“Caleb!” Nick practically screamed, and I jumped. “Goddamn it!” he roared, and lowered the phone, pressed the button again, and lifted it back to his ear. “Answer me! Answer me, you stupid sonofabitch!”
“What’s going on?” I stared at Nick as he listened to the phone ring…and ring…and ring. Goosebumps raced along my arms as I stepped across the kitchen. “Nick?”
He just dropped his hand, ended the call, then stared at me for a second. No, he stared right through me, as though he didn’t see me at all. “Fucking idiot!” he snarled as his gaze came into focus and fixed on me.
“What is it?” I slid my hand along his arm. “Tell me.”
“He’s going after Killion,” he answered. “The stupid idiot is going after Killion and he’s going to get himself killed.”
“What the fuck?” Tobias snarled, walking into the kitchen as he tugged down his shirt. His face was still flushed after coming back from a run. “What do you mean, he’s going after Killion?”
Nick just looked my way. “He said to tell you that he loves you.”
“No.” Tobias jerked his gaze to Nick. “No fucking way! Get him on the goddamn phone, Nick. Tell him to get his ass back here. Tell him—”
“He’s not answering.”
I stared at Nick while my mind raced and my heart howled. “What the fuck is he thinking?”
“What do you mean ‘what the fuck is he thinking’?” Tobias snapped. “You think he’s thinking about anything other than you?”
“Me?” The word hit me. “No. You can’t put this on me. I didn’t ask—”
“Can’t put this on you?” Tobias cut me off. His lips curled in a sneer as he closed the distance between us. “Are you blind, princess? You’re his goddamn weak spot, his Achilles fucking heel. Can’t you see he’s trying to make amends for what he did to get you out of that place? He’s taking it out on anyone who touched you, anyone who threatened you. He’s gonna kill this Killion…even if he kills himself in the process.” His tone softened as he stared into my eyes. “This isn’t just a mission to save you, Ryth. It’s a mission to make sure no one touches you again. You belong to us. You’ve always belonged to us…from the goddamn moment you stepped a foot inside our door. Whether we wanted it or not.”
That night slammed back into me. Reeking of smoke and carrying nothing more than a garbage bag for my clothes, I’d crept into their home, and into their hearts. In turn, they’d crept into mine. No, not crept…collided.
Our fates had crashed into each other that night in a shock wave that changed us all. Cataclysmic. Destructive down to the core. They’d shattered me and rebuilt me all at the same time.
Now they were trying to save me…
Each with their own darkness.
With nothing more than a gun in their hands and that burning hunger.
Caleb was going to die…
For me.
“No.” Agony plunged deep. “We can’t let him. Do you hear me? We can’t—”
“Already on it, princess.” Nick jerked his gaze to Tobias. “We need a ride. Something fast…and move it, T.”
Tobias sucked in a breath, tore his gaze from me…and lunged for the door. The slam resounded throughout the safehouse. Nick was already moving. “We need guns, princess…and lots of them.”
Guns…
I hurried for the back bedroom, grabbed the duffel bag at the end of the bed, and shoved the guns scattered across the comforter back inside. Caleb was going to die…he was going to die…
Unless we stopped him.
