I hear a screech over the phone, and the man hits the speaker button. “Ice, she’s going to be okay, but she’s in bad shape.”
“Addi, baby, can you hear me?”
He sounds out of breath, and I hear a car door slam. “Yeah,” I croak.
“I’m on my way, honey. I’ll be there in just a minute, okay? Wild’s not going to leave your side until I get there.”
“She’s nodding her head, Ice,” the man James called Wild says.
The phone clicks, and he pockets it but doesn’t move. “Hey, Savage, get her a water, will you.”
The one called Savage walks away and comes back with a bottle of water. He hands it to Wild, who uncaps it and puts it at my lips while I take a sip. Savage looks as if he’s standing guard on us, his arms crossed and a scowl on his face as he looks up and down the road. “Do you want to try and stand up?”
I nod my head.
Wild turns to the third man. “Knight, help me out here.”
They each get on a side of me and lift me easily off the ground. They keep their arms around me until they’re sure I’m not going to fall. “You okay?” Wild asks.
I nod my head and squint as headlights hit us coming down the road. The truck barely gets stopped before the driver’s side door is swung open and James is running toward me. When I see him, it’s like a waterfall of emotions hits me, and I release the two men at my side and instantly reach for James. He pulls me to him so hard it hurts, but I don’t dare say a word. I need this. I need his arms around me right now more than ever.
He pulls back searching my face. “Who did this to you?”
I point to my car. “Officers Johns and Green.”
“Did they? Fuck, Addi, did they…” I know what he’s asking me, and I can feel the bile rise in my throat again. I take deep breaths to calm myself before answering.
“They were going to. I think that was their plan, but they ran when the heard the motorcycles turn on the road from the highway.”
Pure anguish crosses his face, and he pulls me to him. He talks to the guys while he’s holding me. “Patriot was supposed to be watching her. They shot out his tires and he wrecked. A bunch of broken bones, and he’s in the hospital.”
“Fuck, Ice. They’re getting out of control.”
“I’m taking Addi back to my place, then I’m putting a stop to Johns and Green. They’ll never bother her again.”
I shudder at the venom in his voice. I want that. I want to be safe. But I don’t want him to leave me, not now. “Please don’t leave me?” I beg him.
He opens his mouth, but Wild interrupts. “We got this, Ice. They won’t mess with her again.”
James nods his head. “I owe you one, Wild. Make sure you let Pres know what’s happening.”
The three men all get on their bikes and wait as James helps me into the van. We do a U-turn in the middle of the road and when we get to his place, the three men pull in and watch until we’re inside. I can’t help but ask, “Will they be okay, James?”
He nods his head. “They’re Valor, honey. In every sense of the word.”
Ice
Seeing her like this is going to be my undoing. Raw hatred is building inside me, and it’s killing me that I can’t be out with the guys taking vengeance for what they did to my woman. From now until the day I die, she’ll never know this kind of hurt again.
I carry her up the steps to my apartment, already deciding that tomorrow, or as soon as she feels like it, I’m going to look for a house. One with a white picket fence because the more I think about it, the more I want it too.
She sniffles. She’s covered in bruises, scratches, and blood. I set her in a chair in the kitchen. She has pieces of glass in her hair, and I do my best to pick them out. “Are you okay to sit here for just a minute? I’m going to run you a bath.”
She nods her head, but she doesn’t let me go. I lift her hand to my lips. “I’ll be right back.”
When she nods and lets go, I all but jog to the bathroom and turn on the hot water. As soon as it feels right, I put the plug in. I then go back to her and squat down in front of her. I need her clean, free of the blood and dirt. I hate seeing her like this, but right now I need to focus on what she needs.