It felt good to smile. It sort of lightened the lead weight on my shoulders for a moment. Adam called Aren’s phone and let Sasha know we were here. After negotiating a meeting place, we walked into the smoky chaos of lights and jackpot bells.
The sea of people around us parted when we walked through, like Adam was an immovable object. Maybe he was. I did my best to keep up with him, tough given Adam was on full alert, weaving through the crowd with purpose. For a moment I tried to use my jaguar senses, but the odor of smoke and alcohol covered any other scent I might’ve picked up, and the flashing lights were wreaking havoc on my sensitive night vision. Basically I was lowered to my human senses and instincts. Right now my only instinct was to run away.
Adam stopped at a penny slot machine near a hallway with bathrooms, and I walked right into his back. He didn’t even budge.
“Sorry.”
He didn’t respond, just turned slowly, scanning the room, presumably for his brother. I was looking too, but instead of Aren, I noticed Sebastian lurking in a crowd at the roulette table. His eyes met mine and then he turned away. I wasn’t sure what to think, but I told myself if he wanted to screw up this rescue he would’ve done it already.
Adam pulled out his cell phone. “Yeah.” He paused. “We’re at the rendezvous point. Where is my brother?”
He frowned and watched as a photo loaded onto his phone. Aren’s angry, gagged face was staring back at us. Adam’s hand tightened on the phone. “We’ll be right there.”
He took my hand and pulled me through the throngs of people.
“Where are we going?”
“To the parking structure.”
“I thought you told her it had to be in a public place.”
“That was before she told me I had fifteen minutes until she put a bullet in my brother’s head and then came after you.”
My mouth went dry and my palms became slick and clammy. This was all spiraling out of control. This wasn’t the plan. My brain was spinning.
When we got to the elevator of the parking structure Adam pushed the button over and over.
“Which floor?” I asked.
“Top floor.”
“There won’t be any cars up there.”
“Probably not. That’s probably what she’s counting on.”
I jerked my hand out of his. “Yeah, so she can kill you both and then take me back to Nero. We can’t do this, Adam.”
He pivoted toward me. “What other choice do I have Lana? I can’t let her kill Aren.”
“And how are you going to stop her?”
“I’ll tackle her or something.”
“She’ll kill you.”
Right on cue, Sebastian stalked up behind us. “You are not meeting her alone, wolf.”
Then I had an idea. And thankfully Sebastian had a gun.
…
“I don’t like this,” Adam grumbled.
“We have no other choice,” I replied.
Sebastian wisely remained silent as the elevator slowly crept up the floors of the parking structure. When the bell rang and the double doors finally opened, Adam collapsed onto the floor of the elevator and Sebastian pushed me forward with the gun pressed to my temple.
“Sebastian?” Sasha snapped, glancing past us at the elevator.
Hopefully Adam looked very unconscious.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“Finishing my mission.”
She shook her head. “Your mission was finished when you failed to bring back the girl. Now give her to me.”
“If you do not leave this rooftop now, I will kill her.”
Sasha’s eyes widened. “You wouldn’t.”
He cocked the gun, and my heart pounded. This wasn’t part of my plan. A bead of sweat rolled down my forehead.
“Killing is what I’m best at, isn’t that what you told me?” He tipped his head toward the elevator. “Now go.”
“If you kill her Nero will hunt you down and skin you alive.”
“Perhaps, but they will not have this one to experiment on, and it will be your fault she’s dead.” Sebastian nodded toward Aren. “Finish him and go.”
Aren’s eyes widened and he struggled, screaming behind the gag. He was bound at the wrists and ankles with wire that cut through his skin.
I couldn’t let them kill him.
Sasha turned and raised her gun toward Aren, and I reached forward and slammed my elbow back into Sebastian’s ribcage with all the force I could. He let go of me, and I stumbled forward toward Aren, praying that Sebastian was right about Sasha not killing me. Gunfire deafened my ears a moment before I rammed my shoulder into Sasha’s back. We hit the concrete so hard that I saw stars, but not before I smelled blood. My heart sank when I looked over at Aren. Blood pooled on the pavement, the puddle growing. Adam was at his side in a flash.
“Is he…” I couldn’t finish my question.
Sebastian collected Sasha’s pistol and tucked it into the back of his pants.
Adam looked back at me. “It hit his ankle.”
“His ankle?” Sebastian raised a brow at Sasha. “An extremity shot?” He glanced at Aren, then back to Sasha, frowning. “You spared him…”
“She threw off my aim.” Sasha ducked past him and into her car.
Sebastian side-stepped the car as Sasha gunned the engine. Her tires squealed, echoing through the parking structure, but I kept my eyes on Aren. Adam yanked the gag free, and relief flooded me when I heard Aren grunt. “Shit, that fucking hurts.”
“Hold still so I can get these wires off.” Adam winced, and I noticed bone mixed with the blood. I glanced away, fighting to keep myself from throwing up. Adam’s voice stayed even despite the gore. “I know it’s a risk, but we might need to get you to a hospital.”
“No.” Aren gasped and winced as Adam manipulated his legs to pull the rest of the wire free. “Just take me home. Jason can fix me.”
Adam freed his brother’s hands and then took a closer look at his ankle. “Looks like the bullet went straight through, but the bone is probably shattered, bro.” He looked up at Aren. “Even if we stop the bleeding, you might need surgery.”
He shook his stubborn head. “Take me home.”
“All right. But if you pass out on me, your ass is in the hospital.”
“Deal.” Aren bit back a groan as he sat up and pulled in his good leg.
I got to my feet to help him up when I noticed we were down one man. “Where’d Sebastian go?”
“Who cares.” Adam grunted helping his injured twin to his feet. “He was going to let her shoot my brother. He might’ve shot you if you hadn’t attacked him first.”
“Maybe.” But I didn’t think so. I thought Sebastian had actually helped us, but I kept it to myself. I didn’t feel up to a fight with Adam and his brother. Adam’s brother was still alive. That was all that mattered.
I went to the other side of Aren and looked up into eyes that were an identical match to those of the man I loved. This man wasn’t him. This man didn’t trust me. I swallowed down the hurt and wrapped my arm around his waist.
“Let me help you.”
