“You fucking bastard,” I shouted against the gag, but all that came out was a roar of moans. I rolled to the side, but I couldn’t get up with my hands tied behind my back. He yanked me back up to my knees and came up behind me, pressing down hard on my back until my cheek pressed into the floor.
The knife punctured my lower back on my side and started to drag up. I felt my skin separating, the blood leaking down my side and I tried to move, but his weight wouldn’t allow it. It didn’t feel deep, just enough to make me bleed. What I didn’t know was how much worse it was going to get.
“Oh, it’s not that bad. Wait until Vault have you. Then you will know pain.” He ran his finger down my spine like a soft caress and I felt his lips brush against the small of my back. “I’ll erase him from you. Make you forget him, Georgie.”
Like hell, he could ever do that. No matter what was done to me, I’d never stop loving Deck.
“When we go—”
There was a loud bang as the door flung open at the same time as the small window shattered and glass flew everywhere. The door ripped off the rusted hinges and swayed twice before it fell to the floor, just missing Tanner and me.
My eyes widened when I saw Kai and Deck standing in the doorway and Vic and Tyler climbing through the window, all with guns pointed at Tanner. Except Kai, he had a knife but it was as good as a bullet. He could throw it quick and accurately and Tanner knew it.
Tanner looped his arm through mine and dragged me backward two steps until we hit the wall, a shovel and spade wobbling on their hooks. He held the jagged knife to my throat and his other arm locked around my chest.
I was drooling from the gag in my mouth and trying to inhale large breaths through my nose. My gaze hit Deck, but he wasn’t looking at me. He was locked on Tanner.
Kai lowered his knife, slipped it back in his holster and took a step forward. Tanner’s grip tightened and I felt the slight puncture of the tip of his knife.
“What are you doing, Tanner?”
“More like what are you doing, Kai? Did you tell them about Vault? Looks like you did or they wouldn’t be here right now. No matter, they will deal with you as soon as they get my message.”
I noticed the muscles in Deck’s arms twitch and yet he remained completely stone-still, eyes on his target, waiting for the moment he could take a shot.
Kai chuckled and it sounded odd in the tense situation. “And you think they’ll let you live? You’ve kidnapped one of our own to what … bring her to them? If they wanted her ‘in’ they would’ve done it years ago. They don’t, Tanner. They won’t kill her. And if you do, they’ll make you beg for death.” Tanner’s hand shook and the knife scratched my neck. I tried to lean back into him as far as I could to avoid the blade, but he wasn’t paying attention to me; he was looking at Kai and I knew he was scared.
“Let her go and we can stop this,” Kai said taking another step toward us.
I inhaled sharply as he yanked me closer. “No. He can’t have her.” Tanner looked at Deck. “I’ve been the one looking after her.”
“No connections, Tanner. You know that. They’ll never allow it.”
“You should talk. I heard about that London girl. Heard she hasn’t begged yet. I wonder how much longer it will take them to break her.”
Deck stepped forward and grabbed Kai’s arm.
Tanner laughed. “Yeah, I guess that’s why they don’t like us forming relationships, because you react foolishly.”
I glanced over at Tyler and Vic who stood on either side of the window. I knew they weren’t blocking it because Josh was a sniper and most likely outside, waiting for the right moment when he could one-shot Tanner. I just hoped if he did, Tanner’s knife didn’t slice into my neck as he fell.
“Lower the guns,” Tanner ordered. Deck nodded to his men and they put them on the floor. There was no chance they’d barge in here without a plan. They were operatives. “Kick them over here.” I heard the scrape of metal gliding to Tanner. He was careful to keep me directly in front of him. “Knife, Kai. It’s just as deadly as their bullets.”
“More so,” Kai said. There was the cockiness he always had and in a way, it made me feel better. He wasn’t worried—not that Kai was ever worried. Kai bent down then slid his knife across the floor.
I looked at Deck, begging him with my eyes to look at me, to tell me this was going to be all right. But he wouldn’t. His gaze was pinned to the figure behind me and I knew why. Deck was the killer right now. The hunter. The assassin.
Kai straightened. “What are you going to do? Wait here for hours until they make contact?”
“Keys,” Tanner ordered.
I noticed a change in position as Deck now stood ahead of Kai and then he finally looked at me.
He didn’t have to say anything. He barely had to move. I read him like his men did. His eyes shifted to the right and then his fingers started curling into his palm one by one.
Five.
Four.
Kai reached in his pocket and pulled out his keys. “Here.”
Three.
Two. Kai threw the car keys to Tanner.
One.
It happened so quickly. At the same time as Tanner reached for the keys, I shifted my head to the right as far as I could which threw us off-balance. The sound of a knife whooshed through the air and embedded right in his chest, missing my arm by an inch. Tanner dropped and I went with him.