Chapter 56
Xander
My body bends forward with the bullet's impact, a searing pain spreading through my torso, which I grit my teeth through.
“Xander,” Jac shouts, bending one of their guards’ arms backwards and knocking the gun out of his hands.
I twist off Jenny, the chair landing with a thud as I kick the leg of the chair backwards, snapping it off the chair and freeing my leg. Jenny scrambles for her gun, which she dropped in our fall, but I snap away the other leg of the chair, fully freeing my legs and booting the gun further away.
She growls as she crawls along the floor, escaping the brawl that’s replaced the flying bullets.
I search for Jac, who knocked down two of her guards, but two more are making their way towards him. I slide my arms out from the backrest of the chair. My wrists are still tied behind me, but I’m free. I push myself to my feet, burning pain making me catch myself on the edge of the table.
Penelope runs to Jenny’s aid, helping her up off the floor in the corner of the room.
The basement door clangs open amidst the chaos, flashes of bullets hitting Jenny’s guards, making them drop to the floor.
Ezra and Daniel flood into the room, guns pointed at Jenny and Penelope, dried blood down the side of their faces. Jac has one of her guards in a chokehold as silence fills the room.
“Put the gun down,” Ezra threatens her, his tone lower than I’ve ever heard it.
“Where’s Camila?” I wheeze.
“The others are out looking for her, sir,” Daniel confirms. I nod my head, propping myself against the table and lifting my bloodied hand from my ribs.
“Christ, Xander,” Jac gasps.
“I’m fine,” I grit.
“Sit,” Ezra instructs Jenny and Penelope, signalling his gun to Jac’s fallen seat.
“But there’s no—” Penelope starts, but Daniel interrupts her.
“Grab the two chairs to the side of you.”
Penelope huffs and scrapes both chairs into the middle, Jenny following after her and sitting, folding her arms across her chest and placing one leg on top of the other.
“Solutions, not problems,” Jac snickers, throwing the guard into one of the empty chairs. He grunts with the impact.
Vertigo starts settling in as I watch Ezra and Daniel tie the three to the chairs and shove my broken one to the side.
“Well, this is a turn of events,” Jac drawls to the tied-up trio before walking over to the table, and in one swift motion, he pushes all the tools to the ground, making them clatter.
“Sit down, Xander,” he instructs. Blood is draining fast, and I don’t have the mind to even argue with him, so I flop onto the table in a seated position, leaning my back against the concrete wall. “Has anyone alerted the doctor?” Jac asks. Daniel nods in response.
“He’s on his way.”
My body hurts so fucking much. The only thing getting me through this is the knowledge that my men are out there looking for Camila.
It should be me out there.
I let her down.
Again.
I shoot up from the table—grunting through the pain—at the reminder that these fuckers have her holed up somewhere. I grab a stray knife from the table, approach Jenny first, and lean my hands on either side of the armrest. She tilts her face away from me, body trembling and face sweating.
This isn’t the woman that I knew as my mother. This is a monster. Wholly unrecognisable. Even after everything she did to me.
“Xander, sit the fuck back down. You’re gonna bleed out,” Jac warns, attempting to drag me back to the table by my shoulder, but I stay put.
“Where the fuck is my woman?” I snarl, and she whimpers in response. “Where?” I get in her face.
“Somewhere far away now. Probably back with that lunatic of a boyfriend getting used as a sex toy,” she says, tears slowly leaving her eyes.
My arms grip the armrests, warmth seeping out of my side.
“Don’t like it when your toys are in danger, do you?
Should’ve thought twice before killing Aidan,” she spews, a flash of hurt hiding in her eyes.
Too bad I don’t fucking care.
“You’re the Dellers,” Jac comments, huffing out in disbelief.
“Anyway,” she continues, leaning back in the chair. “She’s not my problem now. I got the money Luke promised.”
“It’s cute you think you’re making it out of here alive,” Jac shrugs.
“You’re just the same as him,” Jenny remarks. “I knew you’d ruin him too.” She narrows her eyes at me.
“What the fuck are you talking about?” Jac asks.
“You and him”—she jerks her chin at us both—“are brothers.”
I have no energy to question her.
“What?” Jac’s voice is filled with doubt and bewilderment.
“I carried you both.” Jenny raises her voice.
“You were both supposed to be mine. But my sister—” She lets out a bitter laugh.
“She couldn’t get pregnant. And I agreed to let her have one of you and never speak of it.
” Her voice hitches, a trace of sadness touching her voice.
“Too bad I got stuck with the fucked-up one. I’m surprised you’ve never questioned why you have the same last name, fucking idiot. ”
I can’t see Jac’s reaction. Nor do I care for Jenny’s sob story and her insults right now.
“Where. Are. They?” I ask again.
“Jenny, just tell them,” Penelope rushes out, squeezing her eyes shut as Daniel’s barrel presses into her temple. “They’ll kill us,” she squeaks.
Jenny rolls her eyes, huffing in annoyance, pretending she’s not as petrified as Penelope is. “I don’t know. Like I said, they’ll be far away by now.”
“Oh, you don’t know? That’s a shame.” I stab the knife into their guard’s thigh. My body screams in agony as I twist, making him roar in pain. “Save… your… screams,” I manage through pants.
“Xander, you need to sit back down—” Jac starts.
“No!” I bark, pulling the knife out and stabbing it into the guard’s chest. Jenny’s smug face grows horrified as blood splatters on me. My vision is starting to double, my limbs prickling.
I stab the knife into his thigh again, and he wails in pain.
“Where are they?” I struggle to interrogate, my chest growing tighter and breaths choppier.
“You’re insane,” Jenny mumbles, her wide eyes fixed on the knife in his chest.
A burning rage fills me, and I stab the knife in and out of his chest multiple times.
His screams fade out as his body sinks down to the floor.
“Xander, that’s enough.” Jac’s frame comes up behind me, grabbing my arms in a bear hug and stopping my movements.
He leads me back to the chair, moving out of the way so that I can see Penelope.
“And you…” I start. My head feels dizzy; my vision is blurring. But all I can think about is Camila.
I attempt to lift my hand towards the gun Jacques is holding out for me, but my body connects with the concrete once more.