“Brenda, baby. Brenda,” he chokes out, hugging me tightly to his chest.
“Sir, we need to get her out of here and to a doctor.” I’m lifted off my feet and cradled in Dane’s arms.
“Can you take the toolbox?”
“We’ll come back for it.” The cop has his gun out leading the way out. “Do you know where Mr. Jones is?”
“He said he was going to work.”
Dane growls out his frustrations. “You all better find him before I do.”
“The thing is, he’s not who he says he is.”
The police officer interrupts me, “I know. No one by the name of Jones’s lives here. This house is in the middle of an estate issue after the death of the owner. That’s all we know about the house.”
“There’s more. I scratched his face, and he’s wearing some sort of skin-like mask.” Both of them freeze and stare at me.
“What the fuck?” That came from the cop. He gets on his shoulder walkie and calls for backup and an ambulance. I can’t stop looking around.
“How did you find me?” I ask Dane who’s taking me to his truck.
He doesn’t answer until he sits me inside the passenger seat. “Ben went to the house and told me that your phone had Jones typed into it as a message for me, but you didn’t send.”
“Thank goodness you guys found it.”
Chapter 8
Dane
I want to take her in my arms and love her until she understands that I would move heaven and earth to keep her safe. I can’t fucking believe this would happen to us. I thought it was terrible when I thought men were looking at her to steal her from me, but now I’m on a new territorial fuck it all mode. Someone tried to permanently take her away from me.
“Tell me, are you hurt?” I ask. She looks so weak. I don’t even want to know if he did something to her sexually. I won’t be able to control myself. I’m doing my best, but the thought of someone taking her against her will burns my soul. I’m supposed to protect her and I didn’t.
“He didn’t do anything sexually yet. He admitted that was his goal, but he had to leave to work before he could attack me sexually. He tased me several times and hit me.”
When I find him, he’s a dead man. I’m getting my conceal and carry to-motherfucking-morrow.
“Brenda, where did he hurt you?” It guts me to see her weak with pain. I want to make it better. Waiting for an ambulance is a bit much. She lifts her shirt and there it is several marks from the damn electrodes. I bend down and kiss them just as the ambulance pulls up. I remember we’re not alone and I lower her shirt. I rub her arms and whisper, “I love you,” over and over again.
The EMTs come over to us and ask to examine, Brenda. She’s staring at the man very attentively which I don’t care for. Then it strikes me that she may be afraid of him.
“Ma’am, can you tell us were you injured?”
“He shocked me with tasers a couple of times, hit me in the face and drug me across the floor, but that’s it.” My fists clench at my side as she gave an inventory on her assault.
“Ma’am, we need to take your vitals. Can you walk or do you need to be transported to the ambulance?”
“I’ll carry her.” I scoop up my wife and bring her over to the ambulance. They take her vitals, and I stand as close as possible because I don’t want them to touch her. It’s only because it’s necessary.
“Dane, please don’t leave me,” Brenda begs, looking at me with complete fear.
“I’m not going anywhere.”
“Ma’am, your pulse is a little high, but given the circumstances, I’d say that’s normal. Please rehydrate and please see a physician as soon as possible.”
“Thank you,” she says, shaking their hands.
“Come let’s get you in the truck so we can get you some food and clothes.”
“Please.” I take her back over to my truck, but now more cops have arrived including two detectives who approach us.”
“Mrs. Harris, the officer on the scene, brought us up-to-date on the incident. Can you add more?”
“I need to get her fed and dressed.”
“Very well, we can meet you at your residence.”
I sit her down in the passenger seat and buckle her in. Making sure she’s safe is now my main priority. Just going around to the driver’s side has me on edge. The distance between us is too much. I climb in the truck and start it up. I turn to look at my wife when I see Officer Davis come running out with my toolbox in hand.
“Thanks for getting that.”
“We took the photos we needed for the crime scene. Here you go, Mr. Harris. I hope you are going to make a quick recovery, Mrs. Harris.”