Chapter Fourteen
I hit the ground so hard my ears were ringing, and when I managed to sit back up, they were already shooting at one another. While I felt guilty about this whole thing, I didn’t feel guilty enough to get caught in the cross fire. I had to survive long enough to ensure that Ryder was safe. Even if he hated me, I loved him and I had to know that he was okay.
I managed to dive behind the partial foundation of a house that was being built. A few bullets ricocheted off the concrete before the shooter turned their attention to Damien’s men. I took a deep breath, my eyes narrowed and my mind focused. I needed a weapon I could defend myself with.
Across the foundation there were rebar spikes that were used to reinforce concrete slabs. I army crawled across the ground, my arms and elbows scraping against the pavement as I moved, my eyes wide and focused on the rebar.
I could still hear bullets flying through the air behind me, but the sounds were fewer and farther between. Damien had probably taken out most of Fang’s men by now; they were better armed and had clearer heads.
My fingers finally wrapped around the rebar and I jumped up. I was about to rush forward when someone grabbed me and yanked me back around the one wall of the house that had been stabilized. I tried to scream but whoever had me, slapped over my mouth to keep me silent.
I tried to kick and scream until the man leaned down and whispered in my ear. “It’s me.”
Tears filled my eyes as I looked up at Ryder, hardly believing he was there. “Why are you here?” I held up the rebar, my hands still shaking.
He cupped my cheeks and shook his head. “You think a piece of rebar is going to protect you from bullets?” he asked, staring down at me.
I was covered in scrapes and cuts from being thrown off the bike and blood was still dripping steadily from my nose. I know I must have looked a mess.
“You didn’t have to come for me,” I whispered
He stared at me as if I'd grown a second head. "Of course I did! You were in danger!"
"I don't deserve this. I don't deserve to be rescued," I whispered, my voice starting to shake. "I should go down with them."
He cupped my cheeks and stared at me helplessly. "You can't die here. How are we supposed to start our life together if you die here?" he asked, staring at me.
"You still want me?” I asked, incredulously.
"Yes! I love you, Brittney. I told you nothing would change that. I realized that you did what you had to do to survive. You didn’t know me our my family when you agreed to get into this fucking mess in the first place.”
I looked at him wide-eyed for a moment. I took him in, and even as gunfire exploded around us I knew I had to kiss him. If I died here, I wanted to have the taste of his lips on mine. I threw myself at him and kissed him long and hard, my eyes squeezed closed.
When I pulled away I looked up at him, “I thought you hated me."
He held me close and shook his head. "Never. I just had to process everything. It was a lot to take in."
I nodded but stayed silent, refusing to let him go. After a moment he pushed me back and gripped my shoulders.
"We have to get out of here.” he murmured.
I nodded and grabbed my rebar, swallowing thickly. "Where's your gun?"
"I'm out of bullets."
The gun fire had died down, though a few shots rang out now and then. There must have only been one person left hiding out somewhere. Ryder took my hand and pulled me close, leading me across the foundation.
Just as Ryder was about to peek around the corner, Fang jumped out, gun raised. "Well, well. Look at this. Two little love birds that got away."
My eyes widened and I started to take a step back. Ryder stepped in front of me to shield me and Fang just laughed. "You think you're going to protect her?" he spat, stepping forward. "Why would you waste your time on this useless bitch? She's not even a good lay."
I had a lot of sharp witted retorts for that comment but I stayed silent, my eyes narrowed. I had a smart mouth but he had a gun. My hands were shaking, the rebar smacking the wall and making far too much noise.
“That all you got, princess?” he hissed, grinning wildly at me. “I’ll take you on. Let’s see if you can get to me before my bullet gets you,” he said, cackling at his own terrible joke.
“NO! This isn’t her fight!”
Fang glared at Ryder, his eyes full of a fiery hate. “All my men are dead because of this bitch. She tricked us. She tricked her family; this is most definitely her fight,” he snarled.
Ryder’s eyes narrowed and he took off after Fang. Shocked at the audacity of the man, Fang took a step back and was suddenly completely open. He no longer had the wall as a shield. I saw Damien raise his gun, but I knew Fang would have more than enough time to fire. My eyes widened and I jumped forward, shoving Ryder out of the way. He was larger than me, but since he was running it was relatively easy to push him. He stumbled to the side, his shoulder slamming into the wall.
As he turned to look at me our eyes met and a chorus of sounds filled my ears. There was loud pop as Damien and Fang fired at the same time, followed by the sound of Fang’s body hitting the ground, and Ryder screaming my name as the air was forced from my lungs.
I hit the ground hard, an aching feeling in my chest as I tried desperately to suck air into my lungs. The world was spinning and I wasn’t sure what to do. I felt Ryder pull me into his arms and the tears in his eyes made my heart ache. I reached up to touch his face, smiling weakly.
“Tell me you love me,” I whispered.
He pressed his forehead to mine and swallowed thickly, whispering the words “I love you”, through tears. We stayed like that for a long moment before I cupped his cheeks.
“Hey, don’t be mad at me for dragging this out. I just wanted to hear you say you love me again,” I whispered.
He frowned and pulled away. “What?”
“I’m fine, I’m not going to die,” I wheezed, pulling up my shirt to reveal the bullet proof vest.
His eyes widened and he stared at me. “How did you-”
“I stole it from Fang before I ever came out here. I figured I would be needing it one day.” I whispered.
He stared at me in disbelief. “Are you even hit?”
“Oh, I’m hit. It’s going to cause some wicked bruising, but I can live with that,” I said with a little grin.
He yanked me closer and held me tight, rocking with me. “I can’t believe you. I just can’t believe you! You’re an idiot!” he said through his laughter.
I chuckled and wrapped my arms around him, shaking my head. “I’m not an idiot. I’m just in love,” I murmured.
I couldn’t help but feel the most hopeful that I had in days. I held onto Ryder, professing my love to him again and again. This was where I belonged; this is where I felt safe. Ryder helped me stand and I leaned heavily on him. We wandered around the half built house, stepping over Fang’s body as we finally met up with everyone. Chloe ran over to me and threw her arms around me, tears in her eyes.
“We thought you and Ryder were gone,” she said, unable to make herself say ‘dead’.
I wrapped one arm around her and shook my head, smiling. “We’re alive and kicking. It’s going to take a lot more than that to get rid of us.”
She laughed and stepped back so that Damien could approach us. He smiled and wrapped an arm around each of us before leaning back. “I’m so damn happy you two are alright.”
I nodded and sighed. “Thank you. Even though this is my entire fault.”
“No, don’t start with that. You more than proved your worth, Brittney.”
I looked up at him with wide eyes. “You mean I can stay?”
He smiled simply and nodded. “Welcome home.”