Page 18 of Rescuing Erin (Red Team #5)

It had been a long time since I’d been shoved into the room and told to sit down and keep my mouth shut.

The only reason I’d done what I was told was because I couldn’t miss the look on Colin’s face.

I didn’t need to hear his words to know he wanted me to follow directions.

It took everything in me not to provoke the men further; I would rather they kill me now.

I was trying to be strong, but panic was setting in.

This was my worst nightmare come true. My biggest fear.

Not only that, I was afraid they were going to kill Colin.

I believed the man when he told me he’d slice me up in front of Colin before they killed him. I couldn’t do that to him.

I was sitting on the concrete floor, praying for a quick death when the door was swung open and two men dragged a badly beaten Colin inside. I started to stand but stopped when one of the men told me not to move.

“Here.” A third man set down a bucket and dropped some rags on the floor.

Once Colin’s handcuffs were secured to another chain, the men exited the room, and I crawled over to his prone body .

“Colin? Can you hear me?” I whispered.

I was so thankful when a faint grunt hit my ears.

“I’m so sorry.” I didn’t know what I was apologizing for but I didn’t know what else to say.

I dipped a rag in the bucket of water and started to clean some of the blood off his face.

There was so much of it I had to clean the cloth after every pass.

It took several attempts to wash away all the red liquid before I could find the source of the flow.

I put pressure on the largest gash, trying to stop the bleeding.

His moans cut me to the quick. I was having a hard time even looking at his battered face.

I was afraid to lift his shirt and see what wounds there needed care.

The sight would be more than I could handle.

I felt his hand on mine, and his eyes opened into tiny slivers. “You’re doing great.”

“No, I’m not.”

“You are. I know this is hard. I’m proud of you.”

“Shhh. Don’t try and talk. You need to rest.”

His eyes closed, and I went back to rinsing out the blood-soaked rag.

This was bad. Really bad. With Colin hurt, I didn’t stand a chance.

After a long bout of silence, during which I’d thought Colin had either gone to sleep or had passed out, he started to speak again. I nearly jumped out of my skin.

“I need you to promise me something.”

“What?”

“No matter what happens to me, you stay quiet.”

“I can’t—”

“You can. Someone will come and get you, and I need you to be in one piece when they do.”

“I’m not going to let them do this to you again.”

“You don’t worry about me. I need you to promise.

Right now Warren and his guys have no idea what you mean to me, if they did, they’d exploit it.

We need them to think I’m nothing more to you than a bodyguard.

If I have a chance and I think I can keep you safe, I’ll make my move.

But when I do, I need you to make yourself as small as possible.

Stay out of the way. And, Erin, no heroics.

Do not try to help. If your dad sends in a team to get you, get down and let them do their job. No helping.”

I understood what he was saying but I couldn’t stay quiet if they started hurting him in front of me.

I couldn’t. I wouldn’t. I knew myself too well.

I was already on the verge of breaking. If I saw Colin being beaten to death, I’d try and stop them.

But I didn’t tell him that. Instead, I gave him what he needed to hear, my acceptance.

“Okay.”

“I’m serious. I have to know you’re walking out of here even if I don’t. My dying wish, Erin. You alive and in one piece.”

Dying wish. I wanted to scream at the unfairness, cry at the desperation of our situation. He couldn’t die. Not when we’d finally found each other.

“Okay. But, Colin, you’re not going to die.”

“That’s the plan, sunshine. The next time they take us out of this room, you stay quiet and let me figure out a way to get us out.”

That part I could do.

“Okay.” I lowered my head to his ear and whispered, “I love you.”

“You, too, Erin. So fucking much.”

I pulled his shirt up the best I could, angry red welts dotted his torso.

“I’m sure it looks worse than it is.” I doubted that very much but kept my thoughts to myself. “Did you see how we got here? Where we are?”

“No. You passed out, and when you were pulled off me, one of the guys stuck me with a needle. When I woke up, I was tied to the chair in the other room and you were chained up. That guy immediately started telling me all I needed to do was tell my dad to sign some documents and I’d be free to go. Do you know who he is?”

