Hawk (A Stepbrother Romance #3)(63)

Then the window closes and a progress bar pops up and says connecting to host. The mouse icon keeps spinning, and the progress bar shoots from one end to the other and fills. I let out a long sigh and reach for the drive. Then another progress bar pops up.

Creating clone… est. time 15 minutes Oh, come on. Jennifer did warn me this might take a few minutes. My foot starts to tap almost immediately and I bite my lip. It feels like the bar hasn't moved at all, but it says 2%. Then 3, 4, finally 10. I stand and pace behind the desk, rubbing my arms. I'm sweaty from running here but it's freezing in the office. I swear I can see my breath. I walk back and forth, back and forth, from the desk to the chairs and cocktail table, back and forth. I hear the computer ding and turn to rush over. It's not even half done. Tom got an email.

Lance stands in the door, grinning.

"Hey there," he says softly, stepping into the office. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing," I snatch the thumb drive. "Tom wanted me to grab a file for him."

"What file?"

"It's not important."

Lance moves closer.

"Funny how you just slipped off like that. I followed you back here."

"Yeah, I gathered that. I need to get back before the speech."

I move past him and he grabs my arm.

"Let go of me, Lance."

"Now, hold on."

"Get off of me," I hiss.

I slap him, backhanded. He doesn't let go. He pulls my arm, and with his other hand, grabs my neck, digging his fingers into my throat.

I can't breathe!

He's heavier than I am. He just throws his weight at me and pushes me down. It feels like I'm falling forever and then my head bounces on the carpet and I see stars.

The doorknob clicks and twists, and Lance freezes, looks back. I claw at his face with my free hand, dragging my nails into his cheek until I feel his skin peeling, and he screams, and drives his fist into my stomach. All the air blasts out of my lungs and when I try to pull in more, it won't come. I try to roll out from under him, but he's too heavy. Get off me. Get off me.

The door shudders.

"Open the f*cking door," Hawk bellows.

Lance doesn't make a sound. His cheek his bleeding, streaks of red running down his chin. A drop of blood quivers and falls, and lands on my chest.

The door bursts open and slams against the bookcases, a great chunk of the stained hardwood, doorknob and all, flying across the room. It hits the desk and thumps to the floor. Hawk steps in, crosses the room in three strides and grabs Lance's ankle, and drags him off of me. Hawk fists Lance's hair in his hand and pulls him up, Lance screaming as he grabs at Hawk's wrist. Hawk doesn't say a word, he just spins around and drags Lance with him and Lance's face hits the edge of one of the bookshelves with a soft, meaty crack.

He staggers back and his nose is bent and twisted, blood gushing over his face. He looks at Hawk and raises his hands and starts flailing, and Hawk rears back and kicks him, drives his heel into Lance's stomach. Lance topples back over the cocktail table, knocking it over as his head thumps on the floor. Hawk picks up the table by the edge and flips it and it topples the side chair over with it, and he puts the toe of his shoe on Lance's crotch, and levers his foot forward.

Lance screams.

"Stob!" he pleads, his voice thick with blood and twisted by his broken nose. "Sob plead!"

Hawk digs his foot in, and Lance screams.

Hawk reaches down, grabs his tie, and pulls.

Lance's eyes go wide and he struggles against Hawk's hand as the tie tightens around his neck.

"Stop!" I scream.

Hawk looks at me.

"Don't kill him."

"Why the f*ck not?"

"Hawk, he's your brother… please."

He looks at me, and his expression softens.

Hawk's fingers open. He draws his foot back, and Lance rolls on his side, tugging the tie loose from his neck. He takes a deep, ragged breath. Hawk fishes through his pockets, and pulls out a cell phone, tosses it to me.

"We have to go, now. Text May, tell her to get to the end of the block. We're picking her up."

"But-"

"We're leaving," Hawk says, finally. "You did what you had to do. Is the computer done?"

I stumble over to it. "Yeah, it's done."

I yank the drive out.

Lance moans, and mumbles something. Hawk prods his stomach with his shoe.

"Let's go. Now."

He takes my arm, and when we're out of the office he says, "Are you hurt?"

"I bumped my head and he punched me in the stomach. But I think I'm okay."

Hawk slips his arm under my legs and lifts me up from the floor, kicks the back door open and carries me out. He pushes the front seat of the Honda forward and lowers me into the back seat.

"Stay back here. May has to jump in the front when we get her. We need to put as much distance between us and Paradise Falls as we can."

"We should go to Jennifer and Jacob's place."

"Let's get May first. Text her."

I nod, and send a quick message, just tell her to get away from the rally and get to the corner so we can pick her up. Hawk yanks his tie off and drives, rolling his sleeves up as we go. I curl up in the back seat, trying not to retch. Hawk takes a wide route, crossing over Commerce Street well below the firhall and drives up behind it. May spots us and runs to the car as he pulls to a stop, and yanks the door open.