Outside, I find the two men looking over the ATVs, we have four that we keep here because of the terrain, it’s good for mobility when you’re out hunting and whatnot.
“What’s the news?” I ask soon as I’m close enough for them to hear me without yelling.
“She okay?” Leo asks, and I nod in response.
“Careful with her when she gets like that, Theo, she doesn’t do it often but when things get to be too much she’ll have moments like this. Blame it on the fact my parents would lock her away whenever she got excited about anything or as punishment for not abiding by their rules,” Christian growls, explaining the reason for her reaction inside.
Blake being overwhelmed with everything changing so quickly for her must be taking its toll on her.
I can understand this and help her through it. I look forward to being the one to help her through when she needs me to.
Nodding, I clear my throat. “We going to get the SUV out of the snow?” I ask.
“Nope, we’re gearing up the ATVs. Don’t have time. Diego and Nicolo have spotted Ethan Dalca and Christian’s parents. We have maybe thirty minutes to get out of here. We need to take the ATVs and get to the other side of the mountain,” Leo mutters.
“Fuck, okay, I need to go get Blake. What about Blue?” I know she’s not going to leave her dog.
“I’m gonna strap Blue to the back of mine. Nicolo and Diego are gonna meet us when we get to the other side of the mountain in town,” Christian says.
I nod. This is the main reason for the ATVs, they’re quick for getting through the area when cars can’t be used. Turning on my heel, I rush back into the cabin and come to a halt when I find Blake standing there in the middle of the room with a knife to her throat and Boian, one of Andreas Gheata’s men, standing behind her.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
How the fuck did he get past two of our best enforcers? He had to have been watching, waiting for the perfect time to act.
“You wanna let her go?” I sneer.
“Nope, I think I’ll just hold her to me until her owner gets here. This bitch is now Gheata property,” Boian says snidely.
I don’t fuckin’ think so.
Blake is mine and I’m not about to let some asshole take her from me. She’s no property of the Gheatas. My Snowflake is a De Luca and the first chance I get I’m going to make it official. I don’t care if we only just started out.
I meet Blake’s gaze surprised to find her staring at me with trust rather than fear. I’m sure she’s scared out of her mind right now but she’s keeping herself in check. Good thing too. If she were showing that fear it would easily set me off.
I need to find a way to get her away from this man. I notice Blue out of the corner of my eye coming to. Fuckhead must have hurt her. Blue stands to her feet and shakes herself off while locking gazes on the man holding a knife to Blake.
Growling, she gets into a stance ready to attack. Boian turns his gaze minutely to look at the dog and it gives me the opening I need. I launch myself at him jerking the knife away from Blake’s throat. “Run,” I yell at her as I swing my fist at Boian connecting with his jaw. I need to get her out of here and then kill this asshole for daring to touch what’s mine.
Boian staggers back and then regains his footing. “Don’t run too far, your owner will be here soon to collect you,” he quips.
Something about his words causes me to snap and my vision goes red. I am not going to let anyone take her from me. Punch after punch, I pummel the fucker until he’s on the ground and I’m hovering over him. I finish him off by reaching out, grabbing both sides of his head, and snapping his neck.
Standing, I turn around breathing heavily to find Blake having not moved. She’s standing there with Blue at her feet staring at me with wide eyes. Tears well in them and I start to say something but the woman surprises me yet again by launching herself at me.
Blake wraps her arms around me and buries her face in my chest. “I’m so sorry you had to do that,” she cries.
“Bella, no crying. I’d do anything for you. Now let’s get out of here. Grab your boots and put them on. We don’t have time for you to change clothes. We gotta get out of here. Ethan Dalca and your parents are on their way up here,” I say, earning a nod from her.
Blake quickly does as I ask and grabs a jacket from the hook by the front door. At least that will be something to protect her from the weather outside. “I’m ready,” she whispers, sliding the jacket into place.
I nod and reach out to take her hand. She immediately grabs hold and I guide her outside. Blue follows us as we head for the shed where Leo and Christian are waiting with the running ATVs
Leo looks up and notices my features. “What happened?” he demands.
“Body’s inside,” I mutter. “We need to go now.”
Leo clenches his jaw and looks to Blake then back to me, he then nods in approval.
“Blue, come here,” Christian calls out.
The dog trots over to him. Christian grabs hold of Blue and puts a harness around her body and straps the damn harness to himself after Blue jumps onto the back of his ATV.
Leo climbs on his while I guide Blake to mine. I climb on first then help her on. “Hold on tight, Snowflake,” I mutter, wrapping her arms around me.
Blake tightens her arms around my waist and presses her head to my back to block the whistling wind. Fuckin’ hope we get to the other side quick and she doesn’t get sick from being out in this weather without the proper clothes on.
Fuckin’ great way to spend Valentine’s Day.
Chapter Twelve
Blake
When I left home looking for a chance to have time away from my parents to figure out what I wanted to do with my life, I never imagine it would be turned upside down. How much of a fool do I need to be to have been blinded by it all?
My parents wanted to sell me to a man who would want to treat me like a slave rather than a human being.
The man who had held a knife to my throat made sure to tell me what my owner, the man my parents wanted to introduce me to, would do to me. If Theo didn’t come in when he did, I’d have been out the front door and God knows where.
I’d been scared for Blue when I’d seen her in the corner. I didn’t know what the guy did to her but when she’d stood up, I felt relief. She’d given Theo the chance he needed to save me. Then stood next to me as I witnessed Theo killing a man.
Maybe I should have felt horrified by his actions, but I didn’t. No, I felt nothing but relief the vile man wouldn’t be able to hurt me anymore. I refused to let Theo think he scared me by doing what he needed to do.
Now with my arms wrapped around his waist, I hold on tightly, so I don’t fall off the back of the ATV. He, Christian, and Leo zip through the trees avoiding them with sheer luck as they speed through the snowy mountain terrain as quickly as they can.
Due to the wind, my fingers are numb and I’m freezing. But if it means we’re heading to safety then so be it.
I might not know what all is going on, but I can only guess it’s bad. For them to not take the main road and instead go through the wooded snowy mountain it’s far worse than anything. Christian may have lied to me about who he is, but I do know one thing about him that he’s never hidden from me. He’s not scared of much. I trust in him and Theo both to keep me safe. Same goes for Leo De Luca. You can see the simple ruthlessness radiating off of him.