She swallowed heavily before nodding slowly. Devon turned away from him, wadding up Joey’s shirt he threw it in front of the door. Bracing himself he bolted through the doorway a split second after the shot rang out. The older man holding the gun took a startled step back as Devon rushed him. He took another step back, raising the gun as he attempted to fire it again. He didn’t have time to squeeze the trigger before Devon seized hold of the gun. He ripped it fiercely out of the man’s hands, causing him to cry out in pain as two of his fingers snapped.
Throwing the gun aside, Devon thrust his elbow into his windpipe as he carried the man backward into the wall and slammed him hard against it. The man made a gurgling noise, choking as he kicked wildly against him. “Devon!” Cassie screamed. “Devon!”
He caught a flurry of motion as she came skidding around the corner, barely catching her balance when her feet slipped out from under her. She righted herself, her eyes finding him instantly as relief filled her. Anger spurted through him as he shook his head, he should have known that she would not stay where she was told, but just once he wished that she would listen to him. Just once he wished she would think about her own safety first. Though he knew that was an impossible thing to ask for. “I’m ok,” he said softly.
She nodded briefly before turning her attention to the man he held. Her eyes widened in surprise, her mouth parted on a small gasp. She stood perfectly still for a moment, and then, everything changed. Her mouth snapped closed, her eyes blazed a violent shade of red as fury twisted her beautiful features.
“You!” she accused fiercely.
Devon stiffened; the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end as he turned slowly back toward the man he held. The man was staring at him, his blue eyes wide in terror, his face a florid shade of red. Devon dug his arm in tighter, causing the man to sputter and choke, gasping for breath as he struggled against Devon’s hold. Judging by Cassie’s reaction to him, this was the man that had hurt her the most.
And Devon hated him for it.
A loud snarl, and a vicious curse, snapped Devon’s head around. Julian had entered the room, his hand still wrapped tight around Joey’s throat, but his eyes were focused upon the man that Devon held. A snarl twisted his mouth, his elongated fangs cut into his lower lip. He shoved Joey brutally away from him, slamming the young man off of the wall. For a moment Devon was certain that Julian was going to charge at them, but he remained where he was, just barely hanging onto his composure. It would not take much for him to attack though.
Chris appeared behind him, his hand wrapped tightly around Dani’s arm as he pulled her into the room. Chris stared hard around the room for a moment before settling on the man that Devon held. Dani trembled in his grasp. “You could have killed me!” she snapped at the man, her eyes shimmering with tears.
The stranger struggled within Devon’s grasp, the air whistling in and out of him. Though Devon longed to crush his windpipe, he eased his grip on him. He was sure they would need him for some answers. The man choked in some air, sputtering as Devon stepped away. He took hold of Cassie’s hand, pulling her slightly behind him as the stranger stumbled forward.
Cassie’s hand tightened on his in displeasure as she took a step from behind his back. “Who are you?” she demanded.
The man righted himself; his hand cradled his wounded throat as he struggled for air. He glanced wildly around the room, searching for an escape route and finding none. “You had better start talking,” Devon snarled.
His gaze snapped back to Devon, his eyes wild with fear. “You may want to close the door,” he said in a hoarse whisper. “There are still a few of them running around out there.”
Chris hesitated for a moment before reaching back and closing the door. He slid the lock into place, keeping his hand against the knob as he turned slowly back to the room. “Who are you?” Cassie demanded again.
The man’s eyes lit upon her, hatred bloomed in them. Devon growled, stepping swiftly in front of her in order to block her from the man’s loathsome stare. “I haven’t killed in a long time, but I won’t hesitate to rip out your throat if you look at her like that again!” he hissed. The man’s eyes snapped back to him, fear widened them as he backed into the wall. “Now, who the hell are you?”
“Derek,” he answered. “My name is Derek.”
Cassie inhaled sharply behind him, her hand tightened painfully around his. He could hear the quickening beat of her heart; feel the horror, terror, and confusion that washed through her. She pressed closer to him, her breath coming swiftly in and out, her chest rising and falling rapidly against him as the stranger pinned her with his hate filled gaze.
“Her father.”
CHAPTER 7
Devon grabbed Cassie as her knees buckled, catching her before she hit the floor. Her air was strangled in her chest, the constriction in it making it impossible for her to breathe. He grabbed hold of her face, holding it gently in his grasp. “Breathe,” he whispered. “Just breathe.”
She gasped in air; it seared into her lungs, burning all the way down to the hollow pit of her stomach. Her breath shuddered out of her, pain racked through her extremities. Devon held her tight, keeping her somewhat grounded through the racking pain that suffused her. She gulped down another harsh breath, letting it out in a hitching sob that threatened to shatter her.
Her father! This man, this cruel bastard that had so easily tortured her was her father!? It couldn’t be; her father was dead. Her father had been a good man! At least she had convinced herself that he was a decent man over the years, when she had daydreamed about what he had been like. Her grandmother had always told her that he was a good man, that he had loved her mother, and Cassie, dearly.
But apparently she had been wrong. Her father had brought her here. Her father had stood impassively by as they had tortured and drugged her. Her father had helped them to do it all to her, he had been the one in charge of her torment. Her father hated her!
Another sob exploded from her, her fingers curled tightly around Devon’s wrists as she tried to keep herself grounded with him, tried to gain strength from him. Devon loved her, her friends loved her and that was all that mattered, she tried to remind herself. She had never known her father, and although this man claimed to be him, he was not.
Her father didn’t matter, she repeatedly told herself. This man was a stranger, a monster. This man may have helped to create her, but he had not made her the person that she was. He was nothing to her. And yet she still felt as if her heart had been ripped out, still felt as if someone had slammed her in the chest with a baseball bat.