Page 45 of Erik's Salvation
She tried to get a leg up to knee him, but there was no space. She twisted her body. Turned beneath him. But two strong hands wrapped around her throat.
Immediately, the fingers tightened, her air cut off.
Panic flared when she wasn’t able to breathe. She scratched and clawed at the hands, but they didn’t budge.
Darkness hedged her vision, shifting her world from vibrant shades to deep, dark grays.
She was almost out when a gunshot exploded through the room.
The man fell to the side, and she gasped in a jagged breath.
* * *
Fury blastedthrough Erik’s system as he got out of his car and ran to Hannah’s entrance, his Glock firmly in his grip as he tried the front door. Closed but unlocked.
Fuck.
He stepped inside and scanned the living room and kitchen.
The soft sounds of a scuffle came from the bedroom.
He took off. When he reached Hannah’s room, the edges of his vision blackened at the scene in the bathroom.
He lifted his Glock and fired without hesitation, hitting the asshole in the side. It wasn’t a kill shot. It wasn’t meant to be.
Erik was across the room in a second, dropping on top of the guy and pressing the muzzle of the gun to his forehead. “Who the fuck are you and what do you want?”
The guy groaned in pain. “Get the hell off me!”
Not a damn chance. He pushed the muzzle harder to the man’s skull. “Answer the question or die.”
“Fuck…you!”
Erik saw the glint of the knife moments before the guy could plunge it into his side. He grabbed the asshole’s wrist with his spare hand, but the motion allowed the intruder to roll them so he was on top. He threw an elbow into Erik’s face.
He absorbed the pain, then he let it fuel him, driving the butt of his Glock across the guy’s face. He followed it up with a hit to the side of his head.
The asshole fell back, lifting a pistol from the floor. He only got it halfway up before Erik fired, hitting him in the chest.
The gun dropped. The man’s eyes remained open, his body still.
Fuck!He hadn’t gotten any damn information. Who the hell was this guy?
His gaze shifted to Hannah. She sat on the floor, fingers gingerly touching the skin of her neck. The image made every protective instinct inside him fire. It made him want to go to fucking battle for her all over again.
He rose and moved over to her before lowering to his haunches. He was scared to fucking touch her in case he hurt her.
“Are you okay?” He’d been going for soft, but there was too much anger inside him to gentle his tone.
Her eyes were unfocused, but she nodded. She was in shock.
When she swallowed, she cringed. He tugged her hand from her neck, growling at the red bruises already forming.
That fucker. Erik wanted to kill him a second time but draw it out and make sure he felt the pain. “You’re safe,” he said quietly, his voice dangerously low.
“Who was he?”
“I don’t know. But I’ll find out.” That was a vow he was making here and now.
