Page 99 of Linger

I’d been so entranced by the horrifying scene that’d happened in the span of a few seconds that I hadn’t realized I could hardly breathe until that moment. But as it was, I was taking short, gasping breaths, and my pain from earlier was nothing compared to then. The stinging trails of fire now felt like excruciating tearing at the slightest shift.

But I clenched my teeth to keep from crying out again as I forced myself to my knees, trembling so badly I wondered if I was going into shock. “Let everyone go,” I begged, the words sounding like weak whimpers. “Promise...promise no one else dies. And I’ll go with you.”

The next few seconds were agony as red-stitched neon stared at me. Just as I started screaming at Lachlan to end this, he said, “Hold,” into the phone and started toward me.

Focus never swaying from me. Gait steady, as if he hadn’t been stabbed twice. As if there weren’t a handful of rage- and hate-fueled men ready to end his life before his cold, black heart could beat again.

As if the image of him slowly walking toward me hadn’t haunted me for over a year.

“I like you like this,” he said once he was stopped in front of me. Dropping to a crouch, he trailed the tips of his fingers along my jaw before gripping it in a surprisingly gentle hold. “On your knees. Crying. Bleeding. Mine.”

My jaw shook as I fought the urge to respond or spit in his face. I was afraid of what would happen—of who else might die—if I set one foot out of line. Then again, I wasn’t sure I had the strength to do either.

Releasing my chin, he reached for his hip, and a whimper of fear crept up my throat as panic had my heart tripping over itself.

“Courtesy of your brave friend,” he muttered, lifting a bloody knife.

If I hadn’t been wavering between my fear of this reality, the shock of the past few minutes, and the pain threatening to make me lose consciousness, I might’ve understood he was referring to Jessica much sooner. But I was still struggling to breathe. I was still facing my nightmare. Kieran’s cries were tearing at my chest, and my movements were so weak as I tried to stop Lachlan from taking the knife to my shirt.

“It’ll be more painful if it dries to you,” he said, then released a harsh exhale as he let the pieces of my shirt fall to the driveway with a wet slap. “That’s unfortunate.”

Leaning back, he glanced down at the knives protruding from his shoulder and arm, then removed them as if they were nothing more than thorns.

Once all three knives were gathered in one of his hands, he gave me the phone Jessica had been holding earlier. “Take this. Lives depend on that call staying open.”

I clumsily took it from him, my shaking so bad and my strength so drained that I could barely grasp it.

“Until I get you in front of a doctor, that blade’s staying in your back,” he said, casually informing me why my pain was so much worse than before.

“What?” I said on a dazed wheeze, but he continued as if I hadn’t spoken.

“But getting you there’s gonna hurt, so take a deep breath.”

I weakly gripped his arm when he shifted it to start lifting me, my words strained as I begged, “No one else—please. No one else dies.”

The slow, menacing tilt of his head had fingers as cold as death gripping my spine as I saw this mask on this body do that exact move countless times in my nightmares and real life.

“I’m not the one you should be saying that to,” he warned in that gruff, terrifying tone. “Your friends have only lost one person by our hand...so far. They’ve taken three of mine. The only reason I’m not leveling the score is because I still have their queen and I’m taking you. So, as long as they stop shooting my crew, we’ll stop killing theirs. Now, take a deep breath. Or don’t. I like hearing you scream.”

I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction. But a curse broke from me on a cry when he lifted me to my feet, keeping me tucked close to his side. Supporting most of my weight as he started walking us toward the cars.

Stopping beside where Dare sat with one of his hands gripping his hair, staring at where Kieran and Jentry were grieving over Jessica, Lachlan said, “If we don’t make it out, their orders are to continue. If they don’t make it out...your wife’s next.”

Dare didn’t respond in any way. Not that Lachlan gave him a chance to.

And even though my spirit begged to see the person I truly belonged to, I didn’t look around for Diggs, and he didn’t make any more comments as Lachlan and I finished our slow, painful trek to the cars.

And when Lachlan laid me face down in the back of a car and climbed in beside me just as an unseen driver pulled away from the mansion, I decided it was for the best.

As much as my heart was grieving over this night, I didn’t know what to think about Higgins’ revelation over the Borellos being the reason behind Mike’s murder. And even though I knew Diggs loved me, the people in his family were in danger and dying...all because the psychotic man carefully cleaning the blood and cuts on my back had decided he wanted me.

I wasn’t sure there was any recovering from that.

For either of us.

DIGGS

I woke the next afternoon in the peacock room with a splitting headache and dried blood covering the side of my head and neck.

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