Chapter 27
Indie
purple rain - prince
Once Saint washes off his manic moment in the water next to us, we make our way up the cliff’s road. He bridal scoops me into his arms when he notices me struggling.
I told him I’d walk the rest of the way, and I could see it in his eyes. He wanted to argue with me, but instead he let it slide. Clearly, my hobbling got too much for him just now. Not that Holly or Greg have complained.
“I’ve got a change of clothes for you in the car, a gun,” Saint whispers in my ear, kissing me on the forehead, “and a knife, since you seem to prefer those.”
My smile creeps up my face as I open my mouth to say thanks, until Greg grinds to a halt, followed by Holly.
I don’t know what’s going on, but I can hear the faint voice being muffled from outside his earpiece as they listen to whoever’s on the other end.
“We’re far enough away,” Holly says to Saint.
I frown, looking up at him, who has that look on his face.
It screams mayhem’s about to begin. “Are you ready to watch the beginning of the end?”
I glance at the archway of the tunnel, until I see Holly pull out some sort of remote, tightening her hand around it.
A number of thunderous booms sound from the tunnel, a flash of light sparking inside it as a gust of wind explodes outside, sending dust and stones clattering around the entrance as the tunnel collapses from inside. I feel the vibrations travel through Saint’s hold on me.
My hand whips to grip Saint’s bulletproof vest. “Is he dead?”
The smirk falters, his eyes softening as he shakes his head. “They couldn’t find him or Louisa in the house. They’re searching through the woods and other tunnels.”
Oh great, so that wasn’t the only God damn secret passage these assholes have.
We don’t speak the entire rest of the way until we reach Saint’s familiar SUV as it’s tucked into a small clearing in the forest. The air feels heavy with the unknown. Each time I hear the crackle of the voice in his earpiece, his brows deepen, and worry seems to set further into his features.
Saint opens the back door of the car for me and slides me in on the seat. “Stuff’s in that bag for you. We’ll wait out here.” He gives me a tight smile, closing the door, and keeping his palm pressed against it.
Swallowing the lump in my throat, I get to work and change into a fresh set of clothes. My hands are warm enough now to use, allowing me to free myself out of the material. The belt is already filled up for me with a Glock and knife.
My shoulder screams as I slide over the vest, but fuck does it feel good not having those damp blood-covered clothes sticking to my body. A bottle of water lays in the centre console, and I grab it to gulp down every drop.
The door whips open as I try to multi-task to tug back on the jacket Saint gave me, and it causes me to dribble some of the water down myself.
Saint lets out an exasperated breath. “Sorry, darling.”
Screwing the lid back on, I turn on my side to look at him. “What’s wrong?”
“He’s left the area.”
I try to smile at him reassuringly. “He can’t hide for long. Neither can Louisa.”
He tugs a cigarette out and lights it, blowing the smoke above the car whilst rubbing a thumb across his eyebrow. “I think there’s another fucking tunnel somewhere. There’s no way he’d get out the house.”
“How did you find out about the tunnels?” I ask.
“Your tracker’s GPS, and my dad figured out the rest. Then I asked Jenna if she knew about them.”
My eyes widen. “She talked to you?”
I know she’s been making slow progress with Rex, but I wouldn’t have imagined her talking to anyone else.
Saint reads the expression on my face. “I asked her a couple questions, she willingly answered. I was nice about it.”
My shoulders relax. I would hate for him to have barged in there and thrown off everything she’s been working on.
“Boss?” Holly calls from the front of the car, the bonnet raised.
Saint leans in to kiss me on the lips. It’s the first one I’ve had from him in what feels like an eternity, and it lingers, to the point the butterflies scream to be released from my chest.
“I’ll be back, darling. Put this on,” he says softly against my lips, giving me another chaste kiss as he tugs his earpiece out and drops it into my hand, slinking around the car.
I lick my lips, tasting everything that is Saint Blackwood as it mixes with the familiar tobacco and menthol. Another small thing you don’t appreciate until it’s threatened to be snatched from you.
Greg barks from the front of the car, so I shove the device in my ear as I step outside when I hear the mention of my best friend. “Regina, what’s going on out there?”
Greg leans over the hood, and I’m no mechanic, but the cables and various parts that look like they should be connected to something tell me this thing isn’t driving anytime soon.
And there’s no doubt who’s responsible.
My earpiece comes on just in time to catch her words. “Your guys near the house are about to be overrun. Omnia have come out of nowhere. You need to fucking leave!”
