“Zane…”
Alive. She was alive. Thank God!
He pulled off his shirt and shredded it quickly, making it long enough to wrap around her shoulder. He pulled it tight then tied a knot. It wasn’t optimal, but the pressure would slow the bleeding.
Before lifting her, he touched the pulse of the guy beside her. Blood pooled from the neck wound.
Nothing. He was dead. Good.
Carefully, he slipped his arms beneath her knees and back and lifted her.
She groaned.
“Sorry. I’m going to get us out of here, Bon, okay?” He needed to get her to the fucking hospital, and he needed to get her there fast. But fuck, Monty was still alive and upstairs somewhere.
Gun still in his hold, he moved up the stairs two at a time.
“Zane.” Bonnie’s voice was quiet. Almost breathless. “Put me down. You need two hands to get him.”
He hated that she was right. He carefully lowered her to the floor just in front of the closed basement door, then crouched in front of her. “I’ll be back in a second. I need you to stay awake. Okay?”
She swallowed, shutting her eyes tightly before nodding. “Stay safe. I need you alive.”
He kissed her forehead, then slipped out of the basement into what looked like a hall.
Keeping his back toward the wall, he moved quietly down the hallway toward the living room. Where was the asshole? If he was inside the house, he would have heard the gunshots.
So was he outside? Or was he lurking in the shadows somewhere, waiting to shoot?
Zane slipped into the living room. There was a brown couch. An old TV. But no sign of Monty.
He crept toward the next door and only pulled it open slightly to peek inside. A kitchen. Not surprising that it was separated in an old house like this. There was also a back door.
He stepped inside just as the back door opened. But instead of a person stepping in, only a gun appeared around the doorframe.
Zane dropped behind the kitchen island as two bullets blasted into the cabinet above him.
“Zane? That you?” Monty called.
“Surprised?”
“A little. What happened? Did my guys get a little excited and your bitch castrate them?”
“Something like that. It’s never smart to underestimate a woman.”
He glanced around the island, and more shots fired, almost catching him in the damn face. He pulled back.
“But she’s not with you, is she?” Monty called. “She dead?”
“No. Butyouwill be.” He aimed his weapon and fired through the wall beside the door.
Monty laughed. “One of us is going to die, Zane—and it won’t be me. You see, rats like you eventually get what’s coming. And today’s your reckoning.”
“You’ve forgotten something, cousin. I’mbetterthan you. Stronger. Smarter. I was better than you in the ring. And I’m better now.”
Monty growled and started shooting, his footsteps loud as he entered the kitchen. Round after round, like the predictable asshole he was, trying to prove Zane wrong.
Without sticking his head out, Zane aimed and gently pulled the trigger once.
