Page 121 of Queen of Spades

I’m still twenty or thirty feet away when the man places her on her feet.

The dogs whine with their tails wagging, like they want recognition for doing their jobs.

The poor woman falls to her knees.

One of the men offers support, helping her up, but she slams her head back into his face.

He drops her, she spins between the two men for a few seconds, and she takes off.

Well, shit.

She turns the corner on the other side of the garage, but her screams fill the air again.

Dammit.

This is the worst rescue in the history of all rescues.

That poor woman is probably traumatized for life.

I jog toward her without looking back.

My entire body feels disgusting and sticky with drying blood, but I move as fast as I can. The fingers of my left hand wrap around the two blades strapped to my thigh as I come around the corner.

I’m going to need to grab the one Lucien took from me. I bet it ended up in the grass somewhere by the shed.

My jaw falls as I spot Laken wrapped around Ranger. I mean, I assume that’s who she is. I can only see the back of her head, but my brother palms her hair with wide eyes.

“You made it.” Tanner stands behind Ranger, but I have no idea where he got that assault rifle. “I found your brother.” He nods to Ranger, like maybe I missed him. “I thought we should stick together. You know, like, the buddy system.”

I can see Ranger roll his eyes from here. It would normally make me smile, but there are three dead men slumped on the ground, and they’ve all been shot, execution style.

Ranger still has his gun in his hand as he cradles Laken's skull.

Huh.

I didn’t see that coming.

She ran from the two mostly sane guys trying to save her…straight to my brother. Maybe the chaos has her senses malfunctioning.

Chapter Forty-One

Annika

Ido my best to comfort Laken, but that omega wants less than nothing to do with me.

It makes sense.

If I were her, I’d probably hold a grudge too.

Maverick and Gunner’s dogs circle her as she sits on the ground, wrapped up in a blanket. She probably thinks we’re all crazy. It seems like she trusts the canines. They’re the only things, besides Ranger, that she’ll let within five feet of her.

I promised Lyra I would look after her sister…

And I’ve tried, but I’ve also asked Laken to leave with us so many times, I think it might be inappropriate to push the issue any further.

Ranger strides our way with three large steps. He’s also covered in blood, so I’m baffled why the woman seems more comfortable with him than me. Okay, I don’t know why it’s bothering me so much, but I think it’s the overwhelming guilt I feel any time I look at her.

“We’ve got this handled,” Ranger says, frowning at me. “I think it’s best if you and your pack head back to the hotel.”

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