I take the phone, my stomach churning as I see a picture of Jenna. She’s handcuffed and kneeling in the middle of a disgusting room, covered in bruises and blood. Bile rises in my throat, but then I see her eyes. She’s staring right into the camera lens, her expression defiant and full of fight. She’s not broken. She’s strong.
I read the message:
Unknown
“Tick Tock.”
Slamming the phone down on the table, I level my gaze at every man in the room. “We find them now. We make a plan now. Let them think we’re playing their game, but we will never let them win. We fight for her. Let’s go get her.”
The room erupts with shouts of fury and determination. Ace stands, and the room falls silent immediately.
“I’ve got a location,” he says in a low, serious tone.
We’re coming, baby.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
jenna
Light burnsmy eyes as the blindfold is torn from my face, I barely recognize anyone in the room with me. Strong hands push me to my knees on the broken and tattered hardwood floors. Instantly my pain radiates through my bones as I try to move my body into a more comfortable position. The walls of the room are lined with an old crumbling floral wallpaper and the tops are yellow from all of the cigarette smoke. There are couches and chairs that sit around the room but no one is sitting, all of the men are towering over me as I am shoved to my knees. I try to mentally prepare myself for what is to come, reminding myself that they have orders not to harm me… yet.
I hear the distinct sound of a match lighting and look over to a dark corner of the room. A large man sits with a half-naked woman in his lap. I glance at his patch, trying to gather as much information about the situation as I can. The small rectangular patch says ‘president,’ Prince has the same one. Underneath it is a patch that reads ‘Red,’ in crimson lettering. He turns to me and I can see a distinct snake tattoo that wraps around his neck, slithering up to his fiery beard. He looks me up and down as if I’m more of an annoying gnat flying in his face than an actual human being. I glare at him, making it clear that I amnot someone who will be swallowed by this situation. The facial expression earns me a malicious smirk.
“I can see why Axel is so drawn to you. Beauty and fire.” He strokes his dirty hand down the arm of the woman strewn across his lap. “Death will have fun breaking you.”
My facial expression falters for a moment as I try to regain my attempt to look strong. Out of my peripheral vision I see Jack shoot up to stand next to me, almost in a protective stance. His face is twisted in anger and worry, and I momentarily feel sorry for him. The man I once loved has turned into this lost and broken monster clawing to find a place in this world.
“You said she would be mine, that was the deal.” Jack snarls at Red. One thing I’ve learned from being around the Hell Chasers is questioning your president or making a power move out in the open is frowned upon and usually ends in a few punches. Something about Red tells me he wouldn’t stop at a punch. A large part of me wouldn’t bat an eye at the thought of Jack being ripped limb by limb, but for some reason it feels as if Jack is somehow protecting me right now.
Quickly the woman who was in Red’s lap is being thrown to the floor as he stands and wraps his gigantic mitt around Jack’s throat, pinning him up against the wall. Jack’s dull blue eyes widen in horror as his face changes from red to purple. His legs and arms lash out in all directions, trying to be free of Red’s hold. Finally, only when his body starts to go limp does the president let go and allow him to slump to the ground.
“Fucking junkie, we let you think you could keep her in exchange your information about her. She is our bargaining chip and nothing more. After we are done with the Hell Chasers, we have no use for her.” He yells in his face and turns to me. I keep my shoulders back but don’t say anything as he grabs my chin roughly and pulls me forward so my body is balancing against his hold. He looks down at me and licks his bottom lip.
“You are beautiful, I even thought about keeping you for myself. But I want to watch Axel and the rest of the Chasers suffer for what they’ve done. The men they have killed were our brothers and they must pay.” He lets go of my face and I can’t hold my tongue anymore.
“Fuck you, they will come for me and kill every one of you.” I spit at him. The back of his hand comes down hard across my face. Momentary darkness takes over and I see twinkling stars dance in my vision. I slowly roll my head back towards him once more. I can’t help the tears that start to fall down my face.
