Chapter 22
Chapter Twenty-Two
CARLY
“ N o fecking way!”
I’d recognize that voice anywhere, had heard it for most of my life. I still kept my eyes closed for a moment, terrified I might be imagining my childhood friend was here to rescue me, just like I’d expected Brandon to be standing in front of me when I’d opened my eyes after dreaming of him. Pushing down my terror, I lifted my head, opened my eyes, and found Tommy standing in front of me with three of my men behind him.
“Out!” he roared. The guys tore their gazes away from me and hurried from the room.
“It isn’t as bad as it looks,” I chided. “It’s not like I’m naked.”
It was pretty damn close, but I was partially covered. The barely-there slip I’d worn underneath my wedding gown left little to the imagination.
“Fecking hell, ya might as well be.”
“I guess Sean figured since he wasn’t going to marry me, then I didn’t need to keep my wedding dress on.”
“I’m gonna tear the bloody eejit’s bollocks off.”
His thick brogue was a sure clue to how pissed off he was. “Careful, your Irish is showing.”
“Jaysus, Carly. You’re the only woman I know who’d make a joke at a time like this.” He rubbed his face in exasperation and hissed in pain when his fingers brushed his bandaged and bruised nose, clearly having forgotten about the injury.
“You want to tell me how that happened?”
“I shouldna’ left you alone.”
Yeah, I knew exactly who had broken his nose. Considering I’d been taken while he was supposed to be watching over me, I guessed I should be relieved that’s all Brandon had done to him. “How about we call it even if you untie me and find me something to wear?”
“Shit, sorry,” he murmured, rushing forward to work on the rope wrapped around my hands.
Once I was free, I wriggled my fingers and toes to get the blood flowing in them again while Tommy searched the room. The room was sparsely furnished, with only a queen size bed and a small set of drawers the only furniture. Considering what Sean had told me it was used for, I wasn’t surprised.
“There isn’t a fecking thing in here.”
“Sex slaves don’t exactly have belongings,” I explained quietly. “And if they did, a man would have to be an imbecile to keep her stuff around after he’s killed her.”
“Fecking hell,” he growled, lifting his black, long-sleeved shirt over his head and tossing it to me. “Put this on so I can get you the feck out of here before your husband decides my broken nose isn’t punishment enough for landing you here.”
I slipped the shirt on and walked to the door, but stopped to look at him over my shoulder before I left the room. “There will be no ‘getting me the fuck out of here.’ You’ll take me to Brandon.”
“He gave me orders, Carly.”
I straightened my spine and injected all my determination into my tone. “He may be my husband, but he’s not the boss of me. Not when it comes to O’Reilly business. Don’t make me tell you again, Tommy. You’ll be taking me to him. Now.”
“Fine,” he muttered. “But you’d better be bringin’ me all my favorite foods when ya visit me in the hospital.”
“Oh, shit,” one of the guys murmured, stepping out of my way as I stormed past them towards the big house. Getting out of my path was a good idea, because I’d never been more furious in my life. I was out for blood, and I was damn well going to be the one who drew it.
“Give me your spare piece.” It wasn’t a request, and Tommy knew me well enough to hand over the gun he kept in an ankle holster without asking any questions. The weight felt good in my hands, settling some of the knots in my stomach. I’d felt powerless from the moment the limo doors had locked behind me and I’d heard Sean’s voice, but not anymore. Brandon and our men were here, I had a weapon in my hand, and Sean was going to pay for making me fear for my baby’s life. Him and his demented friend.
Tommy put his arm out in front of me, stopping my progress when we made it to the back door of the house. We all waited there until he nodded his head and breathed a sigh of relief. “Conor confirmed the coast is clear.”
“Conor?”
Tommy tapped his ear and nodded before leading me into the house. “Yeah, and your man is not happy to know we’re headed his way.”
“I wish I could let that sway my decision, but we both know why I can’t.”
“I just hope he understands it as well, or else my nose isn’t going to be the only part of my body he will have broken today.”
I patted him on the back. “Brandon knows what kind of woman he married. It shouldn’t come as a surprise to him that I’m not willing to walk away from this until it’s finished.”
“Can you blame the man?” Tommy asked, turning towards me as he paused in front of a door with his fingers wrapped around the knob. “You were taken from your wedding reception, with his baby in your belly. He isn’t really in the mood to be reasonable about anything, I don’t think.”
“He knows about the baby?” I gasped.
“You bet your sweet ass I do,” Brandon growled as the door opened and he blocked my view of inside.
My gaze flew up to his face, which looked like it had been carved from granite. A muscle jumped in his jaw and his eyes blazed down at me, filled with fury and love. “This isn’t how I wanted you to find out. I had it all planned out, too. I wanted to surprise you with the news. I guess this is one more thing to lay on the heaping pile of shit that rests at Sean’s feet.”
My hand moved down to my belly as I spoke, drawing Brandon’s attention lower. Realization of what I was wearing filled his gaze, and his face turned red with anger. “Why are you wearing Tommy’s shirt?”
The question was asked softly, but the menace in his tone was unmistakable. I threw myself at him and wrapped my arms around his waist as I hurriedly answered him, positive he was thinking the worst. “He didn’t touch me. I think he took my dress away because he was angry about his plan being ruined. And, he wanted to make it harder for me to escape.”
His arms tightened around me, and I heard his heart racing underneath my ear. “You would have found a way to escape, wouldn’t you?”
“If I had to, yes. But I knew you wouldn’t be too far behind. Not after I saw all the SUVs at the airport. I trusted that you’d find me in time, and now it’s your turn to have faith in me.”
“Letting you in this room is the last thing I want to do right now.” His chest rose before he let out a huge sigh. “But fuck, you know how to play hard ball.”
“Didn’t you realize that when I shot you in the leg?” I teased, stepping out of his hold.
“Just make sure your aim is better this time around,” he grumbled, brushing a kiss across the top of my head.
“I never miss what I’m aiming for,” I promised, walking into the room at his side before continuing. “No matter how small the target is. Like Sean’s balls.”
My gaze landed on the man in question, and I was pleased to see it looked like they’d only roughed him up a little before tying him to a chair. The Haitian man who owned this home was in the seat next to him, in much the same condition.
“Since there’s two of them, why don’t we each take one?” I offered. I waived my hand at the dark-skinned man whose wide eyes were filled with horror. “You can kill him, but I want Sean.”
Both men sputtered behind their gags and wiggled in their chairs. They were desperate to get free from their bindings, even though they were surrounded by men holding guns aimed their way. Stupid idiots. The only way they were getting out of here was in a body bag.
“You’ll have to go first,” Brandon muttered. “I can’t kill this one until I receive confirmation that our man found the women and children they planned to use for their next shipment.”
“I’ll take my time then, just in case you need additional information from him,” I promised as I lifted my right arm and fired straight into his groin. “But he’s going to feel immeasurable pain every single second he remains alive.”
I pulled the gag from his mouth and listened to him sob, begging for his life. My response was to fire another bullet, this time into his knee. He screamed in pain until his voice cracked before he started to plead for a quick death. By the time Brandon received word that the rescue had gone off without a hitch, I’d shot Sean in the other knee and both shoulders. He’d passed out twice, and I’d had one of my men bring in a cold bucket of water both times so I could toss it in his face and rouse him again. Between the lack of food and my pregnancy, I was starting to feel light-headed, so I finished him off with a shot straight between his eyes.
“Feel free to take your time with the other one,” I told Brandon, when I really wanted him to do anything but. “I’ll wait for you outside.”