I sit back on my heels as horror and revulsion wash over me, waves of despair threatening to suck me under.
Faintly, in the dark recess of my mind, I hear the door swing open, the heavy metal hinges groaning against the weight. It’s probably Christian. He’ll kill me for this. Of that I have no doubt, but still, I can’t move. I’m frozen in place, my eyes glued to the corpse of the man I’ve murdered.
“See? Told you she’d be fine, Seamus.”
A deep, thick Irish brogue shifts through the space around me, filling the silence.
“That doesn’t look fine to me.” Another voice, almost indistinguishable from the first, joins in. “She looks like she’s about to keel over.”
Footsteps approach, their heavy soles crunching the debris with each step. They stop just behind me, the heat from their presence pressing against my back. Slowly, the fog that’s swarmed my mind begins to lift as if sensing they’re here to help.
Or kill me.
One of them whistles as he crouches down on my right side, a gun hanging casually between his legs as he leans in to get a better look at the chaos I’ve created. At whom I’ve killed.
Murdered,screams the little voice in the back of my mind.
“Looks like our damsel is a wild one,” the one next to me jokes. “Kiernan, come help with her, would ya?”
The other man grumbles under his breath as he crouches down on my left side.
“Come on, lass.” He holds out his hand in front of me. It holds a white handkerchief. “Get that blood off your hands, and let’s get out of here before the fireworks go off.”
Sharp emerald eyes meet mine when I lift my gaze to his. My breath catches in my throat as I take him in. It’s almost like looking in the mirror. His jaw is sharp, angular, and seems morepronounced with his ginger hair tied in a man bun at the back of his head. Freckles dot his lightly tanned skin, and I can see a swirl of inked artwork riding up the collar of his T-shirt.
Carefully, I take the handkerchief from his hand and begin to vigorously rub at the blood I’ve stained them with. A desperate sound fills the room. A haunting wail. Where is it coming from?
Me.
It’s coming from me.
“All right.” The man named Kiernan called Seamus stands, dragging me along with him. “That’s enough of that.”
They’re twins. The wailing stops as my head cocks to the side to examine him. The only difference is that Seamus has a more crooked nose. Everything else is a mirror image, even the tattoos.
“Well, that was easy.” He smiles down at me, showcasing a row of pearly white teeth. “Whatcha say we beat it and get out of here, eh? Not much of a resort spot, if you ask me.”
I can’t help but smile at his attempt at humor. Swallowing hard, I nod and am greeted with another wide smile. Taking my hand, he leads me from the room, Kiernan hot on our tail.
“Where is everyone?” My eyes dart back and forth, taking in the empty hallways and quiet rooms. “What did you do with them?”
“Them?” Seamus asks without looking down at me.
“The girls,” I point out. “Where are the other girls? They would’ve felt the explosion. They could be hurt or…”
“All the women here are being transferred,” Kiernan speaks up from behind me. Transferred? Do they deal in human flesh too? No, I won’t be a part of that. I won’t allow myself to be dragged into that. Even if these men are related to me.
Pulling against Seamus, I plant my feet firmly on the ground, catching him off guard. He stumbles slightly. His grip on my hand falters, and I yank it from his grasp.
“What the fuck, Avaleigh?” Seamus growls as he rights himself and turns to face me. I wince at the use of my full name. “We need to get the fuck out of here.”
“Where are the other girls?” I demand, stepping out of his reach when he goes to grab at my hand again. My gaze hardens as I stare at him, arms crossed against my chest. Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Kiernan biting back a smile, his eyes dancing with mirth as he takes us in.
“I already told you…” Seamus stops, assessing me before he lets out a prolonged breath as his gun-free hand comes up to pinch the bridge of his nose. “For fuck’s sake, lass. They’re being transferred to a damn women’s shelter. We don’t deal in human flesh like these lowlifes.”
I drop my arms to my sides and soften my gaze a bit. Lips twisting and heat creeping up my cheeks as I take in the raw disgust on Seamus’s face and the sincerity in his tone. My eyes dart to Kiernan, and the twin nods his assurance.
“We don’t sell women,” Kiernan’s soft voice is warm but sincere. “We’ll tell you all about where we sent them later, but right now, we really need to get out of here.”
