Five.
Fuck, so close.
I’m coming. I’m fucking coming.
Three.
Two.
One.
15
“Roman?” I cry, throwing myself down in front of his cell, immediately dropping to my knees, not giving a shit that it opens old wounds. The guns spill out in front of me with a wave of bullets and silencers before I’ve even looked up into that angelic face.
I swallow hard, seeking him out in the dark, but he’s right there on his knees in front of me, his hand curling over mine as I clutch the metal bar. “Empress,” he says, the exhaustion in his tone killing something deep inside of me. “I knew you’d be back here.”
“Like I could stay away,” I cry, fat tears falling down my cheeks.
Roman reaches through the bars and cups the side of my face, and I instantly lean into him. “You’re a fucking warrior, Shayne,” he tells me, his thumb striking out to catch a falling tear before gently wiping it away, and within a moment, just one glance into my eyes and he can see right through me. He knows exactly what kind of hell I’ve been through at his father’s hand. “Shayne—”
I shake my head and push the guns and silencers toward him. “Don’t,” I cut out, refusing to meet his stare.
He nods once, a silent acknowledgment, telling me that we won’t speak of it now, but in time, he’ll expect me to come to him, to tell him exactly what went down and exactly what I plan to do about it. And I can do so with my head held high because no matter what, he and his brothers will have my back every step of the way.
Roman immediately gets to work, scrambling through the weapons, picking up what I’m throwing down and figuring out what bits and pieces can somehow be useful to us.
Glancing back over my shoulder, I see the slightest outline of Levi and Marcus through their cells. They sit together, each of them slumped with exhaustion. Their cells share a wall of bars, and it kills me to see Levi pressed right up against them, holding onto Marcus with everything that he has, willing his brother to hold on just a little longer.
I can’t make out his face, but I know he’s looking at me, know the overwhelming relief coursing through his veins because I feel it just as strongly as he does. “Is … Marcus.”
“Still holding on,” Roman tells me, his voice rising higher behind me, standing to his full height to wreak havoc over the lock holding him in his cell. “Do you really think the fucker would die before he gets the chance to eat your tight little cunt just one more time? It’s all he’s been able to talk about since you stormed through here last night.”
Not having it in me to laugh, I simply step out of the way, letting Roman do his thing. He doesn’t hesitate nor does he waste a single moment, squeezing the trigger and letting the bullet fly free. A soft pew sounds through the cells, echoing down the long playground before the heavy lock clatters to the ground.
He grips the cell doors and slides them back before racing out and falling into my arms, letting his brothers wait just a moment longer. “I fucking knew you’d come for us,” he murmurs, his fingers gripping my aching jaw. Tears continue falling down my face as he briefly crushes his lips to mine before dropping his forehead. He takes a calming breath, holding me close, and I hate how fucking weak he feels in my arms, lethargic and broken. I’ve seen him walk away from bullet wounds as though it was nothing more than a papercut, but this time it’s different. It’s been just over a week, and while his stab wound has slowly begun to heal, it’s nowhere near where it needs to be for him to be in the clear, not even close.
Barely a breath has passed between us before Roman releases me, knowing there’s a fucking job to be done before we get a chance to celebrate. He cuts across to the front of Levi’s cell, and before I can even catch up to him, he’s already taking aim and firing off the quick shot to free his youngest brother.
His aim is perfect even in this horrendous darkness, and as I move in to grip the metal and pull the bars free, Roman is already moving onto Marcus’ cell.
Levi watches me with wide eyes, refusing to get up and leave Marcus, so I race in after him, dropping down in front of him as Roman takes his final shot and darts to his brother’s side.
I drop down in front of Levi, being careful not to hurt him as my hands cradle his face. “Are you okay?” I breathe, the tears getting fatter by the second.
“Peachy,” he lies, the softness of his tone giving away just how much agony he’s really in. He reaches up and grips my chin, forcing me to look up from my scan of his body and meet his dark eyes. He pulls me in closer, his breath brushing against my bruised skin. “Did he touch you?” he demands, swallowing hard as though just the idea of what happened in the castle could kill him.
I shake my head. “No,” I murmur, the white lie breaking something deep inside of me, but I need him to focus on getting better. If I admit it right now, Levi might just insist on hanging around here a little longer just so he can get his hands on his father, but he needs to heal first. Nothing is more important than seeing the boys get better. After that, they can rain down hell over whoever the fuck they want. The right time will come, and when it does, I’ll let him know, but in the dark corner of this cell, he can’t read me as clearly as Roman had. “I’m okay. I just want to get you out of here. Can you walk?”
Levi groans as he shifts his weight, and I meet Roman’s stare through the cells, both of us thinking the same thing—how the fuck are we supposed to get them both out of here?
Reaching through the bars, I find Marcus’ hand and hold it tight. “You’re going to be okay,” I whisper, wondering if I truly mean it. Right now, the confidence in my tone doesn't match the fear I feel inside, not even close.
A breath escapes Marcus’ lips. “Shayne?” he murmurs, his voice barely audible in the deathly silence of the dark cells. “That you, baby?”
“Yeah, Marcus,” I say, trying not to let my voice break as the fear begins to cripple me. Seeing him like this … this is something that will forever haunt my mind, a million times more than the vile abuse I went through at Giovanni’s hands. “I’m here. Everything is going to be alright. I swear, I’m going to get you out of here. You’re not dying on me yet.”
Roman leans down in front of Marcus and slips his arms under his brother’s lifeless body. “Come on, brother,” Roman murmurs, clenching his jaw and lifting Marcus up off the ground. “It’s time to go.”