly at me, she kicked him in the nuts.
“Take that, asshole!”
He dropped to his knees, but Gabi kept kicking. Scrambling to my feet, I joined her, kicking him for all I was worth. It felt like retribution for what he did for me, and when my foot connected with his face, I actually wanted to smile.
But then he lifted his gun again, and I knew this close, he wouldn’t miss. So I knocked Gabi out of the way, covering her body with mine. A shot rang out, and I squeezed my eyes shut, waiting for the pain, but nothing happened. I couldn’t move, though. I was frozen over her, worried if I opened my eyes, I’d see her dead or bleeding out beneath me because I moved too slow. Gabi was a good friend, and it broke me to think of losing her.
“Gabriella!”
“Rosie!”
Big hands wrapped around my arms, pulling me away from Gabi. I couldn’t make myself look, sobbing as a familiar cologne took over my senses. Viktor. He pulled me into his arms, hugging me tightly.
“I’m okay, I’m okay.” Gabi’s low murmurs made me gasp and my eyes flew open. She was sitting a few feet away, cradled in Dmitriy’s arms. He kept looking her over, his hand roaming her body as he checked her for injuries. She rubbed her forehead against his chin, tears slipping over her cheeks as she let him check on her.
I didn’t realize Viktor was doing the same thing until I felt his fingers brush over my face. I leaned into his palm automatically and he paused to let me.
“I am trying to see if you are well, ?????. Are you hurt?”
I shook my head. “I’m okay.”
It was hard to fully wrap my head around that. Everything still felt really loud and overwhelming, but I was back in Viktor’s arms and my friend looked unhurt. Things could’ve been so much worse.
ChapterThirty-Two
Since they didn’t knowif there were still bad guys watching the tower, they brought us to Mariana’s place instead. I didn’t get to see the front entrance when I arrived the first time, but this time, in the front seat of Viktor’s SUV, I got to see why they called it a compound. You’d never know from the inside that there was such intense security around the place. There were patrols with dogs, men with big guns by a security booth. There were even what looked like a few people on the roof watching us as the guards searched the car for explosives. My jaw was on the floor when we passed through the massive gate.
Despite all that, the front of their home was beautiful. Spanish style, like on the inside, with an enormous fountain that we had to circle to get to the front door. Mateo was waiting for us, his normally jovial grin gone. He looked more like a criminal now, glaring past us towards the gate like he was daring someone to try to follow us in.
“I heard there was trouble at the site,” he growled.
Dmitriy nodded. “We will discuss it inside. Is the doctor here?”
Mateo snorted. “Who isn’t here? Jo called in their little club and made my home their headquarters. She was about to start search parties for those two. I believe she was arguing with her husband about it when I got your call.”
Gabi smiled, still tucked against Dmitriy’s side. “I love her.”
Mateo flashed her a grin. “Don’t we all. Come now, preciosas. We need to get you checked out by our wonderful doctor.”
He led us inside and through the massive house to a living room near the kitchen. I never really had a chance to explore, but I was too tired to look around now. I leaned heavily against Viktor, dead on my feet but still eager to see my friends.
They were all there, sitting on sofas and chairs, talking amongst themselves. There were laptops and phones everywhere, like they’d been part of the team looking for us, and they all looked stressed. When we piled into the room, Jo launched to her feet, racing over to Gabi and throwing her arms around her neck. Britney approached me slower, which I appreciated. She took my hands, her eyes tear filled.
“We were so worried about you two.”
“Jo, you’re going to make yourself sick. I know I smell right now,” Gabi complained, though she made no move to release her friend. Jo ignored her, squeezing her tightly until Liam came over and pulled her away.
“Let’s let them get cleaned up and checked out first. Come on, baby.”
His tone in all the times I’d known him had been harsh and dark, but he sounded almost sweet as he drew Jo into his arms and rubbed her back soothingly. She had started crying at one point, and she leaned against him heavily, trying to breathe through the tears.
Mateo led us upstairs, but I hesitated when he pointed to two different rooms. After everything that happened today, I wanted to hear that Gabi was okay, too. She was pregnant, and she’d been through a lot.
She flashed me a watery smile. “I’ll be okay. We’ll meet back downstairs when we’re through. Okay?”
Nodding shakily, I let Viktor lead me into a familiar room. The room we had been staying in when we hid here from Carson. He nudged me towards the bathroom, sitting me on a bench in front of a large vanity before turning his attention to the shower.
“We will rinse you off and then I will run you a bath, yes? You look too tired to stand for long.”
