Suddenly, his hands were no longer pinning me down. My back lifted off the bottom of the tub, and I reached up to grab the edges. I yanked myself up, my lungs screaming for air, and burst out of the top of the water. I sucked in a ragged breath of air. It burned like nothing I’d ever felt before.

I clung to the edge of the tub and tried to lift a leg over to climb out, but I was too weak. So, I draped myself over the edge, breathing heavily, trying to make sense of what the hell had just happened.

I lifted my head to peer up where there was movement on the bathroom floor. My head was so heavy.

Before me was The Hand and Derek, who was on his back.

They were locked in a deadly battle, both of them rolling around on the wet ground. Derek’s shirt had already darkened with water as he covered his face with his forearms. The Hand struck him several times before Derek managed to flip himself over.

Both men broke apart and stumbled to their feet.

I forced myself to climb out of the tub. I wasn’t getting caught in there again. That had been the most terrifying moments of my life. I had thought—really, truly believed—that I was going to die in that tub, and Derek was going to come home from his meeting to find my lifeless body in his bathroom.

I collapsed on the tiles at the edge of the tub. Derek had his back to me, and The Hand peered around him and chuckled when he saw me trying to gather my strength. I probably looked like a drowned rat.

I reached over the edge of the tub and pulled the drain and turned off the tap. The sound of draining water echoed in my ears.

The Hand turned his attention back to Derek. “You’re lucky you got here in time. Your woman was almost shark food.”

I pressed my back against the tub. I didn’t dare get any closer to either of them. I knew where this was headed. This was going to be a full out war between the two of them, and my getting in the middle of it would only make things worse. There was nothing I could do to defend myself against this monster. I hated that I needed Derek, but I did. He was my only hope of getting out of there alive.

I was sure we both knew that.

Derek didn’t look at me, but he spoke to me over his shoulder. “Are you all right, Evelyn.”

I nodded and then realized he couldn’t see me. “Y-yeah. I’m fine.”

“She’s a fish,” The Hand mused.

“Shut the fuck up,” Derek snarled. “Isaac.”

The Hand blinked at him. I looked from one of them to the other and watched as the balance of power shifted. The big bald man straightened up a little bit, and the smile he’d been wearing like a mask faltered. “What did you call me?”

“You heard me, Isaac Reed.”

The Hand, or Isaac, I presumed, glared daggers at Derek. “Who told you my name? Was it Cornwell?”

“Who the fuck is Cornwell?” Derek spat.

Isaac’s eyes widened with realization. “Warren. It was Warren, wasn’t it?”

“I don’t know why you’d trust a sniveling little worm like him with something as precious as your real name. My entire MC knows it already. It doesn’t end with me. We’re coming for you, Isaac, and we’re not going to stop until you’re where you belong. In the fucking ground.”

Isaac’s dark expression changed to something even more evil. He was amused. He threw his head back with wild laughter. It bounced off the walls and the wet floor and scattered my brain. The sound was horrifying. If I didn’t know better, I would have said it sounded inhuman. He leveled his glare with Derek once more. “I think it’s cute that you actually believe your MC stands a chance against me.”

“I think it’s cute that you don’t,” Derek quipped back.

I looked back and forth between the two of them and tried to figure out why Derek was indulging him in this childish banter. Why waste time throwing words when you could throw punches?

Then, it donned on me. He was stalling.

Help was coming.

I pushed myself to my feet. My knees were so weak and wobbly, I thought they might be clashing together. They held me up, regardless, and I straightened. The Hand glanced over Derek’s shoulder at me and clicked his tongue. “You should just stay where you are, girl. No sense in fighting it any longer. You’re just wasting your strength.”

I shook my head. “No. You’re the one wasting strength. You’re the one who’s going to lose.”

Isaac laughed, and Derek glanced over his shoulder at me. I’d never seen him look so furious before. I almost flinched away from him. But when he spoke to me, his voice was soft. “Evelyn, stay out of this.”

