His Gift

Fear coats my insides like glue, and I know something terrible is about to happen. Before I can think about what to do next, the man is across the room, his meaty hands digging into my flesh. A blood-curdling scream rips from my throat, but it’s muffled almost immediately when a large hand covers my mouth. Fear and anger burn through my veins, and even though it disgusts me, I sink my teeth into the palm of his hand.

Like I’ve burnt him, he releases me, and I can finally breathe, that is, until I look into his eyes and see murderous rage forming. Before I can even blink, his hand is making contact with the side of my face. My body sways with the strength of his slap, and the coppery tang of blood fills my mouth, while pain radiates down my cheek.

“All this trouble for you…” he grabs me by the hair, hauling me to his chest. I struggle against his hold, trying to get away, but I’m too weak to protect myself, too weak to escape. All I can think of in that moment is Miles, and how I wish he was here right now. He would protect me. He wouldn’t let anyone hurt me.

Just the thought of him gives me the strength to fight again. Using my fingernails, I lash out and scratch my assailant across the face, sinking my nails deep into his skin. He hisses and tightens the grip he has on my hair. My lips part, a scream attempting to break free when his hand covers my lips again. I squeeze my eyes shut, thinking he is about to kill me, but instead, I feel a sharp prick against my neck. My eyes fly open just in time to catch a syringe of unknown fluid being administered into my body.

“Goodnight, little bitch, we’re gonna have so much fun with you…”

A cold shiver I can feel in my bones runs through me. The last thing I think of before darkness engulfs me is Miles.

My Miles.

He’ll save me, he has to…

11

Miles

My cell starts to go off a few minutes into the interrogation, and I pull it out, my heart falling into my stomach when I see the name flashing across the screen.

“What is it?” I growl, praying, and hoping that nothing’s happened to Rose.

Daniel’s panicked voice fills my ear a moment later, “There’s been an attack. Rose is…” he pants. Suddenly, I feel like I’m going to vomit.

“What happened?” I roar like an animal that’s being attacked. Nick’s forehead wrinkles with confusion, but I don’t have a second to even explain.

Squeezing the phone hard enough to break it, blackness clouds my vision at his words.

“Rose has been taken. I tried, boss… I tried to stop him…”

My entire world crumbles in an instant.

Rose… my Rose. Taken.

Shutting down completely, all I can think about is saving Rose… and ripping the fucker who dared to touch her apart, limb from limb.

“How long ago?” I ask, walking out into the hall.

“Whoa, whoa, wait. What’s going on?” Nick cuts me off in the hallway.

“Thirty minutes ago, and he wasn’t alone, we lost a few men.” Daniel’s shaky voice fills my ears.

“Stay put and keep everyone there. I’ll bring men from the club with me.” I don’t even give Daniel a chance to respond. I hang up the phone and tip my head back, a yell ripping from deep within the pits of my soul. My pulse thunders in my ears, and tremors of pure rage ripple through my body.

“Miles, talk to me,” Nick calls after me.

“Close the club down, I need every man available, and I need you to call in every favor we have to everybody we know. Someone took Rose, and we need to find her. Now!”

“Yes, boss.” Nick doesn’t even flinch at my tone. He knows how much she means to me and how much it’ll kill me if something happens to her.

Six hours… six long fucking hours that felt more like six years to me. I don’t even want to know what my Rose has been enduring this entire time. All I know is that I’ll kill anyone who has touched her. If she has one bruise or one single hair out of place, I’ll murder everyone.

“You’re sure they’re keeping her here?” I ask Nick as we pull up to the abandoned building. I’m jacked up, adrenaline pumping through my veins. I need to hurt someone, to make them pay for touching what is mine, but most of all, I need to have Rose back in my arms to make sure she’s taken care of, and that no one has hurt her.

“Yes, someone that doesn’t like Drake too much, tipped us off, said he’d hurt his sister pretty bad last year. He told us everything we needed and more. Didn’t even want payment in return.”