That was nice of him.
“Um,” my voice cracked, holding the hem of my shirt. “F-fantasy?” Grim stayed beside me, his body moving closer. His gaze never left my face; I could feel the heat of his stare on my cheek.
“Yeah, like seeing things you wouldn’t normally see?” His men shifted their feet on the other side of the room. “Hey, look at me. No one will hurt you, none of us. I know it seems contradictory to how we look, but we wouldn’t harm a woman.”
“Sorry, that’s a little hard to believe when most of the men in my life want something. Regardless of how they look,” I said.
Grim growled again.
I flinched. I needed to keep my mouth shut.
The man frowned. I felt Grim’s body heat on my arm. The heat was enough to warm me all over, but I stiffened anyway. Any touch was just...unbearable right now. Too many bodies, too many eyes, it was all overwhelming..
“I’m Locke. We are Iron Fang, a club that helps people in trouble. We are going to take you home. Just have to ask you a few other questions, and you can be on your way. Do you have some family you want me to contact?”
Ha. Family.
“No,” I mumbled. “I don’t have any family.”
Locke pursed his lips, crossing his arms. “That so?”
I glared back at him. What the hell was wrong with him?
“Yeah, no family. I’ll be fine on my own. Thanks for saving me, I think.” Maybe it would have been better to have died with the others.
I hung my head, looking at the trail of blood. I had almost forgotten the whole reason Grim had barged into the room.
Aedar had mysteriously appeared behind me. I was in the middle of a call when I saw him looming in the corner with a menacing look in his eye. Then all hell broke loose when Grim barged in and beat him to a bloody pulp. I thought I was next.
My eyes continued to trail the floor beside the now broken computer. Hunks of flesh that were once attached to a body lay littered near the door. There was no more Aedar, just a pile of bones and meat. It was a scene so obscene I gagged at the sight.
Now, Grim, who just killed Aedar, stood beside me. His breath fanned my neck, as he made sure I didn’t run.
Should I be standing so close to this killer? He’d just violently murdered…slaughtered a person in front of me. He didn’t flinch, didn’t second guess himself, and he could very well do the same to me.
“You alright?” Locke stepped closer. Grim pulled me back into his chest like Locke wasn’t to be trusted.
Were any of them to be trusted?
The metallic smell of blood wafted toward me as Locke came closer. My hand went to my nose. I shook my head until I felt lightheaded.
Grim grunted deeply, shaking his head. He lifted me up into his arms and covered my eyes with his large hand. I felt him tighten his grip until I lay against his bloody jacket.
Was it sick and wrong that I felt safe at this moment? He freaking killed a man. No, he mauled him to death, and I was cuddled up to him. It was a feeling I shouldn’t have, feeling safe, but I couldn’t help but sigh into the enormous chest.
I had lost all my senses. I was giving up, giving in to the demise that was set before me. If I could just have this five minutes of someone holding me close, maybe I could take that and remember it for the rest of my life.
It would give me hope that at least one person on this earth cared.
So, I was taking it. I sighed deeply into his bare chest.
“Get away,” Grim murmured lowly.
Locke stood back, his hands pulling back in surrender.
“That is the most I’ve ever heard Grim talk. Does anyone have a camera? I gotta record this shit,” the other man snickered. My fingers gripped the vest underneath Grim’s jacket, glancing at the various patches.
“Let’s get her out of here. We can ask more questions later. Switch has all the info we need, and some cops are pulling in at the front. Let’s go around back.” Locke went straight through the crowd, and the men parted, following behind. Grim grunted in reply, following closely.
