Page 16 of Razor
His head fell forward, feeling too heavy to keep up on his own, and he let the darkness consume him again. Every time he did, he saw the same three faces—Tori, Violet, and Ella. They were like a loop playing in his muddled brain, and he wondered if he’d ever see any of them again. This was all his fault. If he had never taken the undercover assignment with the Devils, none of this would have happened. He’d still have Tori, and Violet would still have her mom. But his overambition got the better of him, and he took that assignment without even consulting his newwife. He thought that he was invincible and that his new little family was safe—but he was so wrong.
“If you still had me, you wouldn’t have Ella,” a familiar voice said, filling the darkness that consumed him. He’d know that voice anywhere—Tori. How was she there with him? Was he dead? Was that how she was talking to him now?
“Why are you here?” he asked.
“I have no idea,” she said. “You’re the one making this up as you go,” she teased. “But that was always how you worked, wasn’t it, babe?” God, he missed her calling him that.
“I’ve missed you,” he whispered.
“I know you have, but you’re doing such a good job with Violet. I’m so glad that you have each other, and I’m happy that you found Ella. But you need to wake up now so that you can be with her.” Tori sounded so far away, and he wanted to tell her that he wasn’t ready to let her go—but he knew the truth. The day that he picked Ella up on the side of the road, he started letting his wife’s memory go. Seeing Ella wear Tori’s old clothes and play with his little girl made his heart want her more and more with each passing day. At first, he thought that he was just trying to replace Tori with Ella, but he quickly learned that wasn’t possible. Ella was so different from Tori, yet he still had fallen in love with her. And Tori was right—if he didn’t wake up, he’d never be able to tell Ella any of that. He wanted a life with her—he wanted to marry her, and if he died in the Devil’s warehouse, he’d never get the chance to be with her or Violet again.
“Thank you,” he whispered as his eyes flew open.
“Um, you’re welcome,” Spade said. He was holding something up to Razor’s nose, and from the God-awful smell, he could tell that it was smelling salts.
“How are you here?” he asked.
“I’ve come to rescue you, but you’re not making it easy,” he said. “You look like shit, man.”
“Thanks for that,” Razor said around a groan. “They know where the safehouse is.” He thought that he was shouting that at Spade, but from the way that his friend leaned in to hear him, he wasn’t.
“We’ve got them, man. Violet and Ella are both safe.” Spade started to cut him free, and every movement hurt like hell. “I posted a few guys at the safehouse, and when they realized what was happening, they called me. One of the guys brought Ella here to be put back into her cage, and the other stayed back at the safehouse with Violet. Thank God she didn’t have to see this place. I’m just sorry that Ella had to endure it again.”
“They’re both safe?” Razor asked around a sob.
“Yeah, man, they are. Cynthia has Violet back at our place, and Ella is with our Captain. He’s promised to have her looked over, although she seems fine. I promised her that as soon as I found your sorry ass, I’d bring you to her, but I think that we should get you to the emergency room first to be checked out. You look like shit.”
“So, you’ve said,” Razor mumbled. “Twice now.”
“Well, I think that your head is okay then,” Spade said. “You can still count. Your face is another issue, though. Your jaw is looking a bit iffy, and I think that you’ll need a few X-rays and stitches.”
“I need to see her,” Razor insisted. “I need to see Ella.”
“I’ll have her brought to the ER as long as you promise to get on the fucking ambulance and go straight there,” Spade insisted. Razor knew that he wasn’t going to win the battle, and honestly, getting checked out was a good idea.
“What about the Devils?” he asked.
“We’ve rounded up most of them, but their leader is still at large, and we still have no fucking idea who he is. Anyone couldbe in charge of this shit show, and we might never figure out who it is,” Spade admitted.
“Fuck,” Razor swore. The EMTs ran into the room and quickly got him loaded onto the gurney. He could tell by the looks on their faces that he looked as bad as Spade said he did. They started an IV, and he lay back, not trying to move a whole lot, since every movement felt like a stabbing pain going right through him.
“They’re never going to stop coming for her,” Razor said to Spade.
His friend stood over him, smiling like a loon. “Well, that’s where you’re wrong, buddy,” he said. “While you were in here getting your ass kicked, Mace was doing a bit of negotiating with the Devils. Well, Mace and the Blaine brothers, that is.”
“What kind of negotiating?” Razor asked, feeling hopeful for the first time since leaving the safehouse earlier that morning.
“He’s offered to pay fair market price for Ella. If the Devils don’t own her anymore, they’ll stop coming after her, and your family will be safe.” He wanted to tell Spade that Ella wasn’t his family—yet, but he knew better. Spade knew how he felt about Ella. Hell, he probably had since the day that they sat in Razor’s office, taking her statement after being kidnapped and held by the Devils.
“I’ll pay whatever they want,” he offered.
“Not necessary,” Spade said. He walked with the EMTs out to the ambulance and watched as they loaded Razor into the back. “The guys all pitched in, and she’s all yours. You are one lucky son-of-a-bitch, Razor. The question is, what are you going to do with her now, man?” Spade asked. He didn’t wait for Razor to answer him, helping the guys shut the bay doors to the ambulance. All Razor could do was watch from the back window as Spade made his way back to his car. His friend was right—he was one lucky son-of-a-bitch, and he wasn’t going to waste hisopportunity with Ella ever again. He was finished with living in the past. It was time that he followed Tori’s advice and woke up to be with Ella.
They wheeled him into the ER, and he found Ella there waiting for him, tears streaming down her beautiful face. “What did they do to you?” she sobbed. She practically threw herself on top of him, and the nurse gently pulled her back.
“You need to give him some space, Ma’am. He’ll need to be checked out,” the EMT said as the nurses started to wheel him back to a room.
“Can she come with me?” he asked.
