Sinner stops directly in front of me, completely naked, his hideous dick bobbing against his stomach. “I can’t decide if you’re incredibly smart or incredibly stupid,” he says, clicking his fingers at one of his minions. The other three men, all members of the board alongside Sinner, are in the process of getting dressed. The shorter of the three steps forward, handing Sinner a lit cigarette.
Sinner lifts the cigarette to his mouth, drawing a long drag before blowing clouds of billowy smoke in my face. His blue eyes shimmer with mirth, and I can’t figure out what angle he’s playing here. “You’ve got balls, Harlow Westbrook,” he says, leaning in closer. Saint jerks me back, and I’m grateful, because if that pervert’s dick even glances off me, I’ll slice it clean off his body.
“Be careful you don’t push too far,” he threatens, “because I haven’t even started with you yet.”
CHAPTER 12
ITEXT ASHLEYto let her know we won’t make the party after all, double-checking she’s still okay to attend the appointment with me in the morning. Caz carries Mom up to my room, gently laying her down on the bed. Galen hands me the first aid kit while Theo places a glass of water and pain pills on my bedside table and Saint retrieves her nightdress from the master suite. Galen leaves a towel and a bowl of tepid water beside me, squeezing my shoulder and kissing the top of my head.
“We’re across the hall if you need us,” Saint says, and I nod, swallowing thickly.
The guys move to Saint’s bedroom while I attend to my mother’s numerous wounds. I can barely breathe over the massive lump clogging my throat as I clean her up. Mom is conscious, but only just. She stares at the wall as I gently wash her wounds. Tears cling to my lashes, and I’m fighting to keep my stomach contents in as I apply antiseptic ointment to the raised wounds that pepper her upper body. I wish I could bathe her, but she’s in too much pain.
Silent tears stream down her face as I bandage her up as best I can. I’m helping her into her nightdress when I spot the blood leaking from her back passage. I lose the fight with my composure, and a sob bursts from my mouth as I gently hold her to me.
I don’t care what has gone down between us these past few weeks. Right now, all I care about is getting her away from that bastard. Her arms are limp as she clings to me, quietly sobbing into my chest. I want to yell at her, shake her until she sees sense, and demand to know what the fuck she thinks she’s doing, insist that she tell me everything, but I can’t accost her when she’s so damaged, when her sanity is already in shreds.
I clean the blood from her ass, crying the entire time. Murderous rage mixes with helplessness as I change the sheets, stuffing the bloody ones in the trash. Mom dutifully takes the pain pills, and after tucking her in, I huddle under a blanket in the chair as I watch her fall asleep with a sharp ache in my heart.
“How is she?” Galen asks, quietly slipping into the room an hour later.
I shake my head, because I can’t form words right now. Gently, he pulls me to my feet, enveloping me in a soft hug. “She’ll be okay. She’s tough like her daughter.”
I close my eyes, inhaling his scent, praying for strength I’m not sure I have anymore. It’s all becoming too much. First Dad. Then Sariah. Now this.
“I’m going to watch over her,” Galen says, easing back a little.
“You don’t have to do that. You’re injured.”
“So are you.” He sweeps hair off my brow. “We’re going to take it in turns.” He places his lips on my mouth, kissing me like I’m a porcelain doll. “Theo is waiting for you in his bedroom. Go get some rest.”
I kiss Mom on the forehead, making Galen promise they’ll call me if she wakes or anything happens during the night. Saint and Caz are downstairs, he explains, keeping watch in case Sinner returns.
He left immediately after the showdown in the basement, and we’re all on edge, waiting to see what he’ll do next. There’s no way he’ll let me get away with pulling a knife on him or stabbing his second in command, but I don’t regret it, and I’d do it again if it meant freeing Mom from being raped.
I knock on Theo’s door before entering, finding him sitting up in bed, in a pair of sweatpants, with his tablet on his lap.
“How’s Giana?” he asks, immediately putting his tablet aside and sitting up straighter, fixing troubled eyes on me.
“She’s…” I burst out crying as I come unhinged. I’ve been so strong all week, not giving in to my turbulent emotion, fighting my grief, but I can’t contain it anymore.
Theo jumps off the bed, bundling me into his arms, holding me as I cry against his naked chest. He runs his hand up and down my back, offering comforting words, encouraging me to let it all out.
“Sorry,” I mumble sometime later when my tears have stopped. I swipe my fingers under my eyes, collecting the moisture there, before swiping at his damp chest.
“Nothing to be sorry for.” He takes my hand, leading me to the bed, carefully placing me down against the headrest, before he joins me.
“The dead guy downstairs. Was he the guy Saint planted to watch Mom?”
Theo nods, confirming my suspicions. “He must’ve tried to intervene, and he paid for it with his life.”
I hope that’s how it went down, because I dread to think what Sinner would do if he knew Saint planted the guy in the house to watch over Mom. The fact Saint is still breathing suggests Sinner doesn’t know, and I’m grateful for that small mercy. I hate that the guy died trying to protect Mom, and it’s selfish to feel relief that the secret dies with him, but I won’t pretend otherwise.
There is so much needless death in the world The Sainthood inhabits. Not that Sinner would see it like that. It’s all part of the job, and he places no value on human life, making him the deadliest of enemies.
I rest my head on Theo’s shoulder as his arm circles me. “Are we stupid to think we can win? That we can beat him at his own game? He’s completely unpredictable, and that makes me nervous as hell.”
“Sinner should never be underestimated,” he agrees, smoothing a hand down my hair. “But neither should we.” He tips my chin up so our eyes meet. “The key difference is we know he’s a formidable enemy, whereas he thinks we’re under his control and that we’re not a threat. His arrogance will be his downfall.”
