Page 58 of SEAL Ever After

Brent freed her wrists, sheathing his knife and then helping her to stand up. Her legs shook, and he finally lifted her into his arms. “Get her to safety,” Ryan ordered.

“Roger that. I’ll leave her with Flip and Gator and come back to resume the search,” he said, referring to Evan and Matthew, who were waiting at the Humvees.

“Are there any other women being held down here?” Ryan asked.

“There’s at least one other woman, yes. She was brought here recently and was with me earlier today. They took her to a different room. Maybe they left. I’m sorry, I’m not sure.”

Ryan was already turning and running toward the door. He turned right and hustled down the hallway, looking down the scope of his rifle as he moved forward. His finger caressed the trigger, ready to fire if anyone attempted to stop him.

“On your six,” Christopher replied, hurrying behind him.

Ryan paused and turned right, looking into an empty room. A dim light was on, and he frowned as he saw what looked to be water all over the floor. There was nothing else inside though.

“Looks like someone was just here,” Christopher said in a low voice.

Turning again, Ryan moved further down the dim hallway. It was cool and damp, and he didn’t like the idea of Sarah being held down here scared and alone. The woman they’d just found looked to be in bad condition, but she had probably been here much longer given how thin she was.

Rage filled his body as he moved forward. He wanted to kill each and every one of those assholes who’d harmed a woman. Who’d held them against their will, not giving them any choice in the matter.

Ice’s voice came over his headset. “The upstairs is clear. We’re heading back down and will search the main level.”

“Roger that,” Christopher said. “Brent’s taking the first woman out to the Humvees. The CO and I are continuing to search the basement.”

Ryan heard a whimper to his left and stopped, seeing a closed doorway several feet away. It was smaller than he others, possibly leading to some sort of storage area or different room. Was the sound coming from there?

He was about to kick the small door open when he heard a scuffle up ahead.

Two men came rushing out of a room at the end of the hall, and he nearly fell over as he saw one of them was holding a necklace and a diamond ring that looked an awful lot like the one he’d given to Sarah.

“Where is she?” he roared, his heart pounding in his chest. Two heads swiveled toward him, but he had already taken one man out and aimed his assault rifle at the next. “Tell me where the hell she is,” he said, aiming directly between the man’s eyes. “I’ve got no qualms about ending your life.”

The man chuckled. “You’re too late. I already fucked her.”

A shot rang out, and the bullet went into his forehead. He fell to the ground, and Ryan was already running forward, bursting into the room. Tears filled his eyes as Sarah looked up from where she’d been handcuffed to the wall.

“Ryan!” she cried, sobbing as he rushed to her.

He knelt down in front of her, collecting her in his arms as best he could. She was wearing a tiny little dress but otherwise appeared to be clean and unharmed. Her skin was cool to the touch though, and he hated that she’d been chained up down her. “Did they—did they touch you?” he choked out.

“No, no,” she said, trying to grab onto him.

“They didn’t hurt you?” he asked in anguish, running his hands lightly over her arms as if to check for any injuries and reassure himself that she was really okay. Christopher burst into the room. He could hear Christopher talking into the headset, giving an update, and the other men’s voices in his ear, but all he could see or hear was Sarah.

His hands shook as he tried to uncuff her, and Christopher knelt beside them, quickly freeing her from the chains.

Ryan lifted her into his arms, holding her close. She shook as her arms wrapped around his neck and she sobbed, but he was already turning and moving to the doorway. “I’m here, baby girl. I’m here. You’re safe now.”

“They kept threatening to hurt me—to rape me. Something happened with whatever buyer was coming. But I gave them my necklace and engagement ring to try to stall them.”

“We got it back,” Christopher said from behind her.

Sarah looked up, and Ryan met her gaze. “Are you sure they didn’t touch you? Didn’t hurt you? That asshole, he said—” Ryan cut off, unable to even finish he sentence.

“He didn’t hurt me—he lied. Where is he?” she asked, looking around. “That guy Juan was just here! He’s down here somewhere; we have to get out!”

“He’s gone,” Ryan assured her.

“Gone?”

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