“Fucker wouldn’t tell me where my Ana is,” I retort.
“Only because he can’t,” he says, stepping away from the man he just subdued. “Why don’t you ask this one?”
The man glares at us until he sees the destruction I caused Matteo. I settle to a knee beside him, hovering over him, and speak quietly.
“You will tell me where those women are being held.” I’m not leaving any room for discussion or argument. This man holds the information that I need to find Analise, and he is going to talk. Whether or not he wants to. There is no other choice. If he doesn’t talk, he will die. I can tell that he can see the truth of his impending demise in my eyes. He nods once, capitulating without hesitation.
“Apartment 205,“ he spits blood, and the words, angrily.
Good enough for me. Crashing my fist down one last time, I knock him out. Sometimes it’s good to be me. I know the reputation I have amongst my uncle’s men, and even though not all of it is accurate, I’m not above using it to get what I want.
We make quick work of dragging the pair into the bathroom and locking them in. Weaver can sort them out later.
“Dominic’s guys aren’t very loyal,” Travis observes.
I roll my eyes. “Dominic is a douchebag. You get what you give, and he isn’t loyal to anyone but himself.”
“Nice of him to make this easy for us.” Jerking his chin toward the hall, he says, “Let’s go get our women.”
My gun is back in my hand as we approach the closed door. I don’t even recall holstering it when I grabbed Matteo. There is another locked door standing between my wife and I. I could probably force the lock. The doors are cheaply made, so it might be quicker to try to kick it open. I take a big step back, preparing to lift my booted foot when a woman’s scream breaks through the silence.
She is screaming for Travis. Even from a distance, the desperation in her voice is apparent. Only Faye would be calling for his name that. My eyes shoot to meet Travis’ for an instant before he turns, sprinting for the stairs. Not waiting another second, my booted foot crashes into the door, splintering the hollow door. I push it open and wait instead of rushing in. It’s smarter to hold back a moment, wait to see what happens. If anything.
I don’t have to wait long. Vince edges into my line of sight, his arm around Analise’s neck, his gun pressed against her belly. Her very round, pregnant belly. My eyes meet her green ones silently questioning. She smiles the tiniest bit, and I see her shoulders relax as her fear fades. She is trusting me to save her before Vince has a chance to hurt her. I am not going to let her down.
Once I have her in my arms again I’m going to have to decide if I’m going to kiss her or spank her ass for putting us both through this. Probably both, but first I have to get her away from her sorry excuse for a father.
Vince's finger is restless on the trigger. I can see from where I stand, still in the hall, that the safety is off. There is a look in his eyes that is a little crazed as he pushes her a step closer to the door.
“Get out of my way Xavier. I'm taking her to Dominic, and if you try to stop me, I will kill her.” He jabs her abdomen with the gun making her flinch. I’m going to have to kill him just for that.
“And the brat in her belly.” He almost sounds excited by the idea. What a sick fuck. I should have just made her my girl and left his ass in New York. Analise's already pale face fades even more, and she sags weakly in his grip. I’m not sure if she did it on purpose or not, but it distracts him momentarily while he struggles to keep her upright and in front of him. Taking my opportunity, I swing my gun up and fire a single shot without hesitation. Blood spatters the wall behind him as my bullet tears viciously through his shoulder, and he lets her go as he collapses to the floor, screaming in pain.
Vaguely I am aware of the teams calling in the all clear, and I respond, letting Blake know that I’m ok and, so is Analise. The only one who has failed to check in is Travis. I pull the bud from my ear, letting it dangle as I turn to my wife.
She stands unmoving, a look of shock on her face as I advance toward her. The side of her face is misted with her father’s blood. Her once silvery hair is a messy tangle of brown that I can’t help but hate, but I can see the pale roots showing. Her face is thin, she has lost weight and seeing that makes me angry, but she is still the most beautiful thing I have ever seen in my life. Swiftly, I cross the distance, kicking Vince’s gun away from him, before getting as close to her as I can.
She gazes up into my eyes, her mossy eyes trapping mine in their depths. Nothing but her matters in that moment. Not even Vince sobbing and cussing on the floor behind her.
“Hi.” She breathes, then dissolves into wracking sobs, her arms clutching her big belly. Gently I pull her into my arms, tucking the top of her head under my chin and breathing in her smell. I have missed her so much.
“Hi, wife,” I whisper against the top of her head. I’m not ever letting her out of my sight again.
Chapter Thirteen
Ana
The sound of the door splintering startles me, and my heart starts racing painfully. Before I even realize what is going on, Vince has me. His back is pressed against the wall, and he holds me in front of him, his arm tight around my neck. Even then I’m not afraid, he’s not expecting whoever is coming through that door, so I can’t help but hope that means, that by some miracle, Faye got away, and I’m about to be rescued.
It isn’t until I feel the hard press of his pistol digging into my belly that I realize that I should be terrified. My breath feels frozen in my lungs. I don’t want to move wrong and make him shoot me, so I stand still and watch in shock as Vince drags me toward the now open door.
At first, I can hardly believe what I’m seeing. I must be dreaming. Xavier is here! I can see red hot fury flash in his dark eyes as he surveys the scene before him. I have this impression that we have had no time apart. My heart soars with joy at seeing him. I don’t think that will ever change.
He came! He’s here. Thank goodness!
I see the exact moment he notices my pregnant belly. His eyes shoot to mine, and I can see the question in them. The hope. In spite of the steel band of Vince’s arm around my throat, I muster up a small smile trying to assure him that the baby is his. I don’t know if he gets the message because before he can react, Vince starts barking threats and orders.
Realizing how truly close I am to dying I feel the blood drain from my face. I didn’t know it was possible to feel this woozy without actually fainting. My knees buckle, inadvertently pulling Vince slightly off balance, and Xavier takes advantage of the scant seconds while Vince fights to keep me in front of him.