out of hand, and I can’t handle it alone anymore.”
She must have hit her head when she fell. Nothing Dennis said made any sense. “Wait, what are you talking about?”
“I’ll explain later. Let’s get you inside before they come back armed. Where the hell is Ethan?” he asked, getting her to her feet with a hand under the arm that wasn’t sliced up to help her keep her balance.
“On his way,” she told him, wincing with the ache in her ribs. The scrapes stung, and her head and face throbbed where she’d been hit, but all in all, it could have been much worse, and would have been if Dennis hadn’t shown up when he did. “You’ve got good timing.”
Dennis grunted, walking her slowly around the building and swiveling his head, keeping an eye out with his gun still at the ready. “Not good enough. Two minutes earlier, and those two would have been target practice, and you wouldn’t be bleeding.”
Brett supposed he was right, but she wasn’t dead. She hobbled up the stairs with his help, only to realize she didn’t have the keys. “I don’t know where I dropped them,” she sighed.
“Stay here,” he instructed and started down the stairs, just as the sound of another motorcycle engine reached them. Looking out, Brett felt a wave of relief as Ethan pulled up. He launched himself off the bike toward Dennis, who instantly had his hands in the air. “I’m here to help, bro.”
“It’s alright, Ethan,” Brett called down, leaning on the railing.
Glancing back and forth between them, Ethan raced up the stairs. “What the hell happened?”
Dennis was behind him, keys in hand. “Get her inside. I’m going to make sure the area’s clear.”
Brett took the keys gratefully, but her hands shook too bad to get the lock open, and Ethan had to take them from her to open the door. He got her to the couch, and she collapsed, exhausted and shivering. She realized she’d been in shock and was only now starting to process what had happened and what had almost happened. “Dennis?” Ethan asked, raising an eyebrow.
She shook her head. “Showed up just in time. They were going to…” She trailed off, looking away. She didn’t want to say it. “Two men in masks assaulted me.” She looked down at her arm, seeing the wide gash, and she scowled. Her shirt was torn, exposing her bra, and she was sure her face was swollen and bruised. “One of them had a knife. I don’t think they had guns on them, or they wouldn’t have taken off so fast when Dennis started shooting.”
Ethan cursed harshly and laced his hands behind his head, gazing up at the ceiling with an expression full of rage. “I can’t believe I left you alone for half an hour! Dammit, someone was just waiting for this opportunity, and I handed it right over to them!”
“Stop, Ethan. You can’t blame yourself. I all but smooth talked you into it,” she countered. “Besides, I’m in too much pain to be mad right now. I’ve got this slice on my arm, my ribs are bruised, and I don’t even want to know what my face looks like.”
He knelt in front of her. “You can tell me it’s not my fault all you want. I still feel terrible, and I’m so sorry I wasn’t here.” He touched her face tenderly, and she flinched a little as his fingertips caught the bruised cheekbone and again at the corner of her mouth. “It’ll be fine. It’s going to bruise, though.”
She nodded. She could feel it swelling. “Dennis knows something, and he came to tell me whatever it was. When he gets up here, we need to listen with an open mind. He didn’t come here to hurt me, or he would have helped those assholes.”
He looked at bewildered as she felt but nodded. “He’s going to have to come with us. We’re patching your arm up, and I’m taking you home with me. You can’t stay around here. It’s not safe, even with a tail.”
She would have argued, but Brett suddenly questioned everything, and she didn’t even feel comfortable in her own home, even with Ethan right in front of her. “I need stitches.”
“I’ll have Zeke’s old lady take care of it. She’s a nurse. She’s done a great job patching up a lot of shit for us since she came around. Now, where are your first aid supplies?”
“In the bathroom cabinet.” He got up and disappeared, coming