36. Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter thirty-six
V oices rose outside whatever building her captors had stashed her in.
“Stay away from her,” one of the men shouted just as the outside door squeaked again, then shut with a heavy bang. “We get the ransom and leave her here for them to find.”
“I just want to make sure she’s secure.”
“She’s not getting out of that fucking chair. Now stay out here and keep a lookout. I need to make a call.”
“She’s still not answering.”
She? She who?
“Fucking probably passed out in front of the TV, stoned out of her mind.”
Silence returned and Melody tried again to loosen the ropes around her wrists, resulting in more rope burns and blood. Lot of good that did her.
She was so tired and desperate to get out of here. She hated having the hood over her head. She couldn’t see anything. Not that she needed to see to know that she was in a dark space. A single lightbulb across the room provided a drab sense of light and shadows in the distance through the black fabric cover over her head and face.
Every once in a while she heard the scurry of tiny feet. No barn cat here to chase the mice away. Though she thought she heard the hoot of a barn owl above her, so maybe the mice did have something to run from.
The door screeched open again and the heavy footfalls drew closer. Whoever had come in didn’t speak, just stopped right in front of her, an ominous presence that made her heart race and her mouth go dry.
Anticipation and dread soured her gut. “What do you want?”
“You. It’s always been fucking you.” The words were dark with fury and desperation.
Inevitability. Like this had been coming for a long time.
There was something familiar in his voice, though she still couldn’t quite place it.
His hands clamped onto her arms above her wrists. “Look what you’ve done to yourself.” He started tugging on the ropes.
She thought he was freeing her hands; instead, he twisted the ropes so her hands were bound together in front of her. She was still tied to the chair by her feet. “Did you call Fox for the ransom? How long until he pays it?”
“Our dear friend Amy is off getting the money. No phone required. Just a simple transfer of funds from your boyfriend .” He snarled the word, but slipped out of his low whisper, and that’s when she knew exactly who was in front of her.
“Josh.” His name was barely a whisper on her breath.
“You’re fucking mine.” He grabbed her shirt and lifted it up her body.
She locked her arms at her sides, so he couldn’t pull it over her head, but he grabbed the ropes at her wrist and yanked her arms up with one hand and pulled the shirt up with the other. The second the shirt cleared her head, pushing the hood off with it, she stared her attacker in the eyes as he hooked the shirt behind her head, essentially keeping her arms raised for him. “You fucking asshole.”
The jerk grinned at her as he pulled a gun from his waistband and pointed it in her face. “Keep your fucking mouth shut or I’ll put a bullet in you.”
“And then you won’t get your money.”
“I want something else right now.” He pressed the tip of the barrel of the gun to her throat, then dragged it down her sternum, between her breasts, down her belly, and shoved it between her spread thighs and right into her crotch. “You’re mine.”
She let him see the defiance in her eyes. “I’m his.”
“Because he’s rich.” He practically spat out the words.
“His money doesn’t even make the top one hundred on my list of why I love him.”
“Bullshit.”
“Says the guy who kidnapped me and is now threatening to rape me to get what he wants.”
He got right in her face. “You never gave me a chance.”
She glared daggers at him. “You proved why I shouldn’t have tonight.”
“Maybe. But I’m still going to have what I want and that rich asshole is going to get you back knowing I was all over you.”
She leaned in close. “He will kill you for this.”
“Baby, I’ll be long gone, spending his money on a beach with a babe, and no one will ever fucking find me.” He tucked the gun in his waistband, hauled her up, and shoved her back into the pole beside her, hooking the ropes around her wrists on a large nail. The height took her feet off the ground and tilted the chair back. Her body was contorted to the side because of the chair. He got to work on her ankles. The second one of her feet was free, she tried to kick him, but he twisted the end of the rope around her other leg and secured her feet together, then released her other foot, leaving her dangling from her wrists, standing on her tippy toes. It hurt like hell to have most of her weight suspended by her bruised, bloody wrists, but she still tried to raise her feet and kick him.
He swatted her feet away and laughed in her face. “Perfect. I set this up when I scoped this place out. I got the height just about right.” He set the gun on the chair, leaned in close, and put his hands over her breasts, his body pressed to hers as he licked her cheek.
She tried to turn her head, but he just grabbed her chin with one hand and pinched her nipple hard with the other. He made her look at him as he thrust his cock into the V of her thighs and groaned. “I’m going to fucking enjoy this.”
“Bite me.”
He did. Right on top of her breast above her bra. He didn’t break the skin, but it hurt like hell and she cursed, then headbutted him the second he raised his head to taunt her again. He stumbled back, then rushed her again. She picked up her feet, wrenching and hurting her wrists even more, and kicked him in the chest, sending him to his ass on the packed dirt floor.
