Page 97 of Stolen Sun
Isaiah steps into view and Veronica screams, retreating into the house. The second bodyguard shows his position when he cracks the blinds in a front window. The glass shatters as Zander fires at the movement.
“Two,” he says.
Isaiah rushes into the house to grab Veronica, and we all take off inside after him.
When I step in, a fist swishes past my face as I dodge at the last second. Pulling my knife, I stab the third man in the neck.
“Are there anymore?” I shout at Veronica.
She’s sobbing in a chair with Isaiah hovering over her. “Answer the man,” he orders.
She shakes her head and cries harder.
“Where’s my wife?”
When she doesn’t answer, Isaiah pulls her hair to show me her face.
“First door down the hall,” she manages to sputter out.
Isaiah rubs the top of her head and starts to speak to her, but I’m not listening. I’m down the hall with Zander on my heels. A music box is playing from inside the room. Inching the door open, I go in with my knife ready in case she was lying about there being no more men.
Once inside, I see Noel in the center of the room tied to a chair. The sight of her is worse than a thousand knives being thrown at me all at once. Rushing to her, I check her everywhere for injuries as she sobs hysterically.
“I’m here, sunshine. You’re alright,” I try to calm her down but focus on cutting the ropes around her hands and legs.
“What the fuck is this shit?” Zander asks behind me.
Turning around, I take in the room. There’s a TV on the wall she’s facing. The image on the screen is me fucking a woman from behind in a hotel room.What the fuck?It changes to another one of me with Leah in the elevator.
I throw my knife into the TV, shattering the screen. When I turn back to Noel, she’s crying into her now free hands.
The creepy fucking music box is grating my already frayed nerves. Chills run down my spine when I finally realize the song that’s playing. I’m going to rip his fucking face off.
“Zander, shut that fucking song off!” I roar.
Bending down in front of Noel, I take her face in my hands.
“That sick fucker will pay for all of this, but I need to get you out of here first.”
Her beautiful green eyes meet mine, and everything inside of me shatters. She’s utterly broken. Clenching my jaw, I do my best to hold back my rage, knowing she doesn’t need to see me as anymore of a monster than he’s already made her believe.
“Can you stand?” I ask her as gently as I can manage.
Her legs are shaky, but she gets out of the chair holding onto me. Once she’s close enough, she puts her face into my chest and grips my shirt in her weak fists. She holds onto me as we walk. I stop long enough to yank my knife out of the TV on our way to the door.
Commotion from the front of the house has me shifting myself to shield her from whatever is coming. Zander maneuvers to wait behind the door out of sight just before Nate walks into the room pointing a gun at my head. Noel’s tiny fists cling tighter to my shirt, and she presses her head against my back.
Zander tackles him to the ground before Nate has time to realize he’s in the room, and the gun slides across the floor. I rush out to take Zander’s place, dying to rip this fucker to shreds.
“Get her out of here,” I tell Zander as I step on the back of Nate’s neck to hold him in place for Zander to let go.
“I’m not leaving without you,” she screams desperately.
“I’m right behind you, baby,” I tell her, smashing my boot harder into him.
Zander has to pick her up and carry her out over his shoulder when she refuses to leave. She’s screaming at him to put her down as they walk through the house, which only fuels my rage.
When I bend down with my knife, Nate throws me off. I stumble back a few steps before catching my balance, giving him enough time to get back on his feet. He charges into me. I lose my grip on the knife when my back hits the ground.
