26. Screamer
SCREAMER
That’s right, sweetheart. I’m not him.
“Dude, where’s your girl?”
Frowning, I glance at the clock on the wall. It’s six-fifteen, and Roxie should’ve been home almost an hour ago. I’m not super worried because sometimes the shelter gets an intake late in the day or after hours. Domestic violence doesn’t stick to a nine to five workday.
“She’ll be here soon, I’m sure.”
I reach into my back pocket for my cell but come up empty.
Realizing I must have left it in my room in my other pair of jeans, I go get it.
When I spot it on the floor, I pick it up and grin when I see I’ve got two missed texts from Roxie.
I don’t have the text previews enabled on my phone so when I open the messaging app and read them, my knees threaten to buckle.
Roxie: Running a little late but on my way
Roxie: Help, Jace, 911
Sprinting into action, I run out of my room and find Tracer in the common area.
“Please tell me you can track Roxie’s phone,” I demand, grabbing him by the shoulders.
“Of course,” he replies. “What’s wrong?”
I race to the door. “Text me her location!”
Without telling anyone what’s going on, I fire up my Harley, shove my Bluetooth earbud in, and tear out of the gravel lot. Her last text to me came through about a half hour ago, and that scares the shit out of me.
“What?” I snap, answering a call that comes through a few minutes later.
“What’s going on?” Crow demands, and I can barely hear him over the roar of my engine.
“Jace has Roxie.”
“Son of a bitch,” he bites out. “Shuffle and I will be right behind you.”
“Tracer’s got the location,” I tell him. “And Crow?”
“Yeah?”
“Bring Jackyl. She might need medical attention.”
Disconnecting the call, I rev the throttle. A text comes through, and I have Siri read it to me, so I don’t get distracted and end up like Saint.
“From Tracer. North of town, approximately nineteen miles, heavily wooded area, phone is stationary.”
I try to picture the area he’s talking about and groan when I realize that it’s the perfect place to take a prisoner.
The woods are on state land, and there are no trespassing signs posted all over the place.
Barely any traffic uses those roads which means Jace can do whatever he wants to Roxie without fear of being found.
What should’ve taken me forty minutes takes me only twenty-five, and they’re the longest twenty-five minutes of my life. I spot Roxie’s Harley first and then the abandoned vehicle. Without bothering with my kickstand, I hop off my bike and let it fall to the ground.
I love my bike, but at the end of the day, it’s just a hunk of metal.
“Roxie!” I shout, shoving my way through the trees and ignoring the way branches tear through my shirt and skin. “Roxie!”
C’mon, sweetheart. Give me some sort of clue as to where you are.
“Roxanne is occupied at the moment!” a male voice echoes through the air.
That’ll do.
I slow my pace to yank my gun out of my ankle holster, grateful that I wear it at all times. After ensuring the safety is off, I run as fast as I can in the direction I think the voice came from. Seconds later, I hear the same man talking shit to someone.
Skidding to a stop when I see Roxie, I scan the area. Jace is standing next to the tree that Roxie is tied to, and he’s holding a whip that appears to be dripping blood from the tip. The sun is starting to set, and with the forest surroundings, it’s hard to see.
Roxie is naked, and slash marks crisscross her torso. Her head hangs limply to the side, and there’s something covering her mouth. There are also three others tied to different trees and either unconscious or dead, and I can only assume they’re the friends who were coming for a visit.
“Jesus,” I whisper harshly.
“I knew she couldn’t resist calling you,” Jace says calmly. “Which is why I started the party early.”
“You’re a sick fuck, you know that?”
He drags the whip through the dirt. “I’m okay with that. Wanna know why?”
“Why?”
“Because sick fuck or not, I’m the one who will be walking away from here with Roxanne on my arm.”
If she can even walk.
I lift my gun and aim it at his head. My brain screams at me to pull the trigger, but I don’t. Not yet. I need answers first. Roxie is going to have questions, and I’ll be damned if I take away her chance to know whatever it is that will make her feel better when this is all over.
