Chapter 67

Ryan

My blood-covered hands shook, pointing the gun right at Janson’s chest. They weren’t shaking from fear but from pure rage instead. He had obviously hurt Sara, evident from the bruises and cuts on her face and her blouse completely torn open. I looked down at the chair with ties on it, and it made my stomach turn. The world should be rid of this asshole so he could never hurt someone like this again. I stood there fuming, looking deeply into his eyes, watching his smug grin. I wanted to do it so badly, and I knew I could get away with it. From the look of the two of us, it would be reasonable to say it was self-defense. I had almost convinced myself to just pull the trigger, and then Sara walked up and put her hand on my arm. Her touch immediately calmed me, but I didn’t take my eyes off him. My teeth were grinding against each other.

“Thank you,” she whispered into my ear.

I turned my head slightly and looked at her face. Her eyes were filled with love and thankfulness to me. She was still that beautiful, innocent, wholesome woman I had fallen in love with. She was still that woman who made me want to be a better man. I knew I had it in me to take this guy down. I had seen things in my life that would make this situation seem like child’s play, but that wouldn’t make me the man she deserved. I knew it would haunt me for the rest of my life if I did it.

“This scumbag, he’s not worth it,” she whispered, smiling at me sweetly. “I just got off the phone with the cops. They’re sending whatever team you had out and their squad cars over here to take care of the situation. They’ll be here any minute. You need to let the cops sort this all out. It’s over, I’m okay, and we can move on. He may not die, but he’ll have to live with the knowledge that he’s beneath us and always has been and always will be. He’s nothing now, just a felon getting ready to go to prison.”

I knew she was right, I knew it, but that didn’t make me wish I could be different just for one minute and put a bullet in him. He reminded me so much of my father, thinking he ruled the world, bullying women, abusing them, taking advantage of everything he could. It was like looking in my father’s eyes all over again. The smell of whiskey and sweat made it all more real to me, and I grimaced, looking at him, blood coming from his mouth and nose but still smirking.

“Tell me,” she said. “How did you find me since my text read Route 2?”

I could tell she was trying to distract me, to get my mind off it, but I knew she had the best intentions. I took a deep breath and kept my eyes on him, unsure of what he would do at any second. If he moved a muscle toward us, there was no stopping me, and I could feel myself praying he made an attempt.

“Ryan,” she said, bringing my attention back.

“Route 2, oh, yeah,” I said. “I saw Route 20 on the map, and I just had this feeling. I had to cover all bases, and the rest of the team wanted to just cover 2 down to the timber factory. I just didn’t see that being his MO.”

“Well, I’m glad it was you who found me,” she said. “I don’t think someone else could have gotten him like that. The situation could have ended up a lot worse.”

“But it didn’t,” I said. “You’re safe, and this douchebag can go away for a long time.”

“I have friends all over.” He smirked.

“Shut up,” I yelled. “Don’t you dare say one more word to either of us, or I’ll put this gun straight down your throat and pull the goddamn trigger. She’s the only thing keeping you alive right now, but my patience is running thin.”

Just then, we heard the sounds of sirens blowing down the road toward the house. I looked over at her, realizing her shirt was torn. I kept the gun pointed at him and unbuttoned my shirt, pulling it off my shoulders.

“Here put this on,” I said. “It’s got blood on it, but it’s better than you not having a shirt on.”

“Thank you,” she said, taking the shirt and pulling it on, buttoning it up the front. “I’d rather be wearing Janson’s blood than mine or yours that’s for sure.”

“I agree,” I said, staring at Janson in the eyes. “I can’t lie. It felt good to punch you in the face.”

The thought of that bastard touching her, of trying to rape her like my father had done my mother so many times, reignited my rage all over again. I wanted to put a bullet in him so badly. When the cops opened the door, I could barely hear them, keeping the gun pointed at Janson. It was my last chance, my last chance to rid the world of this bastard and know he would never touch another woman like that ever again. Sara put her hand on me and brought me back to the present.

“You can put the gun down now, son,” the captain said.

