Page 152 of Defiant Beta

I lose another shoe as I kick out.

“Let go. It’ll only hurt more in the end.”

My left fingers skim over the ground, dislodging and moving loose gravel. I seize what I can and I fling it in her face.

Then I grab her ankle and yank her toward me.

She throws herself back, not just faster, but stronger than she appears. I no longer have a gun pointed at me, but this nightmare isn’t even close to being over.

She takes a step toward me, and jerks her head over her shoulder at the sound of rhythmic pounding.

Someone is coming.

Thank fuck.

After a brief pause, she takes off, sprinting back to the same dark corner she came from. There must be another way down.

“You bitch!” I scream after her.

I’m falling, fingers sliding over the edge. My panic is so sharp I can taste it. “I will haunt you forever, you evil witch.”

I fall.

Chapter 45

Della

A hand clampsdown on my wrist as I plummet, halting my descent in an instant.

I snap open eyes I hadn’t realized I’d slammed shut, and meet Vincent’s steel-gray stare.

“I’ve got her!” he yells, still looking at me. “Pull me up.”

He’s hanging completely over the edge of the clock tower. His entire body is off to the side, with his feet so far back I can’t see them.

“I’ve got you, Miss Jackson,” he says softly.

I must have grit in my eyes because they burn as someone pulls Vincent up.

My heart stops threatening to burst out of my chest as we slowly inch closer to the edge of the clock tower.

As he pulls me the rest of the way, I see Levi and Xavier holding Vincent’s legs, and they look as relieved as I feel.

I’m so unsteady, I don’t trust myself to stand when we’re back on the roof. “Did you just dive off a building to save me?” I ask Vincent.

It was one of those movie moments and I had my damned eyes closed and missed it.

He doesn’t say a word, just pulls me into his chest and wraps his arms around me, holding me so tight I can barely breathe. I don’t know who's shaking more. Me or him. Probably me. Alphas don’t shake.

I lean against Vincent, struggling to believe I’m alive.

A large hand cups the back of my head.

Xavier.

“You okay?” Xavier asks, eyes creased with concern as he searches my face.

I nod.

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