Page 89 of Cruel Vows

The door slides open, bright light flooding in.

A man with a shining gold tooth stares at us, his smirk growing. “Good. The boss was worried that the two of you weren’t going to be awake when his fun begins.”

Sean shouts something against his gag, but it comes out as nothing more than a strangled noise that is a less-than-convincing threat.

The man laughs and nods to the side, four more men appearing to flank him.

They haul Sean out of the van first, his arms tied tight behind him, his legs bound together. He tries to use the leverage to kick at them, but he only falls on his face.

The man smirks and shakes his head, glancing back at me. “Come on, or I’ll tie you up fully too.”

I slide out of the van and stand.

Though I don’t know why my legs aren’t bound too, I’m not going to argue with them. Noah might be underestimating me, and I can use that to my advantage.

All I’ll need is a moment when they’re a little too relaxed with me, thinking that I’m just going to sit back and wait for death.

One of the men clamps his hand around my bicep, dragging me into what looks like an abandoned warehouse well out of the city.

Everything around us is made of cement, broken windows, and cigarette butts. There are a couple different doors on the exterior of the building we’re led into, but most of them are chained shut or have wooden crates piled in front of them.

Getting out of here might not be so simple.

Sean says something again before throwing his head back and slamming it into the nose of one of the men holding him.

There’s a sickening crunch and blood dripping down the man’s face before he turns to door to the right, yanking it open and shoving Sean in.

Heavy thuds follow the shove and I scream, lunging forward and trying to get to him.

The men hold me back, dragging me against their bodies as the man with the gold tooth leads the way into the darkness, the two who had been holding Sean following behind.

The man’s grip on my right bicep tightens. “You’re not going to try anything funny, or I’ll throw you down the damn stairs too.”

We descend into the darkness, and when we get to the bottom, there’s a brightly lit hallway.

Sean is being held between two men, his nostrils flaring and his eyes wide. He jerks his chin and I know it’s an order to run, but I can’t do that right now.

Not without knowing where they’re going to keep him so I can come back for him.

I glance at the doors made of closely placed bars on the cells right before Sean is shoved into one, his head bouncing off the metal. He groans and shakes his head as he’s pulled back, swaying slightly on his feet.

One of the men opens the door and Sean’s gag is removed before he’s shoved inside. There’s another thud before the door slams shut and the man with the gold tooth keys in something on the keypad beside him. It lights up a bright green around the edges.

He snickers at Sean. “You better get used to being in here. These are the only four walls you’re going to see until Noah decides he’s good and ready to deal with you.”

I surge against the hold on me the second it loosens even the slightest amount.

“Jace, take care of her.” The man in charge nods to the goon on my right arm and he hauls me into the cell beside Sean’s, ripping the gag from my mouth.

Sean slams his shoulder against the bars. “If any of you touch her, I’ll kill you myself. You’re a dead man walking.”

Jace snorts and shoves me against the wall. “Sounds like your husband thinks he’s in a position to talk right now. You’re not going to start running your mouth like he is, are you?”

I press my lips together, looking down at the ground and shaking my head.

The weaker and more timid these men think I am, the better my chances of trying to escape.

Though, as Jace unties the ropes around my wrists before walking out of the cell, that chance of escape isn’t looking good. He slams the door shut, the metal clanging.

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