Her Double Deputies (The Sinful 7 of Delite, Texas 6)

“I had fun when I beat the shit out of your little boyfriend Devlon. That sissy bitch cried so much. He begged to live. Now I know why. He wanted to continue to fuck you, his pretty little virgin. You gave it up to him right? He was your first?”

She closed her eyes and tried to breathe, but she couldn’t take full breaths.

“I’m going to be your last.”

It was too late when the first blow hit her, knocking her onto the ground. His forearm made contact with her chin and then his boot connected with her ribs. He grabbed her by her arm and pulled her up again and she swung at him with all her might, screaming at the top of her lungs. She fell to the ground and he was on top of her, pulling her by her hair as he touched her and tried to undo her jeans. She was scraping her belly against the ground as he tried to turn her over. She kicked at him, somehow making contact with his gut, causing him to release her a moment. She got to her feet only for him to pull her back by her hair again. She kicked at the gun in his hand and it fell to the ground, but he didn’t care. He undid his pants and fear of dying overtook her next move.

“I won’t let you have me!” she screamed, and he bent down to reach for the gun. She went to tackle him, but he moved. He took two shots at her and somehow missed. Lights shone on the building around them and above as the sound of a chopper began to come closer. She heard yelling in the distance and knew the police were coming. She jumped for the gun and so did Tagart.

She had it in her hands and pulled the trigger. The bullet hit the Dumpster and ricocheted. She was trying to fight him off and they rolled around until she maneuvered her hands between them. She couldn’t get her finger on the trigger as he punched her and then she had her opening. She pulled the trigger one, two, three times until Tagart stopped moving. He was dead and she was stuck underneath him.

“Elise! Elise!” She heard people calling her name as she tried to get Tagart off of her. Her body was shaking as police arrived and moved Tagart’s lifeless body from her and then she saw Tommy, Vic, and BJ running to her.

“She’s bleeding,” Tommy stated.

“No, it’s his,” she stuttered, her teeth chattering and the tears flowing from her eyes.

“We need blankets. She’s freezing and injured,” Vic yelled as Tommy pulled her up into his arms and held her against him. She couldn’t stop crying or shaking.

“It’s okay, Elise. You’re safe now. You killed him,” Tommy whispered.

She couldn’t stop shaking. Even when they placed the blankets on her and carried her to the ambulance, she couldn’t stop.

“She’s in shock, Deputy. She needs to go to the hospital,” the paramedic stated.

“You two go with her and we’ll meet you there,” BJ said. The paramedics tended to Elise, placing a mask over her face before giving her a shot of something to help calm her.

“We need to tend to these cuts. That gash in her head looks bad, too,” the paramedic stated, then spoke into a radio as he tended to the gash on her head. The other paramedic was taking her vitals.

“We almost lost her, Vic.”

“I know, Tommy. I know. But she’s safe now. It’s all over.”

The sound of the sirens blaring and Vic’s and Tommy’s voices were the last thing she remembered before passing out.

* * * *

“Stop pacing, Vic. You’re making my headache worse,” Tommy stated as they sat in the room watching Elise sleep. She would moan and try to move around until one of them whispered next to her ear and comforted her.

“She looks like a mummy. He hurt her so badly, Tommy. He could have raped her and killed her.”

“I know, but she fought hard. That’s why she has so many injuries. I’m glad that they don’t think she has a concussion. She’s not going to be happy about the stitches on her forehead.”

“I hope all those cuts and bruises heal without scarring. She doesn’t deserve to have eternal memories of this night.” Vic clenched his fists at his sides. Tommy was certain his brother was talking about their own scars from the war.

“We both know the worst scars are in our heads. We’ll help her forget and move on,” Tommy whispered as Elise began to moan again.

“Just like she helps me,” Vic whispered as he approached the bed, too. They both caressed her cheeks until her eyes popped open.

She gasped in fear.

“It’s okay, baby. You’re safe. You’re in the hospital,” Tommy stated as he watched the tears roll down her cheeks.

Vic caressed them away. “Don’t cry, sweetness. We’ve got you. You done real good, too.”

She cried harder as they tried to console her.

“Please, baby, you need to calm down. Everything is going to be okay. Tagart is dead. Cobbs has been arrested. Mason, Steven, Chad, and Michael took care of everything. Your bravery saved a lot of innocent people. Their bull-riding event was busted by the feds big-time,” Tommy explained.