Page 49 of Hunted Innocence

His words slam into me. I open my mouth to tell him that I need to leave, I can’t be here, but he only shakes his head and continues. “Be there for her in the way you can right now. Avenge her. You have the drive, you have the asshole, now let’s handle this—together.”

Together.

“The six of us, together,” Vaughn growls. “Always.”

He’s right. It’s always been the six of us, and where one of us falls short, the other five come in and help. I’ve fallen beyond short, and they’re here for me. Never judging, not fucking ever.

So together, we move toward Landon, who is a bloody, moaning mess on the floor. None of us bothers putting his pants back on him, mainly because if he wants to play the humiliation game, we can do that.

Crouching down in front of him, I look into his swelling face before I speak, and when I do, it’s barely above a whisper. I don’t care if anyone else hears me, but I need him to really understand what I’m saying, I mean, full stop.

The rage I feel for this human goes down to my goddamn marrow, and I am going to ensure that he understands fully exactly what a piece of shit he is.

“I hope you’re ready for the final days of your life. They’re going to be fucking humiliating.”

NADINE

There isa noise somewhere in the distance.

Then shouting.

I can’t see anything. Darkness still consumes my vision. Internally, I scream for someone to help me. I try as hard as I can to wake up, but nothing happens. I’m stuck in this place between a conscious and dreamlike state. No matter how much I want to open my eyes, nothing happens.

Hands grab my body.

I don’t know who they belong to, but I don’t feel fear or disgust. I feel fingertips on my skin, gripping me, and thenI become weightless. Someone is carrying me. Loud voices surround me, swirling around me like a storm.

When the movements stop, I hear a car’s engine, and then the car moves, causing a rocking motion that lulls me into a complete dreamscape. I stop trying to fight the sleep. A sense of safety washes over me. I’m not sure if it’s real or false, but I accept it.

And then there is nothingness.

Chapter Twenty-One

NADINE

Fingersgently glide down the side of my face. I turn my head, and finally, my eyes flutter open. I’m not sure who I expect to see sitting beside me, but it’s not Colette. She has tears swimming in her eyes.

“Hey,” she whispers.

I open my mouth to say something, but my throat is so dry that nothing comes out. She shakes her head as she rises from her chair.

“Let me get you some water.”

Colette walks away, but another figure moves to the side of the bed. It’s Lucille. She tilts her head to the side, her eyes searching mine before she speaks. I hold my breath for a moment because I have no idea what she is going to say. With her, you never know what is going to come out of her mouth.

“I wish I could ruin him more than I already have. I’ve drained his accounts—offshore and here. His credit is tanked, but none of that really matters because he will not be alive muchlonger. I wish there were another way I could hurt him,” she whispers.

Reaching out, I take her hand, curling my fingers around hers. “You’ve done more than you ever needed to, Lucille. I appreciate it so much.”

She shakes her head. “Bullshit,” she snaps. “Give me five minutes in a room with him, and I’ll make him regret his existence.”

Smiling, I squeeze her fingers and give her hand a small shake. “I’m okay. Really, I am.”

Colette rushes back into the room, a bottle of water in hand. “I couldn’t find a straw,” she says, her voice almost panicked.

Inhaling a deep breath, I place my palms on the mattress and slowly push myself up to a seated position, trying and failing not to wince as I do. Resting my back against the headboard, I look around, trying to place where I am, but I can’t.

“You’re at Grayson’s,” Lucille murmurs. “He wouldn’t let them take you anywhere else. It got kind of ugly with your brother.”

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