Page 85 of Daughters of Chaos

Smacking him with my free hand, I tell him, "Stay awake. Keep holding pressure on your wound. I'll be right back."

He grimaces but nods, pressing his other hand over the top of the one staunching his bleeding. I move, crawling as fast as my knees will take me to Archie's gun. With each second, my breathing gets heavier.Almost there.

I throw a quick look at the closet where Nix and Lace are, loosing a breath when I see the door is still secured and undamaged. Safe. My sister is still safe. And I plan to keep her that way. I look back at the gun.A few more inches, and I'll be there.

The bullets slow even more as I get closer. My fingers are almost around the grip when they seem to stop altogether. Ialmost breathe a sigh of relief, but then a loud explosion sounds from the front, then the side of the house—another two bombs, another two fiery blasts. Sirens are starting to sound in the distance. Far away, but getting closer.

Help is coming. The police are on their way.

My fingers tighten around the weapon and I let out a heavy exhale.It's almost over. Help is almost here.

The second the thought leaves my brain, I hear the crunch of glass behind me as someone enters through the open back door. "Well, well, well. Look what we have here."

The sound of an unfamiliar voice makes my stomach drop. They're here—the Bastards made it inside. I close my eyes, steeling myself for what I know I have to do. When I open them, I'm already moving, whipping around to aim at Dom's guy. I pull down the hammer and ready my trigger finger. When the shot rings out, it goes wide. He saw it coming and batted me out of the way, knocking the gun from my hands.

"That wasn't very nice," he chides, moving closer with a feral grin. "Looks like we may have to teach you some manners."

I prime myself for a fight, scrambling to my feet and taking a defensive stance. My attacker chuckles, "Ohh, I like you. I like you a lot."

"Fuck you, asshole."

His laugh sounds maniacal as someone else grabs me from behind. I start fighting back, letting my defense training kick in, but it's no use, not when the damp cloth closes over my mouth and nose. Not when the fumes invade my senses. It's all useless once my mind starts going blank. I fight it as hard as I can, to no avail. They don't fight fair, and I don't stand a chance.

The only salvation I'm granted is the sound of someone saying, "Only her. There's no time left to find the other one. We have to go." At least the universe gives me that. If I know nothing else after this, at least I know she's safe.

A demented laugh chases me into the unconscious as the clubhouse fades to black. "Good to see you again,Wild Thing." That familiar voice is coated in evil. I know what he has in store for me is brutal. He's finally stolen his prize . . . My mind rages until my last tether of control slips away.

Then, there's only silence. Dark, lonely silence.

51

Phoenix

Ringing. That's all I hear. Ringing from the gunshots whirring around outside as Lace and I huddle close in the closet. Raven is out there somewhere . . . Rae and Mason, Stitch and the others. They're out in harm's way as we're tucked safely away in this closet.

My eyes sting, thinking of what might happen to them, what may already have happened. Inside this tiny room, we have no clue if anyone is hurt or dead. We don't know how long this fight will last or how much damage has been done."Wait here,"Raven begged before she closed us in. Wait until she or the others come to get us.

But how long will it be? How long has it already been?

The wait is killing me, and my fear is taking hold of me alongside something else—anger. I'm so angry at the Bastards for doing this to my family. For trying to tear us apart pieceby piece. It isn't fair. I've only just found them. We haven't had enough time together, not even close. We need more time.

My fist clenches around the bat in my hand—my weapon since Lace and I couldn't get into the gun safe. I've never been angrier in my life nor so afraid. It's a strange combination in light of what's happening outside our door.Is this how Rae feels all the time? Angry and afraid of some scumbags coming in and hurting us.I don't know how she does it all the time, staying so strong with the world weighing so heavy on her shoulders.

She's always been the tough one, the one who stays strong and stands up for our family against anyone looking to tear us apart. If you asked her, she'd tell you it was always her burden. She's always been protective, shielding me from the bad and ugly in this world. It's why she locked me in this room with Lace—to protect us while putting herself in harm's way. It's how she's always been . . . brave, strong, resilient.

If only she knew how much I loved that about her—how I wish I could be more like her sometimes.

The sound of sirens closing in cuts through the ringing and halts my spinning mind. Outside, the gunshots stop.

I hear several motorcycles rev up and fade into the distance. It must be Scar's crew retreating. The fight has to be over now, right?

The sirens grow closer as heavy footsteps rush into the house. Frantic yelling echoes through the destroyed living room. "Phoenix! Phoenix, where are you?"

"Lace!"

"Raven!"

Mason, Stitch, and Jesse's voices ring through the space, and I release a shaky breath.They're okay.Pulling Lace with me, I open the door, listening as their voices grow more and more distressed. "Phoenix!"

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