Page 48 of Savage Escape

He complied, though for a second he looked like he wanted to rush her. Two knives and a gun were silently kicked towards her and he righted himself. Lips pursed, he straightened with his hands still up. The one in the chair did the same, though he only had a handgun.

“Nathan, where is he?” The only possible exit was the window. She couldn’t get by Scarface without him attacking her to get to the door.

“If you’ll just let Reid go—” The big scarred one was still talking and the one in her hold had stopped sputtering.

“Do you have him? Did you kill him? Tell me where he is and just who the fuck you are, and I’ll let him keep his neck as it is.”

“My name is Jackson Savage.” He jerked his head towards the quiet one on the other side of the room. “That there is Holden Savage.” With a small gesture, he motioned to the onein her choke hold and grimaced. “And Reid...Savage. See the pattern here, Xena?”

“Savage?” Her hold loosened automatically at the name.

No.

No fucking way was that true.

Nathan had said he’d had brothers, and that they were soldiers. They’d magically tracked his ass down? Then found them again in the tiny house? And what? Whisked them off into the sunset? But there was no fucking way that anyone, not even Nathan Savage, was that lucky. No fucking way.

Caden had been through mind games before and came out the other end mostly unscathed. Just because he knew Nathan’s surname didn’t mean shit.

“Yes, ma’am,” he grunted and tucked his head in, effectively angling the damaged side of his face away from her, like it had something to do with why she was freaking out.

What had he said about Jackson? She couldn’t remember. All the names he’d spouted had blurred in her mind. Another bout of nausea had her stomach knotting and more sweat leaking out her pores. How could she test them?

“What’s Nathan scared of?” She remembered the things he’d admitted about himself.

“Anything with more than four legs, the man’s a pansy. Can’t even squash a fuckin’ bug without screaming his fool head off,” the quiet one decided to chime in from all the way across the room. “His middle name is Albert. His favorite color is yellow. His eye color is blue. He weighs like, what, two hundred and something? He cries like a baby whenever he watchesThe Lion King. Want his social security number?”

They were both stone-faced and scowl-y and somehow those scowls were familiar. Caden could feel herself relenting. Indecision had her tightening her hold on Reid, who didn’t make a sound.

Reid was the one with a squirrel and the PHD in doctoring, fuck, what was it called? Medical science... practice? Who fucking knew. She’d liked the stories Nathan had told her about him.

After a long moment of hesitation, Caden forced herself to let go of the only leverage she currently had and released him from her choke hold. She kept the needle in an upright and ready position. Reid righted himself, rubbed his neck, and took a step back towards her.

“Back off,” Caden snarled and shoved the needle in his direction.

“You’ve got to sit down at least.” His hands went up at her growl, and he took a step back. “I’ve got to reattach the IV and get some meds in your system. I didn’t know what you were allergic to and Nathan didn’t either?—”

“Nathan...” Her arm was trembling now and her knees were quaking, but she was only a foot from the window. She couldn’t make her voice cooperate. She didn’t want to ask. Didn’t want to know that she’d failed yet another person she was responsible for. Didn’t want to know that he was lying dead in a ditch somewhere. Dead, the blue-white kind of dead that he couldn’t come back from. “Is... is he... where is he?”

They all started talking at once. Well, Reid had never stopped; he’d just gotten louder and more indignant. Caden could feel exhaustion setting in. Adrenaline was wearing off.

“Goddamn soldiers, you are not invincible, you need time to heal.” Reid just kept on ranting and eyeing her like she was going to kill over at any moment. “Sit down! Pick up the weapons if it makes you feel better. But please just sit down. You need stitches and we need to put that arm in a cast.”

“Oh yeah, Reid—that’s a good idea. Tell her to pick up a gun and shoot us all.” The one Scarface had said was named Holdenwas scoffing and moving forward at the same time, like she wouldn’t notice his giant ass getting closer.

“He’s alive. He’s in the other guest room.” Jackson’s voice was rough and gravelly and hit her like a fist in the gut.

“You’re aggravating your busted ribs. I have to get some antibiotics in you. Please, just sit down.”

“All right, shut up!” Caden raised her voice and jerked the needle in Holden’s direction. “Take another step, Gigantor, and you’ll fucking lose an eye.”

He stopped in his tracks, hands up in surrender, and shot her a smile. “Can’t blame me for tryin’.”

“Where is he?” She steeled her voice and dug her nails into her palms until she could speak without her voice breaking and began again. “He’s alive?”

“Jackson...” Holden spoke up again. He jerked his chin towards her, which obviously meant something to the other one.

“I see her. There ain’t no need to go plunging out the window, ma’am.” His tone was all kinds of annoyed. As if he hated the fact that he was telling her not to jump out the window. “We didn’t go through all the trouble of keeping ya alive just to hurt ya. You are safe here.”

---