Page 8 of Whips and Chains
Her eyes remained blank and free of tears. She still stared at the back of Whip’s seat, but as though on autopilot, she removed the bloody shoes and put them aside.
“Good girl,” I mumbled. “That’s real good. We’re nearly there. Just gotta hold on a little longer, okay?”
I was twitchy, being this exposed. The cops patrolled Saint View at night, searching for people up to no good and often finding many who fit the bill.
Tonight we were some of them. If a cop stopped us, there would be no explaining any of this. Not the blood. Not the knife. Not the fact Vi couldn’t even speak.
I breathed a sigh of relief when her building came into view, and another when I realized the party that had been going on earlier had dissipated. The street was dark, and though I’d been concerned by the broken streetlight in the past, knowing it was a safety hazard for Violet and the other people who shared her building, now I looked at it as a blessing. It left long, dark shadows for us to slip into.
We moved slowly, no other option but to go at Violet’s wooden pace.
I held my breath, hoping for a reaction out of her when she saw her building, but it didn’t come.
I knew her current state was her body protecting itself from a traumatic event, but the fact she’d barely responded to us at all since we’d found her was starting to scare me.
I guided her up the stairs without touching her. We gave her as much space as we could, the three of us sharing silent but worried glances.
Whip nudged me. “Should we call Doc?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know.”
She barely knew Grayson. She’d already screamed when Whip and I had tried to get close to her. I couldn’t imagine that was going to be any better with a man she didn’t know as well. As far as I could see, she wasn’t physically hurt.
Violet walked like a zombie up the stairs, feet heavy with trudging steps. On her floor, Whip opened the door for her, the lock still busted from where X and I had kicked it in.
“I’ll get that fixed for you in the morning,” I assured her, trying to make normal conversation, even though this was anything but a normal situation.
Violet ignored me.
But the moment she got inside, she took her jacket off, dropping it on the floor at her feet.
With the next step, her shirt followed, exposing the plain white bra beneath.
“I’ll turn the shower on for you.” X hurried ahead and disappeared down the hallway that led to her bedroom.
If Violet heard him, she didn’t say anything.
She just made her way toward the hallway, pulling off socks, and then her pants, leaving them in a trail behind her.
Whip picked up the clothes as she went. “I’ll have to burn these, sweetheart.”
Again, she didn’t respond.
She took another step toward the hallway and froze, her gaze latched on to Toby’s room.
Whip’s arms were full of her bloodied clothes, the shower running in the background. My gaze focused solely on her.
So I saw the buckle in her knees.
Heard the howl of pain rise up her chest.
I caught her as she fell, refusing to let her hit the floor. “I’ve got you, Vi.”
The part of me that was so damn in love with her whispered I always would.
3
VIOLET
