Page 98 of No Strings

I stand tall, pull my shoulders back and hold my head high while looking him in the eyes, “No.”

The gun that was once facing Dani, is now facing me. I look down the barrel of the gun, and my breathing hitches, but when he twists his hold, trying to intimidate me, I harshly swallow, letting the fear show, something he loves and gets off on. Not being around him has dulled my reflexes because I don’t register that his hand has moved, until the classic back hand comes down on my face.

“Oh, look who found her voice.”

Chapter Twenty-Eight

RHYS

We just pulled up to the sheds, and I have one thing on my mind.Morgan.

But when I see a pale Miles running towards us, a bad feeling forms in the pit of my stomach.

“Miles?” I ask him before he opens his mouth. He hesitates and I hate it, so I repeat myself, saying his name louder, “Miles!”

“It’s Dani and Morgan.” He says between pants. “Some guy has them cornered in the shop. I think Morgan called him Ethan?”

Dread fills my entire body. “Are you sure?”

He nods. That’s all the confirmation I need. I start running in the direction of the shop while telling them to get Brent, and to keep Molly and Seraphina away.

It’s a four-minute walk from the shed to the shop, so running should be quicker, but why does it feel longer?

I’m just about at the footpath leading up, when a gunshot rings out. I come to a halt.Fuck.

I slowly, almost tiptoe, up to the shop door. I peek in,careful not to set the bell off. Dani is cowering in the corner, but unharmed. She sees me and mouthsMiles. She’s scared and she wants her person; a feeling I can mirror.

I rake my eyes over the shop until I find Morgan, standing tall with a bloodied lip, facing her monster. Her monster, who is waving a gun around.

“I told you, if I can’t have you know one else will.”

“I don’t have anyone else!”

“He answered your phone.” He screams in her face.

“You mean Rhys? He’s Shane’s mate, you know that, you’ve met him.” Her voice is quiet, almost pleading.

He fires the gun, hitting something to her left. Morgan flinches, and I fight the red haze of absolute fucking anger. I have to be smart about this. I can’t storm in. He does have a fucking gun after all, and I can’t fight a bullet.

The crunch of gravel grabs my attention, and I turn to face Brent, Beau and Davis. Trust these men to always have my back, and now hers. I hold my hand out and gesture for them to be quiet. I notice Brent’s rifle in his hand. I point to it and gesture for him to give it to me.

He doesn’t hesitate to pass it over. Davis and Beau go around back with their own rifles. I didn’t notice Miles at first, but when I see him, he is pacing back and forth a good ten meters away.

“You get Dani out. I’ll focus on taking that prick out. I’m going to need one of the sheds. Again,” I whisper. Brent just nods.

He could argue it’s his station, his property, he makes the calls. But Morgan is mine and he knows not to question anything right now.

I give Beau and Davis what I think is enough time to get into place before taking a deep breath, settling the gun intoposition and walking through the door. As soon as I enter, the bell goes off, giving away my presence.

Ethan turns quickly, sees me, and grabs Morgan using her as a shield, pressing the gun into her temple. Coward. I was always planning on killing him, but now I’m going to drag it out, and make it hurt.

“Ah Rhys, nice of you to join us.”

I look straight at Morgan. “Princess, you good?”

She shakes her head slightly but still remains standing tall.

“Princess? So, you are fucking him!” His grip on her throat tightens. Her eyes widen and she starts to pull at his hand.