Roped In (Armed & Dangerous #2)(57)

The sky grew darker and time was running out. “All right, let’s get this shit started,” I said, hurrying to my laptop. “How many people does he have in there?”

“Just two. I’m assuming Dillon is missing because you got rid of him already?”

Nick snorted. “He’s not dead, but Evans f*cked him up.”

They talked back and forth while I typed away and got everything ready to go. All I had to do was click one button and the system would be down. “Where should we go in at?” I asked.

Connor cleared his throat. “The window in Hadley’s room is unlocked. I caught her trying to escape last night. When I shut it, I never locked it.”

“Why did she try to leave?”

“Tristan drugged her and thought she was passed out when he said he wanted you dead. When she woke up, she tried to get to you. I was there to stop her.”

Clenching my teeth, I clicked the override button. There was no telling what all that f*cker had done to her. “This ends tonight. Let’s go.”

We took off for the fence and got over it with ease. Without the override, we wouldn’t have been able to withstand the electrical current running through the wires. It’d be like getting struck by lightning. Once again, I was thankful for my many connections.

When we got to the back of the house, I climbed up the side and opened the window Connor pointed to. Hadley wasn’t in there, but I slid in and helped Nick and Connor inside.

“She must be in Tristan’s room,” Connor hissed.

The thought made me so goddamn pissed I couldn’t see straight. I stormed for the door. “I’m going up there to find her.”

Nick pulled out his gun and had it ready. “And I’ll try to find her father. The faster we find them both, the quicker we can get the hell out of here.”

I didn’t like him going out on his own, but he knew the risks. “What are you going to do?” I asked Connor.

Eyes blazing, he held up his gun. “I’m ready for my own revenge.”

They both took off down the stairs and I went up to the third floor. The hallway was dark but I knew exactly where to go when a figure caught my eye. Tristan had one of his goons stationed right outside of a room. Unfortunately, I couldn’t shoot or it’d alert the whole house. Sneaking into one of the other rooms, I closed the door and lightly scraped my fingers across it.

“Come on, bastard,” I grumbled.

The sound of his footsteps steadily approached and the door creaked open. As soon as I saw the gun in his hand, I grabbed his wrist and twisted. He started to shout, but I wrapped my other arm around his face and snapped his neck. One down, two to go. I pulled him further into the room and stole the keys off his belt.

Hurrying down the hall, I studied the lock. There were a ton of keys, but only a couple of brass ones; that was what I needed. I tried the first, second, and third one, but they didn’t work. I got down to the last one and it turned home. Taking a deep breath, I turned the knob and opened the door, not knowing what the hell I was going to see.





Hadley

For the past couple of hours, I dreaded the moment Tristan would walk through that door and now the time had finally come. My eyes burned, but I refused to let him break me. No matter what happened, I was going to stand strong with my head held high. Could I fight him off? Maybe, but not for long. I knew I didn’t stand a chance in the long run, at least not alone. My father was there somewhere, and I didn’t know if Tristan was going to keep his word. I had no doubt he would kill him if I defied him.

Closing my eyes, I clutched my stomach and took a deep breath. I felt sick and disgusted with myself for what I was about to do. There was no choice as long as my dad’s life was on the line. Maybe I could make myself sick and puke on him when he tried to f*ck me. Either way, I had to figure it out. The door opened and closed, his footsteps drawing closer. My heart pounded harder with each passing second. He knew I’d do anything to keep my family and friends safe. How could I lay there and pretend to enjoy him f*cking me?

“Please, Tristan,” I begged, “don’t make me do this.” Holding my stomach tighter, I fought the urge to vomit. I might need it later.

“Hadley.” Gasping, I opened my eyes and froze. “Hadley, are you okay?”

Slowly, I turned around, tears falling the moment I saw him. He approached slowly, staring at me as if I would break. Little did he know, he gave me all the strength I needed. “You’re here!” I cried, rushing into his arms.

His arms closed in around me and he held me so tight I could barely breathe, but I didn’t care. He was there. That was all that mattered. “I’m here,” he murmured. I didn’t want to let him go, but he pulled back and clutched my face in his firm grip, his gray eyes dark and dangerous. “What did he do to you?”

“Nothing,” I said, hoping he couldn’t see the lie in my face. His gaze narrowed and I looked away; he could see right through me. “Other than drugging me, he hasn’t had the chance to do much. But my father’s here somewhere and he’s in trouble. So is Connor.”

Grabbing my hand, he pulled me to the door. “Connor’s fine. He’s here with me and Nick.”

“Nick?” I hissed. “Why is he here?”

He stopped in front of the door and sighed. “He cares about you, Hadley. As much as I dislike the guy, he’s actually been quite useful. Now let’s go.” We snuck out into the hall, and he froze, pulling out his phone.