“No!” She yelled, striking out at him, her nails scratching his face. With a roar, Justin reared back and struck her across the face. Sophie felt the right cheek explode with pain. In the few seconds it took for her to recover, Justin had unzipped her shorts and tore them away from her, taking her underwear with them.
Oh god, Sophie screamed silently in horror. He is going to rape me. Pinning her down again, he unzipped his pants and pulled out his erection. She felt it nudge heavily against her thighs which she had kept clenched together.
He kissed her ruthlessly. Sophie kept her mouth closed. Growling in frustration, Justin gripped her chin and said, “Kiss me back, damn you!” Sophie stared up at him in defiance even as her tears blurred her vision. “Damn you,” he repeated and started frantically kissing her all over her face. “Kiss me. Love me,” he muttered over and over. His hand went under her tank top, slipping under the shelf bra to squeeze her breasts. He groaned into her neck and Sophie felt his erection hardening rapidly against her thighs.
She had to think fast. She could do this. She had prepared for such a situation ever since he had ordered her to strip. Maia’s voice echoed in her head, remembering the impromptu self-defense training the red-haired Guardian taught her. In a fight where your strength is at a disadvantage, use distraction, look for a weapon and go for the carotid artery if you can.
Sophie moaned, pretending to be aroused. Justin stilled and looked at her, wonder in his eyes. She parted her lips, and her tormentor immediate crushed his lips on her, kissing her hard.
“I want fucking inside you,” Justin growled as he started kissing her neck at the same time yanking her legs apart and settling between her thighs. She felt bile rise to her throat. Concentrate Sophie! She stroked his back with her right hand while her left hand searched and found the small screwdriver she had stolen from the lab under her pillow. She felt the tip of his cock nudge at her entrance. “Finally,” he gasped as he shifted his hips back preparing to thrust.
Fueled by adrenaline, Sophie bucked her hips and shifted her thighs higher around Justin’s waist and squeezed, scissoring tightly. As his chest lifted away from her, freeing her shoulders, she swung her left arm, her hand holding the screwdriver with a death grip as she plunged it into the side of Justin’s neck.
Blood gushed out, spraying her all over her face and chest.
“You bitch!” Justin choked out as he gripped his neck, trying to stem the flow of blood. Sophie untangled her legs and scrambled off the bed. Justin tried to grab her, but she managed to evade him.
Sophie started retching over the floor, disgust and horror at what she had done overwhelming her. She was pulling her shorts on, watching Justin writhing on the bed when the door crashed open. Morgan stood forbiddingly at the entrance. He took in the scene. His face was a blank mask.
Glancing at Sophie, he said, “Take your friend. Use the kitchen door and go through the fields. It will lead you straight to the road.” He unhooked a key from his key ring, handing it to her.
“No, no, Morgan, what are you doing?” All Justin could manage was a rasping whisper.
“I did not sign up for this, Bishop,” Morgan told him. “My job is to make sure the bomb is delivered. Not abuse women.” Shifting his gaze back at Sophie, he said, “Go! Before I change my mind.”
“Thank you,” Sophie whispered, taking the proffered key, and racing down the hallway to Beth’s room—she had not even bothered putting on shoes. Unlocking the door, her heart broke when she saw her friend curled up in a ball and shaking from her fever.
“Come on, Beth,” Sophie said quietly.
“What? What are you doing here, girl?” Beth muttered, in a state of delirium. Sophie hauled her friend up, hooking Beth’s arm over her shoulder.
“We’re getting out of here.”
“I don’t know, Sophie. I feel too hot to drink tequila.”
“I know where we can go to cool you off,” Sophie replied, playing along.
After what felt like an eternity, they finally made it to the kitchen, Beth was stumbling over herself, almost taking Sophie down with her.
“Stand up,” Sophie hissed, trying to keep Beth upright as she fumbled to get the backdoor open. They lurched through, like a pair of half-drunk women. There was no one guarding the back. And from the darkness that enveloped the farm, it appeared almost everyone was gone.
