Jester hopped off his bike and charged toward the garage. Most of the weapons stock was housed in an underground storage container accessible from the back of the garage.
Acer met him halfway, his arms held out as though prepared to hold Jester back. Over Acer’s shoulder Jester could hear a commotion coming from the garage.
“What’s with the racket?” he asked Acer.
“Listen, brother,” Acer began, his hands still up like he was ready to stop Jester if he charged.
Jester looked over Acer’s shoulder. From his vantage point he could see straight into the garage. The door to the room that had held Emily was wide open. Colt sat on the cot with a mulish expression. Shiv paced the small room, obviously yelling.
A sick feeling overtook him. He looked at Acer. “Is he—did that piece of shit—” He didn’t bother to finish his question. Jester plowed forward and shoved Acer to the side. No way was there a chance of Acer stopping him at this point.
He burst into the room, and wrapped his hands around Colt’s throat despite Shiv’s protest. “What the fuck did you do to her? I swear to God if you touched her in any way….”
Colt couldn’t answer. His face turned purple and he gagged, grasping and clawing at Jester’s forearms, but he was no match for the combination of strength and rage coursing through Jester.
“Jester, let him go.” Shiv’s voice was calm, but firm.
It would be so easy to squeeze just a little harder, until Colt passed out, then keep squeezing until the life drained from him.
“Jester!” Shiv’s voice was sharper this time.
He released one finger at a time, smiling when Colt collapsed on the cot wheezing and gasping.
“Fucking psycho,” he managed to choke out amid coughs.
Jester leaned down. “You have no idea. I better not see you when I get back.” He stood and turned to Shiv, ignoring Colt’s complaint of abuse.
“I’m sorry about how this all played out, Jester,” Shiv said. “Weapons are loaded and we got guys ready to go. Acer knows where it is. Not much activity on the street beside the Grimms.” He inclined his head toward Colt. “He will be dealt with.”
Jester nodded and accepted a brotherly hug from Shiv. He jogged out of the garage, back to his bike.
~ ~ ~ ~
Crushing pain slammed into Emily’s side and she jolted awake. With a groan of agony, she tried to clear her head and make sense of her surroundings. She ached and throbbed, the air was surprisingly cold, and she’d apparently been sleeping on the floor.
The day’s events flooded back to her and her eyes flew open. She looked up from her spot on the floor.
Casper loomed over her, a giddy smile on his face. Though he was clearly not in charge, he scared her more than Snake. Something about the look in his eyes. Like an inmate who’d escaped from a prison for the criminally insane.
“I’ve been hoping for some time alone with you.” His nasally voice made her cringe. Nails on a chalkboard would have been preferable.
Emily didn’t respond. What did he expect her to say?
He held a pale, skinny arm out to her, palm up, but she just stared at him.
“I’m being nice, girl. I don’t have to be nice. Would you rather me haul you up by your hair?”
She stood without his assistance, gritting her teeth as a stabbing pain reached her ribs. Rising to her feet took three times as long to struggle through on her own, but she’d die before voluntarily touching that man.
Casper waited about three feet away from her, a frown on his pasty face. “You must be pretty damn good if you were able to control Jester with your snatch. I can’t pass up the chance for a sample.” His look of unhappiness with her rejection of his hand morphed into one of lust with the statement.
Oh God. Emily’s stomach bottomed. She pressed herself against the wall as though she could disappear through it if she tried hard enough. This, she could not let happen. She refused to die with the memory of Casper’s touch on her skin.
He stalked toward her, the outline of an erection visible in against the front of his pants. Bile rose in her throat but she swallowed down. She also fought to keep her face impassive, remembering they got off on her fear. She could not, however, stop the screams in her own head.
When Casper was close enough to touch, Emily spit in his face and enjoyed the look of shock that transformed his bald head for about one second before his fist connected with her face. Pain exploded in her head, blurring her vision and preventing her from being able to protect herself.
Before she had time to recover, his hands were on her. He tore her tank top straight down the center. It had a built in bra, and she was now bare to him from the waist up. He licked his thin lips, and Emily almost vomited.
Tears leaked from her eyes, and while she hated for Casper to see them, she couldn’t stop them. She grabbed the edges of her tattered shirt and held them closed. “Don’t,” she whispered as he stepped closer.
“That’s better.” He grabbed the torn shirt and pulled. She was no match for his strength and the material was ripped from her fingers and tossed to the ground.
Before she had time to react, he fisted her hair in his hand and yanked her head back. His mouth crashed into her and his opposite hand closed over her breast. Casper’s touch was harsh and revolting, and with no thought beyond getting his mouth off of her, Emily bit down on his lip, hard.
With a violent curse, Casper jerked back and released Emily’s hair. “That was very foolish.” He pinned her to the wall with his upper body, the bony ridges of his chest crushing her breasts. She tried to raise a knee and render him sterile, but his hands had moved to his pants and he swatted her away as though she were a gnat.
The heavy footsteps of a man descending the stairs drowned out the sound of Casper’s zipper opening. He froze and stopped his advances as the thudding grew louder with each step.
Emily blew out a breath. What did it say about how terrifying her life had become that she was actually relieved to see Snake?
He stepped off the stairs and strode toward Casper. Emily was still flattened against the wall, her shoulder blades digging so hard into the concrete, she might leave behind an imprint of her body when she finally moved away. Casper’s body still crushed hers, but he no longer had a hand on her breast.
Snake’s nostrils were flared and his eyes were wild. Anger didn’t begin to describe the look on his face.
“Leave us,” Snake hissed.