Chapter 26
Sly
Sumner looked sad as we packed up and got ready to drive back home.
She told me she wanted to come back here again, and I promised we would as soon as possible.
Our jobs allowed us to pack up and leave home whenever we wanted, and after seeing the constant smile on her face for the past two days, I desperately needed to take her away again.
She was happy, and I wanted her to stay that way, but something in the back of my mind kept pushing me to protect her even more than before.
By the time we got closer to our hometown, the first drops of rain were falling. Neither of us had waterproof clothes. I hadn’t thought to pack them because there was barely enough space in the single backpack we’d brought for the two days away, and the weather forecast hadn’t even hinted at rain.
I muttered a curse under my helmet and eased the throttle just a little as the rai got heavier. Sumner’s arms tightened around my waist, and I felt her shiver. She could hear me through the wireless communication system in our helmets.
“You okay?” she asked.
“Yeah,” I said, resting one hand lightly on her thigh while keeping my eyes on the slick road. “Just annoyed at the rain. We’ll be home in about thirty minutes but I can stop somewhere if you want me to.”
“No, it’s fine. I don’t think it’ll stop anytime soon. It’ll only get worse,” she said.
“You’re probably right. Hang in there.”
The rain grew even heavier as we hit the freeway. Droplets bounced off my visor and blurred my vision, but I stayed focused. I had ridden in worse circumstances, and I would get us both home safely.
A car suddenly roared past us on the left, moving far too fast for the wet conditions, splashing water up in sheets that hit me in the face. I cursed loudly, jerking the bike slightly to compensate, and Sumner gripped me tighter, her voice sharp in my helmet.
“What the hell?” she shouted.
“Motherfucker,” I said, keeping the bike steady. My heart was hammering. “Driving like they own the damn road.”
If Sumner hadn’t been on the back, I might have taken that asshole’s challenge, testing who was faster, who was cooler, but I kept my focus steady. I couldn’t risk it. Not with her on the bike.
The road was slippery, making any imbalance dangerous, but I managed to keep April straight. I slowed down a bit to assure Sumner that we were okay, but then the car slowed as well, pulling alongside us, and I was ready to start a fight.
Easy, man.
It’s not worth it.
I turned my head toward the car and squinted, trying to see the driver’s face, but the rain made it impossible.
“Sly…” Sumner’s voice trembled behind me, and I felt her body stiffen, then loosen slightly. “Sly…s-stop.”
I reached for her hands with one of mine and pressed them against my stomach. “We’re fine, baby,” I said, my voice steady. “This bastard’s just trying to scare us. Hold on tight to me.”
“Stop!” she shouted, her voice loud and full of fear. “It’s Joey!”
No…
I felt my grip tighten on the handlebars, and my jaw locked as I calculated the road, the rain, and the bike beneath me. The car edged closer, deliberately cutting into our lane.
“Hold on,” I yelled, my voice rising above the wind. My hands gripped the bike tight, every muscle screaming to keep control. Sumner’s hands squeezed mine in response, her nails digging through my gloves.
“I’ll get us home safely, baby,” I promised, but just as I finished my sentence, the car hit us hard.
The impact came from the side, pushing us off balance.
The bike wobbled violently, and I felt April slip beneath us, and from there, I lost all control.
We went down together, sliding across the wet asphalt.
The world spun, and every second felt like an eternity as my mind calculating how to keep her safe while we both tumbled apart.
“Sly!” she screamed, her voice loud and raw with fear.
When I came to a stop, I wanted to get up and run to her, but I couldn’t move. My body wouldn’t listen. My arms, my legs…they felt heavy and useless. I couldn’t even form words.
I’m right here.
You’re okay.
I’ve got you, baby. You’re safe with me.
The sound of a car door slamming cut through the rain.
I forced my eyes open just in time to see him step out.
His large body was tense and his shoulders were rising and falling like he was ready to kill.
He went straight for her. His boots splashed through the puddles as he ripped the helmet off her head, throwing it aside.
No.
No!
Get the fuck away from her.
My voice stayed locked in my throat as I tried to push up on my elbows. Pain shot down my side. My visor was wet and blurred my vision, but I could still see him standing over her.
“NO!” Sumner screamed, throwing her arms over her head as his fist came down. “STOP! PLEASE!”
But he didn’t stop. He hit her again. And again. Each blow sounded heavier than the last. Sharp and violent. Her body jerked under him, arms shaking as she tried to block his hits.
She tried to roll away, but he grabbed her hair and yanked her back, forcing her to face him. Her scream was loud in my ears, and the sounds she made were horrifying. My heart tore apart, and I hated myself for not getting up and helping her. I just couldn’t.
