Chapter Five
Master
SITTING IN A meeting at F.D. Security, I’m focused on what’s going on because we’re discussing upcoming installations, a few calls that have come in for bodyguard jobs, and continuing our job at Roger’s ranch.
Every week, we all gather at the security company and go through all the calls we’ve gotten and divide the tasks so no one burns out doing one particular aspect of the job we’ve all taken on.
None of us like the installations, but we’ve all done them and will continue to go to those jobs because people deserve to feel secure in their homes and places of work.
I won’t ever turn down an installation or upgrade job because I’ve witnessed people in a vulnerable position where they lose the only place they previously felt safe.
Their sanctuary turns into a nightmare and we want to prevent that from happening.
We’re currently debating whether or not to remain on the ranch for extra peace of mind for those there getting help when the alarm sounds on all of our phones.
I immediately pick mine up from the table in front of me and feel my entire body go tight.
The alarm is for Fantasy Realm. It’s been triggered from the button under the front counter I made sure was included.
“I don’t give a fuck who comes with me, but I go inside first and that’s non-negotiable,” I state in a hard voice because this is personal for me.
Count happens to be here for the meeting today and he jumps out of his chair as fast as I do and races behind me as we leave F.D.
Security and head for our bikes. I don’t take the time to put on my helmet as I start the engine and leave the parking lot without seeing who’s following behind me.
I push my limits as I ride through town, passing slow moving cars and running red lights after pausing the briefest second to ensure no one is driving through the intersection.
I cut the time in half to get to the bookstore as I barely manage to get my kickstand down.
“I’m headin’ in the front door. I want someone on the back.
Make sure you take out anyone who steps through the door that’s not a female.
This shop is run by females only and no male employees are here,” I order before leaving the group of men with me and pulling the gun from the back of my jeans.
Taking off the safety, I make my way inside carefully.
My eyes dart around the room and I don’t find anyone.
I don’t even see Taleah until I get closer to the counter where the register sits open.
Money litters the floor and I avoid stepping on it as I take measured steps closer to the counter in front of me.
I don’t bother remaining on the customer side of it as I step to the end and that’s when my entire world shatters in the span of a heartbeat.
Taleah is laying on the floor. Her body is covered in so much blood I can hardly see any of her skin.
Taleah’s hair is a matted mess that covers her face.
Her dress has been ripped enough to expose her lower body as my gaze turns a hazy red.
Someone put their fucking hands on my Doll and violated her.
“Call for a fuckin’ ambulance! Now!” I yell, turning the safety back on before placing my gun back in the holster at the back of my jeans. I drop to my knees and don’t register the pain jolting my body as I let my hands hover over her body. “Taleah! Wake up, Doll!”
I plead and beg with her to wake up to no avail.
When I brush the hair out of her face, I take in the dark bruises in the shapes of fingers surrounding her delicate neck.
Her necklace has become tangled and rests tightly against her skin, but I don’t dare touch her more than I already have because I don’t know the true extent of the damage that’s been done to her.
I refuse to make it even worse with a careless touch.
“Taleah!” I continue to scream as tears fall down my face and I feel a hand rest on my shoulder.
I haven’t cried in almost eight years since I learned of Bhodi’s death.
I don’t bother taking my attention from my girl to see who’s at my back.
Her name continues to escape in tortured screams from me as I completely break down in ways I never thought possible.
Pushing her away did absolutely nothing to limit the pain I’m feeling right now.
If anything, it only made it worse because she hasn’t been in my life for almost eight years now.
I could have prevented this from happening if I wasn’t a complete fuck-up years ago.
“You’re gonna have to move, Master. The ambulance is here and they’re gonna have to get to Taleah so they can help her,” Count says, his voice gentle as he leans closer to me because there are other people in the store now as I turn my attention from the girl I’m kneeling next to.
Fantasy Realm is now filled with cops, members of the club, and paramedics are rolling a gurney inside.
