“Was there a note, anything that rat bastard left? What about the ring?” My throat feels like I ate handfuls of sand. Dry and scratchy.
When Lane’s throat bobs, and he looks away, I have my answer. Shadow left something behind to taunt me.
“When I pulled in, I didn’t know what the hell I was going to walk into, so Gabe called Lazaro. By the time I got to the airport, a doctor was waiting. He flew with me; you’re all stitched up. I put him up in a hotel; he left pain pills if you want them. The ring is in the top drawer in the office.” He shrugs, sure sign that is not the reason he didn’t send the doctor packing. He’s here in case we need him for Ellie.
I fight to adhere to anger instead of giving in to the ache of wonder. All that build up hurt of our loss. Fuck, Ellie has to be aching everywhere.
Slowly I breathe in and out, hand clutching the sheets as what feels like an electric shock winds through my upper body.
“I don’t want pain pills; I want a drink. I want Ellie. I want you not to be sitting here, thinking you need to take care of me. I want you to tell me everything, damn it.” Like is Ellie lying in a morgue somewhere?
“Alcohol is not what you need, brother.”
“You don’t know what I need,” I snap, feeling guilty as soon as the words leave my mouth.
I need to dull the pain, numb what’s left of my brain. I need Ellie to lie beside me so I can close my eyes and sleep. I need to finally kill a man who has outsmarted me every step of the way. That’s what I fucking need.
Now my wants, yeah, those are a whole different set of emotions flying through me like an uncontrollable fire — the wanting not to feel so fucking helpless at the top.
Every minute without her is hell — a battle of emotions. If I thought I knew what guilt and terror were before, they were nothing compared to now.
It’s like someone has twisted everything inside me and the only way they’ll untwist is when I hear Ellie’s sweet voice tell me she’s alright.
“Is she alive?” Shit, saying those words is like pouring straight-up acid in my mouth.
“I don’t know.”
Worry stares back at me from eyes like my own.
I think back to what Shadow said about Whitney and making me pay. He wants to make me suffer, and in doing so, he’s going to take it out on Ellie. I know this because that’s how his mind works.
“I’m not staying in this bed. Do you hear me? There is not a chance in hell I’m lying around while the woman I love is fuck knows where. Now tell me what’s going on? How long have I been out?” With those words, rage rockets through my veins. It blasts throughout me. Not at Lane. At Shadow. He fucked me in my ass and took. I’ll be damned if he gets away with taking again.
Anger. I need it to crawl across my chest. I want it to blister me and burst into my blood. That’s the only way I’ll make it through this — the only way.
I haven’t the first clue where to look for Ellie, or where the bastard took her. Has he raped her again? Dumped her in some goddamn ditch? Christ, Logan, if you let your mind go there, you’ll be no good. She’s strong.
In most situations, it’s true. Ellie is strong. Shadow having her on top of what she’s been through has to be weakening her to the brink of going insane. Lord knows I’ve done lost my mind. For the life of me, I can’t grasp hold of what she has to be thinking.
“You’re frustrated, you’re worried, and you’re pissed. I get it. You want to take it out on me; then I’m your man. All that aside, I do know what you need, and you will bite your pride and let me take care of this, Logan, or I’ll knock you the hell out and shove a pill down your throat.”
I chuckle as I use my uninjured arm to push myself up. The room spins, and I sink right back down, doing everything I can not to close my eyes and drift.
Fuck. I feel helpless. The last thing I’m doing though is taking some drug that knocks me out. I need to let the pain course through me. The only way it’ll subside is when I touch that spot on Ellie’s neck and feel her pulse underneath my fingertips. See that she’s unharmed and freed from the clutches of a certifiably insane man.
“Right brother, might want to take a look in the mirror. If I can deck you after being shot, think of what I’ll be capable of.”
“Fuck off; we’ll get her back. I’m not letting you do anything stupid; you get me?” He pauses. “This time you’re listening to me.”
“I’m not taking a pill, that’s the end of it. Where’s Lexi?” Damn him, he better not have brought her. This is no place for our little princess.
