Chapter 19
CHAPTER NINETEEN
LUCY
It’s going to be okay.
Xavier promised.
The logical part of my brain believes him.
That awful Peter is leaving, taking that horrible gun along with him.
God. When he pointed it at Xavier, I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think. It was the most terrifying moment of my life.
But he’s leaving. I don’t think he’ll be back.
Why would he? As soon as Peter goes outside, he’s locking us in. He thinks there’s no way we can escape.
He doesn’t know about the earrings or the ring. Or the trackers that will lead Xavier’s team right to us.
Peter believes he’s won.
“Well, I’d like to say it’s been a pleasure.” Just steps to the barn door, Peter turns around again. It’s too dark to see his face clearly with the windows boarded over, but I can faintly make out his grin. “But that’ll come when the game is over.” He pauses. “I will say, I’m rooting for you to outlast your boyfriend. It won’t matter in the end, but I think the audience will love to see you wasting away, brokenhearted.”
Xavier growls beside me.
Anger floods through me, more intense than anything I’ve felt before.
“I hate you,” I hiss.
“Oh, Lucy.” Peter chuckles. “Do you think I care?”
Then he grabs the barn door and starts to slide it open, the wood creaking and metal screeching as it moves. He grunts with the effort of pushing the heavy door, muttering, “Fucking old buildings. This is why I hire other people for this shit.”
As he wrestles the door open, I hold my breath.
Desperate pleas whir through my head.
Don’t come back in.
Just go.
Let our trackers work.
Please let Xavier’s team be on their way.
Oh, please. I just want to get out of this.
When the door is about a third of the way open, Xavier turns to me. His eyes are dark. Icy. Intense. Determination is set in his features. Danger is banked in his gaze.
In a tone so low it’s almost inaudible, he says, “Lucy. I have to go.”
My heart stops.
What?
“I can’t let him escape,” he explains. “You’ll be okay. I’ll come right back for you.”
More light comes in through the open barn door, casting a glow across Xavier’s face. He looks like a statue—one of those Roman gladiators, ready to leap into battle.
A vise is crushing my chest. My lungs won’t work. I’m lightheaded from lack of air.
“Xavier,” I wheeze. “No?—”
“I have to.” His voice softens for a moment. “You know I do. I’m sorry.”
Oh, God.
No.
Panic resurges, grabbing hold of me and shaking.
I can’t. He can’t leave me. Peter has a gun. What if he shoots Xavier? What if he kills him?
Wait.
How can Xavier go after Peter? He’s chained to the wall, just like me.
Except he’s not.
Xavier opens the shackle around his wrist and carefully sets it on the ground. Then he does the same for the one on his ankle.
How?
My mind fractures for a second.
What’s happening?
“I’m sorry, Luce.” He presses a quick kiss to my lips. “I promise. I’ll be back.”
And then.
Xavier races towards the barn door, which Peter is now stepping through.
My heart flies into my throat.
Oh. Please.
I have to watch. But I’m terrified to.
Like a shadow, Xavier moves silently across the barn floor.
Peter steps outside, his back still to us. But if he turns around too soon…
Xavier’s good. I’ve seen him spar. I learned self-defense from him. But if Peter gets a shot off before Xavier reaches him…
I thought I knew fear. I didn’t.
This is it. Watching the man I love risk his life to stop a monster.
Oh.
Please.
With the door partially open, Peter is illuminated in the doorway, dark against the light.
Then he starts to turn.
Do I try to warn Xavier? But he knows . He has to.
I’ve never felt more helpless. More afraid.
Xavier leaps at Peter. Crashes into him.
The force of impact sends them both flying.
Peter shouts, “No!”
Then Xavier, his voice full of rage. “You fucking bastard!”
Flesh hits flesh.
A silhouette of two men moves further away from the doorway. Away from the barn. Away from me.
There’s more shouting.
Xavier roars, “You’ll regret touching her!”
There’s a yelp filled with pain.
A grunt.
Something snaps. A stick? A bone ?
Oh, Xavier. Please.
I know he’s good. Not just good. Great. But he doesn’t have a gun like Peter does.
And Xavier was drugged. If he’s feeling anything like me, he’s dizzy. His head hurts. Everything’s fuzzy.
The gun goes off.
No.
Oh, God, no.
Everything shrivels inside me.
My heart.
My lungs.
My soul.
I’m carved out. Empty.
Xavier .
But he could still be alive, right? Just because he’s shot?—
But I can’t get to him. I can’t help. I’m stuck here, and if Peter shoots him again, Xavier will die alone, and it’s all my fault.
I dimly realize I’m sobbing, rocking against the relentless waves of pain.
Then something touches me.
Not something. Someone.
I screech in terror and scuttle backwards away from it. Away from Peter? It has to be.
“Lucy, sweetheart. It’s okay.”
Wait .