“Princess, you are strong now, but mark my words, you will wish you were dead when we are done with you.” He turns away from me and sits back in his chair. Patting his lap for the woman to crawl back into.
“Well Jackal, make the fucking call. I don’t have all day.” He lights a cigarette and leans back against the dirty recliner. “Make sure she stays quiet; we don’t need her going off.” He points my direction as I scowl at him through blurry vision. A hand wraps around my mouth tighter than is comfortable. Jack stands next to me; he looks as if he has regained his composure but glances at me with an unsure look. He has been played by his own brothers, they used him for his connection to me and I know that must be eating him alive.
The room is silent as we all listen to his phone ring, my heart stutters in my chest as I hear Axel’s deep voice answer. A sea of relief washes over me.He’s alive. I don’t listen to what they're saying at first, still reveling in the fact that he is okay, when Jack lights a match and heads my way.
“I swear, you lay a fucking hand on her and I will tear you apart, limb from limb.” I hear Axel say from the other end of the phone. Jack lets out an ugly laugh and then stops in front of me with the bright flaming stick, he lights the end of a cigarette and smirks at me. I try to move out of the man’s hold but Ican’t, a searing pain burns through my shoulder. I can’t help the scream that escapes as Jack pushes the end of his cigarette into my skin. The smell of my burning flesh makes me gag against the calloused hand, the room growing fuzzy as the conversation continues. A few minutes later, the man behind me removes his hand from my mouth and backs away, leaving me alone again in the center of the room.
Jack moves to face me, holding his phone out in front of him, he eyes me almost apologetically and it infuriates me. He’s the reason I’m here. My stomach churns with fear as I worry Axel won’t get here in time. But I need to focus on getting myself out of this mess, I can’t sit here waiting for him to save me.
“Smile for the camera, princess.” Red commands from his makeshift throne. I raise my head and glare at the lens.Fuck you assholes.
After our fun little outing to what I assume is the living room, the big guy who came in here with Jack blindfolds me and brings me back to the small room. They leave me in here for hours, and with each passing minute, the adrenaline rush starts to wear off. My head, neck, and ribs throb with pain. I can’t help but think that only four months ago, I lived a very mundane and scheduled life. Now, I really don’t even recognize the life I’m living. My cheeks heat, and something stings my dry, split lips—I hadn’t realized I’ve started crying.
Allowing myself to emotionally purge, I take a deep breath and stare at the ceiling, willing my eyes to absorb any remaining tears. I think I’ve cried more today than I have in the last year combined. I need to stay strong; I need to figure out a way toescape because if Axel doesn’t get here in time, I don’t even want to think about what will happen to me. The woman who leaves this place will not be the same one I was yesterday.
When the brown-haired brute had brought me back to this room, he opted for zip ties instead of the god-awful wire that had held me in place earlier. What a gentleman, right? I look around the room once again, searching for anything that might help me. Realizing that in his panic to get me to the living room, Jack left his jacket strewn across the stained mattress. The moon is bright tonight, bathing the room in a soft white glow. The gleam of a blade catches my eye, and I let out a breath of both panic and relief. This might be my way out. The only problem is I might actually have to use that knife on someone else, and that thought makes the bile in my stomach churn. The chair I’m sitting on is placed close to the bed, but not close enough to grab the knife from the pocket. Okay, think, Jenna…
“Oh, kidnapper!” I say in a loud but sweet voice. I know there’s someone outside my door standing guard because I’ve heard them talking on the phone here and there. The creaky door swings open, and the same man who walked me back to my room and tied my arms walks in with an annoyed look on his face. They either trust this man to guard me 24/7, or he’s doing grunt work. I bat my eyes at him and try to place a smile on my throbbing face. I must really be putting on the charm because a scowl now covers his face.
“Brute, I need to pee,” I say as he crosses his arms and leans against the doorframe. I’ve decided that if I can get him to untie me to use the bathroom, I can try to get to the knife before he notices.
