He punches him again and again until they’re locked together in a grapple of strength and furious yells.
Blood trickles down Falco’s temple, his hair is streaked with dust and grime, and blood drips down from his bloodied teeth as he snarls in fury.
Then both his hands lock around the stranger’s throat and squeeze.
My heart lurches as our handcuffs force my hand to rest against the struggling man’s neck and shoulder.
Falco squeezes so hard his forearms bulge and the man beneath him makes a horrific, wet sound as he gasps for air that doesn’t come.
“Falco,” I croak, pulling against the handcuffs.
I don’t want to be here. I don’t want to see this.
I don’t want tofeelthis.
But I’m stuck, frozen in this bubble while Falco strangles the life out of a man, and all I feel is the blood running down my fingertips as it escapes the man’s burst lip.
“Falco!” Pulling as hard as I can, my wrist spasms and pain lances all the way up my arm to my elbow.
I have no desire to save the man trying to kill us, but I don’t want to be a part of it. I can’t. “Please!”
Falco is unwavering.
He’s a pillar of stone bearing down on this man who kicks his legs against the floor, slams his hands into Falco’s arms and shoulders, and dies a slow death.
I can’t move.
Horror grips me like a vice as I watch this man’s struggles weaken.
Then, out of the black smoke clouding the kitchen, another man stumbles into view.
“Falco!”
A sickening crack echoes beside me, then Falco rolls into me and several gunshots ring out. The second figure immediately crumples to the floor, dead.
I can’t breathe.
I can’t think.
There’s too much smoke. Too much heat. My ears continue to ring, then Falco’s face waves in front of mine. “Aerin?”
My tongue refuses to work and tears flood my eyes as I stare at him.
“Aerin,” Falco pants. “Talk to me.”
“I’m okay,” I croak softly.
“Good,” he mutters, raising our joined wrists between us. “Because this was really fucking stupid.”
“How was I supposed to know!” Not that my excuses even matter because he’s right. I wanted to teach him a lesson but did it when we weren’t sure we were even safe. “I’m sorry!”
“Little late for that,” Falco grunts, wiping away some of the blood from his brow as it spills into his eye. “We have to go.”
Falco stands and pulls me upward.
But instead of dragging me behind him, he suddenly ducks and wraps one strong arm around my legs, then he lifts me up and over his shoulder.
The gun is abandoned on the ground as he chooses me over the weapon.