Halfway to the fields, she heard the chopper again. She figured they were their last pickup and wherever they were heading she was glad she was not going with them. To avoid going to South Africa, she might have killed a man. Shaking those morbid thoughts away, she concentrated on Beth. Her friend was starting to drag her to the ground.
Suddenly she heard shouting and gunshots amidst the deafening roar of the chopper’s rotor. Instinctively, Sophie dragged Beth faster into the field and winced as rocks pierced her bare feet. “Come on, Beth. Keep up, damn you,” Sophie muttered.
“Baby girl, run...leave me be,” Beth whispered in her ear in what appeared to be a moment of lucidity.
“Never. Fight. You’ve always been a fighter.”
“Leave me be,” Beth said once again as she got heavier and heavier.
“No. No. Don’t you dare give up on me, Beth Turner,” Sophie said through the beginnings of a racking sob. Sophie was getting weary, her shoulders and back were killing her. And when her foot caught on a protruding rock, she felt them both falling and falling. She hit the deck with Beth on top of her. Exhausted, Sophie closed her eyes as fatigue overtook her.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
“God fucking damn it!” Derek shouted as he watched the chopper disappear into the horizon. The Guardians couldn’t indiscriminately shoot at the helicopter because Sophie and Beth might have been onboard. It took forever to get the right people together for the mission. It took all of Derek’s willpower not to go suicidal and attempt the rescue alone, although he knew Jack would go with him in a heartbeat.
And then there was another delay because satellite images captured a small thermal blast in the area. AGS had to make sure they weren’t sending their people into a contaminated zone so they had to run some radiation readings before going in.
Derek was ready to jump out of his skin when their convoy finally made the trip to Culpeper. He normally had enough time to decompress and find his calm center before every mission, but the stakes involved were too personal this time. They caught sight of the UH-60 Blackhawk when they were about five minutes out on route 522, and he had a sinking feeling they were too late.
And now it looked like Bishop had managed to escape with Sophie.
“Search the house!” Maia ordered the Guardians who were with them. “And be careful—it might be booby-trapped.”
His friend walked up to him, regret on her face. “I’m sorry, Derek,” Maia said quietly.
She was gone. He failed her. And she could be gone forever. The files Brett pulled out of Opperman’s system indicated they had a chartered flight out of the country, but there were no details of location and route. “Fuck!” Derek growled. “Fuck!” he repeated. His gaze drifted to the darkened barn, the overwhelming hope he had felt snuffed out so cruelly in a span of a few minutes.
Suddenly, Manning strode out of the ranch house, his stony face alluding to a grim discovery, the urgency of his strides indicating Derek would be very interested in what he had to say.
“Pierce, Lockwood, you need to see this,” Manning said. The agent’s gaze flicked to Derek. His heart slammed into his chest as he took off in a dead run, charging into the house like a madman. His one thought and prayer in mind: don’t let her be dead.
Derek paused at the beginning of a seemingly endless hallway. Tunnel vision. All he could see was another Guardian, Edmunds, standing in front of an open door, hands on hips and keenly observing the scene before him. It felt like an eternity before Derek made it to the room as he shouldered past Edmunds in his attempt to get through the door, but he stopped short in disbelief.
B
ishop was sprawled on a mattress, his shirt and pants were undone in the most indecent fashion. Blood was everywhere.
“His body is still warm.” Another Guardian was crouching in front of the body.
“What the fuck happened here?” Derek demanded even as his gut knew.
“Poetic justice?” Maia said behind him, disgust lacing her tone. “Looks like someone took my advice.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Long story,” Maia said. “Shut up and listen. There are bloody footprints on the hallway, barefoot, definitely female.”
She led him to the first room. “Leads here and then...”
They ended up in a kitchen. A surge of excitement fueled Derek with renewed energy and hope as he burst out the backdoor into the fading light of a summer night.
He impatiently whipped out a flashlight from his utility belt and illuminated the ground before him.
“There.” Maia pointed out. It was dirt-filled all around the farm house and there were fresh tracks leading into the field.
