Page 51 of Chef
“Where’s the asshole?”
Huh. I even hear her voice too. I must be in a bad way.
“Joe, get ready. Justice, you’re with me. Loyal, point that big fucking gun the other direction. Jesus Christ you’re scaring me!”
Wait.
“Cher! You made it!” Damian’s voice rings out loud and clear. Why the fuck am I hallucinating about Damian?
“Yeah, now why the hell are you bleeding and where the hell is he?”
“One of them questions can be answered after you finish his ass. And he’s waiting for you at the altar.”
OK. No matter how much like death warmed up I feel there’s no fuckingwayI’d hallucinate all this shit. Which means, Sage and the crew really are outside of wherever the fuck I am.
Finding my voice I yell as loud as my hoarse throat can handle. The sound comes from the depths of my soul, and that’s when my fight kicks in. When my hands and feet finally come back online, I start thrashing. Punching, kicking, anything to get someone to hear me. To know that I’m here and I’m alive and more importantly, I want tolive.I want the life I promised Sage.
“Holy shit, Takoda?Takoda!”My girl's wails are like music to my goddam ears.
I fight harder and then light hits me and my eyes screw shut, pain blasting in my head at the suddenness of everything.
“Takoda!”
“Babe?” I gingerly open my eyes and try not to fight when hands grab me roughly and yank me up and out of whatever prison I was being held in, setting me on my feet.
“Takoda!” Sage yells, throwing her arms around me.
I flinch slightly but that doesn't stop me from crushing her to me. This is all I wanted while I was being broken down. Sage.
“Where is he?” Sage seethes. She moves to step back but I don’t want her to go. Not yet.
“Make him wait,” Damian says. “You just got your man back. Preacher man can wait a few.”
I give Damian a grateful smile. The big man just grins and moves to stand closer to his best friend. Justice hands him some zip ties and his grin gets even wider.
“You know how many are inside?” I ask. As shitty as I feel, I know my girl is itching to get this shit over with.
“You mean all up, or the live ones?” We all turn to stare at Damian, easy smile on his face.
“Uh, live ones?” Sage asks, side eyeing me.
“Two. They ain’t moving nowhere fast, mind.”
Sage moves a little in my arms, tipping her head back to stare up at me. “How long?” My brows pull in, unsure what she’s asking. “How long did they beat you until you repented your sins?”
Swallowing, I think back. They kept me in a dark room. Fed me at erratic times. There was no point of reference for how long I was there.
“What day is it?” I ask, hoarsely.
“Wednesday.”
Fuck. It’s been three days. Three days they worked on me until everything went dark. Until I found myself here.
“How long, Takoda?” Her eyes search my face, my jaw as it clenches, follows my gaze as I stare at the ring on my finger.
“I never repented.”
Sage stiffens, stepping back, her eyes on me. Fury colors them even darker in her pale face and I know I’ve unleashed something dangerous. I’m a lucky fucker because I know this woman will burn the fucking world down for the people she loves. And she’s all mine.
