Hunting Adeline (Cat and Mouse Duet #2)

He’ll have Jay working to unlock the doors, and it won’t take him long to figure out how, but all Xavier needs is a second to kill me.

Through blurred vision, I see Xavier’s fist fly towards my face. Instinctively,
I roll out of the way, causing his hand to bound off the hard floor. He shouts, shaking out his hand to rid himself of the pain.
Gritting my teeth, I kick out my leg, but he manages to catch me by the ankle
and drags me towards him.
His face is contorted with animalistic fury. Blood pours from his broken nose,
leaking into the cracks of his bared teeth.
I struggle against him, kicking my leg with all my might, managing to
dislodge his hand long enough to drive my foot into his face.
He turns just in time, my heel only clipping his temple.
“Fucking bitch,” he snarls, grabbing at my legs again and climbing on top of me. I thrash violently, only assisting him in rolling me to my stomach and pinning my hands to my sides with his knees. He tears at my dress, and for a moment, I lose control and descend into panic. A scream rips from my throat as he lifts my dress up past my ass.
No matter how hard I fight, he only squeezes me tighter between his thighs,
and my efforts are useless.
The clang of his buckle is what snaps me out of it.
I’ll be damned if this fucker ever puts his dick anywhere near me again.
Panting heavily, I stop moving and lie my face onto the cool tile.
He chuckles, believing I’ve given up just like every other time. I used to lie
there and just take it, knowing that fighting would only make it worse.
“There ya go, diamond. That’s a good—"
Growling, I buck against him, catching him off guard and causing him to
pitch forward. And then I rear my head back, bashing it directly into his nose.
He lets out an agonized wail, his grip on me loosening. Twisting, I drive my
fist directly into his trachea.
His eyes nearly pop out of their sockets, his cries depleting as he struggles for
oxygen. Right at that moment, the door bashes open, the sound thunderous.
Zade strides in, the fury on his face so potent that all his distinguishable features get lost in it.
“Zade, don’t kill him,” I shout, a different kind of panic sprouting when he grabs Xavier by the back of his blazer and lifts him like he’s holding up a goddamn cat by the scruff of its neck. He grips him tight enough that it reopens the cut on his hand, his blood beginning to trail down his wrist.
“Zade!” I shout, scrambling towards them when I see him slide his gun from
the back of his pants, a silencer already screwed on. He doesn’t hear me, so I do
the only thing I can think of and grab the barrel of his gun, twisting it towards
me.
His head snaps to me, his eyes wide with a mixture of rage and disbelief.
“Don’t. Kill. Him.”
Breathing heavily, he growls and yanks the gun from my grip, shoving it back
into his pants. He punches the side of Xavier’s head, knocking him out cold.
Despite that he is now dead weight in Zade’s hand, he still holds him up like he’s
as light as a feather.
He’s too busy getting in my face, baring his teeth. “You ever do that again, little mouse, I will bend you over my knee and use that barrel in your tight little ass. You understand me?”
I grimace and nod my head, realizing now how close he came to shooting me.
Even if it were my fault, he would’ve never forgiven himself.
“Slap me, punch me, kick me in the goddamn balls. But do not point my gun
at yourself.”
I nod my head again, reality starting to catch up to me now that I’m no longer
under attack. Zade’s voice becomes a distant whisper, and I grapple with the tunnel vision, slowly narrowing my sight.
My system is crashing, and I struggle to hold on to my sanity.
Xavier tried to rape me. He came close to succeeding.
Spread those legs, diamond.
You’re so pink. I can’t wait to turn it red with blood.
Jay must say something to Zade because he quickly drops Xavier, his head hitting the tile with a fleshy smack, and slides his mask back over his face.
Security comes barreling into the room a moment later, distracting him before
he can see just how panicked I am. Two men wearing three-piece suits are pointing their guns right at us.
“Drop your weapons!” one of them shouts. Zade raises his hands, and mine go up on instinct as well.
“No need to shout, gentlemen. I was simply saving my girl from getting
assaulted by this man right here.”
The two guards glance down at an unconscious Xavier, but they don’t seem
inclined to drop their weapons.
“Is that Xavier Delano?” one of them asks, trying to get a good look at him.
“No,” Zade lies. Xavier’s face is still covered, but if he’s been coming here often enough, he might be recognizable by his hair or stature. Sometimes something as simple as their hands can be easily identified if you know them well enough.
I know I could recognize those hands from a mile away…
The guards shuffle deeper into the room, attempting to get a better view of Xavier. My heart pounds so heavily that my chest aches, and my vision is blackening.
I’m spiraling, and the knowledge that it could get me shot isn’t enough to set
me straight.
“P-please,” I whisper. “He was trying to hurt me.”
The guards look at each other and slowly lower their guns, appearing slightly
concerned by my garbled words. It won’t matter in the end. Xavier is too
important, and they’re not going to just let us go.
“Addie,” Zade whispers, and at first, I’m not sure what he’s trying to convey,
but then he tips his chin up, as if telling me to keep it up.
Distract them. That’s what he wants.
Though by the tension lining his muscles and how he’s stepping in my
direction, he’s ready to say fuck them and rush to me. He can see that I’m breaking, and he’s caught between comforting me and getting us out alive.
I dip my chin in acknowledgement. It’s not hard when I’m on the verge of losing it anyway. The tears in my eyes spill over, and my lip trembles. I let out a cry, grip my hair in my hands, and pull.
“H-he was tr-trying to r-rape me,” I sob.
“Whoa, whoa, hey, it’s okay. We’ll get this sorted out.”

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