Page 97 of Catch My Fall
My heart damn near rips through my chest when the shot rings out, the sound piercing my ears louder than I expected, my skull feeling like it’s splitting in half.
My heart lurches, and for a second I think Austin’s pulled the trigger, but the hazel eyes that stare back at me are still bright and full of life, it’s the man behind her that roars in pain, falling away from Sierra as he collapses to the ground.
There’s another gunshot, followed by a heavy thud somewhere behind us.
I turn to see where the shots came from. I meet the gaze of one of Austin’s men from across the room, and that’s when I recognise him.
His name is Ian. He’s one of Max’s guys. He’s FBI, and the man lying at his feet is one of Austin’s guys.
As if sensing my recognition, he flashes me a small smirk and a subtle nod of his head, and suddenly, I’m emboldened.
Turning back to Sierra, I see Austin on the floor behind her chair, clutching his knee while he raises his gun with his free hand, aiming it straight at Si and I immediately kick into action.
I lunge for him.
Austin doesn’t expect my attack as my chair crashes to the floor and I land on top of him, batting the gun out of his hand. It skitters across the floor as I drive my fist into his face.
From the corner of my eye, I see Rafe fighting the guy who held a knife to his throat before three shots ring out in quick succession, the three men surrounding Gage and Rafe dropping to the ground one by one.
Austin manages to get a hit in, and my vision goes fuzzy for a second, but it’s clear from the lack of strength behind his punch that the coward hides behind his men and let’s them do his dirty work for him.
“Rafe, get Sierra!” I shout, gripping the lapels of Austin’s jacket, dragging him to his feet.
I lose my balance for a second, a little light-headed but I manage to stay upright as I shove Austin up against the wall, his head colliding with the concrete behind him.
“You made a huge mistake by touching her, you didn’t know it then but you were living on borrowed time. You were a dead man the second you laid a finger on her.”
The bastard grins. “You know it’s funny, you might have her now, but we both know who had her first.”
“Shut your fucking mouth,” I spit, digging my knee into his injured one and he groans in agony, the smile falling from his lips as he grapples for my arms to loosen my hold, but he’s too weak.
“Admit it, you and I both know who’s on her mind when her legs are spread wide open. Fuck.. her virgin cunt bled so nicely all over my di—”
He doesn’t get to finish his sentence before I thrust my fist into his face, the unmistakable sound of bones crunching filling my ears as his head collides with the wall behind his head.
I could quite easily kill him. It would take one simple quick snap of his neck and he’d be dead within a second, but he doesn’t deserve a quick death. He deserves to suffer as much as Sierra and all the other women and children who have fallen victim to him and his sick organisation.
He sinks to the ground at my feet, his eyes closed. He’s still alive but barely, blood pouring from his nose and the corners of his mouth, his arms hanging limply at his sides.
I stand over him, taking in the sight.
It’s over.
Behind bars or dead, it doesn’t matter much to me, just so long as he’s as far from Sierra and her family as possible. Just so long as every single woman and child are safe from him.
With him gone, his organisation will begin to unravel, and although it’s a small drop in a very large ocean of trafficking rings in this fucked up world, it’s a small victory I’m going to take.
I turn just as Sierra breaks free from her brothers, rushing towards me, a small limp in her step, no doubt a result of the car accident.
Relief washes over me the second she crashes into my arms, knocking me off balance for a moment. My arms wind around her back as I crush her to me, holding onto her impossibly tight just so I know that it’s real.
I tip my head forward, my lips brushing her hair. “It’s over, princess. You’re safe now.”
“Alec, I thought… I thought that…” She squeezes me tighter, her shoulders beginning to shake.
She thought she was going to die.
I won’t say it out loud, but for a moment, so did I.