“Sophie!” Derek yelled as he ran straight into the lush, grassy terrain, shining his light all over. Endless questions raced through his head: How far had she gone? Had she reached the road? Was she hurt? “Sophie! It’s Derek!” Where was she?
"Derek.”
Derek turned toward the sound of his name and froze. His flashlight hit shocked gray eyes that squinted at the blinding intrusion. Relief so great swooshed through his lungs. Shifting the light quickly away, he briskly took the last few steps that would reunite him with Sophie.
“Maia, I found them!” Derek shouted behind him.
“I’m right behind you,” Maia snapped, pissed at him for yelling into her ear.
Sophie was sitting up, her legs tucked under her, Beth's head on her lap. She was covered with blood. Derek prayed none of the blood was hers and all of it belonged to that bastard. He sank to his knees beside her.
“Baby,” Derek whispered. He wanted to hug her and clench her tight to him, but he wasn't sure about her state of mind, of what Justin had done to her. His hand shook as he tentatively reached out to brush the blood-streaked tendrils from her face.
“Beth. She...she nee..needs help. Oh god...” Sophie stuttered. Adrenaline withdrawal. “I think I killed him, Derek.” A huge teardrop fell from one eye.
White-hot fury surged through him. “He fucking deserved it, Sophie. Don’t, for a minute, regret what you did.”
Maia was leaning down, checking the vitals on Beth. “She's burning up, we need to take her to a hospital.”
“I’ll take her.” Manning offered as he approached them. He bent down and carefully lifted Beth off the ground and Sophie reluctantly let go.
“I’ll come,” Sophie said. Derek grasped her around the waist to help her up and was further relieved when she snuggled close to him. He had visions of seeing Sophie all catatonic, but she was surprisingly responsive. Most importantly, he finally had his arms around his woman.
“Sophie, we need to get you cleaned up,” Derek told her gently.
“But—”
“I’ll stay with Beth,” Maia said. “Derek’s right. But ...” The female Guardian looked at Derek uncomfortably. He knew exactly what his friend was thinking because the possibility had weighed heavily on his mind for the past 72 hours. “Maybe we should get a doctor to check you out first.”
“I don’t need a doctor,” Sophie frowned.
Maia cleared her throat. “Um, Sophie, did Bishop ever...”
Sophie finally realized what Maia was getting at, her eyes widening in horror. “No! He tried to, that’s why...” She heaved violently. “He...he was going to. I had to—”
“Maia can we not discuss this now?” Derek said sharply. “I’m taking her to the condo and we’ll go straight to the hospital from there. Text me the location.”
Without another word, he ushered Sophie out of the field.
***
Sophie paused in front of the entryway. Derek noticed she had stiffened when they had gotten off the elevator. He sighed. It would have to be quick, like yanking the proverbial Band-Aid off a scab.
“I don’t want to be here,” Sophie said quietly. “I know it’s petty given the circumstances. Maybe you should have taken me to AGS.”
He was not about to argue with her in the hallway. He unlocked the door and pulled her in. Closing the door firmly behind her, Derek backed her against the door gently. Leaning in, he said, “It wasn’t what you thought.”
“I saw you and Layla with my own eyes, Derek,” Sophie said wearily, her head was bowed. “Look, I’m grateful you came after me—”
“It was a set-up, Angel,” Derek said softly.
Her forehead furrowed in confusion as her eyes snapped to his. “I don’t understand.”
“Somehow Bishop had managed to give me Rohypnol and Sildenafil citrate.”
“Viagra?” A twinkle of amusement sparkled in her gray eyes.
“Yeah. Somehow he hacked through Blackstone’s phone to send those pictures of Layla and me. We played right into his trap,” Derek added quickly. He continued filling her in on what had happened, watching the struggle of emotions playing across her face.
“You had her pressed against the wall,” Sophie reminded him.
“I was telling her that I was with you,” Derek said roughly. “That was the only way I could get her attention. For her to leave me alone.”
Sophie shook her head and pushed past him. “I’m sorry Derek, I need time to process this. I can’t get the image of her—”
“I understand,” Derek said quietly. “I couldn’t get the image of your face when you saw us, and I hate I was the one who put that look on your face.”
