Bonus Chapter
Ryder
“Be careful, Elli,” I tell her, every bone in my body hating the idea of leaving her behind.
She rises onto her tiptoes and presses a kiss to my cheek. “You, too.”
Her reassuring smile hits me like a bat to the head. Her eyes shine with relief and hope—neither of which I deserve.
Elise may be able to see my motives for hurting her as noble—justified even—but they aren’t. I didn’t just choose to save Rachel and Lyla.
I chose to betray Joshua.
Moreno isn’t just my boss—a man I respect and would follow into fire—he’s also my best friend.
But not after this.
The penalty for betrayal is death—I know that. I accepted that the second Mason called me.
What I cannot accept is Rachel and our daughter facing the same fate.
I race down the hall to the cell Nate took me to earlier. There are no guards at the door, and I’m tugging at the knob the second it’s within reach.
It doesn’t budge.
It does—however—inspire a shriek from inside the cell.
“It’s me,” I call as softly as I can. “It’s okay. I’m going to get you out of here.”
“Ryder?” Rachel calls, her voice low and strained, and the sound of it eases a fraction of my panic.
It’s been years, and her voice still has the same effect on me.
“I need to find the key to get you guys out,” I tell her, stepping back to assess the door. There’s a sliver of space beneath it—just enough room for the cuff keys. “How far are you from the door?”
A brief pause. “Maybe ten feet,” she says with an edge of uncertainty. “Why?”
“Left, right, or straight ahead?”
“Your left,” she answers. “What’s going on?”
“I have the key for your handcuffs. I’m going to slide it under the door, and then I’m going to find a key for the cell. I’ll be back as fast as I can. Be ready to run when I’m back, okay?”
I can just barely make out her shaking voice as she answers, “Okay.”
I slide the key under the door to my left as hard as I can.
“I got it!” Rachel calls, and for the first time tonight, I feel like everything might just turn out okay.
“I’ll be right back,” I promise, then turn to go.
I need to find Nate. He had the key to their cell, and I’m willing to bet he still does. Still, I have no idea where the hell he could be.
This factory is big—but I have no idea how big. He could be anywhere, and he’s probably not alone.
Still, I need to find him.
I move through the maze of hallways as quickly as I can without making too much noise. I’m itching to fly down the halls and shoot every bastard in my way, but without any backup, I can’t risk it.
Muffled voices stop me in my pursuit, and I pause outside an unmarked door to listen. I can’t make out the words being spoken, but there are three distinct voices—all expressive and buzzing with excitement.
Moving slowly, I peer through a small window in the door. It doesn’t give me a full view of the room, but as far as I can tell, only three of them are inside.
With one last glance ensuring the halls are clear, I flatten my back against the wall beside the door and flick my hand over the knob, tugging the door open.
“What the hell?” One of them mutters, and anger buzzes through me when I recognize the voice—Guy, a soldier from the San Diego base.
“Must be a busted doorknob,” another says.
Slow footsteps creep closer to the door, but I remain perfectly still until the figure reaches it. When he does—I don’t give him a single second to process what’s happening.
I grab him by the shoulder, shoving him back into the room as my human shield. I raise my gun over his shoulder and fire twice. One of them collapses.
Guy is on his feet in an instant, firing at me—and hitting his own friend. He realizes his mistake too late as I shove the groaning body into him.
Guy stumbles back at the force, and I kick the gun from his hand as he hits the ground. I fire one more bullet in my human shield’s head—effectively silencing his shouts.
The entire ordeal takes place in a matter of seconds, but I’m not under any illusions—I’ve just made a hell of a lot of noise, and backup is probably on the way.
The smirk on Guy’s face is all the confirmation I need of that.
No time to waste then.
“You’ve got thirty seconds before this place is swarming with soldiers,” he sputters, shoving his friend off of him.
“I only need ten,” I tell him and kick his stomach as hard as I can. Once he’s sufficiently out of breath, I stomp on his foot. The snap is music to my ears as his foot bends in a direction it was not made to go.
His wheeze smothers his scream, and I grab him by the throat.
“Where’s Nate?” I emphasize the question by kicking his broken foot.
