Sheltered(46)

“Let’s go,” I say as I rush over by the door and grab my boots. I glance over to see Blair grabbing her shoes, and I shake my head. “No, Cricket, you stay here. If Memphis is agitated, I don’t want you anywhere near him. He’s a beast when he’s calm, but if Diamond is hurt…” I let that sentence trail off, and I can see her trying to find a way to argue with me.

“But she’s mine,” she says, and a tear spills free from her eyes.

I stop putting on my shoes and reach out, holding her upper arms. “Hey, hey, look at me.” I wait until she does. “I’m not going to let anything happen to her. But Memphis is a beast. He won’t be happy his mate is hurt, and I can’t have you getting in the way of that or distracting me while I’m trying to save her.”

I wonder for a moment if she’s thinking of how I saved her. She looks up at John and then back to me and nods, putting her hands on my chest. “Go. Go save her. I’ll be there after you get her out.”

I give her a quick kiss and promise to make everything okay. I pull on my other boot and run out after John to the waiting Gator out front. He rushes to tell me how badly she’s twisted up and that he can’t imagine how she wandered that far off the edge of the land. He’s saying she’s lost a lot of blood already and it’s only getting worse as Memphis won’t let anyone get close.

I’m so worried about how I’m going to get past Memphis to get Diamond free that it doesn’t occur to me to ask why John couldn’t have just called me to tell me this. I’m so focused on the problem that I never stop to think who might have caused this.

But I should have.





Chapter 23





Blair





Bear is sitting on Ryker’s desk watching me pace. He must have heard the commotion and come running inside. I watch Johnny and Ryker leave, and now I can’t sit still. Poor Diamond. I wish I could go to her, but I know if I’m there it will only be a distraction for Ryker. He was right. He needs to save her, just like he saved me. I can’t help but think how he truly is a knight in shining armor, always rushing in to rescue the princess and save the day. I’m just glad I’m the princess.

As I turn to pace the room again, I notice I knocked all the files to the floor. I guess in my panic I wasn’t paying attention. Kneeling down, I gather some of the papers up, but I don’t know which order they go in. I should probably look through them, but I wanted to do it with Ryker.

Bear wanders over to the coffee table in front of me and looks down at what I’m doing. He watches me as I try to straighten the papers, but when I hear a creak on the wood floor, he arches his back and lets out a loud hiss.

“Bear?” I say, shocked at his behavior just before I look towards the noise.

As I turn, I feel pain burst against the side of my head and my vision dances with black spots. I don’t pass out, but I can’t see, and the wind is knocked out of my lungs. The pain comes so quickly that it’s too much for my brain to process. My body goes limp and falls to the floor, and somewhere in the back of my mind I hear a man’s voice cursing.

My thoughts are scrambled and I can’t make my arms and legs move. The only thing I can feel is the throbbing in my brain as I lie there and force myself to breathe.

Ryker! my mind screams at me. Call for Ryker!

There’s no air in my lungs, and my lips can’t form the words, but I push myself to try. I will my body to come back even though the pain is beyond anything I’ve ever felt. I have to get help.

“You stupid bitch,” I hear through the dark cloud surrounding me, and I blink a few more times.

Some of the darkness fades, and the fuzzy morning light brightens the room as I try to make out the man standing over me.

“Fritz.” I can barely whisper, but I know it’s him.

That voice sends chills down my spine as pain once again rolls over my body as he yanks me up by the back of my neck.

“Do you know how hard it was for me to get to you?” he hisses in my ear as he drags me out of the house.

I never thought Fritz was a strong man, or even capable of lifting me off the ground, but rage is fueling him as he hauls me out the front door and drags me to a waiting car. When I see the vehicle parked there, terror floods me and I begin to fight. A memory flickers through my mind…Ryker had said he had other reasons for taking me, a need to keep me safe. It had something to do with Fritz…

I don’t know what the hell is going on, but he can’t take me to a second location. I know that from all of the true crime shows I’ve watched. If he makes me leave this house, I might never come back. My arms and legs are still limp, but I force myself to kick at him and punch with all the adrenaline I have left in me.

But in the end, it’s futile because he stuffs me in the car like a Kleenex and slams the door. I reach for the handle, and my hand slips on the first try, and on the second, it won’t open. It’s then I notice the blood on my hands and I reach up to touch my head. I can see my reflection in the window and realize half my face is bloody. It’s probably why I couldn’t see at first. I’m surprised I didn’t pass out, but then I remember someone telling me that head wounds bleed like crazy.

I flinch when I feel the driver door open, and I turn my body so it’s plastered against the passenger side. I hold my hands out in defense as Fritz gets in and starts the car. He hits the gas and I hear the tires screech as he pulls out of the driveway.