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“This is taking too fucking long!” I spied a shiny box on the wall behind Marcus and raced for it. Seconds later, I hefted the fire ax and smashed it against the door handle. The first blow shook my entire body, and only made the smallest dent on the handle. A hair-raising scream came from the room. Someone in unimaginable pain.
The sound gave me strength I’d never known I had. I brought the ax down again and again, until the door banged open and flew off its hinges.
Winter stood in the middle of the room with Trent looming over her. I started forward and froze in place as I took in Trent’s face. There was a piece of long, pointed metal sticking in his eye. He fell to his knees, and my brain rebooted.
Winter looked at me, her hair plastered to her head, her skin whiter than paper. She swayed and I raced to reach her before she fell. We sank down together. She turned her head to Trent, who was whimpering on the ground, blood running like a river. It was a gruesome sight.
“Don’t look, baby.” I tilted her face away and found her shocked gaze. “Just look at me.”
I smoothed her wet hair back. “Keep looking at me. Everything is okay now. It’s over. It’s all over. I’ve got you. I’m here, and I’m going to take you home.”
Her eyes focused on me. “You’re here. You’re okay, and you’re here…and I love you,” she whispered.
“I don’t think I’m the one you need to worry about here, and I know. I love you, too,” I murmured, and managed a crooked smile.
She nodded. “I know.”
Something seemed to suddenly occur to her, and she tried to sit up too quickly. “Selena! She’s here too. You have to get her, too,” she managed, before the sudden movement caught up with her. Her eyes rolled back, and she was out. I caught her and swept her against my chest.
“Fuck, fuck! This is wild,” Marcus gasped, venturing into the room and looking around.
My gorgeous, brave girl has slayed her own demon.
I wished I could have done it for her, so she wouldn’t have those memories in her head, but I couldn’t deny how impressive she was. Your Majesty was a fitting title for my love. She was a queen.
“Shit! Asher, watch out!” Marcus yelled. He was looking in Trent’s direction. Fuck, I’d assumed he was out of commission.
I dove over Winter, sheltering her with my body just as a hard weight crashed across my back. The chair. I spun around and jumped to my feet. Trent was up, stumbling, but up.
“You! I’m going to fucking kill you both,” he shouted, reaching into his pocket. I had no idea what he had in there, but I couldn’t take the chance that it was something deadly. The axe was in my hand before my next breath.
Protecting Winter wasn’t a question, it was a goddamn necessity. An instinct as old as time.
Time slowed to heartbeats. One beat, the axe whistled through the air. The next one, Trent’s eyes widened as he saw it coming. By the third, it connected with a meaty thwack. I let go of the handle, shock rooting me to the spot. Trent staggered back, the axe buried in his chest.
He fell forward to the ground. Silence fell except for the streaming sound from the sprinklers. Blood spread across the tile floor.
“I’ll go and get Selena,” Marcus said faintly after a moment, heading out of the room.
I tore my eyes from Trent and looked at Winter. The blood was getting closer to her. I wrenched her into my arms and carried her out into the hall. Water was still splashing down over us, but it wasn’t waking her up. I carried her toward the sound of commotion. I had to find out what was going on, but I wasn’t letting Winter out of my sight.
I took her upstairs. The main entrance of the place was a mess. Embers smoldered behind the reception desk, the flames snuffed out by the sprinklers. Finally, the damn things shut off.
Cole was standing chin to chin with the Irish guy from the control room. Tension filled the space. The security guys for The Cove were lying about in various degrees of hurt, while the rest of the bikers were wandering around. A couple had taken off their cuts and put them on the women they’d rescued. There were about ten altogether, crowding upstairs from the lower levels. Each was in a state of undress, and anguish at the same time. Brutish biker hands smoothed blankets and jackets around their bruised shoulders.
Marcus staggered into the room, Selena at his side. She was in better shape than Winter. She burst into tears when she saw Winter and rushed to my side.
“The way I see it, as long as Duncan Fitzgerald and his piece-of-shit son are taken care of, I’m not bothered either way,” Cole was saying to the other dude.
The Irishman grinned. “That’s good to know. I’d hate to have to hurt your lovely gentlemen friends here, but I do have to take both the Fitzgeralds somewhere quiet to talk. I’m here for information, you see. Spilling blood and causing a little mayhem was just a fun diversion.” He glanced over at me and nodded approvingly. “There’s my partner in crime.”
“Me?”
He shook his head. “Your girl. She okay? She seemed like a fighter. I’m sure she’ll be grand in no time.” He looked at Cole. “The money in the safe, the CCTV footage of all the rich and influential men who have passed through here, and the various crimes they committed…it’s all up for grabs. Just give me the Fitzgeralds.”
Cole wet his lips. “And you’ll just let us take everything else? Very generous.”
“No, not generosity, payment for a job well done, and I told you, I’m only here for information. I have bigger fish to fry. I’m Bran, by the way. Bran O’Connor.”
