Page 78 of Saved By the Marines (Soldiers Of Misfortune)

“Come on. Be here.” The relief was thick when my hand closed over the handle of a gun. It was small, I ran my hand over it and felt a round cylinder in the center. It was a small revolver, probably five or six shots.Such a basic bitch, they really did shop from the same catalog.Dad also kept a small revolver in his desk. Five or six shots wasn’t much, but it was better than nothing.

A loud popping noise from downstairs forced a strangled sound from my lips and I ducked down below the desk. More gun fire followed and my eyes widened. Would Dad help my kidnappers?? A small pang of guilt and fear entered my chest. My father might get killed, either by the kidnappers or my Marines.

He’s also the one who’d gotten you kidnapped. Twice.

I shoved the worry down, determined to focus on myself. If anyone killed him down there, my life would get that much easier. I waited, listening, unsure of when I should make my move. If I waited too long, I’d be discovered here. They might kill me to tie up loose ends or use me as a hostage. The last thing I wanted was to be used against my guys. That would put them in danger. I couldn’t take that chance. I had a weapon now. It was time to get out of this house. My Marines would find me later.

Creeping down the stairs, I tried to regulate my erratic breathing. My heart was hammering at my chest. The sound of gunfire had died down. I wasn’t sure if that meant they were all dead or if they were searching for each other inside the house.

Either way, I needed to be careful. I’d just stepped off the platform and into the foyer when a set of arms jerked me backward into a huge chest. A hand covered my mouth as a scream threatened to burst out of my lungs.

“Shhhh, Little Bunny. Don’t make a sound.”

All the tension in my limbs drained out, leaving me hanging like a limp noodle in Wolfe’s arms. They’d come for me. I had thought, had hoped, that this was their rescue attempt. But until right now I hadn’t been sure. I mumbled behind his hand.

“Shhhh. They’re still a few alive.”

I nodded my understanding and he removed his hand from my mouth. Turning in his arms, I hugged him close. “Thank you,” I said so quietly the words almost didn’t form on my tongue.

“Come on.” He grabbed my hand and led me a few feet away.

I heard the creak of a door and I cringed. We had a summer house much like this one. He’d just opened the little cupboard under the stairs. “No.”

His hands cupped my cheeks. “I can’t have you running around the house with these assholes on the loose, Bailey. Get in. Stay there. One of us will come for you.”

Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to climb inside and to breathe through the terror as he closed the door behind me. I’d rather take my chances with the men out in the dark, but then I folded my arms over my stomach. I wouldn’t risk my baby. If that meant I had to sit in this creepy little room in the dark, then I would.

I didn’t allow myself to worry about what sort of animals might be in here with me.Rats, mice, spiders, none of them exist.I repeated the mantra as the minutes ticked by.

Every once in a while a gunshot would break the silence, causing me to jump. I didn’t want to be here. I wanted to be at home, in bed with my guys. Saliva was building up in my mouth as I began to worry about who was being shot. Were my Marines hurt?

I swallowed back the nausea, trying to force myself to think of anything else. Hurling in this little closet wasn’t going to do me any favors. The smell would either cause me to keep puking, or force me out of the little hidey hole. Neither was a good option as I’d be too easy to find.

The door to my hideaway jerked open and I gasped, pointing my gun at whoever had just found me. My hand shook, but he was so close, knelt down in front of the door there was no way I could miss. Neither of us said a word for a moment.

“I’d rather you didn’t shoot me, Brat.”

For the second time all the fear drained out of me and I lowered the gun.

“Where’d you get that?” he asked, reaching in and taking it out of my hand.

“I found it upstairs.”

“You really are resourceful, you know that?” Jasper chuckled as he helped me out of the little closet under the stairs.

The lights flicked back on and I squinted against the glare. “What’s going on?”

“We took out The Copper Street Crew. All that’s left is your father and Shetland and we have them tied up. Come on.”

Everything passed in a blur from there. I told them exactly what I wanted to do about my father and left him screaming at me as I walked out of the house. He wasn’t my problem anymore.

Wolfe put me in their SUV and I curled in protectively on myself. Blue and red flashing lights woke me up and I robotically gave my statement to the police. They let me go home a few hours later, surrounded by my Marines.

I snoozed in Kip’s lap, feeling safe and loved. It was over. I knew that much. I could move forward with life with the men—and their family—who loved me. It wouldn’t be too hard to leave the man who’d raised me behind.

EPILOGUE

Bailey

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