Page 45 of Reignite

Time in my world slowed. I felt mired in quicksand and couldn’t move. My heart wasn’t beating correctly. I could feel each pound of it against my chest, but it was far too slow. The muscles in my neck were working on reflex as they turned my head toward the doorway.

Even my eyes didn’t want to register what they saw.

Foster Bennett rolled into the office, a gun pointed at me and Gray.

Time surged into a fast forward, catching back up with itself.

“Fucking hell.” Gray put himself between me and Foster, then snapped up his phone and barked out orders.

“Jackass, Bennett is on the premises. He’s got access to C4. Tell the guys this is a danger close situation and use them to evacuate any civilians, now.”

Foster laughed. “Jackass won’t be helping you. My men took care of that.”

“What did you do to Jim?” I yelled from behind Gray.

“I have no beef with him. He’s simply been removed from the situation. He may have a nasty headache in the morning, but he’ll live. I can’t say the same for you, Angelina.”

“You’re going to shoot me?” This couldn’t be happening. Gray would do anything to make sure that I wasn’t hurt and that also meant he’d take a bullet for me.

Foster scoffed. “Nothing that crass. This is insurance to make sure you don’t think you can escape. I won’t shoot to kill, and Baker here knows I can.”

Gray pushed me farther behind him, blocking my view of the asshole.

“What do you want, Bennett?” The tension I could feel in Gray’s body was full force in his words.

“To shoot your legs out from under you, so you can know the same pain I have for the last ten years before you die. I doubt your Angel will stick around when you have to shit into a bag every day like I do. No woman would.”

I pushed against the cage of Gray’s arms, determined that Foster would not destroy our lives. If I could simply keep him talking maybe someone would come for us. “Why are you doing this?”

“One very simple reason. Gray destroyed my life, and all of my dreams of ever being happy in this shitty hell hole of my existence. I’m simply returning the favor.”