Page 68 of Boneyard HEA

“I’m so sorry I got you into this. What can we do?” Juniper whispers.

“Nothing. Yet. Stay strong. I know you are. We’ll get out of this.”

I watch as they handcuff Tomás again, and he’s lead back into the tree line by Zasha, where I’m guessing they will make it so he can’t just run away easily. If Karsten is going to be told to release him, he’s in this too.

Shawn returns to us, smiles. “Got a pretty one and you, Mr. Loxland. We’ll teach you some manners once we get to the house. Behave and you go free too.”

Whatever behaving entails, it can’t be anything nice. “Are you the men who raped Riley?”

Worth a try.

He only laughs then turns to check the tree line where Zasha is emerging alone.

How corrupt is this fraternity? “I knew some of us must be doing illegal things but this…” I mutter quietly then I sigh.

“Shit. I’m not giving in. Remember that.”

“I will.” I am afraid, though, for her. Sounds as if they plan to let me go after a while, maybe with some guarantee I won’t chase them? I can’t see how that could work because I will never leave them alone after this. Fucking never.

“Up!” Shawn gestures and levers us both up with a hand on our elbows. “Time to go find our boat.”

He spots me gazing out to sea where the horizon is a faint line of darkness and light.

“She’s out there. Don’t you worry. You’ll be snug in our hold until we land again. Done?” he asks Zasha as he saunters up beside us.

“Done. He won’t get loose. The waves are choppy. Getting them on board without them falling into the sea will be fun.”

Juniper and I are herded into the dinghy with the threat of a gun at our backs.

“Absolute fun, boyo.” Shawn sits at the front of the two of us, grinning. “I can count the times we had more fun on my toes. That girl in France. The one in South Africa. That one here…Riley, wasn’t it?”

His grin widens when Juniper mutters, “Fuckhead.”

“Ooh, that’s a new insult for me. Don’t you worry, little girl, I’ll give you some of my head soon.” He grabs his dick. “The Evil House has many ways to fuck around with things like you.”

The Evil House? I almost laugh at the absurdity of that name. Even so, these men are capable of almost anything. They might do worse than all the horror movies I’ve seen. My imagination is doing its best to cram my mind with images of people being sawn in half while they’re being fucked.

There is blood everywhere in my visions. Fear floods in, sweeping away the carefully arranged pieces of hope I was clinging to.

Yet I know…I know deep in my bones that if either of us is to survive this, it will be me. I’m rich and have friends in high places.

And I’m trying not to dwell on what Tomás did, but the knowledge waits at the back of my mind, screaming soundlessly. I thought he was my friend.

I flex my fingers, for the cuffs are pressing on my wrists.

How much do they know of what we were doing? How did they find out? This kidnapping is not a minor thing, so they must have found out, somehow.

Neither of us speaks, as they rendezvous with a motor yacht and get us on board by making us climb the rear stairs. They install us in the main cabin, get us to lie on the bed then chain one of our legs to it. The operation is so smooth, it makes me wonder how often they’ve kidnapped people.

I’m still wondering when they break out a pair of syringes and give us both an injection in the ass.

Within a minute whatever drug is in the syringe is having an effect and the ceiling is blurring. Juniper has angled her head, so she and I are looking into each other’s eyes.

“You’ll be okay,” I reassure her gently, though without any real way to be certain I can make that happen.

Her brown eyes are half shuttered and softly close as she speaks. “So will you. See you on the other side.”

My heart, my heart. I’ve never felt this ache before. What is this strange sorrow I feel looking at her ready to accept her fate when I want to rage and protect her?