Page 57 of The Bratva's Innocent Pregnant Bride
There was no time to waste. She had already been away from the lodge and away from the safety I could provide her for hours. If she was even in trouble. She could be the ringleader of this operation for all I knew, and be briefing her group on a new attack against my family.
My gut still didn’t buy it. The feeling she was in danger only grew as I made my way deeper into the park. Finally, I caught a glimpse of a dark car parked haphazardly in one of the alleys, like it had skidded to a stop instead of properly parking. This was the first sign of anyone actually being there that I had seen and I rolled to a stop, heart pounding.
As soon as I was out of the car, I heard a faint scream coming from within the warehouse next door. Without pausing to think or make a plan, I raced up the steps and kicked open theheavy metal door. It screeched on its hinges, causing the man choking Paisley to jerk his head my way.
Paisley was half unconscious, feebly fighting her attacker who was at least as big as I was. Red rage filled my vision. No one touched her, no one hurt her. And this asshole was reaching under his jacket as he continued to tighten his grip on her neck with one hand, slamming her head against the concrete floor.
Everything went very still and calm as my lifetime of training kicked in. I moved faster, faster than him, and drew my own gun. In a heartbeat the safety was off and my finger wrapped around the trigger. The only thing that made me hesitate was the slim chance I hit Paisley. If he moved a couple inches closer or dragged her up to use her as a shield, it would be too late once the bullet was discharged.
Instead of pulling the trigger, I leapt forward, kicking the man in the head just as he aimed his gun at me and let off a shot. I felt the bullet sear past me, ripping a trench in my jacket sleeve as my foot made contact with his skull.
There was a satisfying crack underneath the reverberating echo of the gunfire. His head snapped to the side. I kicked him again and his hand loosened around Paisley’s neck. But was it too late? She lay still and pale, her eyes closed. With a roar of fury, I jammed my gun against his ear and pulled the trigger. Hot blood splashed against the wall as his body fell limp, half on top of Paisley. I kicked him aside and pulled her away from the red pool slowly growing under the assailant’s head.
“Paisley,” I shouted, falling to my knees beside her and dragging her close to check for a pulse.
Her eyelids fluttered and she drew a deep, shuddering breath, lapsing into a fit of coughing. I stroked her hair and patted her back, as relief flooded my system. She was alive.
But not okay. The moment she could breathe properly again, she shook off her torpor and grabbed my shirt.
“Dan, they’re in trouble.” she said, hysterical tears flowing down her cheeks as more words spilled out. I could barely understand her she was speaking so fast.
“Slow down,” I said. “You’re safe now.”
She shook her head. “But your family isn’t. You have to warn them, make them leave the lodge.” Still holding onto my shirt front, she spilled out a story about finding a list of missing employees. “I asked around with their family members and then the FBI contacted me,” she said, looking at the corpse a few feet away from us. “Him. He’s FBI, but he’s dirty. He works for my old company, Axon. I don’t know what they’re up to, but it’s bad enough to kill people to keep it covered up.” After she gave the FBI man’s body a dark look, she turned to me and began to cry all over again. “Now they think your family is involved and are going after them.”
“You don’t have to worry about us,” I said, pushing wild strands of hair out of her face. I scowled down at the red marks on her neck and pulled her into my arms.
She shoved away. “You don’t understand how bad they are,” she said.
She had been taken here to end her life, and it was clear she was battered and bruised. Now that she was safe, all she could worry about was my family, desperately afraid for their safety. There was no more doubt in my mind that she was completely innocent, and only got caught up in something beyond her control.
“They might be bad,” I said. If they truly were part of the Collective, she had no idea. “But we’re worse.”
She blinked several times, still shaking her head. She didn’t believe me, thought I was grandstanding, being macho. I didn’t want to scare her when she was already shaken to the core and shut up about my family’s ability to take care of themselves. All I said was that they had increased security measures and were staying on high alert.
“Let’s get you out of here,” I said, helping her to her feet.
“Yes, please,” she said, giving one last look at the dirty cop laying in the dust. “What about—what about him?”
“Fuck him,” I said.
She shivered, then nodded. “I guess someone will find him eventually.”
What would really happen was some of my guys would come and take his body on a little boat ride and feed him to the sharks in the Pacific later on tonight. I admired her small display of ruthlessness in the face of what she’d been through.
Once she was standing, she was wobbly on her feet, groaning and pressing her hand into her midsection. I picked her up and carried her toward the door, and instead of complaining, she rested her head against my shoulder, her breath soft and warm against my neck.
“I thought I was dead,” she whispered.
“Not while I’m around,” I said, hugging her tighter.
“Why are you around?” she asked, perking up a bit. “How did you find me?”
“Long story,” I said. “For another time. Just rest.”
She did just that on the ride back into the city where I booked us into one of my cousin’s hotels. She kept her eyesclosed and her head leaning against the cool window, everyone once in a while raising her hand to her bruised throat.
I wanted to kill that guy all over again.
