Page 78 of Lexi, Property of Rhyder

And now I’ve found her, I’m going to lose her all over again.

That’s the last thought I have before I blackout.

LEXI

What just happened?

How can this be?

One minute I’m in the throes of passion with a man that I hate, and the next Rhyder appears ready to save me.

When I realized who it was, I couldn’t believe he’d found me. Honestly, I thought I was hallucinating. There stood this man with anger pouring off him. He had Gail in a headlock and with a gun pointed to her head. When he finally looked down at me, shame washed over every inch of my body. Rhyder knew I’d been intimate with Master, how could he not. I was lying there practically naked and flushed.

Rhyder had come for me. I prayed he would, yet I didn’t think it was possible. But somehow, he found me. And now, he could be taken away from me.

I cry and scream as I crouch down on the ground, begging for him to keep his eyes open telling him I don’t want to lose him. His eyes look at me, but they’re distant. I place two hands on his wound to keep pressure there, but blood gushes out through my fingers.

Master’s saying something, but I don’t listen, I can’t.

Shame washes over me when I think about how I let that man touch me, how I wanted to be touched. He’s not who I wanted—it’s Rhyder, it’s always been Rhyder.

I should have let Rhyder kill him.

But how could I?

I’m not the monster Master is.

As Master says something else, a group of men, wearing biker cuts burst around the corner with guns aimed. They point them at Master. One of them, who has the clearest blue eyes, drops to his knees opposite me and takes over my hands as he fights hard to keep the blood from flowing out of Rhyder’s chest. He looks at me and yells, “What happened?”

No words seem to come out, and I mumble, “Who shot him?” Not making any sense.

My eyes travel to his leather cut, and I see the President patch followed by Quill. This must be the President of the Blood Brothers MC. He grinds his jaw and looks up. “Hawke, call an ambulance. He’s been shot bad.” I follow his line of sight, and a man with blond hair grabs out his cell and dials. I hear him conveying where we are and about Rhyder’s gunshot wound.

Two men have Master forced down on his knees, while his arms are yanked behind his back. His gun is lying on the ground. He looks at me, and I turn away when I hear Rhyder struggling to breathe.

I cry out in mental anguish and yell, “Hurry. We’re losing him.”

Quill grabs Rhyder by his leather cut and growls, “Don’t you fuckin’ die, do you hear me? You fuckin’ die, then I’m going to kill you with my bare hands.”

I don’t try and make sense of his words, I just run my fingers through Rhyder’s hair trying to wipe away the blood that’s seeping out of his mouth. I can hear commotion beside me and see two of them dragging Master away.

“What will they do with him,” I ask.

Quill looks up at me, his face set in stone. “None of your concern. He will get what’s coming to him.”

I swallow hard, understanding his meaning, but my attention turns back to Rhyder when he begins to choke. “Help him. Help him,” I cry. In the distance, I hear sirens. “Stay with me, Rhyder. Help is here. Just a little longer.” I force his face to mine. “I won’t lose you. Do you hear me? I won’t.” I cry and rest my head on his shoulder. “Please, please, don’t leave me.”

The ambulance parks in front of us, and two EMT officers run with a stretcher. Quill and I move back when one EMT kneels beside Rhyder checking his vitals. He states medical terminology to the other EMT, and then he yells, “He’s going into shock, begin CPR.

I watch in horror as one covers his mouth and nose with a breathing machine while the other does his counts. Guilt washes over me when I see Rhyder lying there helpless and fighting for his life.

“It’s all my fault. It’s all my fault…” I cover my face with my hands yelling over and over again. “It’s all my fault. It’s all my fault…”

Hands force me to stop and turn around and look into piercing blue eyes. “Stop it! You’re not to blame. Do you understand? You didn’t come here of your own free will. Did you?”

“But… but… I shouldn’t have—”

“Don’t! Rhyder wouldn’t want you to blame yourself. It was his choice to come here, not yours. Right now, you need to be strong. Not just for you but for him.” Quill’s eyes move to Rhyder on the ground. He clears his throat, then says, “Rhyder needs you. Now is not the time—”

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