Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 78587 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 393(@200wpm)___ 314(@250wpm)___ 262(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78587 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 393(@200wpm)___ 314(@250wpm)___ 262(@300wpm)
“I don’t know.” He grimaced before saying, “He’s a strong kid. Most wouldn’t have made it this far.”
“So, there’s hope?”
“There’s always hope, but even if he makes it through surgery, he’s got a hell of a fight ahead of him.”
I looked over to the doors and wished desperately that someone would come tell us that he was okay. But no one came. Panic started to creep in as I muttered, “He came for me.”
“Of course he did.” Preacher gave my knee a light pat. “He’s a man who takes care of his own.”
“I don’t want to lose him.”
Preacher gave me a slight nod. “I know you don’t, and you’re not alone in that.”
The pressure in my chest became unbearable. It was like something inside of me was splintering apart, and once again, I had to fight the urge to cry. He must’ve sensed that I was seconds from breaking, because his expression softened. “They’ll tell us something soon. You just gotta hold on and keep the faith.”
I nodded even though I wasn’t sure I could keep that promise. I didn’t think I could stand it if Sergei didn’t pull through this. Not after everything. Not after he saved me and made me think life was actually worth living. Not after he’d made me fall in love with him.
I just couldn’t bear the thought of never seeing his handsome face again. Never feeling his hands on me or his body against mine. Never feeling truly safe again. He had to be okay. He just had to be. But as the minutes dragged on, the doubts started to creep in and whisper things I couldn’t let myself believe.
I needed to distract myself, so I leaned a little closer and whispered, “Thank you.”
“For?”
“Saving us.” It was all still pretty foggy, but I hadn’t forgotten how they all stormed inside that house. They’d put their lives on the line to help us, and they’d done it without question. “I don’t know what would’ve happened if you…”
“Don’t mention it.”
“You’ll have to thank Skid for me.” My breath caught as I started, “He was really sweet to me and… it meant a lot.”
“I’ll be sure to let him know.”
“I would appreciate that.” I took a moment to compose myself before asking, “What about those men… the ones Sergei…”
Preacher didn’t blink. “Handled.”
That was all he said. No details. No explanation.
Just one simple word, and I believed him. But I needed more. “And the others? The women in the basement. What will happen to them?”
“They’ll be handled, too.”
“Handled how?” I pushed.
“Handled.”
“Oh, God. Please tell me you aren’t going to keep them or sell them or do what they were going to do to them.”
“Not a chance.” Preacher’s expression darkened, and I feared I’d offended him until he said, “Those girls will be cared for and sent wherever they wanna go, and if they don’t have a place, we’ll find them one. You have my word on that.”
“That’s good. Thank you.” I had seen the doors in the basement, but I’d never actually seen anyone or even heard them. “How many were there?”
“Found eight so far.”
“Oh, God. How is that possible?”
“It was bad, but we got them covered.”
The knot in my stomach loosened, but it was short-lived. Still trying to process all that had gone on, my pulse started to race, and suddenly I looked at Preacher and said, “Bog.”
“What about him?”
“I saw him.” I swallowed before adding, “When they took me, I saw him. He was on the floor by the elevator. I’m not sure, but I think they killed him.”
“I’ll send a couple of the guys over to check it out.”
The words had barely left his mouth when the waiting room doors opened, and Viktor walked in with Nikolai and Tabitha. Preacher stood, and they all headed straight for us. Tabitha’s voice trembled as she asked, “Is there any news?”
“He’s in surgery.”
“Is he going to be okay?”
“I don’t know.” Preacher didn’t sugarcoat it. “It’s not looking good. He was unconscious when we brought him in… Lost a lot of blood.”
“Do you think he’ll pull through?”
“I don’t know, babe. It’s too hard to tell.”
Tabitha’s breath hitched, but she nodded, pressing her lips like she was fighting to keep it together. Seeing her struggle broke something inside of me, and this time, I didn’t fight the tears. I let them fall freely, and in a blink, I was sobbing into the palms of my hands.
I hadn’t even noticed that Viktor had come over until he slipped his arms around me, pulling me against his chest. “Hey, now. Enough of that. Sergei’s going to pull through this. He’s too fucking stubborn, too arrogant, too everything to just up and die on us.”
I nodded and did my best to force a smile. “I sure hope you’re right.”
“I am. You’ll see.”
Nikolai stepped over to us with his brows furrowed and his jaw tight. He’d been quiet since they walked in, but the concern was there. It was written all over his face. “I can’t believe those bastards did this to you. I’d fucking kill them if Sergei hadn’t beaten me to it.”