He punched her again, splitting her lip open, then again, right across the jaw. Her head snapped to the side.
I tried to yell, but my voice wouldn’t work. My chest wouldn’t expand right. The world tilted every time I tried to lift myself up. I was trapped in my own body and forced to watch.
He grabbed her by the throat and dragged her closer, then slammed her against the wet pavement next to me. The sound of her skull hitting concrete made fury rise in my throat.
She kicked out, a weak hit against his leg, and he growled like an animal. He caught her wrist, twisted it until she cried out, then kicked her in the ribs twice.
“Joey, stop!” she gasped. “Please—please—”
Her words were cut off by another hit, this time to her stomach. She folded, coughing, choking on the rainwater that mixed with blood running from her mouth.
He leaned down close to her, his face inches from hers, shouting horrible things. His hands shook with rage as he gripped her shoulders and shoved her back down one last time, and her head bounced off the ground again.
He’s right there.
Get up!
GET UP!
I tried again to move, to crawl, to do anything, but my body refused to work. My vision tunneled from the anger and irritation, and my pulse hammered in my head.
She tried one last time to reach up, to push him off. Her fingers brushed his arm. He raised his hand one more time and brought it down hard, and a loud crack echoed around me.
Her arm dropped and she stopped moving.
Joey stayed crouched over her for a second, breathing hard, his chest heaving. Then he looked at me, and I could see the pure evil in his eyes. He studied me, probably thinking I was dead because I wasn’t moving. He didn’t bother saying anything to me, so he just left.
I gasped as something in my back clicked, sending a shock of pain through my body. My spine had taken a hard hit when we went down on the bike, and for a moment, it had frozen me completely. Every muscle had locked, leaving me paralyzed in place.
But then the pain shifted, and somehow that gave me enough leverage to move. I took of my helmet first, then my hands dug into the wet asphalt, fingers trembling as I pushed myself upright. My ribs screamed, my legs burned, but I forced myself forward, every inch agonizing. And then I reached her.
Her body was still, her chest barely rising, and her hair was plastered to her face with rain and blood.
I sank to my knees beside her and pulled her up into my arms. I held her against me as tightly as I could without hurting her more.
My own breath was ragged, but I whispered to her anyway.
“I’ve got you, baby. I’ve got you. You’re okay. You’re okay.”
Her eyes fluttered weakly, and she let out a shallow, shuddering breath. That tiny movement was enough to set my pulse racing again. She’s alive. I held her, rocking slightly in the rain, unwilling to let go for even a second.
Headlights cut through the storm. A car skidded to a stop nearby, with the tires squealing. The door opened, and a man ran toward us. I didn’t care who he was; I only cared that help had come.
“Get her out of the rain!” he shouted.
“Let’s get them to the hospital,” another one said.
I looked down at her, brushing hair from her blood-covered face and pressed a hand against the side of her jaw. “It’s okay,” I whispered. “You’re safe.”
One of the two strangers helped me stand up, keeping a steady hand on my shoulder while I held Sumner in my arms. The other was on the phone, grabbing our helmets before jogging back to the car.
“Nice and slow,” the man said as I slid into the back seat, still clutching her close. “We’ll get you to the hospital, sweetheart.”
The car started moving, and I kept my focus on Sumner, counting every single one of her shallow breaths.
“What the hell happened?” the guy in the passenger seat asked, twisting around to look at us.
“That’s some heavy rain to ride a bike in,” the driver added, his tone sharp and accusing.
I didn’t bother to answer. “I’m here, baby,” I whispered. “Don’t go to sleep, you hear me? Keep your eyes on me.”
“Poor girl,” the passenger said quietly, shaking his head. “Must’ve been a nasty fall to get her face all beat up like that.”
“It wasn’t the fall,” I muttered. My jaw tightened until it hurt.
The man studied me. “Then what happened?”
I met his stare and said nothing. I didn’t owe him an explanation.
He didn’t take the hint. “Sure doesn’t look like the asphalt did that,” he said, eyes flicking to Sumner. “Sweetheart, did this man hurt you?”
“Devin, what the fuck,” the driver snapped.
“It wasn’t me,” I said, my voice rough. “Just drive. Get us to the hospital.”
Devin raised a hand defensively but didn’t turn around right away. “Just making sure, man. You’d be surprised how many guys act innocent after doing shit like that. I’m not helping some asshole who beats women.”
“It was her ex,” I said, cutting him off. “He ran us off the road.”
That shut him up.
The only sound left was the rain against the windshield and Sumner’s faint, uneven breathing.
I tightened my arms around her, lowering my head close to hers.
“You’ll never go through this again,” I whispered.
“I promise you that. No one’s ever going to touch you again. Not while I’m still breathing.”