Page 82 of Mutual Obsession (Rivals of Blackthorn #2)

Marcus stands on one side of the closed doorway, Miles opposite him, with me behind Miles. Marcus stares at us as he raises his hand. “You ready?” he whispers.

We both nod as Miles says, “Ready.”

Marcus lifts three fingers, dropping one with each number as he counts down. As the final finger drops, and he says “One”, Miles kicks down the door. The wooden frame splinters as it crashes open, and we waste no time rushing inside.

There’s no doubt Gregg will have heard the noise, so our element of surprise is gone, but we knew that would be the case. Instead, we’re going for brute force.

With our guns drawn, we follow the path we’ve all memorised from the blueprints, heading straight for the room where Indie is.

We make it into the room together, and I’m not even remotely surprised to find Gregg standing beside Indie. When I see he has a gun to her temple and a knife to her throat, I pause, ice rushing through my veins as my fear spikes.

“Stop or I’ll kill her,” Gregg shouts, even though the three of us are already frozen to the spot.

“Drop your weapons or we’ll shoot,” Marcus says, sounding almost bored.

I look over to find him wearing his cool, disinterested expression, and I wonder, probably for the millionth time, how he’s able to switch off his emotions so expertly.

I’m sure my anger and fear are written on my face for all to see, and when Gregg’s gaze lands on me, his lips twist into a smug smirk. “I don’t think so. How about you drop your weapons, or I’ll kill her?”

“Don’t,” I say frantically, lowering my gun just a little.

Indie has a gag in her mouth, but she’s shaking her head from side to side, her sobs hitting me like a punch to the gut. The fear in her beautiful emerald eyes has me spiralling.

Gregg actually laughs when he sees me lowering my weapon, and I hear Marcus growl in frustration beside me. Gregg’s sneer gets under my skin as taunts me.

“Oh, it looks like my little slut has been opening her legs. Her tight pussy has obviously made you lose all good sense. Aren’t you supposed to be one of the most feared leaders in Blackthorn? Yet you’re lowering your weapon for a dirty whore.”

Each insult he throws at Indie makes my blood boil, as my anger sizzles away underneath the surface. I’m seconds from losing my shit when…

BANG!

A loud gunshot rips through the room, and the next thing I know, both Miles and Marcus are rushing towards Gregg, tackling him to the floor. I don’t even think, I run over to Indie and pull the gag out of her mouth, running my gaze over her to make sure she’s not injured.

“Are you okay? Did you get shot?” I ask her frantically.

She shakes her head, a sob ripping through her. “I didn’t get shot.”

I look over at the bodies on the floor, and find that Miles and Marcus have grabbed Gregg. He’s bleeding profusely from a hole in his thigh, while Marcus holds his legs and Miles his arms. Gregg’s head rolls to the side, and it’s clear they’ve knocked him out.

Marcus pulls some cable ties from his pocket and ties him up. At the same time, Miles removes his belt and secures it around the top of Gregg’s thigh, turning it into a make-shift tourniquet to slow down the bleeding, so he doesn’t die of blood loss.

I pull a knife out of my pocket, wincing when Indie flinches as I move closer to her. I gently reassure her as I cut the ropes tying her to the chair. When she’s finally free, she falls to the floor and I pull her into my lap, wrapping my arms around her as she sobs into my chest.

“It’s okay, Baby. I’ve got you. You’re safe now. I’m so sorry. I’m sorry for not keeping you safe, but I promise that won’t happen again. We will look after you, Baby,” I whisper into her ear, reassuring her and apologising as much as I can, while I stroke the hair away from her eyes.

Marcus and Miles both let out sighs once they have Gregg secured, and Miles edges closer to me and Indie. When she sees him out of the corner of her eye, she reaches for him, pulling him over, until we’re all wrapped in each other’s arms.

At first she sobs harder, clutching on to us both like she’s frightened we’ll disappear if she lets go, but eventually, her tears die down and she gets control over her breathing.

I hear Marcus shuffling beside us, and when I glance up at him, he’s wincing like he’s uncomfortable. “I’m sorry, but we really should get going before he wakes up.”

Miles nods and stands, holding his hand out to us. “Can you stand, Gorgeous Girl?” he asks Indie.

She reaches out and takes his hand, letting him help her to her feet. She wobbles a bit, so I quickly stand to pull her into my side, helping to take her weight and keep her secure.

She looks over at where Gregg is tied up on the floor, a pool of blood collecting underneath him. “What happened…at the end?” she asks, her voice barely above a whisper.

I’m glad she asked, as I’d very much like to know.

Miles wraps his arm around us both as he says, “While Gregg was winding Jacob up, talking shit, I used the distraction to our advantage. I shot him in the leg, then Marcus and I charged him to disarm him. He was too busy talking bollocks to see my shot coming.”

Miles sounds so fucking proud of himself—and a little psycho—my cock twitches in excitement. Miles smirks at me like he might know exactly what I’m thinking about as I smile at him, my cheeks flushing from the thoughts.

“Thank you for saving me,” she says, looking at Miles, myself, and Marcus individually, a small smile on her face.

I pull her closer as I reach out and lace my free hand with Miles’, before pressing a kiss to her forehead. “We will always save you, Baby.”

“Come on, let’s get you home,” Miles says, leading us out of the house and into the car.

I try not to think about the hostage we’ve just shoved into the boot, or what is to come when Bree gets the information she wants from Gregg.

As far as I’m concerned, we’re one threat down, with only one more to go.

It won’t be long until Indie is truly safe, and never has to look over her shoulder again.

I can only imagine the horror she’s endured over the last couple of hours, and I know the mental scars will take far longer to heal than her physical injuries. But with Miles and me by her side, I’m hoping she’s strong enough to pull through this and never look back.