Page 99 of Run, Little Rabbit

I turn my attention back to the weapons in front of me. I’ve already got a set of throwing knives strapped to my upper thigh, hiding beneath the hem of my dress, but I grab a holster and load up with two guns, some ammo and the baseball bat. I nearlygrab the machete, but Niki steps up beside me and wraps his fingers around the handle before I even get the chance.

“This is mine,”he says, and fuck, does he look good with it.

I need to stop getting distracted and remind myself that my vagina needs to stay in my pants. She can come out to play later. When we’ve killed people and got covered in blood.

Fuck, the threat of impending chaos and death is like a goddamn calling card. My fingers squeeze around the handle of the baseball bat, grounding me in the moment. The murderous haze starts to creep into the edges of my vision, and I know, as soon as I start swinging the bat, I’ll be lost to it. To the bloodshed, the anarchy, the feel of life leaving my victims at my hands.

A whimper makes its way out of my throat, and I clench my thighs together, the excitement getting the better of me.

“Come on, let’s get a plan together before Echo cums on the spot,” Max says, his tone all business and sexy as fuck. “We’ll split into pairs and make our way to the exit at the back. The corridors are narrower in that part of the building.”

“What if there are people already waiting at the rear?” Veon asks gruffly.

“Then we will have to deal with them. Look, I’ve got an SUV parked out the back—” Max hands a key to Veon. “—that’s the spare key. I’ve got the other. We don’t have enough time to get into more detail than that. Just head for the SUV and pray we all make it. Veon, you’re with Echo. Sphinx with me, Angel and Niki; you make the final pair.”

My eyebrows raise a little at his pairings, but I trust his judgement. Although I can guess why I’m with Veon, the niggle that he’s going to stay behind with the others to give Veon and me the best chance at surviving crosses my mind, but we will cross that bridge when we get to it.

“Sphinx and I will go through the VIP section with Niki and Angel. You two, down the back stairs. Hopefully there will be less people there.” Max steps forwards, wraps his hand around the back of my neck and presses his forehead to mine. “Stay alive, Echo. Please.”

I cup his jaw with my free hand and press a soft kiss against his lips. “I’ll do my best.”

Then Max steps back, cocks his gun and steps towards the glass door.

Angel presses a kiss against my temple, and warmth settles in my core. “See you on the other side, sugar.”

Niki’s kiss is quick and hard, his eyes flashing wildly in the dark. “Don’t have too much fun without me, Rabbit.”

I snort. “Not possible, He-Man.”

Sphinx catches my eye, and he’s gnawing his bottom lip.

I point the baseball bat at him. “When we get through this, you’ve got a lot of explaining to do.”

He grins at that and rolls his eyes, but I see an evening of vodka shots and interesting stories in our future.

I double-check the straps on my holster and then raise my bat to rest on my shoulders. “Okay, gang. Let’s go kill some bitches.”

There are bodies everywhere. Limbs and blood coat the floor, and I’m covered in cuts, grazes and bruises. Pretty sure I’ve got some brain matter on my shoe as well. I hope that comes out in the wash because I love these shoes.

Veon moves ahead of me, gun held out in front of him at the ready.

We are nearly at the back exit, and there were so many people we had to make our way through. I had no idea where they keptcoming from. It was like you killed one of them, and another sprouted in their place. I’d lost track of the others when Veon and I left the dance floor. Niki had been severing limbs with lethal accuracy, Angel at his back shooting anyone who got near them. Max and Sphinx I hadn’t seen since we left the office. God, I hope they were okay.

“Do you still have the phone?” I ask Veon, my chest heaving while we take a quick breather. The back door looms in front of us, the low-lit exit sign beckoning us towards it like a moth to a flame.

He turns to look at me, blood covering his face. There’s a nasty-looking slice across his right cheek, and my heart clenches. He’s injured because he was trying to protect me. Fuck. This is all my fault. None of this would have happened if I’d just left Bennie alone.

“Hey,” Veon says softly. “It’s just a scratch. It will heal. And yes, I still have the phone.”

He taps his left breast pocket, and my eyes track the blood on his hands. Fucking hell, this is a mess.

“I’m sorry, Veon. I never meant for this to happen.”

His expression softens, and he lowers the gun for a moment. “Echo, it’s my duty to protect, and I will do that for as long as I can. Now, we’re nearly there. We just need to get through whatever is on the other side of this door. You never know; we might be lucky and there’s no one there.”

I snort. “That’s unlikely.”

“True,” he says with a genuine grin. “But we can always hope. You’re probably going to want the gun for this bit.”

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