“He did a number on her,” the man answered gruffly. His brown eyes blazed with fury when he said, “Guy oughta be put down for this.”
“She’s alive, Sheriff. Her wounds’ll heal, and she’s got people who care about her. They’ll keep her safe.” He glanced back at where Reese and Gloria were talking. “And we’ll keep Ms. Steiner apprised of what’s goin’ on. She went above and beyond.”
“She went through the same sorta thing,” the sheriff noted. “Her bastard of a husband’s six feet under ’cause of it.”
That meant Brantley’s theory was true. Gloria Steiner had come to Ava’s rescue, kept her here to protect her. He couldn’t imagine how difficult that had been for her. Probably dredged up a lot of bad memories.
“I take it she needs medical attention?”
“Yeah. Gloria admitted as much. I suspect she was gettin’ ready to call us.”
“You think you’ve got enough for an arrest? He’s gonna be a slippery one.”
“Aren’t they all?”
“We’ll need a solid case,” Brantley told the sheriff. “It’s imperative this guy not get the chance to do somethin’ like this again.”
The sheriff’s smile was laced with menace and promise. “We’ll make sure that doesn’t happen.”
The sound of footsteps drew Brantley’s attention to the hallway. An EMT led the way while another pushed the portable gurney Ava was on. Brantley’s gaze went to her face and his rage built to a crescendo. She was so battered and bruised, he hardly recognized her from the picture they had. Didn’t help that someone—he assumed the husband—had shaved her head.
He watched as they passed, Trey and Magnus pulling up the rear.
“Did he…?” Brantley couldn’t get the words out becauseJesus fuck.
“Strangle her with a fuckin’ rope?” the sheriff growled, a violent rumbling sound. “Yeah.”
He’d tried damn hard, too, based on the rope burns on her neck.
“I figure he thought she was dead, dumped her in that rug,” Sheriff Starr explained as Ava was taken out of the house. “She’s got rope burns on her wrists and ankles, too. Probably had her hog-tied. Gloria said the ankle’s definitely broken. How that girl got up and walked off is beyond me.”
“We’ll have someone watching her twenty-four seven,” Brantley assured him. “Now it’s your job to nail this fucker.”
And while the sheriff took care of things from a legal perspective, Brantley had to figure out a way to get Ava March’s mother out of danger, too.
If it wasn’t already too late.
*
MAGNUS SAT SILENTLY IN THE PASSENGER SEATof Trey’s truck while they followed the ambulance to the hospital. The EMTs hadn’t allowed him to go with Ava, but Charlie had assured him she would not leave Ava’s side. He’d argued, of course. Although he liked Charlie, even figured she was better equipped to protect Ava since she was armed, it had pained him to let her out of his sight.
“There’ll be protocols in place,” Trey said, his voice a soothing hum. “That’s why Brantley sent Charlie with her. Ava’s safe now.”
An image of Ava’s battered face flashed in Magnus’s head. He hadn’t recognized her at first. Between the bruises and contusions marring her beautiful face and the fact that the dickhead had shaved her head. But the rope burn around her delicate throat had been more than he could bear. Magnus dragged in a ragged breath. He wanted to kill that fucker.
A warm hand curled over his, squeezed. “We’ll take care of her,” Trey said softly.
Magnus stared at Trey’s profile as he drove. “We?”
Trey’s eyes snapped over to his briefly. “I’m in this with you, Magnus. Whatever it takes.”
A shudder racked his body as the relief of knowing that engulfed him. He wasn’t sure Trey was making the promise that Magnus was hoping for, but he got the sense Trey understood that this was going to get complicated. Magnus couldn’t deny that he’d fallen in love with Trey. The problem was, this thing with Ava, the realization that she could’ve been taken out of his life indefinitely … it had brought his feelings for her to light. And after seeing her again, finding her alive … well, Magnus knew Trey wasn’t the only person he was in love with.
Which meant complicated might very well be an understatement.
Trey pulled up to the main entrance of the small hospital, stopping at the curb.
“Are you comin’ in?” Magnus asked.
