an exhale as his head leaned against my shoulder. “I’m sorry, Remington. I’m going to need to retrieve whatever they stuck inside you.”
“It’s Ben Wa Balls. They’re too big,” I warned, watching Hunter’s cheek twinge.
“They’re rather large, Van Helsing. You might want to wait until she is in a healing sleep, before forcing her to endure more pain. That area of her body is rather—wounded. I’m afraid to ask what that murderous bitch did to her or allowed to be done before we arrived.” Hunter’s eyes studied mine as tears slipped free to roll down my cheeks.
“She’s good enough to travel,” Rhys announced, lifting me into his arms. I wrapped my arms around his throat tightly. “I have you, Love. Laura will never harm you again.”
“Cole?” I whispered, feeling a sliver of fear.
“Already on his way to the estate with Acyn and Nyx, healing. Acyn will keep Cole from harming Nyx while she feeds him,” he whispered against my ear.
I looked over Rhys’s shoulder, where Ian, Conrad, and Hunter followed closely behind us, and saw the barn explode. It was a sight to see, the head of the alphas walking behind us, guarding us as we escaped a fiery hell. Men were loading the horses into waiting trailers, and Van Helsing knights watched Rhys carry me out, his cloak covering my naked body.
We slid into a waiting car, and the others climbed into the vehicles behind us. Rhys held me tightly against him, and I noted the tremble in his body.
“You knew that if the phone were on, I’d be able to trace it.”
“Yes,” I admitted. “It’s one of the things taught at E.V.I.E.”
“I’m aware. It’s something I slipped into the lessons in case I had to save one of them during capture. I’m glad it helped me find you, Remington. You frightened me, and I don’t intend to allow you out of my sight for a while.”
“The Ben Wa Balls that Laura placed inside of me are silver. She wanted to force me into ripping them from my body to use on Cole to save myself. She did this to start a war between our bloodlines again.”
“Don’t worry about those. You have broken ribs, and tendons torn apart in both of your arms. Your stomach is swollen and you are bleeding internally from the blows you sustained by a wooden bat that was discarded and left beside my favorite car. We healed many of your cuts, stopping most of the bleeding, but some still need attention. You have damage to your face from the repeated strikes to your cheeks and eyes, and you’re slurring your words. You’re going to need to sleep for a while in order to heal the damage. I’ll take care of you, Remington. I’ll remove the balls when you enter your healing sleep. I should have been here.”
“You saved me, and that is all that matters.” My eyes grew heavy. His grunt sounded within my ear as he kissed my shoulder. It was probably the only part of me that wasn’t cut or broken. “Don’t leave me alone when I fall asleep, Rhys. I don’t want to relive this in my nightmares. Stay with me, please?”
“I’ll be right here beside you, Love. Rest, we’re still an hour out from the estate. I won’t let you relive this experience again, even if it means never leaving your side.”
Chapter Thirty-One
I woke to someone washing my skin, and I jerked away from the hands touching me. Rhys held me tightly while Nyx stared at me uneasily. I was in a bathtub, being bathed by my best friend while the man I’d had scrupulously, delicious sex with, held me tightly against his hard body. I shivered, taking in the unmarred skin on my body. Frowning, I watched as Nyx knelt in front of me, exhaling a shuddering breath.
“I told you she would come back if you put her in hot water,” Nyx snorted while rolling her eyes dramatically. “You asshole,” Nyx said, glaring at me, “have had us all terrified that Laura broke that brilliant brain of yours.”
I tried to speak, but my mouth was parched. Nyx jumped, moving to the pitcher of water she’d had waiting beside the tub. I accepted the glass, downing the contents, before asking for more. Turning my head, I peered up at the IV pole attached to a bag of saline that sat beside the bathtub. I followed the tube to where it connected to my arm and groaned.