Not Peter. But not Xavier, either.
“Lucy.” The voice is gentle. Soothing. “It’s alright. You’re safe. I’m just going to get you loose, okay?”
Gathering my courage—so much for strong Lucy, I feel more like a terrified child hiding from monsters under the bed—I lift my head and look up at the person speaking to me.
Dark blue eyes meet mine, kind and reassuring. “It’s just me, Lucy. It’s alright. I’ve got some lock picks; just give me a minute, and I’ll have you out of here.”
Dante.
He stares at me, his gaze assessing. “Can I touch your wrist? I promise I won’t hurt you.”
In shuddering breaths, I try to rein in my sobs. I nod at him before whispering, “Is Xavier… is he…”
Dante touches my arm. Understanding softens his features. “He’s fine.”
What?
“But… the gun.”
“That was Xavier.” His lips quirk up. “He was… angry, as I’m sure you can imagine. So he fired a shot.”
“He shot Peter?”
“Not quite. But close enough to scare the piss out of him.” Dante smiles as he removes the metal band from my wrist. “Literally.”
It’s so incongruous to what I was expecting, I just blink at him. “He… peed himself?”
“Yes.” Dante’s teeth flash. “Xavier said he really wanted to kill Amberson, but he thought you might not approve.”
I’m taken aback for a second.
Would I?
Before this, I’d have said no immediately. But now, I’m not so sure.
“Where’s Xavier?”
“He’s with Niall. They’re just making sure Amberson is fully restrained. The police should be here any minute. And then I’m sure?—”
Almost as if he summoned them, sirens come racing towards us, their shrill blares rising and falling.
Dante lifts the shackle from my ankle and tosses it aside. “There. All done. Now.” His forehead creases in concern. “Xav said you were drugged. I just want to take a look at?—”
“Lucy!”
Xavier comes tearing into the barn and sprints over to me, falling to his knees beside me. His face crumples. “I’m sorry. I know you were scared. I didn’t want to?—”
“I thought he shot you.” Flinging my arms around him, I bury my face in his neck. “I thought you were hurt. Dead. I didn’t know?—”
“Oh, Lucy.” He hugs me, stroking his hand down my hair. His lips press to the top of my head, lingering there. After a breath, he says, “I’m so sorry, honey. I didn’t think. I just… I’m sorry.”
As my pulse slows and my lungs start to work properly again, I take a moment to put things into perspective.
Xavier is alive. Unhurt?—
I jerk my head away from his neck. “Are you hurt?”
“No.” He gives me a soft smile. “I’m fine.” Then his smile shifts to a satisfied smirk. “I can’t say the same for that piece of garbage out there. He might be hurting for a while.”
“Piece of garbage?” Oh . “Nevermind.”
Xavier is safe. Not hurt.
But he was chained to the wall. “How did you get free?”
“I have a lockpick in my belt. We all do.” His voice dips in apology. “I wanted to tell you, Luce. But I didn’t want to risk being caught.”
“And Peter? Is he?—”
“Niall has him. And the police just arrived. So he’s not going anywhere.”
“And he’ll go to jail?” Rationally, I know the answer, but I’m still rattled enough to need the assurance.
Xavier nods. “Yes. Absolutely. For what he just did—kidnapping, assault, attempted murder—and all the other charges, too. Now that he admitted his guilt to us, and Wilton implicated Amberson, I’m confident he’ll be charged.”
“Wilton implicated Peter? How?”
Grimacing, he says, “That’s what the phone call was at your parents’ house. Once Wilton’s attorney got there and they talked to the FBI, Wilton mentioned something about an online group for hackers. And how one of the guys mentioned making a survival-type game on the dark web. Matt checked out the group and was able to connect Amberson to it. That’s how Wilton was targeted as the fall guy to begin with.”
“Oh.” My brain is still sluggish, and with all this information, it’s taking longer than usual to process it. “My parents!”
“Fine.” Xavier stands, pulling me up with him. “Matt checked. He’s back at the ranch, keeping an eye on Sarah and Jade and running point on research. Your mom and dad are still in Paris. He talked to them. Your dad is perfectly healthy.”
Fresh tears spring to my eyes, emotion making it impossible to speak for a second.
“Come on, Luce.” Xavier starts to pick me up, but I touch his arm to stop him.
I lift my chin. “I want to walk out. Show that… piece of garbage… that I’m stronger than he thought.”
He loops his arm around my side, supporting me. “You are strong.”
Well. I’m getting there.
As we make our way out of the barn, I look up at Xavier and give him a tiny smile. “You made Peter pee himself?”
A sheepish smile lifts his lips. “I know it wasn’t the mature thing to do.”
“That’s okay.” I lean my head on his shoulder. “I’m glad you did.”
“Luce.” His voice throbs with emotion. “I love you.”
“I love you, too. And I’m ready to go home.”