Page 70 of The Sentinels

What.

The.

Fuck.

There was some kind of sick show on TV that she was obviously being forced to watch. I crouched down in front of her to block the view, and cupped her face to get her attention. The sound of a crash from somewhere at the back of her apartment made me hesitate for a brief second. I knew that I should go check it out. Instinct warned me that it was the fucking culprit making a noisy exit from her apartment, but in that moment Emerson was my priority.

"Emerson!" I could tell by the glassy look in her eyes that she'd gone to some place dark. They were glazed over and unseeing. "Emerson! Look at me, baby." I held her face so that she had nowhere else to look but at me. "Look at me, Emerson." The screaming stopped and she slowly met my eyes. "That's right, baby girl, focus on me." The wild gleam in her eyes gradually cleared as she quieted down, as did her rapid breathing. She was coming back to me, but she wasn't completely there yet.

I untied the rope, keeping my eyes locked onto hers as I worked. I was afraid that once we broke eye contact I'd lose her again. "You're doing so good, baby. Just keep your eyes on me." My gaze shifted briefly to the vomit on the floor, and I grimaced. Fuck, whoever had done this to her was a fucking dead man. I fought to contain the rage that was building inside me. She didn't need to see that on top of what she'd already gone through.

Once the rope was loose it fell to the floor. Emerson jumped at me with a broken sob, wrapping her arms around my neck and clinging to me like a frightened child. I clenched my jaw at the force of her trembling. "You're safe now, baby girl. I've got you," I said in a soothing tone that I hadn’t been aware that I was capable of. "No one is going to hurt you again."

She didn't respond to me, and I realized that she was in shock. I picked her up and headed toward her bedroom. The first thing my eyes lit on was the broken window, and I knew that I couldn't leave her there. I grabbed the blanket off the top of her bed and went back into the living room, heading toward the couch. It wasn't ideal, but it would have to do for now.

I had a phone call to make, and I didn't want her to hear what was being said. I laid her down, but as I started to move back she clung to me.

"I won't leave you," I promised, meaning it. My words seemed to calm her, and she slowly released me and settled back into the cushions. I covered her and sat there for a minute staring down at her.

Christ, it looked as if she'd aged ten years. Her complexion was pale and blotchy, even her lips were colorless. Remnants of crusty, dried vomit stained the corners of her mouth. I reached up and gently wiped it away. For the first time in my fucking life I was afraid, and I needed answers. I clenched my jaw as rage towards the person who had done this to her took control. I waited until Emerson closed her eyes and didn't open them again before I rose to my feet and pulled out my phone.

I walked away from the sofa and hit Tanner's number, not giving a shit at how late it was. He picked up immediately.

"What the fuck—"

I ignored his grumpy tone. "Need you all at Emerson's, brother. Something happened."

"Fuck, she okay?" There was immediate concern in his tone.

I glanced over at her small form. "Fuck no, but she will be. Can you bring one of the old ladies with you?" Something told me that Emerson might feel better if there was another woman present.

"Yeah, be right there." He hung up.

I knew he'd call our brothers in, too. They needed to be involved in this, whatever the fuck it was. We had each other's backs and we handled shit together, even when it didn't involve another MC. That's just how we rolled.

I walked back to Emerson's bedroom to the broken window. Something caught my eye on the floor beneath the sill, and I bent to pick it up. It was a motel room key, an actual key on a piece of dirty plastic, and not the newer card key that was commonly used. That told me that the asshole was staying at one of the older, cheap motels. It wouldn't take long to find out which one. I hoped Sully brought his laptop. The brother was a whiz at finding out shit.

I stole a glance out the window, but it was too dark to see anything. Besides, if the person who’d done this to Emerson was smart, they were long gone. I sent Heath a text to get his cousin, who worked as a handyman, over there first thing to repair Emerson's window. I was going to make sure that she had a security alarm system put in, too. Mike could oversee that.

I went back to the living room. My gaze went to the TV to see that the screen was now blank, and a light was blinking. For the first time I realized that someone had put in a video. I went to the TV and removed it. It wasn't a movie; there were no markings on it to identify what was on it. Recalling the little bit that I'd seen when I'd come in, I knew that watching it might lead to some answers

I walked back to Emerson to check on her. Thank fuck her color was returning, and she looked alive again. I reached down and ran the back of my hand over her cheek, my gut clenching with some kind of strong emotion when she unconsciously leaned into my touch. Everything in me tightened, in a good way. It occurred to me then what this woman meant to me. I'd been denying it long enough.

I ran my hands through my hair, determined to find the bastard who had done this to her, determined to find out what secrets she’d felt compelled to keep from me. If she didn't trust me after this, I didn't know what I was going to do, but one thing I did know was that walking away wasn't an option.

I went to the cupboard where I knew she kept the liquor and searched through her meager offerings. At last, toward the back, I found a bottle of Jack. I uncapped it and took a long swig, hearing a knock at the door as I set the bottle down. The door opened before I had a chance to respond. Tanner and Ruby stepped into the room, with Sully and Mike right behind them.

I took in what Sully had in his hands. "Thank fuck you brought your computer."

He shrugged. "Had a feeling we might need it."

"What the fuck happened here?" Tanner gestured toward the broken door jamb.

"I had to get inside."

His gaze moved about the room, his eyes darkening when he noticed the chair and the rope, and he began to reach his own conclusions. "Shit," he mumbled.

"What happened?" Ruby questioned with concern, moving to where Emerson lay on the couch.

---