Page 55 of Ryder

I needed his husky voice in my ear.

I needed his stillness to calm the frantic beat of my heart.

“Why the fuck did I park so far away?”Jude muttered under his breath.

“Where are you going to take me?”I asked, my voice slurred.My eyes were streaming against the sunlight, and I couldn’t see a thing.

“She can come back to my home?”Jewels suggested.

“Not in this state,” Jude said.“We don’t have the kind of painkillers that are going to help this.I don’t even know if painkillers work.We need to get her back to Desparion.”

“They won’t let us in,” Jewels said.“It’s not open day!”

The sky felt like it was closing in on me as the sleek gray BMW loomed before me, but I was so out of it, I couldn’t follow what was happening.The door opened, then someone pressed me in, a seat belt clicking around me.

“They’re coming,” Jewels said, voice high and urgent.“I’m going to distract them.”

“How?”Jude asked.

“I’ll work something out.Just get her away from here!”

Another door slammed shut, tires rumbling over gravel, and then a dizzy sensation hit me that set another round of cramping as Jude tore out of the parking lot.

“I’m calling Sloane.Her alpha got her out of the Dawn Agency.Sloane won’t let him do anything less for you.”He hit the call button on the interactive dashboard, the ringing sound coming through the car speaker.

Please pick up, Sloane.Please don’t be busy.

“Jude!”Sloane’s cheerful voice was the sweetest sound.The words I’d intended to say were lost under a groan as another wave of heated pain assaulted me.

“Fuck!What’s happening?”Sloane demanded.“I’m putting you on speaker.”

“It’s Em,” Jude said.“We’re in the car.It started at the graduation ceremony.I think Em is revealing as an omega too.We don’t know what the fuck to do or where to go.We think somebody is following us, but we’re on the move.”

“Jesus fucking Christ!”That gruff voice could only be Jace.

“What are you going to do?”Sloane demanded.“Jace, we need to get her out of there.We can’t let her be taken to that place.”

Her panic crawled under my skin, latching onto frayed nerves like a pit bull with a juicy bone.

“I’m going to sort it out, baby.Don’t worry.”

More words followed, but I rolled in and out of awareness.I was going to pass out or throw up, and I couldn’t decide which was worse.I curled up into a ball on the seat as best I could.

“I’m going to message you an address,” Jace said.“Head straight there.Don’t let any fuckers stop you.Got it?”

“Gotcha,” Jude said.

“I’m coming with you!”Sloane said, her voice distant.

“No fucking way, baby.You’re pregnant with my child.I can’t concentrate on doing what I need to do to get your sister out if I’m worried about you.”

“Fine!”Sloane hissed.“I’m staying on the phone with her.”

“Good girl,” Jace said.“I’ll patch into the call.Here’s the address.”

“You want me to take her where?!”Jude asked.I blinked, trying to see what was on the satellite navigation, but the light hurt my eyes and it was all a colored blur.“Fine.I trust you.Derick will pop a fucking blood vessel when he finds out I took his BMW there!I’m pretty sure we’re being followed.Just get Emma out!”

ChapterEighteen

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