Page 86 of Tore Up

“I GOT HER!” Than shouted.

I broke into a run toward the sound of his voice. Shoving branches and scanning the darkness until I saw him. His arm was around her. She was wrapped in a towel.

Ignoring him, I scooped her up into my arms. Wide eyes stared up at me. Her face was streaked with tears. The sorrow shining in them ripped at my soul.

What had happened?

“She was sitting on a log,” Than said.

I couldn’t say anything just yet. At least not to him. To any of them. They’d done something. She had been so fucking upset that she walked into the woods.

“You’re back.” Her voice was raspy.

“I am.”

She sighed and rested her head against my chest. “I’ll leave. You can stay.”

My arms tightened around her. Like fucking hell she was going anywhere. But we’d discuss that later. Right now, I had to get her home.

Oz stepped in front of me, coming from another direction, and walked toward my truck. He opened the driver’s door, then nodded his head for me to go to the passenger side. I didn’t argue. Letting her go wasn’t something I wanted to do.

When I reached the truck, Ransom opened the passenger door for us, and I climbed inside. He closed us in, and Oz headed toward the house.

“What happened?” I bit out, fucking livid with every damn one of them.

“Don’t know,” he replied and glanced at me. “But she hasn’t been eating much or saying a lot. Before you start taking swings, you might want to look in a mirror.”

When I winced, my arms flexed, and she stared up at me.

I tried to leave, little brother. This is what happened. She needs me.

I pressed a kiss to her forehead, not giving one fuck about Oz seeing it. They were all gonna have to accept it. I’d tried. I couldn’t turn this off.

He barely rolled to a stop when I swung open the door and climbed out.

“I can walk,” she said softly.

“No, you can’t,” I replied. Because I needed to hold her. It was all that was keeping me calm.

“He’d have wanted it to be you,” Oz called out behind me, and I stilled but didn’t turn around. “He wouldn’t have wanted her to do this alone. He’d have wanted her taken care of. And he would have wanted it to be you. If someone else got to love her, you’d have been his choice.”

My chest burned. I started walking again and didn’t slow down until we were in my bedroom. I sank down with her on the large black leather chair that sat in the corner of my room. She tried to get up, and I shook my head, not loosening my grip. I wasn’t ready to talk just yet. I pressed my lips to her head again and inhaled.

“Bane,” she said.

“Yeah?” I replied, my voice thick with emotion.

“What are you doing?”

The corner of my mouth twitched.Acting like a fucking psycho. “Holding you.”

She let out a shaky breath. “Um, I got that. I meant, why are you holding me?”

That was a loaded question. I wasn’t sure she wanted that truth just yet.

“You scared me.”

“I’m sorry.”

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