She wets her lips, squinting at me, as if she’s trying to decide which side of this she wants to come down on. Finally, she nods. “Room 12. I never saw you.”
* * *
With a violent crash,the motel room door flies in, the neglected, rusty hinges no match for my shoulder. As the bright light from the sun streams in through the doorway, my eyes don’t need to adjust much to see exactly what I’d been anticipating. Preppy boy Nick hovers over Elliot on a disgusting mattress in the middle of the dreary room. He’s got her arms bound to the bed so she can’t fight him off, and the pretty dress she’d been wearing this morning is hiked up around her waist. I don’t want to think about why he’s left her legs unbound.
My heart rate skyrockets as thoughts of what he’s done to her in the last couple hours rampage through my head. As if he realizes how much trouble he’s in, the asshole drops whatever he had in his hand and scrambles from the bed. He holds his hands in front of him, creeping as far from us as he can while Elliot remains motionless on the bed, staring blankly at me through dilated eyes, her lips parted.What the fuck did this motherfucker do to her?
A deafening roar erupts from me, and I’m across the room and firing my fist into this guy’s face before he has a chance to move out of the way or even try to sidestep. I slam him into the wall, brace my forearm across his chest, and punch again—twice in rapid succession—before stopping to assess the damage I’ve inflicted. A mixture of blood and spit spurts from his mouth, dribbling down his chin. I heard a crunch when he hit the wall. It was most likely the sound of the drywall crumbling from the force of me shoving him into it, but I wouldn’t mind if it was one or more of his bones breaking, I really wouldn’t.
I turn my head to see Cannon at my side, his chest heaving like an angry bear. I know the second I give him the go-ahead he’s going to pound on this guy. Nick has no idea the fury that is about to be unleashed on him.
Still holding Nick in place, I look over my other shoulder, glad to see Archer has gone to Elliot. He’s busy studying the thick ropes tying her to the bed. It’s clear she’s traumatized; tremors roll violently through her body. I don’t think she could stop the involuntary response if she tried.Fuck.She’s probably in shock.
Archer whispers calming, quiet words to her that I can barely make out. “Peaches, you’re gonna be fine. We’re here. You’re safe.” She stares at him, dazed, before she closes her eyes and nods. He cups her cheek tenderly with one hand while glancing over his shoulder at us. He grits out, “Anyone have a knife? That’ll be the fastest way to get her untied. Apparently, dickhead over there must be a sailor or some shit. The knots are legit.”
Cannon makes a gruff sound, then nods, reaching into his pocket before tossing Archer a pocketknife.
My jaw cocks to the side as I turn back to stare this Nick asshole down, murder on my mind. He snarls, “Come to save your little slut? She’s become a mouthy little bitch since she left home. She used to be so fucking docile and malleable.”
In acknowledgment of his words, I simply rear back and let my fist fly again, this time into his gut, which has him doubling over before I step aside. Like we choreographed it, Cannon takes my place, and the second Nick begins to straighten himself up, my brother delivers a nasty uppercut to Nick’s chin that snaps his head backward and makes his teeth click together loudly on impact. He stumbles back into the wall again, sliding down. He blinks, scanning the room like a caged animal hoping for an escape route.
I huff out a laugh, my chest heaving from exertion. “You’re not walking out of here anytime soon. Not after the hell you’ve put her through.”
I catch Cannon in my peripheral vision glancing back at Elliot, who has brought her legs firmly together and twisted so she can pull them up, curling herself into a ball as best she can as Archer continues to saw at the rope binding her. The pain sliding over her features is unmistakable, but I can’t tell if it’s physical hurt or emotional angst or a combination of the two.
Cannon wets his lips, an absolutely animalistic, rage-filled look in his eye. He lowers himself to one knee beside Nick, his chest rising and falling fast as he considers what to do with him. Only a moment later, he has the front of Nick’s shirt in his grasp and hammers his fist into his face three more satisfying times before I can pull him off the worthless douchebag and bring him to his feet. “Fucker,” he spits, his voice raspy and rough. He starts to lunge for him again, but I grab his arm, holding him back as best I can. He’s conflicted, wants this dude’s blood so badly he can taste it.