He’s sputtering for breath, but the pathetic bastard doesn’t even attempt to fight. “Office,” he wheezes. “Mason’s office.”
I slam his head against the wall twice, and I’m running from the room before his lifeless body even hits the ground.
The factory is a maze of hallways, but I’ve already walked to and from the cells to Mason’s office, so I know exactly where I’m going.
I pause at an intersection and glance down the halls to ensure they’re clear—they are, but I don’t let myself relax.
This factory is big—but I have no idea how big.
Just because I’m not seeing them doesn’t mean there aren’t hundreds of soldiers roaming the building.
Since I have no idea what I’m up against, I need to be on full alert.
I race down the halls as fast as I can while staying quiet and eventually make it to the staircase that leads to Mason’s office.
When I reach the door, I lean in to listen, but I don’t hear anything.
I have no idea what I’ll do if he’s not inside.
I need to get my girls out of here.
Bracing for the worst, I kick the door open and fire at Nate before he can even look up from the tablet he holds. The bullet lodges in his head, and he goes down with a thud that I commit to memory.
It’s not the revenge I wanted, but I’ll take it.
I’ve taken a single step toward him to grab the keys when movement from my side registers just as a blinding pain reverberates across my head. I fire another bullet at the shadow, but I know I’ve missed as soon as it fires. I pull the trigger again, but nothing happens.
Five bullets.
That’s all Tripp had in his damn gun.
I should’ve checked before now, but why the hell wouldn’t he have had a fully loaded weapon?
A damn idiot.
Blinking rapidly, I barely duck out of the way of Mason’s second punch. Blood pours down my face, making it harder for me to notice that Mason is now moving for his desk—or rather, the gun sitting on it.
I launch myself forward just as he grabs it. Before he can cock the gun, I’m over the desk, slamming into him.
The gun clatters to the ground, sliding under a cabinet and hopelessly out of both of our reach.
Fine by me.
I send my fist across Mason’s face—just like I’ve imagined doing for years now.
His bloody lips pull into a malicious sneer, blood filling the crevices of each tooth, making the bastard look as demented as he is.
“You’re too late,” he says with a biting laugh. “Moreno’s already here, and my dad isn’t far. There’s no stopping this now. Your kid is as good as dea—”
I send my fist to his face again—and then two more times for good measure.
I’d love nothing more than to sit here and beat this bastard to death, but I don’t have the time. I’ll have to settle for his being unconscious.
I grab the keys off Nate—who’s somehow unarmed—and run from the room again.
By some miracle, I don’t encounter a single soldier on my run through the base. Even as I pass the room with Guy and his friends, there’s no one there.
No one even came to investigate the gunshots.
That fact brings me no comfort. If the soldiers aren’t here, they’re with Moreno—or at least preparing to be.
But it just might give me the time I need to get my girls out of here.
I reach their door in record time—taking better care not to scare them this time.
“It’s me,” I call, tapping the metal door before sliding the key in and opening it.
The sight guts me to my core and fills me with so much hope at the same time.
Rachel stands several paces from the door, holding Lyla, no doubt prepared in case I hadn’t been the one at the door. The bruising along her wrists and throat fills me with the most potent rage I have ever known. Maybe it would’ve been better to take the extra few seconds to end Mason’s life.
Just then, voices echo down the hall, and I know we don’t have any extra time to waste.
Rachel’s eyes go wide at the sound of voices, and I’m pulling her into me in the next second.
I cradle her face in one hand. “We’re getting out of here.”
She nods in a jerking motion, and I know she’s having a hard time getting words out between the fear and the bruising.
I hold my arms out to take Lyla from her, but she doesn’t pass her over right away. Studying her gaze, I know there’s more to her hesitation than fear.
But we’re low on options, so she releases Lyla into my arms, and I cradle her to my chest.
“Hey, Tiger,” I whisper with a soft smile.
My daughter’s hollow, fear-struck expression sears itself into my memory.
“I need you to do something for me,” I say gently. “Close your eyes and don’t open them until I tell you to. Can you do that?”
