Page 9 of Nikolai (Kansas City Reapers)

I tried to breathe, but each inhale came in shuddering, uneven rhythms that did little to send oxygen to my scattered brain.

“Slow it down,” the soft voice commanded. He lifted my hand from where my fingers clutched at my thighs, bringing it to rest open-palmed against his chest.

Immediately, I knew why.

The slow inhale and exhale of his breath. The calm, steady rhythm of his heart.

I steeled myself, focusing on those patterns until my breath matched his.

“That’s better,” he said after a short while. He hadn’trushed me, but silently guided me back to reality. “You were having a panic attack.”

I could only nod.

Slowly, he stood, pulling the chair beside me and making himself comfortable.

“I know this isn’t good timing, but we really need to discuss this folder,” he stated, holding up my police file in his large hand.

“Niko, I’m not sure that’s a good idea. She just went through hell,” Sully countered, his brow furrowing in concern. I appreciated that more than I could express.

“No, Niko’s right. The faster we get more detailed information, the better.” Jax stated matter-of-factly, walking to the kitchen to refill his glass.

“I already gave my statement to the police, several times in fact,” I argued. I didnotwant to go through that again.

“I understand you don’t want to go through it again, but it only happened a day ago. Often, the information one gives in the original statement isn’t entirely correct. Memories get forgotten or distorted because you are in shock. So going through it again will give us more insight,” Niko explained softly.

“I don’t know what more I could say. So, I’m not going to say anything.” With all the attitude I possessed — and a bit of a flight response triggered — I pushed my chair back from the table, walking away from the men in the kitchen with my arms wrapped protectively around my chest.

“Ms. Ayers, please wait. We need to—” Nikolai called after me, but I tuned him out immediately, climbing thestairs two at a time in search of the refuge my room offered me. Closing it behind me with a loud crash, I breathed a sigh of relief to see a lock on the knob.

Tears spilled down my cheeks as the lock clicked into place.

Privacy, and a moment’s peace at last.

If you could even call it peace.

Chapter 3

Maddy

I must have fallenasleep at some point in the evening after crying myself near to exhaustion, lying on the surprisingly comfortable bed myjailershad placed in the prison they called my bedroom. Some small part of my mind had noted the handmade and well-worn comforter and down pillows as my body had eventually succumbed to the need for rest. Well, at least it was a comfortable prison.

I sat up, rubbing sleep from my eyes as I realized the room had gone pitch dark. Had I slept the entire day away? A glance at the alarm clock on the bedside table showed it was nearly two in the morning. Shit. That probably looked bad, refusing to come down for the rest of the day. What must they be thinking about me? More importantly, did I even care?

The sound of my stomach gurgling, demanding to be fed, suppressed any worries I may have had. That grilled cheese sandwich had been the first food I’d eatenin too many hours, and the unsightly noises coming from my middle were making it clear that it had not been nearly enough.

I tiptoed to the door, unlocked it, and peeked my head into the hallway to see if there was anyone clearly awake. I doubted it, but I still wasn’t sure I was ready to face anyone just yet. Having satisfied myself that I was indeed alone, I crept down the stairs to the kitchen in search of food.

I opened the fridge quietly, only to have the light nearly blind me in the near-total darkness. It was a wonder I had made it down here without knocking into something and banging up my legs with bruises. I still had no idea what the layout of the house was.

“Finally get hungry?” The gruff voice from behind nearly made me jump out of my skin.

“Christ!” I screamed, fear seizing my heart in a vice grip as I spun on my heel to face whoever was behind me. In a rush, all the feelings of that night came flooding back into my mind, stealing my breath and gripping my heart with icy claws. I looked around wildly for somewhere, anywhere, to flee.

“Breath, little lady. It’s okay. You’re safe here. Nobody’s gonna hurt you.” The voice called to me, breaking through my panic. I sucked in deep, gulping breaths, trying to calm my pounding heart.

I am safe. I’m at the safe house. The only people here are the men hired to protect me. I am safe. Breathe, Maddy. Breathe.

Slowly, I turned around to face whoever had spoken to me.At the table sat… well, I couldn’t remember his name. The grumpy one who had stormed out. He sat there in pure darkness, the light from the fridge illuminating his form just enough for me to make out his face and the glass of dark liquid that his hand wrapped around.

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