I don’t disagree. But we’re also not on our home turf, and the goddamn door is hanging wide open so anyone passing by can see what’s happening in here. And what’s happening isuglyall the way around. In the mostly dark room, I can see the way Nick’s face is becoming a distorted version of what it once was.
In fact, it’s so bad I doubt Nick is aware when we trade places. I go to Elliot and Archer hands off the knife so I can finish working on the first rope. With a determined look on his face, he steps in and kicks Nick in the side with the toe of his fancy shoes—twice—then backs up and stomps his foot down on the guy’s crotch. The asshole goes completely white, falls to the side, and writhes in agony while grabbing his junk. Archer shrugs his shoulders as if to sayHe had it coming,then gives me a grim smile before his gaze slides back to our prey. “Touch her again, and I won’t stop there, you motherfucking asshole.”
The moment I cut through the first rope, Elliot draws herself out of the daze she’s been in. She whispers, “Don’t let them see.Please.”Her voice is raspy and raw, and I would do anything to take away the fear that coats her features, but I don’t immediately understand what she means. She stares at me with lost, devastated eyes before they flick down to the small black case lying beside her on the mattress. Opening it, I stare down at the contents, and my heart stops. That motherfucker. Realizing what we’re dealing with, I lean close, my lips grazing the shell of her ear. “I’m so sorry, Elle.”
I sit up, my gaze sliding from Archer to Cannon. “We’ve gotta get her outta here.”
Cannon’s entire body is practically vibrating, he’s so upset. I feel the need for vengeance oozing from him. I get up and grasp his shoulder, pulling him close to me before I murmur, “Elliot needs you right now. We need your help. You’ve gotta let it go. At least for now.” He takes several deep, ragged breaths before finally nodding, though he gives Nick one last lingering glare.
His fists clench and unclench over and over again, and I know he’s not in his right mind at the moment. He’s going to have to find a way to break free of whatever is in his head because Elliotwillneed him to be there for her. She’s going to need all of us.
Archer returns to his original spot on the bed, and I take the other side to begin cutting through the second tie.Fucking thick rope.
Eyeing the blood on the sheet, Archer murmurs, “Elliot, baby, where are you hurt? You’re bleeding.” He puts a careful hand on her waist, gently squeezing, though it does no good because she doesn’t respond. His jaw twitches hard as he stares at the stain on the bed. “Peaches, he didn’t. I mean— That’s not…?”
She slowly shakes her head.
No, I don’t think he got the chance to rape her. But what he did to her may cause nearly as much damage as that would’ve. I give her an anguished look before murmuring quietly, “It’s her leg. Grab a couple fresh towels from the bathroom.”
Archer meets my eyes, his brows drawing together, and I try to express the severity of the situation without saying anything. Fortunately, he springs into action without asking for details. I have an idea of what that sick bastard has done and why Elliot’s quickly spiraling.
Finally, the knife makes it through the second rope, and I glare at Nick’s hunched-over form as I carefully pick Elliot up off the bed, cradling her against my chest.
Archer comes out of the bathroom with both hand and bath towels, and I murmur, “Under her leg and my arm. Hurry.” I can feel the sticky wetness beginning to run down my arm to where I’ve clutched her legs to me.
“Damn,” he hisses when he realizes the issue, kneeling to make sure there isn’t blood dripping everywhere.
The last thing we need is to leave a goddamn trail. This has already gone sideways. I figured we’d beat the shit out of him and leave. But we’ve outright damaged him—for all the right reasons, though. I don’t want to think about how long it will take her to recover from this.
“Cannon.” I pause, waiting for him to acknowledge me, then say his name a little louder and with more force behind it.“Cannon.”
