Page 126 of Ruthless Beasts

"The guards are all dead," he confirmed, the glint in his eye shining with the streak of lightning. "It's just us. And if you will not pull that trigger, I suggest you let me finish killing off Mr. Ferrari so that I can move on with my night."

Let him kill Adam? Was he fucking delusional? I'd never. "No."

"Well, then..."

It all happened faster than my mind could register. He stepped toward me, and Lady barked. The sharp sound caused me to jump, then hesitate as he took another step. Lady jumped forward, and his knife instantly connected into the tissue of her shoulder blade as he flung her to the side. I pulled the trigger, but nothing happened. Distantly, Adam was shouting, but I didn't understand.

Safety.

Safety.

The fucking safety.

Accardo charged, plowing into me full force, the gun flying from my shaky fingers as my back hit the tree and my eyes connected with Adam's as he fought against the rope that we both knew he'd never be able to free himself from. My hand reached out, grazing Adam's shirt before Accardo grabbed me roughly, picking me up and throwing me against the cement bench.

Pain seared through my body as warmth ran down my legs. I gasped, my eyes fluttering as his fingers dug into my bicep, his face close to mine as he pulled me up to his height. "You will watch him die. After that, you will do what I say, or I'll end you."

Why did I feel like he had already ended me? That my life was teetering on a ledge of life or death, and it all depended on this man whose fingers bruised my skin so roughly. I reached up, my fingers wrapping around his wrist as I tried to pull them away from me. He wouldn't budge. Digging my nails into his skin, I promised, "I'll never do what you say."

He leaned forward, a threat on his lips, but before he could speak, I slammed my head forward into his, and while he was stunned, I let my teeth sink into his cheek as he screamed and fought to get me off him. I refused to release him. Let him writhein pain. It was nothing compared to the pain he'd caused me this last hour alone.

His fingers gripped my scalp, and with some considerable effort, he pried me loose. "You fucking bitch."

Without letting go of my hair, he hurled me downward, slamming me into the bench one more time before pitching me toward the ground, my head landing awkwardly on a rock. My vision grew blurry, and I blinked, trying to stay conscious even as my head pounded, and the pain was taking over everywhere.

Accardo stepped over my body, walking the few steps to my husband before digging another knife from his boot. "It appears your wife likes to misbehave. You really should have gotten that under control before the marriage."

"She's perfect," he declared.

"I'm going to kill you." Accardo sighed as he looked at me. "Then I'll take my grandchild. Both of you can rot here on this earth."

I tried to move, but the pain was all-consuming. I couldn't wiggle a single muscle, even though I was screaming inside for my body to cooperate. My head throbbed too much, the pain in my abdomen so excruciating that I could think of nearly nothing else, and try as I might, I couldn't bring my eyes to focus.

I reached a hand out, blood coating my palm. From where? I couldn't piece together where the blood had come from. Who did it belong to? My mind tried to focus on that question, but as soon as I thought it, it floated from my mind in a haze.

Accardo's hand threaded into Adam's beautiful strands of hair, pulling his head back so sharply that I could no longer look into his eyes. I missed them instantly, missed the connection I had to him, and I was desperate to get it back. I rolled over, scooting slowly toward my husband as my arm reached out desperately for him, but each shuffle seemed impossible. My body was too heavy; my muscles felt like lead.

The knife skimmed gently against Adam's neck as it trailed down his body, hovering just over his heart. The rain pelting down drowned my hoarse whisper out. "No."

"Don't worry. She'll die a hell of a lot slower than you will. And it will be so fucking satisfying." Accardo spoke against Adam's ear before he pulled back, his arm cocked, ready to plunge into my husband's heart, and right before the tip of the blade met skin, milliseconds before my entire world stopped, a loud crack broke into the night, and Accardo froze. The knife fell, bouncing off the cement bench before his knees buckled under him and he crumbled to the ground. Slumping to the side, his face landed mere inches away from mine as he stared into my soul with lifeless eyes.

CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

ADAM

My eyes squeezed tight, waiting for an impact that never came. I didn't want to look at her when I died. Didn't want to see the disappointment in my wife's eyes over just how weak I was. I wasn't weak under normal circumstances, but when had anything about this relationship ever been normal?

When the blade never pierced through my skin and the pain never came, I willed myself to open my eyes, only to see Accardo at my feet and Hannah frozen at the garden's entrance, a gun in her outstretched hand. I glanced back down at the body, then at my wife, and my heart jolted up to my throat, clogging my airway. Even with all the rain, I could see there was so much blood. Too much to be safe. Her skin was pale, her eyes glassy, and still she weakly reached toward me.

"Hannah!" I shouted, trying to tear her friend out of the stupor she was in. "Hannah. Look at me. Look at me!"

Fuck. I wasn't sure if I should remain calm or go into a full hysterical mode. My wife was at stake here. Her wellbeing was always going to be my priority. I took a deep breath. "Hannah.Look at me. Put the gun down. He's gone. Please. Belle needs us."

Hannah bit her lip, her eyes blinking rapidly as she focused on me. If the rain hadn't been falling so hard, I knew tears would stain her cheeks, but I couldn't concentrate on how she was feeling. Couldn't care about the turmoil that was plaguing her over killing a man when my wife was growing weaker at my feet.

"I need you to untie me. Take his knife and cut the ropes." I’d deal with Belle, since clearly, Hannah wasn't capable. I owed Hannah my life, and I'd repay her a million times over, but I couldn't worry about her right now. "I need you to call 911. Can you do that, Hannah? HANNAH?"

Her lips trembled, either from emotion or the bone chilling cold that was seeping in with the rain. She nodded vigorously. "Yeah. I can do it."

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