“Yeah. The former director of the CIA. Your dad fired him about a year ago. But he and Zane have had issues for many years. The man is a lying scumbag, but I never thought he’d go this far. I can’t figure out how he came to work with the NSA. There’s no way your dad would’ve allowed that.”

“What if my dad didn’t know?”

“Your dad knows everything. And I mean everything.”

“Could he be working as an independent contractor? Would my dad know then?”

I didn’t know all the ins and outs of government contract work, but a friend from college had gone to work for a computer company that had been awarded many contracts.

“I’m not sure. But I know the man who brought you into this room is Charles Warren.”

“Does he hate Zane enough to really want to kill you?”

“Fuck yes.” His answer made me flinch, and I was rethinking this forthright version of Colin. Maybe he’d been right all along, and it would’ve been better to be kept in the dark. The truth scared me even more. “The good news is, Zane Lewis makes Warren look like a fluffy kitten.”

“Not sure that’s making me feel better.”

“It should. It means no one is going to let us rot away in here.”

“Okay.”

“Thank you for taking care of me, sunshine.”

“I’m sorry you’re hurt so badly.”

My apology sounded stupid even to me, but I wasn’t sure what to say.

The fear from being captured was threatening to take over.

I wanted to be the brave, strong person Colin thought I was.

I wanted to prove to him he had a reason to be proud of me.

But it was hard and getting harder by the second.

Seeing him bloodied and broken scared me more than the men outside the door.

If they could do that to a big, strong warrior like Colin, I hated to think what they could do to me.

“This is a walk in the park. Trust me, I’ve had worse.”

“That’s really not making me feel any better,” I grouched.

“Lean down here and give me a kiss.”

“I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Kiss me!”

“Okay.”

I leaned down and, as gently as I could, placed a soft peck on his cut lips. I didn’t care I could taste blood, I needed the connection. His love was the only thing that was going to get me through this.

“You taste like sunshine and a fresh summer breeze.”

“Is that why you call me sunshine?”

I could never figure out the silly nickname but never wanted to ask.

“No. I call you that because you’re the sun in my otherwise dark life.”

Now was not the place, but when we got out of there, I was going to ask why he thought his life was so dark. I didn’t think it was. He was a good man with a big heart.

“What happens now?”

“We wait.”

“Okay.”

Waiting was the last thing I wanted to do but it seemed we had no choice.

The door banged against the drywall as it flew open, and I jerked awake. I couldn’t believe I’d fallen asleep .

“Time’s up, princess. Let’s see if daddy signed the papers.”

“Time’s up? It’s been twenty-four hours?”

Colin twitched his arm, reminding me to be quiet.

“Nope. I knew it would only take a few hours. He won’t hand the documents off to the courier until he sees your precious face one more time. Up you go.”

Shit! I didn’t want to go anywhere without Colin but I didn’t want to draw attention to him.

“All right.” I stood on wobbly legs and tried to get my bearings.

“You, too, asshole. This is gonna be fun.”

Colin groaned but made no attempt to move. He was hurt but he’d been able to talk just fine before I’d fallen asleep.

“Get him up,” the man I believed was Warren said to the two men behind him.

Yes, this had to be Warren. He not so nicely grabbed me by my bicep and tightened his grip until I came up on my toes. “You’re going to be a good girl, right? Sit in front of the camera and smile big for daddy. I’m warning you, one wrong word and Colin will watch you bleed.”

“Yes. I’ll be quiet.” Those were the words I’d spoken, but in my mind I was telling him to screw off and die a slow, painful death. The spineless bastard still hadn’t taken his black mask off.

The two men hauled Colin to his feet. They’d unchained him from the wall, but he was still cuffed.

Now that we were in the brightly lit room with the computer and chair again, I could see the bruising on Colin’s face.

I pinched my lips together and did my best to stop the tears from falling.

He was right, if they knew how much I loved him, they’d go harder on him. I had to stay quiet, for him.