No one gets close to me as I remain at Taleah’s side on the floor.
After one more look at her, I finally get off the floor, but I don’t move far from her side.
I’ll be watching every move the paramedics make so they don’t hurt her more than her current state.
Count doesn’t leave my side. He knows I need him as one of the officers we’ve worked with in the past makes his way over to us.
“Master, do you know what happened here?” Officer Reynolds questions me as he holds his notebook in front of him while other officers walk carefully around the store to gather evidence.
“No. We got here shortly before you. I was the first one in the store and didn’t step on any of the money coverin’ the floor.
The second I saw Taleah, I was at her side.
I’ve known her for a very long time. The only time I touched her was to brush the hair out of her face,” I answer him honestly as everyone from the club stands near the door so they’re not in the way of the cops or paramedics.
“Do you know who could have had a motive to attack this girl?” Reynolds asks and my mind immediately goes to TJ. He’s a pathetic piece of shit and I wouldn’t put it past him to do this because of something Taleah did to protect herself.
“TJ Bond. She’s been tryin’ to get him out of her house for a few weeks now.
They’ve been together for a few years and he’s a useless piece of shit,” I tell him while watching the paramedics put a neck brace on Taleah very carefully while they try to get her blood pressure.
I listen as they talk to one another and can hardly understand what they’re saying.
It’s all a jumbled mess I can’t focus on with my gaze on her beaten body as I imagine everything TJ did to her.
There isn’t a doubt in my mind this is him.
“We’re gonna have to call her next of kin,” Officer Reynolds says and I quickly turn my attention back to him.
“No. I need to be the one to call them. Her parents travel for business and I’m not even sure if they’re in town right now.
If a cop calls them, it won’t turn out good.
I’ll make sure they’re contacted. I’m pretty sure my sister, Elara, is her emergency contact because it was when we were younger.
My sister doesn’t leave town very often so it makes sense for her to be there for Taleah,” I tell him, hoping he’ll allow me to make the calls so no one else has to deliver this news to the most important people in Taleah’s life.
“Okay. I’ll let you make the call, Master,” Reynolds agrees and I can see the pity in his eyes as he looks at me. I still have tears falling from my eyes as the paramedics begin loading Taleah on a back board.
I answer the rest of Reynolds questions about Taleah’s personal information while the paramedics prepare to wheel Taleah from the store.
They cover her with blankets to preserve her modesty.
Something I should have done but I was paralyzed by the sight of her so broken on the floor of her store.
The security alarm didn’t even go off. If she hadn’t pressed the emergency button, no one would have shown up to help her.
I don’t even want to think about what that means.
Once she’s covered, they strap her down and begin to roll her out of Fantasy Realm.
I follow closely behind and keep an eye on her so no one does something they’re not supposed to.
Officer Reynolds walks just behind me and continues to ask me questions. The very second they get her loaded up in the ambulance, I’m climbing in behind her. No one tells me I can’t ride with her as Count leans in very quickly.
“I’ll make sure the shop is locked up tight once the cops have left and that the alarm is set.
We’ll keep some Prospects here to watch over the place so no one comes back.
They can also let Taleah’s employees know the store will be closed until further notice.
You focus on your girl and I’ll make sure her store is secured,” Count says before ducking out of the way so we can leave and get Taleah the help she needs before something worse happens to her.
I can’t lose her. If I’m feeling this way, I can’t even begin to imagine how Elara and her parents are going to feel when I make those calls.
The doors are slammed closed on the ambulance as the sirens start blaring and we take off.
There are two paramedics in the back with me as I sit out of the way so they can continue working.
My eyes are locked on Taleah’s lifeless form as my heart continues to break and my soul is ripped to shreds.
They’re talking back and forth as I watch intently for the rise and fall of Taleah’s chest. It’s barely moving, but it is.
My gaze is completely focused on her chest so I’m the first one who knows if she stops breathing.