AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Hold him.”
Someone grabbed his arms and attempted to pin them behind his back while another stepped up with his steel-toe boots and began delivering kicks that would have ended his chances of having kids if he hadn’t managed to twist his body at the last second.
With a roar, he fought hard, dislodging them, bashing them with lethal punches and getting one in a chokehold that knocked him out cold.
Two down—four to go.
“Carver!” The high-pitched scream from the doorway distracted him, and he took a fist to the eye. His head rocked. Stars burst behind his vision, but he shook his head.
Livia. He had to get to her.
As he whirled to block her from entering the room, he met her stare—just as an arm locked around her from behind and dragged her off.
Guess there were seven.
* * * * *
Livia took short, shallow breaths through her nostrils. Battling for air always made her panic. Once in third grade, a boy had cornered her on the playground and pinned her down on the ground, hurling accusations about her father messing around with his mom.
She had no idea what any of that meant, and didn’t find out till much later. But the thing she recalled most about the incident was her panic at not being able to breathe.
The rough hand locked over her mouth sent adrenaline spiking through her system. Her heart hammered her chest. Her stomach clenched with terror.
This was all her fault. If she hadn’t sent Carver into the stockroom to check on the supply, those men never would have jumped him. When she heard the commotion, she shot toward the room to check what happened—then he yelled for her to lock herself up and call the cops.
When she spotted him in the center of a full-on brawl, and saw it was six to one, her stomach hit the floor.
Carver was amazing, holding his own the best he could…but it wasn’t even close to a fair fight.
The look on his face when she was grabbed from behind and dragged off would haunt her forever. He looked…broken.
No. She had to fight her way out of this and prove to him she was tough and a survivor, just like he was.
Together, they would fight their way out of this situation and back to each other.
Her captor ripped her off her feet and plunked her down hard in a chair. When her head stopped spinning, she took in her surroundings.
Her office. The man shut the door, closing off the grunts of pain coming from the stockroom.
Carver.
A man approached the chair. He wore a suit, which was odd for these parts. The only time a man around here pulled a suit out of his closet was for a funeral or a wedding. She got the feeling he wasn’t doing either.
She tipped her jaw up and met his stare. “Who the hell are you?”
His mouth curled in a vile sneer. “You wouldn’t know my name, but it’s about time you do. Your father knew me well.”
A cold tingle slithered through her body, leaving her chilled to her fingertips.
He leaned over her, bringing the sharp scent of cologne. The idea that he’d taken so much care to dress for this occasion—terrorizing her and beating up her boyfriend—sent disgust through her.
“I go by a lot of names, but the one your father knew me by is on the contract he signed with me. Jered Smythe.”
She stared at him blankly. The name didn’t trip any alarms. She shook her head. “I’ve never heard of you.”
“All you need to know is that I gave your father a loan. And he still owed me when he died.”
Oh god. Panic swept Livia, stealing her ability to breathe even though nobody was cutting off her air supply now. Of all things her father had done—cheating, lying, neglecting her and her little sister—she could see him adding this to his list.
