Page 79 of I'm Not in Love (I Promise)

Brennan steps closer while Alexander pulls out his vibrating phone. I shift my gaze to the floor, my stomach churning from what I just learned. He’s not my brother, he’s a monster.

“Bee, look at me,” he whispers while Alex argues over the phone in Russian. “I’m going to get you out of here, you have to trust me.”

“Get me out of here and then we’re done. I never want to see you again,” I seethe.

He closes his eyes for a moment before dipping his chin. “I’ll explain everything, but we need to move while he’s distracted.”

Brennan works on the rope they used to bind me to the chair while I keep my eyes on Alexander, who looks more and more irritated by the second. “Hurry,” I say.

“I almost have it.” The rope pulls taut against my torso as he works on the knots and I try to control my breathing. “There.”

“The zip ties on my feet,” I whisper. “I won’t be able to run.”

“Fuck, okay, I think there’s a utility knife somewhere. Can you try to walk?” My head spins as he hauls me to a stand.

“I can try.”

The chair squeaks when I bump it with my arm and Alexander’s eyes snap toward the sound, his hand drawing his gun in one quick motion. “Shit, Bee, follow my moves.”

He puts his hands up in surrender and I do the same, my bound wrists limiting my movements. My vision blurs at the edges as time around me slows.

“What do you think you’re doing? You think because you’re Sweeper, you’re above me? Above my uncle’s own flesh and blood? You’re wrong.”

I’ll never forget the look on his face as he pulls the trigger. His wide, bloodshot eyes. The spittle at the corner of his lips. The veins protruding from his neck.

He aims directly at me and in the flash of a second he fires, the room exploding in sound.

My ears ring and I blink, finally seeing straight. Brennan’s crumpled on the floor, blood pooling onto his shirt.

“Brennan!” I scream, a guttural sound from deep in my chest. “Oh God, Brennan, no!” I sink to my knees, cradling his head as rasped breaths escape his lips. “It’s okay, I’ve got you. Hang on.”

With my bound wrists, I do the best I can to keep pressure on the wound. “Bee,” he says through labored breaths. “Go. Get out.”

“I’m not going to leave you here to die.” I look up through a veil of tears and realize Alex is gone. Then I hear it—all hellbreaking loose right outside the door. Rapid gunfire mixed with furious shouting. It has to be Damon. He’s found me. “Brennan, Damon’s here. We’re going to be okay.”

I look into his unmoving eyes and cry his name.No, no, no.Oh, God, he’s not breathing. “Come on. You can’t die on me. You’re all I have left.”

I pump his bloody chest with shaking hands, frantically trying anything in my power to get him breathing again. “I need you… Please, Brennan. This isn’t happening. This can’t be happening.”

A strong pair of arms wrap around me, pulling me back from Brennan’s body. I scream through sobs, thrashing my arms to break free. “No! I can’t leave him!”

“Blake, it’s me. I’ve got you. You’re safe.” The voice sounds muffled, like it’s coming from broken speakers. “Come here.” Gentle hands lift me, and the cold floor is replaced with a warm chest. We move, but my eyes stay pinned on Brennan’s motionless body as we’re torn apart forever.

CHAPTER THIRTY

DAMON

I stepover bodies and around pools of blood, away from the violent frenzy near the entrance. Jasper and Leon’s lives are on the line, yet the relief I feel to have Blake in my arms is unmeasurable. She’s sobbing and trembling, begging me to go back and it kills me to disregard her wishes in favor of her safety. I’d give her the world— but not if it means risking her life.

I’m so close to the exit I can almost feel the crisp dawn air caressing my skin. “Almost there,” I tell her. “I’ve got you.”

Pounding footsteps at my back pull my attention and I duck into a crouch as gunfire hits the wall above us. Setting Blake down, I pull out my gun and fire back, staying as low as I can.

Where are you, motherfucker?

If Leon calculated correctly, there should only be a few guys left. I’d love to find the one who grabbed Blake in front of the house and personally drive a blade through his heart, but that would require leaving some of them alive to find out his identity.

More shots come at me from around the corner, pelting the wall inches from my head. I pick up my pace and round thebend, finding the culprit, and fire three rounds into his torso. I want him to feel pain as he bleeds out.

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