Pulling away from where I’d been holding her, she ran to where Mason was now zip-tying his hands together. I watched as she fell to her knees, pushed Mason away, cradled Trent’s head in her lap, and continued to run her hands over his head and shoulders as she apologized to him.

I was going to be sick. I stumbled back into the wall, and somehow kept myself vertical as I felt my world shatter around me. What new nightmare had I just landed in?

She kissed him.

She left me for him.

I’d spent over a month searching for her, and worrying about her . . . and within a minute of getting her, she ran from me to another man.

“Oh God. Trent, wake up, please.”

He groaned and whispered her name, and she cried out in relief.

“Rachel, get away from him. Now,” Mason demanded when I just continued to stand there, staring at them like a bad car accident.

She looked over at Mason, then me, and reached an arm out toward me. “Please release him and call an ambulance. Hurry, he’s hurt!”

“What the fuck, Rachel?” Mason looked up at me with a confused expression.

Grinding my teeth, I turned so I couldn’t see them anymore and spoke into the empty hall. Trying to get my mind on anything else. “How many others are there?”

“Seven,” Trent groaned from the ground. “There were thirteen here, but I took out five last night.”

Turning back around, I saw Rachel staring up at me with Trent’s head still resting in her hands, on her lap. She was crying silently, and even in the dark I could see the hurt on her face. But her hurt didn’t make sense. She wasn’t the one that felt betrayed.

“Why did you take them out?” Mason asked, but I couldn’t take my eyes from Rachel.

She kept staring at me even as she answered for Trent. “They tried to take me from him and they were going to kill him. He was going to help me escape, he was trying to keep me safe and one of them shot him last night during the fight.”

“There were three outside smoking when we came in, two guarding the door to come in here, and two guarding the metal door behind me. They’re all unconscious and tied up upstairs. You’re sure there are no others?”

“Yes,” Trent grunted as he sat up, and away from Rachel.

Mason approached me and whispered so his voice wouldn’t carry. “What the fuck is happening right now?”

“I have no idea.”

“Do we call a bus?”

I shook my head and shrugged helplessly. “We will when we call everyone else. Let’s get him upstairs and away from my goddamn fiancée.”

Mason walked in front of me, and grabbing Trent’s arms, roughly pulled him up. I had no doubt he was doing that for my benefit.

A pained cry left Trent as Mason yanked him up the stairs, and Rachel yelled, “Mason, stop! He’s been shot, and he’s not going to hurt anyone. Untie his hands, please!”

“Rachel”—I cleared my throat and somehow managed to stop looking at her—“come on, we need to get you out of here.”

“Please don’t hurt him, he protected me!” I watched her struggle to stand and realized too late that I should have been trying to help her. “You need to do something, they’ll kill him when they wake up.”

What was I supposed to say? I’m sorry? She was breaking my fucking heart.

The door burst open, and Mason came back in.

Giving Mason a look, I nodded toward Rachel and said, “We need to get Rachel out to the truck. Then we’ll, uh, we’ll call everyone.” I was thankful for our years of working together as he reached for Rachel, and began leading her up the stairs. I needed a minute to process everything I’d just seen.

Falling back against the wall, I bent over and rested my hands on my knees as I breathed heavily through my nose. This couldn’t be happening. I couldn’t lose her now. I’d almost lost her too many times, and too much had happened between us for this to end us. There was no way I was about to let whatever happened to her here, or whatever was going on between her and Trent, take her away from me. I would fight for her. I’d always fight for her.

When I’d collected myself enough, I made my way upstairs. Glancing over at the eight men, my gaze hardened as I saw Trent sitting there, head bent so he was looking at the floor. Bastard didn’t even have the decency to look at me as I walked right past him on my way out to the truck.

My heart picked up seeing Rachel, but I tried to control it . . . not knowing where we stood anymore.

Mason walked over to meet me, and stayed facing the building behind me as he spoke to me. “She’s just sitting there begging me not to turn him in.”

It felt like I’d been punched in the stomach. Begging Mason not to turn in one of her captors. That’s all she’s doing? Not thanking Mason for helping rescue her? Not wanting to see me?

