Page 200 of Beautifully Reckless

What are they talking about? Why do they need bloodlines? What does this have to do with my baby?

My heart kicks into overdrive, pounding against my ribs like it’s trying to escape my chest.

I take a shaky step back, my arms wrapping protectively around my bump, my thoughts spinning with what his words could mean.

Then, as if everyone else there knows what’s happening, in unison, they all turn to look at me.

I freeze, tremors making me quiver, terror seeping into my veins like poison.

“No,” Iwhisper, still not understanding, but I don’t need to know anything more than they mean me and my baby harm.

“No…” I step backwards, and in unison they take a step towards me.

“NO!” I scream, the sound ripping from my throat, sharp and primal, and the moment they lunge for me, a deafening explosion shatters the air.

The walls tremble and the very ground we stand on lurches, and just like that, all hell breaks loose.

36

Having the Marx family as allies has its fucking perks. And one of them is their private army led by Seth Riggs, who just happens to have a couple of explosive experts.

As the small building next to the chapel explodes, flames and debris flying in every direction, my men and I burst through the chapel doors, guns raised, ready to paint the walls red.

As we open fire on any motherfucker that stands between me and my wife, I shoot, reload, and fucking shoot again, picking off the congregation of armed men, one by one, filling them with lead before they can get a fucking shot off.

Then I hear it. My wife’s scream.

It cuts through the air from the other end of the chapel, but with the sea of men between us, this small space suddenly feels too fucking big.

“Fuck you!” JD roars, fury ripping through his voice.

He’sfuelled by what they did to Jols, and he starts blowing heads off without a second fucking thought as we move as a unit, deeper into the chapel.

“Three females spotted exiting the rear.”

Riggs’ voice hits my ear through the comms, always too fucking calm given the chaos around us.

“Don’t shoot them!” I bark, knowing he can hear me, and he responds instantly.

“Copy that.”

Ian Allen bursts through the sea of men, armed with a fucking fully automatic machine gun, and the moment he starts firing, we have no fucking choice but to dive for cover.

“Two males exiting the rear,” Riggs announces in my ear, but when I shout, “shoot them,” I get nothing but static.

“Fuck. Someone kill that fucker!” Smitty roars from somewhere behind me as Allen sprays bullets our way.

The doors burst open behind us, and I swear time fucking slows as Vender, the crazy fucker, strolls in with a fucking rocket launcher.

Everyone’s eyes fucking widen at the sight, and a beat later, we all scramble for cover right before Vender unleashes hell.

The blast rips through the air like thunder, and rubble rains down on us in a cloud of dust.

I’m already moving, scrambling back out the chapel doors, my fucking heart nearly in my throat.

Abbey. I need to get to my Angel.

“Riggs. Can you hear me?” I bark into the comms, sticking my finger in my ear to nudge the earpiece, but still, I get nothing but static.

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