Rescuing Jenna - Anna Blakely Page 0,84

was trying to move a chair across the smooth floor.

Jenna!

Doing his best not to give himself away in case Ortiz was somewhere close, Adrian went to the source of the sound. It was a room on his right, in the dead center of the hallway.

He stood outside the door, his heartbeat rushing past his ears as he tried to listen with intense focus. He heard it again.

It was her. It had to be her.

Adrenaline pumped through his body with impressive speed. His heart was hammering now, and he actually took a precious second to gulp down a calming breath before putting the flashlight away and switching to the mounted light on his pistol.

Curling a gloved fist around the metal handle, Adrian kept his gun steady as he used the handle to give the door a gentle push.

He inwardly cringed when the rusty hinges squealed in protest, but he continued on.

The space was much larger than the other rooms he’d cleared, and at first, he thought this room was empty, too. But then the beam from his light crossed over something near one of the back corners, and he knew.

His lungs froze inside his chest as he swung the light to the spot where it had just been. Adrian’s heart leaped into his throat when he saw her.

She was tied to the chair like before, but her mouth had been duct taped. Blood covered part of her forehead and right temple, and she was squinting away from the light. But she was alive.

“Jenna!”

Everything else seemed to vanish. His thoughts of killing Ortiz. The other teams. Everything but his primal need to go to her and make sure she was okay.

In a combination of running and limping—because his leg hurt like a sonofabitch—Adrian skidded to a stop just before he ran into her.

“Baby?” He moved the light to the side to avoid blinding her. “Oh, thank God!”

Wide, terrified eyes met his. Bruised and swollen eyes that made him want to kill. Jenna was shaking her head and trying to tell him something, but the tape made it impossible to understand what she was saying.

“Hang on, sweetheart.” He squatted in front of her. Shoving his gun into his waistband, he pulled out the knife he’d used before. “I’m going to cut you loose, and then I’ll get the tape.”

His blood boiled at the sight of her raw and bloody wrists. The jagged cuts looked to be infected, which only added to the rage threatening to overpower him. But first things first.

Cut her loose, get her out, kill Ortiz and every other asshole who helped him.

In. That. Order.

“There.” His blade sliced through the last of the ropes. “Now the tape. It’s probably going to sting, but it’s better if I rip it off quick.”

Before he could lift his hand to her, Jenna was yanking the silver strip from her lips herself.

“You can’t be here!” Her voice came out gravelly and rough. “You have to leave!”

“We will, baby. I’m going to get you out of here right now.”

He stood straight and carefully pulled her to her feet. She wobbled a bit, but he held on tight. Refusing to let her fall.

“No.” Jenna shook her head. “You don’t understand. He’s going to kill you. You have to leave me here and go!’

She was damn near hysterical, and Adrian’s heart ripped in two hearing her beg him to leave her behind to save himself.

Not in a million fucking years.

“Can you walk?” he asked, his eyes scanning the rest of her dirty and disheveled frame.

He knew she had to be hurting, and her sunken cheeks and dark circles under her eyes told him she hadn’t eaten or slept for shit in several days.

Save her now. Kill Ortiz later.

“Not fast…enough.” She sounded weak and looked even weaker. “Please, Adrian. Just…go.”

Adrian was careful of her bruises when he cupped her face with both hands. Taking seconds they didn’t have, he locked his gaze with hers and said, “There is no way in hell I’m leaving you here, got it?”

She looked like she wanted to cry, but no tears fell. With a slow, jerky nod, Jenna finally agreed to go with him.

“Good girl. Here’s what we’re going to do. You and I are going to walk out of this room and go down the hallway to our left. There’s a door at the end that leads to a staircase. That’s going to take us out of here, okay?”

“Then w-what?”

Damn, she sounded weak.

“Then you and I are going to go home and