“Roxie, sweetheart,” I call to her. “C’mon, Rox, wake up for me.”
She tries to lift her head and moans.
“Her name is Roxanne,” Jace seethes.
“Why are you doing this?” I ask.
“She agreed to be my wife, and that’s what she’s going to be,” he says as if I should’ve known the answer.
“And then you beat her,” I remind him. “She left you, Jace. She doesn’t love you.”
“You think I give a shit about love?” he snaps. “It took me two years to make Roxanne marriage material. I had her right where I wanted her.”
“She’s not an animal,” I growl. “She’s a fucking human, and she deserves so much more than you.”
“Like what? You?”
“Honestly, it doesn’t even matter if it’s me or some other man, as long as it’s not you, as long as she’s happy.”
As soon as the words leave my mouth, I realize how true they are. Losing Roxie would probably kill me, but the most important thing is that she’s happy. If she’s alive and not with Jace, I can live with that.
“Mmmm,” she moans, forcing my gaze to waver from Jace. “S-Screamer?”
“I’m here, sweetheart,” I say.
She lifts her head at an agonizingly slow pace and locks her eyes on mine. “Kill him.”
Without missing a beat, I squeeze the trigger. The bullet goes through Jace’s chest, and I’m at Roxie’s side before his body even hits the ground.
“Fuck, sweetheart, I’m so sorry,” I whisper as I work the ropes wound around her body and the tree trunk.
“F-for what?”
“For letting him get to you. I should’ve known you weren’t safe. I should’ve kept you gua?—”
“Screamer,” she whispers.
“Yeah?”
“Shut up.”
The second she’s free, I cradle her in my arms and lower her to the ground. I take my cut off and peel my shirt over my head to cover her. She’s shivering, her teeth audibly chattering in the quiet night.
“I’m gonna get your friends down, okay?”
She nods. “He knocked them out after…” Roxie spits blood from her mouth before continuing. “After he made them watch him whip me. Said he needed to make them pay for helping me leave.”
Relief courses through me that they’re alive. Roxie still blames herself for Saint. There’s no telling what she’d do if she thought these three were dead because of her.
As I untie the ropes holding them each up, the sound of leaves crunching filters into the silence. Seconds later, Crow, Shuffle, Journey, Bear, and Jackyl burst through the trees, guns drawn.
“You’re a little late,” I drawl. “Jackyl, go check on Roxie. The rest of you, help me get them down.”
Shuffle follows Jackyl to his sister’s side. As soon as Greg, Melody, and Sammie are free and lying on the ground, I return to Roxie.
“She’s gonna be okay,” Jackyl says, assessing her wounds. “There’ll be scars, both inside and out, I’m afraid, but I’ll get an IV with fluids, antibiotics, and pain meds started as soon as we get her back to the clubhouse. That’ll help a lot.”
“She’s coming home with me,” Shuffle states flatly.
“No, I’m not,” Roxie says, hissing through her teeth as she tries to sit up. “I’m going with Screamer.”
Shuffle looks like he wants to argue, but he wisely keeps any protests to himself.
“I’ll take care of her, man,” I assure him.
He nods and straightens to his full height. “You can’t keep her away from me.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it. You’re her brother.”
Is that what Shuffle’s been worried about, that because we’re in different clubs I won’t let Roxie spend time with him? No wonder he’s been a pain in the ass.
“Jace said the same thing.”
“I’m no?—”
“He’s not Jace,” Roxie barks with more force than she should be capable of at the moment.
I cup her cheeks. “That’s right, sweetheart. I’m not him.”
It takes a while to get everyone back to the vehicles, and as I carry Roxie through the trees, a thought occurs to me.
“Do you remember what you said to me earlier today?” I ask.
She nods against my chest.
“Can you say it again?”
“I love you, Ben.”
I grin, feeling complete for the first time since I lost my family.
“I love you, too, Roxie.”