“Nffft!!” I scream, panic filling every crevice, every cell of my being.
Before the man can remove his gun, the room shakes underneath my knees, and dust from the ceiling floats down. One of the paintings on the wall comes crashing down.
“What the fuck was that?” Andrew asks, letting go of my hair. For the first time, his voice sounds unsure.
All seven men hold their guns up at the invisible threat, and my heart leaps at the prospect of the others finding Lachlan and me.Please, please please–
“All good out there?” Andrew asks, speaking into his phone with one hand, and holding his gun in the other. “Aye. Very good. Check it out and let me know.” Hanging up, he smiles down at me. “Did you think yourLordswere going to come rescue you? I have bad news for you. There’s no sign of them anywhere–we have the entire perimeter to our property guarded.”
My eyes flick over to Lachlan’s, and he has the same hopeful expression on his face that I’m sure is mirrored on my own. I look over at Cocoa next, whose tail is wagging.
Interesting…
“Now, now, where were we?” Andrew asks.
The sound of cracking wood permeates the room as another blast–this one located where the wooden door stands–causes the men holding us hostage to yell and swing around with their handguns.
Otto strolls in holding a machine gun. His eyes are black with rage, and he cocks his head and grins as all seven guys cock their little weapons.
We all know they’re no match for the machine in his hands, which is why none of them shoot. A few of them look between the others, and as my eyes drag over Otto’s wild hair and clenched jaw, I realize they’re in trouble because I’ve never seen him this fucking wrathful.
“Hello, boys,” he drawls. “Fancy seeing you here.” His eyes find mine, and something dark and possessive comes over his expression as he takes in my position. “Hello, darling.”
And then he shoots–taking all of them out in less than five seconds. The sound of repetitive gunshots causes my ears to ring, but when I look back up at Otto, he’s brushing a piece of white-blond hair from his forehead like he just swept up some crumbs instead of killing seven grown ass men.
Max and Alex walk in immediately after, each holding their own machine gun. When Max’s eyes lock on me, he runs over and begins to untie the rope around my head.
“Fuck, are you okay, little minx?”
I nod as the rope comes away and I move my jaw around. Alex is untying Lachlan a few feet away, and Cocoa currently has her front paws on Otto, balancing on her hind legs as her tail wags.
“And who is this?” Otto purrs, reaching down to pet her.
“Her name is Cocoa. We got her from the shelter for my fourteenth birthday. She was one when everything happened…”
His eyes go wide. “She’s yours?”
I nod as Cocoa trots over to me, licking my face wildly.
“Guess we’re taking her with us,” Max says, helping me stand.
My eyes find Lachlan’s, and he walks over to me and pulls me into a tight hug. I feel Alex come behind me, and then Otto and Max group around us, and we’re all holding each other as Cocoa yips and excitedly runs in circles around us.
“Let’s go home,” I whisper, my voice thick with emotion.
CHAPTER 33
Lachlan
I hiss as Kitt cleans my wound in the kitchen of the manor. It’s midday, and after we confirmed that Citadel had been eliminated completely, we sent word to Buckingshire Palace to notify the King. He and Alex spoke for a few minutes, and the rest of the plane ride back to London was spent recounting everything to Harlow and the Lords. We were congratulated on a job well done, and when we landed, Kitt met us to look both Charlotte and me over.
“Sorry, mate,” he mumbles, replacing the gauze and applying a fresh bandage. “Make sure to change this twice a day. If it gets red or starts to ooze–”
“Yes, yes, I know,” I grumble. “Thank you.”
“You’re lucky the bullets embedded into your muscle and missed the brachial artery. You would have bled out in two minutes had that happened. It’ll make healing easier too, though absolutely no lifting anything for a few weeks while the muscle heals, okay?”
“Sure, doc,” I joke, smirking. “Thanks.”
