Helpless (Steel Demons MC #5) - Crystal Ash Page 0,64
own weapon out of the window.
“We can’t leave without Shadow!” I hid behind the open door, looking through the dark glass as T-Bone and Grudge made their way to the vehicle.
“I’m sorry, hon. We can’t fuckin’ wait around.” T-Bone stood in front of me as a shield, helping return fire.
“There he is!” In a bold move, Larkan stuck his torso out of the passenger window and waved his arm. “Shadow, come on!”
Through the smoke and gunfire, I saw him. And then I didn’t. Holy shit, he was fast. He made his way to us, taking cover from gunfire under the plants and patio furniture, swift and powerful like a black jaguar in the jungle.
Shadow picked up speed, making a break for it as he sprinted across the grassy lawn. My chest began to relax with relief. He was so close! Just a few more yards and he’d be right here.
“Bro, look out!” T-Bone screamed at the top of his lungs, waving his arms frantically. “Take cover!”
“What? What is it?” I demanded.
Shadow suddenly fell forward and I screamed. Fear and confusion rose in equal amounts. I didn’t hear a shot, so why had he fallen?
He sprang to his feet quickly, so I thought he must have tripped. Then he fell again and I saw them—arrows sticking out of his back attached to long ropes. I followed the lines with my eyes to the top of the gazebo, where the shooters were hidden by dense tree covers.
I realized with horror they must have had some kind of crank or pulley system, because despite Shadow’s fighting to move forward, they were pulling him back.
Twenty
SHADOW
I bet this fucking hurts on normal people.
I fell to my knees again, bending over to keep my weight low and forward. If I stood up, they could pull me straight back off my feet and potentially embed the arrows deeper.
My hands swept over my hidden pockets, but all my knives were gone, embedded in various people’s throats and hearts. It became too chaotic earlier to retrieve them. Bracing one hand on the ground, I reached back, feeling for an arrow shaft to snap, but just my luck, they were both out of my reach.
A harsh pull on the ropes sent my knees sliding backward on the ground. Fuck, this was bad. These arrows hit me deep, and were probably barbed in some way to stay embedded in my flesh. Sick fucks and their torture devices.
“Shadow!”
Something else hit me from the front, but this was warm, soft, and had small hands wrapping around my neck.
“Mariposa?” What the fuck was she doing? I saw her get in the car. “You can’t be out here, it’s not safe!”
She ignored me, reaching over my shoulder for the arrows. I felt a weird pulling and jerking motion on my back. “Shit, I can’t break them! They’re too solid.”
If I wasn’t on my knees already, I would have fallen to them. She ran out here to save me. She was too good, too perfect, and she could not be captured by these people.
“Stop.” I grabbed her arms and brought them back between us. “Run back to the car. Now.”
“No.” Her hands flew over her dress, searching herself. “Shit, I must have dropped my knife. You don’t have any of yours?”
“No, I don’t—ugh, fuck!”
The ropes pulled me back another foot.
“Shadow!” She was crying now, and panicked. Her fingers curled into my shirt, forearms braced against my chest. “I’m not letting them take you.”
I wrapped both arms around her back, shielding her in case any one of these fuckers dared to take a shot. Using all my strength, I walked my knees forward to reclaim some ground. The ropes went taut, and while it didn’t hurt, I swore I could feel my muscles tearing.
“Mari.” I wasn’t sure when exactly I started using the shortened version of her name, but it felt right now. “If they capture you, it’s going to be a lot worse for you than it is for me.”
“I don’t care.” Her fingers grazed my cheeks, stroking over my scar. I felt her shaky breaths over my nose and lips. “I’m not leaving you behind.”
“I’ll be fine. They can’t hurt me, remember?”
“That doesn’t make it okay to leave you.”
We slid back again a few inches, and she clutched onto me tightly with a whimper. Her forehead rested on mine, the salt of a wet tear falling to my mouth. I realized then I was holding