10
Audra feltas though a thunderclap had resounded in her head and she jerked, remembering Trigger. When she saw him lying on the floor, still strapped down, the memories returned. They used him to taunt her, kicking and hitting him, until she’d screamed for them to stop. And right now, he wasn’t moving atall.
A tremendous panic shot through her system and she flailed, trying to scramble from Diggs’s arms. “Trigger!” She couldn’t lose him now, he was all she had left. “Let go, let go. I have to check on him,” she cried in a full-outpanic.
Diggs’ massive arms tightened around her, nailing her to his chest. “Calm down. He’salive.”
But his words couldn’t penetrate the fog of terror consuming her, as she clawed at his arms and bucked. She knew she was acting like an insane person, but she couldn’t stop herself. It was all toomuch.
She could still feel Rex hitting her in the face, knowing she was going to die. All she could see was the fist coming in, them kicking Trigger, and the helplessness of her being bound to that chair. “Letgo!”
“Audra Ann Wade,” Diggs said loud enough to make her pause. She tore her gaze from Trigger and saw the absolute authority on his face. “Panicking isn’t going to do anything but get you and Trigger killed. Is that what youwant?”
She shook her head in mute shock, unable to get her numb lips to move. The entire side of her face throbbed painfully and her head felt like she’d beat it against awall.
“Good. Now I want you to focus on my voice. Feel my breathing. Count slowly.” Diggs drew in a deep and steadying breath, and she could feel the vibrations against her side. “Count, Audra. Outloud.”
He drew in another deep breath and this time she did too. “One. Two. Three. Four.” He let her get all the way to 10 before he stoppedher.
“Good. Now we need to move. Can youwalk?”
She licked her lips, trying to get her erratic heart rate to slow and match his. How could he be so calm and steady? “Yes, I think I can,” she saidbreathlessly.
He nodded and eased her to her feet, keeping his arms around her to hold herup.
The entire room tilted and she swayed, falling against his chest as a wave of dizziness crashed over her. Dear Lord, she didn’t think she’d ever hurt this bad. Even though she hated herself for the weakness, she clung to him, using him as a rock until she got her feet under her and the room stopped tilting drunkenly around her. “I think I’ve got it. You can letgo.”
His arms unwound from around her waist. She focused on the steady rise and fall of his chest. She didn’t know why, but she trusted him to get her out of here. He would be the only way they’d make it outalive.
“Are youokay?”
“Yes, I’mfine.”
Diggs let out a low chuckle, of all things. “You’re most definitely not fine, but by God you’rebrave.”
She smiled then and the movement brought a fresh wave of burning to her lips. She lifted her hand to touch her face, but Diggs caught her wrist mid-air.
He shook his head slowly, lowering her arm back to her side. “Safety first. We’ll clean you up later,okay?”
“Okay.” It was then that she realized she was still holding on to him with her free hand, her nails digging into his thick and muscular forearm. She let go and took a small step back, spreading her hands out when the room tilted, but this time it righted much morequickly.
Diggs watched her for another minute, then nodded as if he was convincing himself she was okay. “Stay close. If I tell you to do something, do it. No questions, no hesitation. Gotit?”
She didn’t normally like it when men were all dominating and in charge, but right now his confident, rapid-fire statements calmed her frazzled nerves and she was able to stay present and focused on what she needed todo.
Diggs moved across the room to Trigger and she followed, careful not to fall. There was a dense pall around her head, like she was drunk, and it was hard for her to focus on doing simple tasks like putting one foot in front of the other, but she zeroed her gaze onto Diggs’ shoulders and followed him, dropping harder than she’d intended to on her hands and knees next to Trigger on the floor. She hadn’t been able to see it from her perch across the room but Trigger’s eyes were open, wild shadows dancing in his terrified gaze. They were locked on her andDiggs.
“Oh, Trigger, I’m so sorry I let them do this to you.” Her pain melted away as she focused on the dog. She reached a hand out to gently stroke his head, “Diggs, you have to be really careful. They hurthim.”
“I know, we’re going to have to leave him on the stretcher. I guarantee that they broke at least one of hisribs.”
She took in the empty expression on Diggs’s face. How could he be so cold if he knew what they’d done to them? He was talking so dispassionately, but did she want him to be emotional like she was, on the verge of losing hermind?
She still wasn’t sure how or what had happened, only that it had, and she’d been completely helpless to stop it. Thank God Diggs was here. He would get her out of this horrible situation—and then she’d get her and Trigger as far from any of this as she possiblycould.
* * *
Trigger didn’t whine,but his breathing was labored. Diggs placed his hand as lightly as he could against the dog and felt the rattle when he breathed. They needed to get him back to Dr. Averton as soon as possible. After pulling up Trigger’s history, and then Audra’s brother’s, he knew how much this dog meant to her. And he knew without a doubt that if Trigger died, she would never forgivehim.
