My shoes slam against the pavement as we tear down one block and then another. My lungs burn, my breath is coming out in sharp bursts. Sweat is already gathering at the back of my neck despite the cool evening air.
A couple walking toward us jumps aside as we barrel past.
“Sorry,” Harvey calls out breathlessly, though he doesn’t slow down.
I’m focused entirely on the phone. Every word Sutton speaks cuts through me like broken glass, because beneath the calm tone she’s trying to maintain, I hear a slight tremor in her voice. She’s terrified, and she’s fighting like hell not to show it.
“Don’t,” she says through the phone.
We reach the corner before the apartment building and cut across the street, barely missing a taxi that blasts its horn as we pass in front of it.
“Watch it!” the driver shouts.
I don’t even glance back.
The apartment building looms ahead of us, glass and steel reflecting the late afternoon light. My legs are burning by the time we shove through the front doors. Warm air slams into us as we burst into the lobby.
A couple people near the concierge desk turn in surprise as we rush past.
“Mr. Vaughn!” the concierge calls.
I don’t stop, and Harvey is right behind me as we run to the elevators.
If they’ve hurt her in any way…
The elevator door dings open and I prepare to rush forward, out onto the landing in front of the penthouse, but Harvey grabs me before I even exit the car.
“Hold on,” he hisses. “I’ll go first.”
I grit my teeth, but I get it. He has the gun.
“Fine,” I growl. “Let’s just get in there!”
He nods and moves ahead of me, walking out of the elevator and across the landing. When he reaches the door, he tests the knob and thankfully, it’s not locked.
“Go!” I snap.
He throws the door open and we storm inside.
The sight before me has me stopping short, fear and rage twisting through me. Sutton is sitting on the couch in the livingroom, her body rigid and her face pale. Leon is sitting next to her with a knife in his hand, and Aubrey is pacing in front of them. They all whip their gazes to us as soon as we cross the threshold.
“Jayce!” Sutton cries.
Leon grabs Sutton by her hair while Aubrey’s eyes narrow into a blood-thirsty glare at me.
“You!” Aubrey cries. “I was hoping you’d join us, since this is all your fault!”
Her voice breaks into a scream and she lunges for me. I see a flash of metal as she draws a second knife from the waistband of her pants.
“No!” Sutton shrieks. She throws an elbow into Leon’s throat and he lets her go, choking and collapsing back onto the couch. Sutton leaps to her feet and runs toward me. She and Aubrey reach me at nearly the same time. I reach for Sutton, wrapping my arms around her just as a gunshot cracks through the air.
Twisting my body, I shield Sutton from Aubrey as she drives her knife forward. Pain rips through me, hot and deep.
Another shot rings out.
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT: AFTER THE STORM
SUTTON