“Listen to your handler, bitch,” Isaac spat.

Derek lost it. He exploded and launched himself forward. Apparently, the time for talking and postponing was done.

I yelped and pressed myself against the shower door as the brawl started. They slammed into each other with enough force to knock themselves down. Derek gained the upper hand quickly, spurred on by rage no doubt, and pinned Isaac beneath him.

I watched, transfixed by the violence coming out of the man I was falling in love with, as he gathered the front of Isaac’s shirt in both fists and used his momentum to slam him back down on the tiles. Isaac’s head crashed against the ground.

What I thought was going to be a victory was not. Isaac started laughing. Even as Derek struck him, over and over, he kept laughing.

He really did get off on this. Pain. Whether he was inflicting or receiving, he lived for it. Which made me start to wonder if beating him was even possible.

I was about to go to Derek when a figure filled up the bathroom doorway. I looked up, thinking for a hopeful second that it might be one of Derek’s friends come to help us.

But it wasn’t.

It was a young, frail, frightened young man. The man I knew Derek was looking for. The one who’d shot him, who was working for Isaac.

Jason.

He was dressed in black cargo pants that were too big for him and a loose black shirt. His eyes were sunken and framed with purple skin. His gaze locked with me, and we both stood, paralyzed, for an agonizing minute.

Then, he lifted his right arm and pointed a gun at me.

“No,” I said. I hadn’t meant to speak. It just sort of came out of me like a reflex, and the word caught Derek’s attention.

He looked up, one fist raised to strike Isaac beneath him, and spotted Jason. Derek froze and followed the line of the barrel to me, and to where it was pointed at my chest. “Jason,” he warned, “Put that fucking thing down.”

Jason’s eyes slid from me to Derek, who was slowly getting to his feet and standing above Isaac, who was still flat on his back on the wet floor. He raised the gun a few inches. I swallowed. “Step away from him, Derek.”

“Just shoot him,” Derek said. It was almost a plea. He gestured at Isaac at his feet, who was at his mercy and not a threat at all. Derek took a step toward Jason. “Just kill him, and we can be done with this. Or better yet. Give me the gun, and I’ll do it. Let me help you.” He held out his hand for the gun.

I don’t know how I knew, but I knew he wouldn’t give over the gun. Jason was scared shitless. I also knew there was no possible way this could end well.

A whimper left my throat. I hadn’t meant for it to, but it did. It slipped out of me, and I closed my eyes, willing myself to have courage. I couldn’t be weak now. I had to keep it together. We had to keep fighting.

Jason was just a kid. I could see the fear in his eyes. It practically radiated off him. He needed help more than any of us did, but he was so torn. He felt owned by Isaac and rejected by the Lost Breed. He had no place to call home and no people to call his. All he needed was someone to take him in their arms, to hold him, and to promise him everything would be all right.

These men did not know how to offer such things to him.

I opened my eyes. “Jason,” I said. My voice was soft and gentle and controlled. I was surprised at my own ability to keep it together. The gun was still pointed at me. I tried to ignore the fact that it was pointed at my head.

He looked at me like a deer in the headlights.

I took a deep breath. “Everyone gets another chance. Everyone. You don’t have to do anything here. You can put it down and walk away. Nobody can make your decision for you. You have the power in your hand, and only you can decide what to do with it. Just … ignore all of us and do what you have to do.”

Derek twisted around to face me. His eyes were wide and panicked.

Jason flicked the gun. “Move aside, Derek.”

Derek did as he was commanded and stepped away from Isaac. He moved slowly back, one foot behind the other, until he had positioned himself between me and Jason. He’d strategically placed himself in the line of fire, which I hated but could do nothing about. So, I took his hand in mine and pulled it behind his back, entwining my fingers in his and squeezing tightly. He squeezed back.

Isaac got slowly to his feet while rubbing his head. I was sure he had a fierce headache from the pounding Derek had given him. He looked back and forth between me and Derek and Jason.

And then, like clockwork, he smiled.