Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 67140 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 336(@200wpm)___ 269(@250wpm)___ 224(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67140 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 336(@200wpm)___ 269(@250wpm)___ 224(@300wpm)
And the beast breaks free. Rage pumps through my bloodstream. The world goes still, covered in a red haze.
I have to protect my woman. She needs me.
I wrench my arms, pulling the men who hold me. They fall off balance, and I crack their heads together. They go down for good, and I leap over them, heading for the suit.
He’s turned toward Elodie, and now she’s facing down a gun barrel. The blood has drained from her face, leaving her freckles stark on her pale cheeks. The man is saying something. Threatening her.
It’ll be his last mistake.
I hit him like a linebacker, and we crash to the ground. His head strikes the pavement. So does his gun hand. The weapon goes skidding away.
I slam the man’s head into the ground again and again. Blood spatters on my face, but I don’t stop until he’s dead.
Elodie’s nearby, huddled against the wall. Once he’s taken care of, I race to get between her and the rest of the thugs.
More men come to tackle me like I tackled their leader. I dodge them, then attack them one by one. Break their bones. Crack their skulls. Let their brains ooze out like overripe fruit.
A crack of a bullet. Something bites at my side.
Damn, I forgot to secure the gun. There are no weapons in the fighting ring. I forgot where I was.
I whirl around, and pain lances my side. But I can deal with the pain.
Something clatters at my feet. A wooden crutch. I snatch it up and use it like a club to beat down the man with the gun. He tries to shoot me again, but he’s not fast enough. His blood paints the sidewalk.
I stagger back, feeling light-headed. Blood loss. I remember this feeling from my time in the ring. I hit the wall and let it support me as I slide down to the ground.
The alley is full of the crumpled shapes of my victims. Good.
Elodie’s screaming.
Bunny, no. It’ll be okay. I’m bleeding out, but I want to reassure her.
She’s on her knees beside me. Her freckles are stark on her tear-streaked face.
I love her freckles so much.
She grabs my hand.
“You came back for me.” I squeeze her fingers. My own fingers are stiff and cold.
“Jaeger, oh gods—”
“Are you hurt?”
“You’re shot!” She’s shaking.
I pull her down so her face is close to mine. I want to kiss her.
She won’t let me. “You’re bleeding,”
“It’s nothing.”
She opens my leather jacket and turns ghostly pale. “I have to stop the bleeding.” She pulls her scarf off, wads it up, and presses it to my midriff.
“We should leave.” Even my lips feel cold. “Before the pigs come.” The alley’s littered with bodies, and there’s a red river running in the valley between the dumpsters. The police won’t like that. St. James and Lucy have the cops in their pocket, but they’ll bitch about the paperwork.
“Shut up.”
A shadow falls over us both, and she flinches. I start struggling to sit up until I see it’s Kaiser.
Finally.
Elodie
Blood. There’s so much blood, and Jaeger’s cheeks have lost their color.
Then someone’s growling, “What the hell?” above my head. I bite back a scream and look up to see Kaiser. I didn’t even hear him approach.
“He’s shot,” I snap. “You’ve got to help him.”
“I’m here.” Atticus appears and pushes me aside. I scramble out of the way so he can open his medical case and go to work.
“What happened?” Kaiser glowers at me, but I’ve had it.
“What happened is you kicked me out, and then my friend sold me out to a bunch of idiots.” I can’t believe I’m yelling at the scary twin. “Jaeger tried to save me, and he got shot.”
Kaiser reaches for me, and I lose it. I push at his solid chest, shrieking, “This is all your fault!”
Kaiser growls, and I brace for retaliation. I’m so mad I don’t care.
“Will you two stop? We need to get out of here.”
We both whirl to see Atticus helping Jaeger to his feet.
“But,” I start. Jaeger looks half unconscious. There’s a bandage wrapped tightly around his middle, but a red stain is rapidly blooming.
“I got him stable. Let’s go.”
There’s a car at the end of the alleyway that Atticus steers Jaeger toward. Kaiser moves to support his other side.
I limp after them, leaning on one crutch. I go as fast as I can, but I’m still the last to arrive. Atticus rides with Jaeger in the backseat, and I fall into the passenger seat just as Kaiser is starting the car.
“Where are your crutches?” Kaiser glares at me.
“She threw it at the man with the gun.” Jaeger has a goofy grin on his face.
Kaiser raises a brow.
“It didn’t work,” I mutter. “It just made him mad.”
“It distracted him.” Jaeger lifts his hand and examines the blood dripping off it. To my shock, he opens his mouth as if he’s going to lick it off his fingers.