Page 24 of Seven Sons (Gypsy Brothers)

Jase smiles. “No problem. The first one’s free.”

“Oh, really?” I ask. “What does the next one cost?”

He opens his mouth to answer me, but before he does, the fire escape door bursts open and several of the Ross brothers appear. I almost choke on the bagel in my throat.

“They’re up here!” Chad calls down the stairs.

I stand there, looking for a weapon just in case. I don’t know what they’re up to. I don’t trust any of them for a second.

Except Jase.

My worst nightmare arrives at the top of the stairs, bound, gagged, and bloody.

Fuck.

Dornan pushes the poor boy forward, and I rush to them, freaking the fuck out.

This is bad. This is so very, very bad.

“Baby girl!” Dornan booms, clearly amped up on a mixture of adrenalin and some kind of drug, probably crystal meth. “Got you a gift!”

“Dornan,” I stutter. “What are you doing?”

Dornan removes the boy’s gag, and grabs the back of his neck, pointing his gaze towards me.

“Remember her, motherfucker?!” Dornan demands, spittle flying from his mouth and landing on the boy’s face.

“Dornan, it’s not what you think!”

“Shut your mouth,” Dornan yells at me. “Let him speak.”

Oh God. What am I going to do?

“Dornan, he’s not who you think he is–”

“Chad, shut her the fuck up, will you?” Dornan points to me and before I can move, Chad has sidled up alongside me and grabbed me in a bear hug, his hand planted firmly over my mouth. I gasp, unable to scream. I look over at Jase, whose peaceful breakfast has been shattered by all the ruckus.

“Pop,” Jase says slowly, “what’s going on? Who the hell is this guy?”

“What’s your name, son?” Dornan demands. “Speak!”

“M-Michael.”

Michael Trevine.

I just have one question for you, baby girl.

The boy is terrified. One of his eyes is swollen shut, there is blood all over him, and I wonder how much of the long journey back to LA was spent beating him.

Tears form at the corner of my eyes as the full brunt of Dornan’s obsession with me becomes apparent. He left me here for this. He asked me who my ex-boyfriend was, and then proceeded to travel across the country to kidnap an innocent boy from his house. A boy who has never laid eyes on me, a boy who I found online and added to Sammi’s backstory for credibility.

A boy with a gun pointed at his head.

I struggle against Chad’s stronghold, but it is useless. The guy is built, and he’s probably been snorting the white powder with Daddy Dornan all the way home.

I bite down on Chad’s hand and he pulls it away, yelling at me.

“He’s not my ex!” I scream, fighting against Chad’s rigid embrace.

---