Sophie nodded, walked to his room and shut the door behind her.
***
Sophie let the steaming hot spray of the shower wash the grit, dirt and blood from her body and hair. She couldn’t seem to get clean enough. Flashes of Justin moving on top of her before she stabbed him with the screwdriver kept replaying in her head. She killed a man, watching his eyes bug out in shock, crimson warm liquid shooting out from his neck and quickly drenching her upper body and dripping down her legs when she scrambled to stand up. Sophie didn’t know why killing Justin bothered her more than when she threw that IED that took out the assailants in the lab.
Was it because Justin had touched her intimately and had connected with her in some way? No. It was simply because she premeditated killing him. Somehow Sophie knew that the only way she could be free of Justin was if he was dead. The dam that was holding her tears at bay all evening finally broke as she sank to the floor, hugging her knees and sobbed. The events of the past few days: Derek with Layla, Taggart dead, Beth stabbed, killing Justin and building the zefinium bomb assaulted her mind like relentless flashcards. Minutes passed, and she was turning into a prune. Her sobs had reduced to dry heaving.
“Sophie?”
She watched Derek’s opaque form tentatively enter the bathroom. He saw her pitiful shape through the steamed up shower glass.
“Christ! Sophie,” Derek slid the shower door open and walked in fully clothed. He turned off the water and crouched down beside her. “Angel, are you OK?”
“Do I look OK?” Sophie snapped angrily. “I don’t know why killing Justin affected me more than killing the men at the lab? I don’t know if killing him outright was the right thing to do.”
Derek clenched his jaw hard before saying, “That bastard deserved it, Sophie. Do not regret it. You saved Beth too. You were not just saving yourself.”
He hauled her to her feet and brought her out of the shower. Toeing off his soaked shoes, he grabbed a towel and wrapped it around her. He leaned forward and lifted her, carrying her to the bedroom and laying her on the bed.
“I’m going to get the bed wet.”
“You think I give a damn?” Derek said angrily.
“Why are you acting as if you’re mad at me?” Sophie asked.
“Because you’re having doubts about killing Bishop!” Derek was shouting now. “Have you forgotten he killed Polly? He tortured Beth to force you to build a bomb that could kill thousands.” He paused, his eyes glittering with murderous rage. “He fucking nearly raped you!”
Derek spun away from her, his head bowing low, one hand on his hip and another rubbing his forehead. The muscles under his shirt bunched with tension.
Sophie got off the bed and approached him, touching his shoulder. “Derek—”
With a guttural sound, Derek hauled her into his arms, crushing her so tightly against his chest. She encircled his hips tentatively; his face was buried in the curve of her neck.
“God Sophie, I was close to losing my fucking mind,” Derek said hoarsely. “Imagining Bishop’s hands on you, that he would do to you what he did to Polly...I don’t think I can bear to let you out of my sight again.”
“Derek—”
“So you can forget about needing time to think us over, because I’m not giving it to you,” he stated quietly. He nuzzled the length of her jaw before tentatively brushing her lips, as if seeking permission to kiss her. Sophie opened her lips beneath his and his tongue slipped through gently but deeply. She was acutely aware that the towel had fallen to the floor and she was naked pressed against him.
Ending the kiss reluctantly, he muttered, “I need a shower too.”
He pulled back further and took in her nakedness. His eyes were heated and filled with longing. He finally tore his gaze away and picked up the towel on the floor and wrapped it around her. “Go get ready, Angel. We leave in half an hour.”
Sophie felt a measure of relief. Justin had not left any lasting fear of physical intimacy. She definitely felt desire, but more than lust, she reveled in the comforting cocoon of Derek’s arms.
***
“You should have let him kill me,” Beth whispered. Sophie had her friend put in a private room. The surgeon had cleaned the wound and removed infected tissue. Right now her friend was pumped full of antibiotics and some pain meds, so Sophie was ignoring any crazy words or speeches that might tumble out of Beth’s mouth.
Silver Fire (Guardians) Page 25
