Both Haidyn and Saint go over to the cabinets. “Adrenaline?” The sound of Haidyn’s voice makes me jump.
“No,” Saint answers. “I don’t want to kill her. I’d prefer her to pass out.”
What the fuck are they going to do to her? I thought they loved her? How long ago was this taken? A quick look tells me that it’s old because neither one of them has any ink.
“And if she doesn’t?” Haidyn asks, but his tone doesn’t give off any concern. It’s more like curiosity.
“She will. Her body won’t be able to handle it.”
Ashtyn yanks on her arms secured in the straitjacket and begins to choke as saliva shoots out from the black rubber breathing tube from underneath all the duct tape. Saint turns and walks over to her. She’s naked from the waist down. Hewipes her pelvic bone, and my heart hammers in my chest, wondering what they’re going to make her endure.
My eyes go to Haidyn, and he hands Saint a branding iron with the Lords crest on it. “Take a deep breath, Ashtyn,” Saint tells her.
“Are you sure?” Haidyn asks once again.
“No,” Saint answers. “Go ahead and give her the adrenaline.”
Ashtyn shakes her head, and her wide eyes go to Saint, pleading for him not to do it.
Haidyn walks over to the counter, opens a drawer, and fills a syringe from a clear vial. She’s screaming into the tape as he walks back to them. Haidyn undoes the belt around her neck to the stretcher, and she goes to lean up, but he grips her taped face, tilts her head back, and pushes the needle into it. She instantly goes limp, and her eyes close.
Then the video goes dark. I close the email and open it again quickly, wanting to see more, but it’s gone.
The shower turning off has me yanking the earbud out and shoving it along with my cell between the mattress and box spring.
I lie down and pull the covers up and over my face, praying that he thinks I’ve gone back to sleep so he won’t find me all worked up and wonder why.
I close my eyes, trying to calm my breathing while wondering why the fuck the Lords would send me that. Why do they want me to see that? Haidyn was supposed to give her adrenaline, but it’s obvious he didn’t. He knocked her out because he didn’t want her to go through the pain. Why?
He loves her.My mother’s friend’s words come back to me. For some reason, they had to brand her, and he couldn’t bear to put her through that kind of pain.
The thought makes my Lords brand itch, and I slowly move my neck back and forth, trying to scratch it against the pillow.The one on my ass burns as well. I freeze when I hear the bathroom door finally open and hold my breath.
Seconds later, I hear him exit the bedroom, and I close my eyes, releasing my breath. Fuck. I feel like the Lords are trying to tell me something, but I’m not sure what it is. Or if I even want to know.
HAIDYN
My cell went off while I was in the shower, and it was a text.
SAINT: Come home please…she needs you.
I haven’t spoken to him since he stood in the doorway of my house, so I know it must be important if he’s reaching out. Running a hand through my hair, I contemplate ignoring it. But the fact that Saint was the one who messaged me makes me think it’s important.
Walking back into my bedroom, I go over to the side of the bed that Charlotte is lying on. I gently pull back the covers from her face. “Charlotte?” I place my hand on her shoulder, and her heavy eyes open to meet mine. “I have to run.”
“Okay.” She yawns.
“Get some sleep, doll face. I’ll be right back.”
I jump on my bike and pull up to Carnage in less than twenty minutes. Jessie meets me at the main entrance. “They’re upstairs in the birdcage, sir,” he informs me, knowing I was coming. I guess Saint informed him that he requested my presence.
Making my way up to the birdcage, I exit the elevator just as the door to Saint’s room opens. He steps out into the hallway to meet me. His head is down, and he runs his hand throughhis already disheveled hair. When his eyes meet mine, I feel a coldness run down my spine.
What the fuck happened?“What’s going on? Where is she?”
“In our room,” he answers, and his voice is hoarse.
I reach out to open the door, but he steps in my way. “Saint?—?”
