This was taking too long. He could be dead by now.
I opened door after door, only needing to put a bullet in two men’s heads after they charged for me. I tried to shoot one of them twice after seeing his chest still rising and falling as he bled out, but the gun clicked, indicating it was empty.
Shit.
I hoped I didn’t run into any more trouble; otherwise, I’d have to get through it with my fists. I regretted not grabbing the man’s knife from the office I’d been tied up in. My thigh sheath was empty, so either they’d taken mine when they brought me here, or it had disappeared in the crash.
I was completely unarmed.
This’ll be fun.
I gripped the gun, in case I needed to pretend it was loaded or hit someone in the head with it, and tried the handle on the next room. It turned, and I slowly cracked the door open, taking more caution now that I had no ammo.
The hinges were silent as I opened it fully, and what I saw in the middle of the room had my heart stopping.
“Henley.”His name was a relieved breath on my lips.
I dropped to my knees before his slumped form, his wrists bloody where the rope dug into his skin. He was in a chair much like the one I had been in, but he was in way worse shape.
My hands slid up his knees to his thighs before I frantically began to untie the ropes. “Henley, baby. Are you awake?”
He groaned, slowly lifting his head. One eye was swollen shut, a gash bleeding on the side of his head. Once the restraints were off, I pressed a gentle palm to his cheek. He leaned into my touch, his good eye slowly closing. He whispered my name like I was an angel.
“I’m here,” I choked out. I swallowed to clear the lump of emotion from my throat. I could cry later. Henley was alive, and I needed to get him the fuck out of here. “Can you stand?”
Slowly, he nodded. He braced his hands on the sides of the chair like he needed the help to get up.
I slid my hand down his cheek, over his jaw and neck until I slid it under his armpit. Wrapping both arms around him, I stood and let him lean on me until he was on his feet.He looked down at me, and concern washed over his features.
“Grace, what did they?—”
I shook my head, quieting him. “I’m okay.”
“Baby, you’re bleeding.” His voice was so full of breath, so full of worry. He lifted his hand to brush my hair away from my forehead. The movement stung a cut I didn’t know I had.
“I need to get you out of here,” I told him, glancing behind me to the door.
His hand slid deeper into my hair, cupping the base of my head to turn me to face him again. He scanned every inch of me, then pressed his forehead to mine.
“They hurt you,” he stated.
I closed my eyes briefly, allowing myself a moment to simply feel him against me. “I killed them all.”
A bloody smile bloomed on his face. “That’s my girl.”
Chapter 22
Henley
Holding Grace in my arms was like taking the first breath of air after holding it underwater for far too long. My lungs opened, my muscles feeling a strength they hadn’t felt before she showed up.
“We need to get out of here,” Grace said, her arms still around me. I didn’t want to admit I was having a hard time standing with the pain in my ribs, but I didn’t even have to. She simply knew and assisted with no questions asked. I didn’t want to know how I looked for her to be that worried.
Two men had beaten me senseless, sending jabs to my ribs and face left and right. I’d heard cracks louder than I thought possible, indicating I definitely had a broken rib or five. They never stated why they were beating the shit out of me—they only looked to be enjoying it. And the woman who had come in? She’d watched, a grin on her face with each punch, as if she loved the violence.
She hadn’t spoken until they were done, when she’dtipped my chin up with a pointy fingernail and murmured, “I’m going to have fun with her.”
I’d fought against my restraints as hard as humanly possible, causing these lacerations in my wrists. My attempts were futile, though. I was pretty sure they’d broken a few of my fingers, making it difficult to attempt to untie the bonds myself.
