“Adam!” Joy yelped, shrinking away from him in fear.
“I’m not going to hurt you. Gerri sent me. I have to get you out of here before this other person shows up for you.”
She nodded, seeming to fully understand the gravity of their situation.
Just as he was about to break the chain holding her to the bed, the man slammed into him, knocking him to the floor. The man pulled back and growled at Adam. The air inside the room changed. The pressure dropped as it filled with magic ... both the man’s and Adam’s.
“Let’s do this then,” Adam growled, unleashing his bear.
The room filled with grotesque popping noises as both of the men shifted at the same time. Adam didn’t fight his magic, allowing the transformation to happen instantly, whereas the other man seemed to have a problem with his magic.
Not giving a single fuck when it came to the rules of engagement, Adam attacked before the other man finished with his transformation. A single swipe of his paw across the man’s throat sent his head flying from his shoulders and across the room.
Joy’s screams filled his ears as he turned to face her. She was covered in blood that wasn’t her own.
Adam quickly shifted back to his human form. “Shh, doll. It’s okay. You’re safe. I promise. But we have to get out of here.” Adam grabbed onto the chain attached to the bed and gave it a quick yank. The links snapped almost immediately. He grabbed a set of keys that had been thrown on the small side table and flipped through them until he found the one that looked like it belonged to the handcuffs.
“Gimme your hands. We really need to beat feet and get the fuck out of here,” he said.
She thrust her hands forward, and he popped the key into the slot. With a quick flick of his wrist, the handcuffs popped open and landed on the floor at his feet.
“Let’s go,” he said, scooping her up and dashing to the waiting SUV. He set her on her feet long enough to open the passenger door before picking her up and sliding her onto the seat. Reaching in, he grabbed the seatbelt and clicked it in place before slamming the door and rushing around to the driver’s seat.
As soon as his ass hit the seat, he shifted into reverse and peeled out of the parking lot like a bat out of hell. He glanced at Joy, who appeared to be in shock. Grabbing his cell phone, he hit the button for Gerri. The phone rang twice before she picked up.
“Did you find her?” Gerri asked.
“I’ve got her. Meet us at her apartment,” he said and disconnected the call.
“Doll, are you okay?” he asked Joy.
He glanced at her unmoving, unblinking body and began to worry she had been seriously injured.
“Joy.” He called her name out this time instead of the moniker that he had been using for her. When she didn’t answer yet again, he reached over to stroke her arm, hoping that would break the shock and get her attention.
The instant he made contact, she jumped as far away from him as she could possibly get, considering the fact that she was sitting beside him and strapped into her seat.
“Shh. It’s okay, Joy. I’m not going to hurt you,” he said again, trying like hell to comfort her.
She nodded and straightened in her seat. “I ... I thought you were there to kill me because I knew your secret,” she stammered.
“What!” he shouted, and she cringed into herself.
“Sorry,” he continued at a much lower volume. “I would never harm a single hair on your head, doll. I love you, and I would never, ever hurt you. Neither would my bear,” he tried to explain. He didn’t know why, but it was imperative she understood that even if he wanted to, he could never hurt her.
“Okay,” she nodded again.
It was a bit too much for him to hope that she would return his profession of love, but he had hoped that shit anyway like an idiot. She hated him. Was disgusted by him. Hell, that was the entire reason she ran as far and as fast as she could to get away from him.
Before he had even realized it, they pulled up to her apartment complex. She was still off in her own mind when he scooped her up and carried her up the steps to her front door, where Gerri was waiting.
“Oh, God!” Gerri exclaimed. “Is she okay?” Gerri said when she got a good look at Joy.
“Yes. It’s not her blood. I’m afraid she was in the spray of ...”
“Donovan,” Joy said. “His name was Donovan.” Her eyes were still glazed over like she was operating on autopilot.
Adam nodded and continued with his story. “She was smack in the middle of the spray of blood when I relieved Donovan of his head.”
“You killed him in front of her!” Gerri shouted.
“It’s not like I had a choice. I tried to talk him out of the fight, but he was jabbering on about getting some big payday for Joy from a guy named Malcolm. I was out of time and options. The only thing I knew for certain at the time was I had to get Joy out of there before this other guy showed up to collect her. Who knows how many goons he would have had with him? Trust me, if I would have had any other options available at the time, I would have gladly taken them. She was afraid of me before this mess. Now, look. She’s in shock.”
Adam was beside himself, unsure of how to fix any of the mess he had created with Joy.
“Take a deep breath. See what is in this area for food delivery and order something for all of us. Add some cans of soda to the order too. I’ll take Joy and help her get cleaned up.”