When I heard Amara’s cry for help, at first I didn’t even know it was her. I was in the lobby of my building, fortunately, close enough to run back for the doors, or else I don’t even want to think about what might have happened.
My fist connects with a chin as I throw an uppercut, and I turn my attentions on the next guy. I’m moving on pure instinct now, protecting Amara the only thing on my mind as I move and sway, gradually getting her behind me as I roar and grunt and pummel my fist into my opponents.
As the last one of them falls, I grab his shoulder and shove him into my knee, hearing the pop of bone as something breaks. Turning, I catch a glimpse of the driver of the van as he stares my way, but he doesn’t waste time on his accomplices. With a screech of tires, he takes off down the street, jumping the red light at the intersection and squealing around the corner, leaving his buddies scattered on the sidewalk.
“Are you hurt?” I ask, turning to Amara. I don’t wait for her answer, grabbing her and running my fingers over her face, feeling for anything amiss. If they’ve hurt her I’ll kill them. I don’t care about the consequences. If she’s injured, I’ll murder them right here on the side of the road. “Who are they?”
“Friends of my father’s,” she says, taking a deep breath, the tears still running from her eyes as I wipe them away and brush her dark hair behind her ears. “I don’t think I’m hurt. Thank you. Thank you so much.”
“Hey, it’s fine.” I run my palms down her shoulders, watching her face for any sign that my touch is causing her pain. “No offense though, but your dad is a dick if he has friends like that.”
She chuckles at my words, but half way through it turns to a sob and she throws herself against me, wrapping her arms around my neck as the tears flow and her body trembles. Is it wrong that my cock springs up like a fucking flagpole at the connection? Doesn’t matter. I don’t think there will ever be a moment I’m not hard and ready for her.
I hear the sound of sirens coming closer as I run my fingers through her hair, and I know that they’re for us. Nobody else stepped in to help. It’s dark and it’s Detroit, people here don’t come running when they hear a scream—they run the other way. But there are enough people living around here that one of them is bound to have called the cops when they saw a young woman being dragged to a van.
Glancing around at the carnage, I know there are going to be questions. For both myself and Amara. A low growl escapes my lips at that thought. No way is she ready to face a fucking interrogation right now. She is my priority, not these lowlifes.
“Amara—”
“Please,” she says. “Don’t make me talk to them. I can’t. I… I have to get away.”
She pulls away from me, turning as if to flee, but I grab her wrist. I see the instinct to pull out of my grasp wash over her face, but in the same moment it’s there, it’s gone and she submits to my strength.
“This way,” I tell her as I pull her towards my building. “I’ll hide you.”
She nods, and a moment later we’re diving in through the front doors, into the relative safety of my gated apartment block. Something tells me those guys aren’t about to say anything to the cops, and even if they decide to make door-to-door enquiries it’s going to take them a while to get around to us here.
One of my neighbors I half recognize, Hugh or Ned something-or-other, enters the lobby just as we do, coming from the other direction. His eyes go wide when he sees me and I glance down, noticing the blood staining my shirt. My fingers glance over it, but I’m not injured.
I meet his eyes and smile with relief. “It’s not mine,” I tell him, and watch as he gives us a wide berth, heading out the main doors.
***
“Here,” I tell Amara as I hand her a cup of hot, sweet tea. “My mother’s solution to everything.”
She smiles, snorting a little laugh. “Thanks.” Glancing around the apartment, she adds, “Nice place.”
I shrug. “I’m lucky to have it.”
She’s sitting on the couch in my apartment and her face is still white with shock. I’ve offered to call her an ambulance, but the mention of it sent her into a panic and she begged me not to. I was so worried about her I agreed right away, but if she carries on like this I might just call them anyway and deal with the consequences later.