“Lexi’s with Lazaro. There wasn’t anyone else who’s not involved she knew that I trusted her with, other than worrying about Ellie, she’s fine, Logan. Knowing Lexi, she thinks she’s on vacation.” I sigh in relief. “How long have I been out?”
“Twenty-four hours. A lot has happened. First, you need to know Ellie tried to save you. There’s video footage from the security cameras. I transferred it to your email. Shadow leaned over her for a bit; then he walked out the door. She was up and grabbing her phone and a knife. She called Gabe before she flew through the door. She dropped her phone. I have yours and hers.”
I freeze, pride mixing in with the emotions that are rippling through me.
I don’t comment on what he said. There’s no need to, not on either end. There are security cameras everywhere in this house. Even though I didn’t think I needed them, I turned them on anyway.
“She’s strong, Logan. You need to remember that. I’ll get to everything else in a minute. I’d like you to know what you’ll face when your stubborn ass goes downstairs. You might be pissed, but I felt I needed to tell Renita and Norah. They’re here along with Sandy. They flew down with me. I set Norah and Renita up in the bedroom across from this one. Sandy is on the couch.”
Shit, I bet they are a mess.
“I’m a bit of everything right now. Pissed at you doing the right thing isn’t one of them, Lane. Tell me what’s happening.” In spite of the throbbing in my shoulder, I sit up, twisting my body to where Lane frowns and looks beyond me. There in the doorway leading into the bedroom stands the last person I expected to see. The man a ghostly outline of what he once was. His face is tan, body quite a bit thinner, hair cut short, but his eyes, they are as clear as I’ve seen them in years.
“You climb out of this bed, and you won’t have an arm left to wrap around your woman when we get her back. I’ll chop the damn thing off.”
Now, this does piss me off.
“The fuck, Seth? This one I can understand wanting to help.” I cock my head toward Lane and hiss when the movement shoots more pain through my shoulder. “You, on the other hand. No, man. You need to high tail your ass back to rehab.”
I try tamping my anger down. Neither of my brothers should be here. Hell, I shouldn’t be lying here helpless either. That’s what I get for letting my guard down, for thinking Whitney and Shadow were smarter than I gave them credit for.
“What we all need is to be here as a family — helping you when you need it. As soon as we find Ellie, and she will be found, Logan. I’m going back. I’m so sorry about the baby. So damn sorry.”
I swallow around the knot of grief. It lingers in the air.
I close my eyes; having both my brothers here to look out for Ellie and me chokes the hell out of me. Wouldn’t surprise me if Rocco and Gabe aren’t here or out looking for Ellie.
I tamp the emotions down and jut my chin toward Lane. “He shouldn’t be out of rehab. I thought you said he wouldn’t be made aware? Goddamn it, Lane. I have enough to worry about; I can’t worry about something happening to the two of you.”
I trust my brothers; it’s Shadow I don’t. He’s a man on a mission and fuck all if I know what he has up his sleeve.
“Nothing’s going to happen to any of us. If you want me to tell you what’s going on, especially where Gabe is and what he’s doing, you need to pull yourself together and promise me you’ll let us take care of everything. If not for E
llie or yourself, then for those women downstairs who are freaking the hell out.”
I scoff, shaking my head at Lane and lean my head against the headboard.
“How the hell can I pull myself together when Ellie is with a psychopath? They fuck with their prey, Lane. Shadow is going to taunt Ellie, and you know it.”
“I know what kind of man he is; we all do. You need to trust us. We won’t sit on our hands when our brother and the woman he loves needs us. I harbor guilt inside me too, Logan. The worry is pecking at my skin. It’s eating at all of us. You were shot for fuck’s sake, you are grieving, and you are frightened. You push me on this, and I’ll push harder. We are here, so fucking deal with it.”
Torture. It’s happening at the speed of light. It’s going to rob me of the last shred of sanity if I have to lay here. Fuck that shit.
Holding his hands up, Seth strolls in and takes a seat beside me, stretching his legs out in front of him.