And then it felt like the room erupted with chaos. The door squeaked open and thudded against the wall as Mason rushed in, gun drawn. Behind her, another crash sounded as someone rushed up behind her.
“Give me a reason to shoot your ass,” Fox said as he stepped up next to her, a gun held in his hands and pointed right at Josh’s head. “Please. Just one reason.”
Josh glanced at the gun he’d set on the chair she’d been tied to earlier after he’d shoved the barrel between her legs.
Mason and Fox kept their guns on Josh as Dean closed in from the side, pulled Josh’s arms behind his back, and cuffed him.
“Get me down,” she begged, her voice hoarse from the tears she tried to choke down.
Fox tucked his gun at his back as he turned to her, glanced at his watch, then said, “Five forty-three. Three hours, twenty-five minutes without you.”
“Too long,” she agreed with the sentiment.
He reached out to touch her, but his gaze dropped to the bite mark on her chest. He spun around and clocked Josh right in the face, breaking his nose, then punched him in the mouth with his other hand, sending his head snapping back again.
Josh fell to the floor on his ass again and spit out two teeth along with a gush of blood. “You broke my nose and knocked out my teeth, fucker.”
“You’re lucky I don’t kill you for touching her.” His shoulders heaved up and down with his heavy, angry breaths.
“Fox,” she called to him softly. “I need you.” She needed him away from Josh before he really did attack again and kill him.
Fox turned to her immediately and gently wrapped one arm around her waist to lift her up, then carefully pulled her wrists from the nail. He set her on her feet, then pulled her shirt over her head and ever so slowly lowered it along with her arms.
She held her hands out toward him. “Take them off.”
Instead, he cupped her face. “I’m sorry.”
She shook her head. “Not your fault. None of it.” The first tear slipped over her lashes and down her cheek.
He gently brushed it away with his thumb. Then the next. And the next. Until he pulled her into his chest and she cried all over his shirt as he held her in a loose embrace and she tried to burrow her way into him.
“Ambulance will be here in a few minutes,” Mason said.
She gasped and turned to look at him beside her. “There’s another man. Probably Brian. Those two are always together.”
Mason nodded. “Nick got him before we came in. He’s in cuffs right outside. We have Amy in custody, too, along with Tanya. They’re all going down for this.”
She looked up at Fox. “Tanya?”
“Pretty sure she masterminded this whole thing.”
“Fucking bitch.” She caught herself, realizing that it had to be devastating for Fox to have his mom do this to him. “Sorry. You must be—”
“Enraged. Out for blood. Ready to make sure none of them ever leaves a cell for the rest of their lives. Yeah, sweetheart, I’m all that and more. But more than anything, I’m relieved you’re alive.”
“Me, too. So I can tell you again how much I love you. I knew you’d come for me.”
He brushed his hand down her tangled hair. “You’re not mad that this happened because of me.”
She shook her head as Mason dropped down beside her and undid the ropes around her ankles. “Not your fault. All you ever did was love me.”
“I plan to do that forever if you’ll let me. Even if you won’t,” he confessed.
“We’re building a life together, remember? You promised.”
He hugged her close. “I promise I’ll always keep you safe.”
She knew what that meant. “I don’t need guards. I just need you.”
“Yeah, well, you’re getting security as well.” He looked down at her. “Please. For my sanity.”
“We’ll talk about it when we move to Boston.”
His eyes went wide. “You still want to come with me?”
“No one is going to take away our dream, or split us up. Not Amy. Not Josh. Not your mother.”
“Tanya is not my mother. She’s nothing to me. You are everything.” He brought her hands up and kissed her knuckles on both hands, then gently undid the ropes. She winced and cried some more as the abrasive cord left her tender skin.
“Ambulance is here,” Dean announced, stepping close. “You okay?”
She put her hands flat against Fox’s chest, right over his heart. “I am now.”
Fox kissed her on the head, then lightly brushed his thumb over the goose egg knot on her forehead. “What happened here?”
“Headbutted Amy and broke her nose, then that fuckface when he tried to rape me.”
“That’s my girl. So fucking fierce.” He brushed her hair back and stared down at her. “I love you so much.”
“I love you, too. Now can we get out of here? I hate this place.”
“Can you walk?” Dean asked.
She leaned into Fox’s side as he wrapped his arm around her. “Don’t let go.”
“Never.” He helped her out of the building.
She stopped short and stared at the two cop cars, Mason and Fox’s cars, and the ambulance all clustered in the driveway between an old house and—she turned and looked at the building behind her—yep, a shed.
The paramedics rushed forward and helped her onto a gurney. Fox stayed right beside her, never leaving her side, or letting go, whether he had a hand on her arm or her thigh as the paramedics checked her out and loaded her into the ambulance.
Exhausted, she let sleep carry her away, knowing Fox would take care of everything. He’d watch over her. She would never be alone. Not for the rest of their lives.