My three-year-old nods in a robotic motion as she squeezes her eyes shut and buries her face in my chest. I take Rachel’s hand and press a kiss on her forehead.
“Stay at my side,” I whisper against her forehead.
“Ryder,” she says in a hoarse whisper, and she’s trembling under my touch.
I pull back just enough for her to meet my eyes, overflowing with panic and heart-wrenching fear.
“Hey,” I gently coax. “Do you trust me?”
Her pause is brief before she nods. “To get us out of here.”
I deserve that—I know I do.
After all, this isn’t the first time their lives have been on the line because of me.
I gently squeeze her hand and pull her closer to me.
Whether Rachel forgives me or curses me to hell and back, it doesn’t matter.
“I’m getting you both out of here, okay?” I promise her.
She nods again, and with a deep breath, she’s as ready as she’ll ever be.
With one arm wrapped around Lyla, holding her to me, and Rachel holding my other, I peer into the hall to ensure the coast is clear.
It is, and I don’t hear the voices from before anymore, so I pull the girls with me as I race through the halls.
Time is not a luxury we have. With Moreno here and no weapon to protect the girls in the event of an encounter, getting them out as fast as possible is all that matters.
I spot a window down a hallway at an intersection, and I run to it.
Three cars are just barely in view, and I can spot an exit from here that would let out near them.
I mentally calculate how to get to that side of the factory.
I have no way of knowing if any of the doors I’ll need to go through are unlocked, but it’s the best plan I have to work with.
Voices echo down the hall, and Rachel’s hand goes stiff in mine as Lyla tightens her hold on my neck.
“I see an exit that’ll get us out,” I tell them, giving Rachel a look that I desperately hope comforts her.
The fear in that beautiful gaze is unbearable.
We’re moving through hallways as fast as possible. The mental route I calculated was generally accurate—aside from a few times we hit a dead end, and I had to track back and figure out where we went wrong.
Roughly five minutes pass before I spot the neon red EXIT sign.
Relief crashes over me as I usher my girls out the door and into the cool night.
I don’t stop until we’ve reached the car, and I’m met with Alec stepping out from the car with his gun and a glare.
Then he sees the girls.
Whatever Alec thinks of me and my loyalties, he’d never hurt Rachel or Lyla.
He casts me a warning look before tucking his gun away—just in time for Lyla not to see.
“Get them out of here,” I bark at him, cringing when Lyla goes rigid in my arms.
I soften my tone. “It’s okay, sweetie. You can open your eyes now. You’re safe. Uncle Alec is here, and he’s going to take you and Mama somewhere safe.”
Her eyes open and lock on Alec’s softened smile, and I feel my daughter relax in my arms.
“What about you?” Rachel asks as she takes Lyla from my arms and holds her tight.
Alec wraps a secure arm around Rachel—his attempt to comfort her and ease her tremors—even as he levels me with a hard look.
“Ryder,” he warns.
He doesn’t say anything else, but he doesn’t have to.
The message is clear: I’m to be treated as a prisoner until further notice.
I look over Rachel’s head, telling both of them, “Elise is in there. I can’t leave her. It’s because of her that I even had the chance to get you both safely out.”
Alec’s features soften to reluctance, and I know he won’t stop me. My gaze drops to Rachel, and I wish it hadn’t.
The look on her face guts me.
It’s a look I’ve seen before—on that day three years ago.
She wants to ask me to stay, but she doesn’t.
Not this time.
Leaving her and Lyla is the last thing I want to do, but Elise is still inside, and she’s alone. I owe her my life—my family’s lives.
I pull Rachel to me, relishing the feel of her as I press a kiss to her forehead.
“I’ll meet you at the base,” I promise her, then look to Alec. “Take care of them.”
He still looks reluctant to let me go, and that’s fair enough—I’m a traitor to our family right now. But he sighs, giving me a sharp nod as he ushers the girls into the car.
“Good luck,” he says.
I steal one last glance at my daughter and the woman I love—the one I lost once already. Then I run back into the factory, hoping I don’t lose them again before I get the chance to make things right.
Read Ryder and Rachel’s story in Choosing Rachel, book 2 in the Love and Blood series.