As the car slowed down more, and some of the fog began to clear, she could see what looked like a dozen men on the ground around them—some of them dead, unmoving, others dragging themselves along the ground to safety.
Granger cursed under his breath, then rolled down his window and yelled to them. “Hold your positions!”
His voice was cold, hard, but she could hear the hint of uncertainty behind his words, as though he hadn’t been prepared for this sight to greet him when he arrived.
Suddenly, hope rose in her chest. They really were doing it. Lawson and the others were really defending the lodge and taking down Granger’s men. The proof was right before their eyes. She hated that she’d had any doubt, but with the army of men they’d been facing against their mere four, she couldn’t help but feel the initial helplessness of it all. But now, maybe, just maybe, the guys could end this.
“Stop here,” he ordered Nelson, and the vehicle jerked to a hard stop. Sarah clung to the handle of the door, praying that this would be over soon. If she could just find a way to get away from this evil man and his sons…
Granger reached over her and pushed open the door, then shoved her out onto the gravel. She gasped and tumbled to the ground, unprepared, putting her hands out to catch her fall. Gravel bit into her palms as she landed, tearing her skin.
Granger climbed out of the vehicle behind her and grabbed her arm, yanking her to her feet, and held her in front of him like a shield. He must have known Lawson would be quick to take the shot if given the chance, but with Sarah standing in front of the man, he was probably more cautious to do so.
“Lawson Davies!” Granger yelled, his voice booming in her ears. She winced and squeezed her eyes shut at the sound. She wanted to wrench herself away from him, but he had too tight of a hold on her for her to move. She was going to have to bide her time and look for an opening she could use to get away.
“Davies, can you hear me? I’ve got your woman out here!” he continued, clearly enjoying the power he held in that moment. “You better show yourself unless you want something to happen to her.” Granger paused, lifting some of her hair and running his fingers through it. “Nice and silky, and she smells good, too. I bet I could make good money off her. I’ve got plenty of clients who’d pay well for a chance to take her to bed.”
Sarah shuddered at the thought, fear and anger coursing through her. This was what he had done to so many other unsuspecting young women and girls they’d grabbed off the highways. Forced them to work for him, using their bodies and selling their souls to survive.
She looked around, searching for something…anything that might help her escape. A gun dropped by one of his fallen men, a knife, even a big rock. But there was nothing. She knew Lawson and the others were within hearing distance, knew he was biding his time and making a plan.
She just had to hope that he wouldn’t do anything that would end up getting her or both of them hurt in the process.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Lawson growled as he rose to his feet, then strode toward the door the moment he heard Victor Granger’s voice. If it hadn’t been for Xavier grabbing his arm, he would have been out there before he had realized it.
“Lawson. Hey,” Xavier told him. “Stop. Take a breath. Think.”
“He’s got Sarah,” he snarled to Xavier, jerking on his arm to break his hold. But Xavier tightened his grip on Lawson’s arm.
Xavier nodded, eyes dark with worry. “I know,” he replied. “And I want to get her away from him as much as you do. But you have to keep your head. Victor’s relying on you for an emotional reaction so he can take you out. You know that. You have to keep your head, you hear me?”
Lawson yanked his arm free of Xavier’s grip, fury racing through his veins. Whether he liked it or not, he knew his friend was right. He couldn’t just march out there and confront the man, no matter how much he wanted to. Granger was trying to taunt him into making a mistake. Likely after he had seen the mess they had made of his men.
If anything, this was a good sign, a sign that Granger was a little concerned about what had happened here and what was yet to happen between them. It was hard for Lawson to process any of that right then though. It still felt like Granger had the upper hand since he had Sarah.
He moved to the window, keeping low to get a look at the situation outside. And, sure enough, there they were—Sarah and Granger, outlined against the headlights behind them, his gripon her arm giving her nowhere to go. Her eyes were wide and terrified, a rabbit caught in a snare, and his heart ached seeing her like that. He needed to get her away from him before he and the others could make a move on Granger and what was left of his men.
“We can’t get a good shot from up here,” Cade muttered through the comm. “The headlights are obscuring him. There’s no way we would be able to make sure we wouldn’t hit Sarah.”
“Hold back then,” Xavier replied, seamlessly taking the lead when Lawson needed him to. “Don’t take the shot unless you’re sure you can take him out without hurting Sarah.”
Lawson’s mind raced, trying to think of a solution where Sarah could get away from Granger without being hurt. He hated feeling helpless. He could tell from the look in her eyes that she was silently pleading with him to get her out of this in one piece. He had to save her.
The only way Lawson could do that, he decided, was to do what Granger expected him to do, knowing the guys would have his back.
“Xavier, look at me,” he ordered him. “I’m going to turn myself over to Granger.”
Xavier’s eyes narrowed. “Lawson—”
“No. Listen,” he said, his voice low as he tucked a gun into the holster at his side. “I can’t let anything happen to her. So if that means letting Granger think he has me, I can deal with that. I’m going to surrender on the porch. It’s the only way to move this forward.”
Xavier frowned but nodded. Lawson could tell his friend didn’t exactly like this approach, but it wasn’t as though they had any other choice right now. Granger had the upper hand at the moment.
The two of them headed out onto the front porch, the headlights from Victor’s vehicle obstructing their view of theman and his goons standing in front of them. If Lawson could just lure Granger away from the lights long enough for Cade or Aaron to take the shot…
And there was Sarah. Granger still held her in front of him, blocking most of his body. Lawson could tell she was trying to be strong, but her pale face and wide eyes gave her away. He wanted nothing more than to rip her out of the man’s grasp, pull her into his arms and reassure her everything was going to be okay. He just needed her to hold it together a little longer.