“I get you don’t know which way to go right now. I get you’re the big brother, and you have this obligation to protect us, but goddamn it, Logan, we are a team. Fucking blood. You want to take anger out on something, then take it up with getting rest so you can think clearly. I happened to call Lane to find out what was going on between you and Ellie. He tried telling me things were okay. I think the asshole forgot we don’t keep secrets, knew he was lying straight away. Save whatever else it is you have to say for another time. I’m not going anywhere until my family is back together. I’m here, so for once in your life, you will let us help you. You will let us protect you, and you will lean on us. There’s no room for negotiation. Now, do you want to hear what’s been happening or not? I’m in the mood to draw blood, and the sooner we fill you in, the quicker I can.”
Chapter Five
Ellie
The room spins, the walls expand, making me feel small. I can hardly keep my eyes open to take in what kind of prison I’m in. That’s where I am, what I’d become. A prisoner to a man determined to ruin me.
Desperation sticks to the humid air and a reeking skunky smell lodges in my throat. Tears burn in the back of my eyes. I feel like a mere hollow shell of who I used to be. A hard covering over a woman whose heart is broken, yet filled with the love of a man who needs me as much as I need him.
My right eye is swollen shut and leaking. My nose feels full of dried blood, and I suspect my lips are at least ten times larger than usual.
Worse than anything, I’m so incredibly thirsty that my tongue feels like it’s taking up my entire mouth.
I want to peel back the layers and crawl out of my skin because whatever Shadow gave me, not only left my mind a wandering mess, it’s worn off, leaving me in excruciating pain, and my skin is itching like crazy.
“Oh, God, what did you give me, Shadow? I’m going insane. I’ve got to get out of here.”
Twisting, rotating, and pulling, I use the muscles in my arms to try wrenching and tugging my wrists out of the rope. I yelp when I feel my skin splitting wide open. Droplets of blood falling down my arms. I continue wiggling my wrists back and forth as much as I can. Before long, my blood is flowing down my neck, and my stomach is cramping like I’m going to start my period, which is impossible since I just lost my baby.
My soul cries — cruelty and loathing and hate, so much of it over the brutality that was being carried out by the hands of a crazy man.
Cold and heartless and cruel.
Little white bubbles float in front of my eyes as I give up and give in to the burn. I try to calm down by taking deep breaths and shed my left eye open to a semi-dark room. I need to focus on something, anything besides the way my skin feels like little tiny insects are crawling all over me. With each blink, I’m able to make out a more unobstructed view.
We’re in a man’s bedroom. I’d guess it to be the man who helped Shadow because he doesn’t have a dime to his name to afford the lavish wooden furniture or the expensive suits hanging in the closet. The ocean is barely visible from the open sliding door. We have to be in Galveston still. I don’t know why I sense we are, I just do.
Think, Ellie. You need to forget about the pain, forget about what you’ve lost, and figure a way out of here.
I’m a victim, and I’ll end up another statistic if I don’t make a plan to escape. A cold case that my family may never solve.
I’m not afraid to die. I’m scared of the torture, of the agony Shadow is going to put me through. I’m terrified of him touching me again.
Wiggling my toes, I feel soft carpet at the tips. I smell the brine coming off the ocean, and there’s a slight warm breeze caressing my flesh.
Pieces. I have to start putting them together.
Shaking my head as if it’ll clear the residue of the drug that’s scrambling my brain, I slowly start to remember things.
Everything locks into place. Whitney, Sadie, and Shadow. They were working together. That’s what Logan wanted to tell me on the beach. Not that it would have mattered because we had no idea Shadow escaped or lied about his release date.
It’s the latter of that I’m sure.
Keeping my head down, I do my best to try to get a feel for a sense of direction, but when my arms go numb, no longer in pain like they were a few minutes ago, and my skin won’t stop itching. The panic comes back and threatens to swallow me. I attempt to wiggle my fingers; they feel detached from my hands.