Fuck.
Saint’s hand slams off the hood. He brushes past me as he pops the trunk door.
“Gina?”
Her sigh is long. “Indie, fuck, it feels good to hear your voice.”
My throat constricts. “It’s good to hear yours.”
I can tell my best friend is crying over the other end of the line. “I-I thought, we thought—”
“I know.”
She huffs a laugh. “I can’t lose you. I’ve kinda gotten attached to you over the years, y’know.”
It’s my turn to laugh as I feel the emotion clog my throat. “It takes a lot to get rid of me, clearly.”
I can feel her smile even from all this distance. Regina is what a sister should be like. The kind that holds you on your bad days, who makes you smile even when you don’t want to. We might not be connected through blood, but whatever it is, it’s a hell of a lot thicker.
“Is Dawson okay?” I ask, eyeing round the SUV as Saint moves and speaks quietly to Holly.
“He took the Harriston home, cleared the guards and got out. The manor was packed to shit with them. We’ve lost some people.” She drags in air. “Most got out, though. Dawson and Rex and are making their way to you. But you need—”
Silence.
“Gina?!”
Static crackles, and my finger presses against the earpiece over and over, but it does nothing.
Saint grips my arm, tugging me behind his back, and Greg hands me an assault rifle, throwing the strap over my head. “You know how to shoot one of these?” he asks.
I want to roll my eyes, but it’s Holly that answers. “Trust me, she knows how to handle one.”
My head bobs in conjunction with her answer, hands gripping it tightly.
“Stay behind me,” Saint says, crouching whilst Greg and Holly move ahead.
Fuck, I’ve never been in a situation like this before.
I know the guys have tactical experience, but the only time I’ve been with them is that one training exercise Saint put me through.
These aren’t rubber bullets.
These aren’t fake enemies.
And the need to impress is gone.
These fuckers really do want to come for us.
We slowly move through the forest; it’s not as dense being near the coast. We’re like sitting ducks out here. Every so often Greg or Holly throw a hand in the air that I assume means get down, seeing as Saint grips me to kneel on the ground.
Greg has his gaze fixated down the scope, and his hand reaches out, manoeuvring it and telling us silently to get lower. My stomach lies against the cold snow-littered ground, the chill seeping through again as I begin to shake.
Saint leans on his side, his gun in one hand facing ahead, his other tugging up the zip of his jacket I have on. “It’s okay, darling. They’re just being cautious,” he whispers, and when I look at him, there isn’t an ounce of fear in his eyes.
It makes me wonder how many times he’s done this. He did security for the underworld; were there times he had to run away from flying bullets, gangs of people chasing them with a fury hell would be jealous of?
Mind you, these people need to be scared of him after what I just witnessed.
“When you left to train, did this ever happen?” I ask quietly, speaking to keep my mind off what’s going on up ahead.
That smirk I adore cocks up the corner of his mouth. It makes it hard on my lungs. “More times that I can count.” He shuffles closer when Greg and Holly crawl forward. “You couldn’t be in better hands.” He finishes off with a wink.
A thought slams into my mind. “Conrad said something weird to Louisa when they were in my cell.”
Saint angles his head towards me, keeping his gaze straight ahead. “Like what?”
My finger glides down the rifle lying flat to my side. “He said he punished her before, something about burying family members as a lesson.”
His head whips towards me. “What?”
I nod. “Then he said, all those warnings…looking at me. That he’ll always get his way.”
My mind being more clear, I can read between those lines. The Omnia was responsible for my dad’s death.
And Louisa knew about it.
What I don’t get is why, and the next sucker punch comes to my gut involving my sister. My rape was because of whatever she did, or didn’t do, going by his words.
There’s no way she’s walked around all these years with all this on her shoulders. Either that or she’s been so deeply conditioned, her empathy left the minute she met Barry.
Saint’s jaw grinds. Whatever he was going to say gets lost when guns open fire, heavily.
Bullets shatter the silence of the woodland, hitting the trees and splitting the bark like fireworks erupting in the air, covering us in its residue.
Saint grips the neck of my jacket. “Get behind that tree and hide.”
He shoves me to go, but I don’t move, flicking up the sight of the gun. “I’m not leaving you, Saint,” I snap back.
Both our heads duck as a bullet cracks right above us. “Darling—”
“No. Saint. Together, remember?” I keep my voice firm and steady, despite the fact I’m terrified, but if he thinks I’m going to cower whilst he does the work, he’s sorely mistaken.