“She’s covered in blood”—Mason continued—“and before you go freaking out, I’m almost positive it’s his. She looks pretty bruised, but I don’t think she’s bleeding anywhere.”

“Bruised? What the fuck, where is she bruised?”

“Half of her face is practically black and blue, and when I tried helping her into the truck, she almost screamed from where I was touching her arms.”

I didn’t care if Trent had been the reason behind it or not, I was going to fucking murder him. I started turning, but Mason was right there with a hand pressed to my chest.

“Don’t do it, Kash. I know you want to, but don’t fuck up your life over this. What the hell is even going on here? I thought for sure she would have been a hell of a lot more excited to see us. She seemed happy for all of fifteen seconds before running back to him.”

“I know,” I growled, and gave him a warning glare. “I think it’s some fucked-up form of Stockholm syndrome.”

“Shit.” Mason glanced behind him at the building, before looking over my shoulder where the truck was. “Are you okay?”

I looked up at Mason and huffed, but it sounded pained. “I spent a month thinking my fiancée was being tortured and murdered. I thought I would never see her again. And not only did I just watch her kiss another man, within seconds of having her in my arms again, she ran out of them and back to him! Do you think I’m fucking okay?”

Mason and I both looked over when a choking sound came from Rachel, now looking at us through the open truck door. “It isn’t—it isn’t like that! I just . . . Trent was . . . it isn’t like that, Kash, I swear!” She dropped her head into her bloodstained hands and started sobbing again.

I mumbled a curse and slowly walked over to her. My hands clenched into fists when I saw the bruising on her face when she looked back up at me. “We’re going to call the department and have them come pick up everyone. They’re going to want to question you, and I want someone to check your face. Okay?”

“I swear I didn’t—it isn’t like that! He just took care of me, and I thought we were going to die . . . a-and I’m sorry! All I wanted was to get back to you, he was going to help me find you, you have to believe me.”

“Okay, Rachel. It’s okay.”

“I’m happy to see you, I swear!”

And yet it sounded like she was trying to convince herself rather than me. I dropped my head back so I was facing the sky, and ground my teeth to stop my jaw from shaking. I just needed to be thankful that she was alive. The rest . . . well, the rest we would just have to sort out later. Bringing my head back down, I forced a smile and stepped back, and away from her.

“Stay here while we call the department and inform everyone of what happened today. When this is over, if you want to go back to our home”—I swallowed past the lump in my throat—“then, uh, that’s where . . . that’s where I’ll take you.”

“Logan,” she choked out, but I had already turned and walked back to where Mason was playing with his phone.

“Do you think you should be upsetting her more right now? Maybe just—”

“Just what, Mase? You’re not the one having to go through this shit, so don’t tell me how to fucking act right now. Let’s just do our jobs.” I let out an aggravated groan and rested both hands on top of my head and forced myself not to turn and look at Rachel. “Did you call the department?”

“Yep, before you ever came out of the building. Police and ambulance should be here any minute. Chief and some of the others will be here not long after.”

I nodded my head and walked toward the building just so I could get away from Rachel, and Mason’s observant eyes.

“Kash,” Mason said in clear warning, but I didn’t stop.

As soon as I entered the building, I went directly to Trent and bent down so I was closer to his eye level. He finally looked up at me, and his dark eyes were hard as we stared at each other.

“If you put those bruises on my future wife’s face”—I growled—“I will pay back every one tenfold.”

“I would die before doing that to her.”

I saw red. My hands clenched into fists as I yelled, “I’m sure you’ll understand why I don’t fucking believe you! You’ve held her here for over a goddamn month, you worthless piece of shit! If I find out that any of that torture actually happened, you won’t live to see the next day!”

Trent kept his eyes on me but didn’t say anything else until after I’d stood and began walking away. “She loves you.”

My chest clenched painfully. “You should have reminded yourself of that before you kissed her.” Turning to look at him, I held his gaze as I said, “She’s mine. Do you get that? You can’t have her, and if you touch her again, I won’t be held responsible for my actions. She belongs. To. Me.”

When his eyes fell back to the floor, I turned and left the building. The faint sound of sirens could be heard as I made my way to Mason.