I looked at him and then back at Sara, watching her smile and shake her head. Finally, I lowered the weapon and switched on the safety, handing it over to the police. I turned and wrapped Sara up in my arms, feeling emotional about what had just happened. Before we could really talk, though, the cops pulled us over in the living room and interviewed us about what had happened. We watched as they handcuffed Janson and led him out to the cop car. He stared at us through the window until the car had cleared the drive and made its way back to the jail. After about two hours of questioning, the ambulance did a look over of her, bandaged the cut over her eye and released us.

“How are you feeling?” I said, rubbing my hands up and down her arms.

“I don’t know,” she sighed. “Relieved that it’s over. Really? All I want for you to do is take me home. I’m exhausted like I just ran a marathon. Emotionally, I just don’t really feel anything at all.”

“You’re in shock,” I said. “Of course, I’ll take you home. Come on.”

I put my arm around her and nodded my head at the captain as we made our way to the SUV. I helped her up into the car, feeling anger again as she flinched from the strain her body had been through. I drove straight back to her house and helped her inside, taking her to her bedroom down the hall and running a hot bath. I helped her undress, tossing the bloody shirt in the trash and then held her hand as she climbed into the bathtub. I washed her gently with a sponge, avoiding the cuts and bruises. When I had washed all the soap out of her hair, I helped her out of the tub and gently dried her off. She looked so fragile and weak, and all I wanted was for this whole thing to be over.

After helping her into some panties and a T-shirt, I picked her up and cradled her in my arms, kissing her lips softly. I carried her back to her room and laid her gently down in the center of the bed. I pulled the blankets up to her chin and tucked her in nice and securely. I sat down on the edge of the bed and rubbed my hand through her hair, looking down at her with love in my eyes. I was so glad she was home safe and sound and that all of this was really over this time.

“I don’t want to be alone,” she said, reaching up and touching my cheek. “Will you stay the night with me?”

“Of course, I will.” I smiled, taking her hand and kissing the back of it.

I stood up and took off my pants that still had some bloodstains on them. I lifted up the covers and climbed into the bed next to her, laying my head next to hers and looking her in the eyes. I smoothed the hair from her face and looked at the bandaged cut above her eye. It was turning purple around it, and the bruise made me feel helpless. I wanted to take it all away from her, to make her feel better in any way I could, but at that point, I just had to wait and let her heal.

“Thank you for rescuing me,” she said. “It’s like the hundredth time since I met you that you’ve rescued me in some way or another.”

“All part of the job,” I joked.

“I feel like you have a tough job.” She smiled. “You rescued me from myself, too, when I didn’t even know I needed to be rescued. You made me a better woman, a stronger woman, and I want you to know how much I appreciate that. I love you, Ryan, very much.”

“I love you too,” I said, my heart swelling in my chest. “And if anyone made anyone better, it was you making me a better man. You continue to make me a better man, even up to today when you made me see that killing Janson wouldn’t solve anything. You’ve done that for me from the first moment I met you. It was then I knew I never wanted to be away from you.”

“I think I knew it then too,” she said. “I was too afraid to admit it to myself.”

I leaned forward and gently kissed her lips, putting my hand on the back of her head. She leaned into me, breathing heavily, taking in the moment. Our lips moved carefully over one another’s, feeling the sweet victory of a simple and better life ahead of us. I loved this woman with everything in my body, and all I wanted to do was make her happy.

She rolled her body on top of mine and put her hands on my cheeks, kissing me passionately. Slowly, she rose up, pulling her knees to both sides and pulled her T-shirt up and over her head. I leaned up, kissing every inch of her beautiful skin, feeling the emotion behind it. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes while my tongue gently moved across her breasts. My hands slid up her sides and held her in place as I licked her body. She moaned and gasped in pure ecstasy, the mood passionate and full of love.

I flicked my tongue across one nipple, grabbing her other breast with my hand and moving my mouth over. She looked down at me with passion in her eyes as I sucked and licked her precious, frail body. Everything in me wanted her but in a way that was both full of love and full of emotion. I leaned my head back and just moved my eyes over her, taking in the beauty and sensuality of her entire soul. She looked down at me and bit her lip, leaning forward and kissing me more passionately than ever before.