Page 68 of Color of Love

Chapter 20

Justine sat in the dark, peering out through the windshield into the trees and trying not to panic. What if something happened to him? She knew Blake could look after himself, Lord knows he was more than capable. But there were two men out there, potentially armed, who clearly had no concern over hurting someone if they were there to mess with Rebelle.

“Hasn’t the poor woman suffered enough?” Justine muttered to herself. Rebelle hadn’t come to see her yet, but she would, Justine knew she was probably working up to it. It took a lot of courage to face your issues and talk about them with a virtual stranger, just ask Blake.

She sat in the car, listening hard for any indications of trouble, chewing her nails nervously. So many times she reached for the door handle to go after him. She couldn’t bear the thought of something happening to him although she wasn’t prepared to acknowledge what her feelings really meant. That was a drama for another day.

Her eyes scanned the darkness. The pine trees swaying gently in the breeze had her seeing shadows everywhere she looked. A twig snapped close by. Her breath snagged in her throat, her blood pounding in her ears. Three meters away she spotted a man step out of the trees. Dressed head to toe in black, he blended with the night, but when the moon shone out from behind the clouds, he was illuminated. As was the gun he was holding, the moonlight bouncing off the metal. Justine gasped and ducked down in her seat.

She peeked out the bottom of the window, trying to stay hidden as she watched the man stealthily follow the same path Blake had taken. Justine’s stomach twisted. Now it was three against one, and at least one of them had a weapon. Blake would have no idea. Justine sat up straight, she had to tell him, had to warn him that he would be ambushed. She grabbed for her phone, tapping the screen but it wouldn’t come on; the battery must have died.

“Mierda!” she hissed, throwing her phone down in frustration. How could she warn him? Her hand reached out for the door handle even as her brain screamed don’t be that woman! But she couldn’t leave him out there vulnerable. It was Blake, he was her man, he had protected her before, and anyone would do the same, he would do the same.

She opened the door, stepping out quietly into the still night and easing the door closed. She didn’t shut it properly, to avoid making any unnecessary noise. She took a deep, shuddering breath, then tiptoed forwards up the hill, towards the building. By the time she was there, she was terrified: there were too many noises she couldn’t decipher, and it was too dark to see. But it was equally terrifying when the moon came out from the clouds and lit up the night, exposing her.

By the time she reached the building, the moon had disappeared again, and she could barely see a thing. She ignored her fear, she just needed to find him.

“Blake?” she whispered. Nothing. She inched around the corner of the building, she called him again but there was no response. The sound of shattering glass made her cry out in surprise, and she backed away, smacking right into someone. Strong arms wrapped around her middle, locking her in place and a hand clamped over her mouth, cutting off her scream before it could form. The stench of sweat, beer and gasoline invaded her nostrils and her stomach roiled.

“I’ve got her!” her captor shouted. He started dragging her away, but her fighting instinct kicked in. She managed to work her mouth free and clamped her teeth down on his fingers. He howled before loosening his grip.

“Fucking bitch bit me!” he shouted, rage fusing his words.

“Just fucking shoot her!” Another man shouted, and she realized the seriousness of her situation. She tried to run but he grabbed her arm and threw her against the building, her chin smacked against the brick, her teeth knocking together, and pain seared along her jaw.

He dragged her back and threw her to the ground. She bucked against him, working her leg between their bodies and kicking him away. She flipped herself over and tried to crawl away, gravel biting into her knees. She had to grit her teeth to keep from crying out. Her attacker grabbed her leg and dragged her backwards and she screamed as her bare leg scraped against the gravel, shredding her exposed skin.

“Justine!” Blake shouted but before she could respond, she was punched, hard. Her eye socket throbbed, and her vision blurred. A gunshot rang out, she caught a brief glance of her surroundings as the flash from the muzzle lit up the night. Rebelle stood behind Justine’s assailant, gun in hand, a fierce expression on her face. The man fell forward, pinning Justine to the ground before rolling off her.

“Justine!” Blake shouted, his voice frantic.

“I’m here,” she called out. She caught his scent as he bent down to her, he lifted her up and wrapped his arms around her, squeezing her tight. She winced in pain but didn’t push him away, she was just glad he was there and was fine.

“Rebelle, is that you?” he called, pulling away from Justine and heading towards Rebelle. The moonlight shone down on them, and Justine watched as Blake pulled Rebelle into a bone-crushing hug. Jealousy rushed through her, and she tried unsuccessfully to put her feelings to one side. A scuffle to her left startled her, she shouted, “Blake!”

Blake turned at the same time, his gun raised as the man in black Justine had seen earlier approached.

“Whoa! Deputy Miller? It’s Officer Davis, I was sent by Sheriff Carlisle?”

“Badge!” Blake barked, keeping his weapon trained on the man as he began to reach into his pocket, slowly. The officer withdrew his badge, tossing it to Blake along with a small flashlight. Blake inspected the badge before lowering his weapon, he tossed it back.

“Get these men in handcuffs. This one needs to go to hospital, the other one is around the side of the building, unconscious.”

Officer Davis bobbed at him before setting to work quickly. Blake flicked his eyes to Justine before turning back to Rebelle, murmuring softly to her, and gently taking the gun from her hand. He then called an ambulance and only when it turned up, did he have time to deal with Justine. He glared at her injuries before sending her off in the ambulance, saying he’d meet her at the hospital.

Justine felt like crying. She knew he was just doing his job, but he didn’t need to be so cold with her, she had been through a traumatic ordeal. Maybe Blake didn’t care for her at all?

*

Blake paced back and forth like a caged animal. What the hell had she been thinking coming after him like that? His heart had finally started to slow its rhythmic pounding, but his fear still burned hot and bright. Why hadn’t she listened to him and stayed in the car? Did she know how much worse the situation could’ve been? He squeezed his eyes shut at the thought, don’t go down that road. Why the hell had he even brought her in the first place? It was his fault for being stupid, he knew he should’ve dropped her at home first. But then God knows what would’ve happened to Rebelle if he had taken that detour and not made it back in time.

“Fuck!” he shouted, kicking the chair in the hospital waiting room in frustration. He couldn’t have won either way. He sat down, slumping forward, dropping his head in his hands. The sound of her scream, the fear on her face. He had been ready to tear the world apart to protect her. But he’d failed. Again. Seeing her bloodied, bruised and in pain made him feel ill. He could barely look at her without rage consuming him.

Both offenders were in custody and would be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. On checking Austin’s car, Blake found rope, zip ties, gasoline and matches. He shuddered at the idea of what they had planned for Rebelle. They admitted to setting the fire at the county border to draw the police away from the rescue center but wouldn’t talk anymore. It seemed like they had wanted to exact revenge for the ‘murder’ of Sheriff Black. Blake was ashamed they had been part of the same unit as him. He was now conducting a full investigation into their backgrounds and the backgrounds of any officers they were affiliated with. He would ensure nothing like this would ever happen in his town again.

He was distracted from his spiralling thoughts by Justine coming towards him. He took in her injuries: the black eye, bruised chin. Her thigh was bandaged, causing her to limp slightly. His stomach clenched sharply as he saw her wounds, and his simmering rage returned full force, choking him.

“I’ll take you home,” he said gruffly, not waiting for a response, he needed to get out of there. He left the hospital to pull his car around the front, feeling calmer by the time he pulled up outside the exit. He helped ease Justine into the passenger seat and they drove to her place in silence. He didn’t trust himself to speak yet.

---