If this is how I’m going to die, then I wish they’d get it over with, so I don’t have to think about those I love. So I don’t have to feel the loss of my child in my chest. Take me so I can live in peace with my parents.
The only thing that runs through my mind now is how your life does flash before your eyes when you think you’re going to die. A tiny glimpse of what could have been. What was and what’s to come.
I see more of my life flitter across my brain and sink into my chest than my heart can handle. Scars and wounds of those left behind that would never heal if both Logan and I were to die.
It starts as a spark, a memory that flares inside my mind as it pushes every notable moment to the front of my brain.
Family. Logan, Lexi, our baby.
Rape.
All of them, plus a future filled with happiness flicker and flow. So many memories crash, and ignite, turning into a bright blue burning flame in front of my face.
Sucking in a breath and screwing my eyes shut as if it would make the sharp pain searing through my abdomen go away, I breathe in and out until it subsides.
The robust smell from a minute ago hits my nose, notes of musk, earth, and skunk. Someone’s in the room and smoking a joint.
“Want some? It’ll take away the pain.” That voice belongs to Shadow’s friend. Oh, God.
Popping open my eyes, I see him sitting on the edge of the bed; the joint tucked between his thumb and index finger as he holds it out for me to take.
Seething hatred and burning ire shoot out of my eye, wishing it were that easy to kill him.
“You?” I try moving my hands again to slap the smug look of satisfaction off his face, only to wince when the rope burns my skin.
“Yes, me.” He shrugs as if he isn’t a culprit that came into my home and wrecked my world. “You can’t reach it. Silly me, I forgot.”
I turn my attention to the floor and count to ten before veering it back at him with a glare.
“I wouldn’t accept it from you if I could. It’s probably laced with whatever the hell Shadow gave me.” Or worse, some kind of sex enhanced drug. I wouldn’t put it past either one of them.
Snarky bastard. I should have known it would be him.
This time there isn’t a ski mask covering his face. No wonder he wore one though, he’s local and more likely didn’t want to be seen.
Cole Bates. Shadow’s creepy friend from when we were younger. I remember him well — the rich jock who never had to work a day in his life. The boy everyone bought their drugs from because he had the money to get the good stuff. Or so the rumor-
mills said. The last I heard he was living off the trust fund his father left him after he died. I hated Cole then; I want to scratch his beady little lust-filled eyes out now and bash his skull in. Cover these walls with his blood.
He appears to look like the average man. Tall, dark and handsome, and no one would notice otherwise if it weren’t for the sickening look as he strips me naked with his eyes. It makes my insides tremor with disgust.
“I don’t want a damn thing from you except for you to die right along with your whacked out friend. Both of you are crazy. Certifiably and you have no clue what my family will do once they get their hands on you. Stupid, that’s what you are.”
“Wow, you need something besides drugs to shut up that mouth. I have the perfect thing to shove down your throat. I think you’re lying about wanting something from me, Ellie. You want me to untie you; you want to use the bathroom, take a shower. You want food and water; you want to get the fuck out of here. You’ve been hanging by your arms for over twenty-four hours. That bladder has to be ready to combust. The muscles in your arms have to be aching. Shall I go on?”
Ignoring his goad, I internally gasp that an entire day has gone by. Light-headedness spins my brain — a vise clamps down on my heart. My loved ones have to be going out of their minds. They have to have found Logan by now.
Chuckling, Cole takes a hit, lowers his face, puts the joint out in an ashtray and places it on the nightstand next to the bed. I hope the stuff fries his brain cells to a crisp.
I want all those things he said. At the moment I have to pee so badly I’d be more comfortable if I let it dribble down my legs. Eventually, I probably will because I won’t beg the two of them for anything.
“Shadow wanted to know when you woke. It seems he still doesn’t have patience when it comes to getting what he wants from you.” He shrugs again, lips stretching into a heartless smile.
If I didn’t already believe Cole was as psychotic as Shadow, I do after his implying words that he knew back then what happened to me and didn’t step forward.
Unbound Trilogy Boxset Page 44
