6. Rory
6
RORY
As soon as I reach the top of the stairs, the commotion from inside the closed door makes me hurry.
I don’t bother trying the knob, just kick the door off the hinges, and a burly man is leaning over a small girl.
She’s screaming bloody murder, and he’s trying to spread her legs.
Rage washes over me. There’s no way I’ll ever allow anyone to assault a woman, a Burke or not.
Red-hot anger rushes through me, and I spring forward, not making a sound and pulling the guy by the back of his shirt, knocking him against the far wall.
He loses his breath, gasping for air and wriggling on the dirty carpet.
The girl scrambles backward, looking up at me with fearful, green eyes, and I freeze for a split second.
She’s beautiful. Not that it matters, she’s probably a pawn of her father’s, but what am I but the same thing?
Her hair looks sweaty and stringy, but it’s a gorgeous chestnut-brown color. Her eyes are wide and terrified, and I swallow hard when I look down at her, something like protectiveness coursing through me.
She’s bleeding from an eyebrow and also her upper thigh, and my eyes shoot back to the man as he grunts and stands up.
“Who the hell are you?” he demands to know.
“I’m the boss of this whole operation.” I scowl. “And one thing you’re not going to do is touch her.”
“She’s a Burke!”
I walk toward him menacingly, and he backs up against the wall.
He’s bigger than me, taller and fatter, so if he got a good angle, he might get a good drop on me.
Not that I’m going to let him.
I grab him by the shirt, slamming him back up against the wall. “I don’t care who she is. She’s a woman, and we don’t do that.”
“Murphy said?—”
“I don’t give a fuck what Murphy said. This isn’t his mission anymore. It’s mine.”
“But—”
“Say one more word, and I'll twist your balls so hard that you’ll never be able to have children.”
“Who—”
Fucking moron. I pull my hand back and punch him in the face, knocking him out.
Breathing hard, I let out a long breath and crouch down near the girl.
Lara winces, flinching away from me, too, and I feel like shit.
I never would have allowed this to happen, but it has, and now I have to deal with the consequences.
I take out a pocketknife from my back pocket, and Lara lets out a reedy scream.
“I’m not going to hurt you.” I cut the zip ties around her wrists.
She rubs at them, stretching out as she scrambles back against the wall. She brings her knees up to her chest, trembling.
I stay where I am to let her know I’m not a threat. “Look. I’m sorry. That... that wasn’t supposed to happen."
“Who are you? Are you with Murphy?”
I grimace. “Not exactly. My name is Rory.”
“I’d like to say it’s a pleasure to meet you, but it really isn’t.”
I almost bark out a surprised laugh.
She’s funny, even in this kind of situation.
“Let’s get you cleaned up.” I go to her and take her hand, but she wrenches it away from me.
“How do I know you won’t just finish what he started?”
I bite my lip, my brow furrowing together. “I guess you don't. But you’re bleeding. And not just on your thigh.”
Lara slowly puts her hand to her eyebrow, and it comes away sticky with blood.
“Fuck.” She starts to get up, but then braces herself against the wall, her knees giving out.
I grab her around the waist to steady her, and she yelps, pushing away from me.
“Sorry.” I don’t know what this girl has been through before I got here. I should be careful.
She trembles, looking at me like a cornered, wounded animal, and guilt washes over me.
It isn’t my fault that she’s been taken, but Murphy blood does run in my veins. And I have to figure out what’s happened to my sister.
Oscar comes inside the room, and she shrinks against the wall.
I turn around, rage still rocketing through me, and Oscar holds up his hands as if in defense.
“I heard a commotion and was just checking to see what happened. Where’s Scott?”
I tilt my chin at where he is still knocked out. “He tried to touch her.”
His eyes widen. “Some of the guys?—”
“Are neanderthals?” I roar. “Get the fuck out of here. I’ll take it from here.”
“I’ll just... wait outside.”
I don’t care if he takes a flying leap off the roof.
When he pads down the stairs, I turn back to Lara, who is pale as a ghost and looking like she’s about to pass out.
I scan the room, finding a dirty sandwich on the floor.
“You’re hungry.”
Lara nods, still shaking.
“He said... he said I had to beg?—”
Tears start to roll down her face, and she wipes at them angrily. Some of them are mixed with the blood trickling down her face.
“Let me take you to clean up in the bathroom. Then I’ll get you something to eat.”
She just stares at me warily.
I hold up my hands. “Look, as much as I want to, I can’t let you leave this house, but I can feed you and tend to your wounds. I’m not a monster.”
“I can’t really believe that right now.”
She’s looking at me earnestly, with swimming eyes, and it’s a tiny arrow in my heart. She probably doesn’t deserve this.
Hell, no one deserves this.
“Please. You need food, and I’ve got to stop the bleeding.” I gesture down to her thigh, and she looks down at it before holding a hand to her head, swaying on her feet.
I slowly take her hand, and this time, she doesn’t pull away.
I lead her to the bathroom.
I look at her for a long moment.
“Are you going to run for it if I let go of you?”
She keeps silent, but in the condition she’s in, I don’t think she’ll get very far. Plus, Oscar is still outside, no doubt under orders by my father to stand guard no matter what.
I rummage around in the bathroom.
There’s a first aid kit in the medicine cabinet, so I grab it and sit it on the counter.
Lara sits down on the edge of the tub, and I look at her warily before quickly leaving the room.
I need to get her cleaned up and fed before I can interrogate her.
I feel like the world’s biggest asshole for having to do it in the first place.
But I need to remind myself why I’m doing this.
Bree.
Chapter Seven