“Holt. No.”
He reached, grabbed something much bigger than a rat. Smooth. Soft.
Another scream. A sob. Shouting outside the door.
“Holt. Please. It’s me. Naiya.”
“Naiya.” A shriek came from outside. “Doug. Break it down.”
Holt froze. Beneath his palms he could feel the thud of a pulse. Water dripped on his hand.
No. Not water. Tears.
Naiya.
He ripped his hands away, rolled off the bed. Naiya curled up on the mattress, her hands around her neck. Sobbing.
“Fuck.” He reached for her across the bed as the door continued to shake. “I thought I was back in the dungeon … I didn’t know. Did I hurt you?”
“Door.” She pointed behind him, waving him away. “It’s my friend, Ally.”
Holt didn’t move. “I hurt you.”
“Please…” She swallowed, her voice soft, broken. “Open the door.”
He unlocked the door and pulled it open. A woman pushed past him and ran into the room, leaving him face to face with a man only an inch or two shorter than him, but with at least fifty pounds on him in weight.
“On the ground.” The dude pointed to the floor. “Hands behind your head.”
“What the fuck?” Holt folded his arms. “You some kind of cop?”
“He is a cop,” the woman—Ally—shouted. “So you’d better do what he says.”
“Where’s your uniform?”
“It’s okay, Doug.” Naiya said from the circle of Ally’s arms. “He didn’t mean to hurt me. He was half asleep.”
The cop stared at Holt and he stared right back, each of them assessing the other. Any other day, Holt would have been confident he could take the bastard down, but today—tonight—he might have to work at it.
“Doug. Stand down.” Naiya broke away from Ally, stepped between Holt and Doug. Even from where he stood, Holt could see the marks of his fingers around her neck. One more second and he would have choked her. He might be out of the dungeon, but it wasn’t out of him. Maybe it never would be.
How could he keep her close if he was a danger to her? And what the fuck had he been thinking putting this innocent girl back in Viper’s sights? But how else would he lure Viper and to exact his revenge? And how else could he keep Naiya safe?
Without thinking, Holt reached out and lightly stroked the marks on Naiya’s neck. She shuddered, and Ally slapped his hand away.
“Paws off, biker bastard.”
“Ally!”
“Look what he did to you,” Ally’s voice rose to a shriek. If not for the hulking presence of her man, Holt would have been tempted to gag the bitch. He’d never heard a woman shriek so loud.
“He thought he was in Viper’s dungeon,” Naiya said. “You’re a nurse. You know about trauma and psychological distress.”
“All I know is that a biker was strangling my best friend and if we hadn’t got here when we did, she’d be dead.”
Holt grabbed a shirt from the chair. “I’ll go wait outside till you’re packed up and ready to go.”
“No.” Naiya spun around to face him. “I asked them to come here to look after you. Ally’s a nurse, and Doug had medical training for his police work. Since you won’t go to a hospital, they’re the best you’re going to get.”
“I’m not—”
Naiya cupped his face with her hands and drew him down. “I’m okay. I know you didn’t mean to hurt me. I understand, Holt. I had a … traumatic event and I sometimes wake and think I’m still there. That’s why I sleep with the light on.”
Something shifted inside him as she held his gaze, clicking into place. Her hands felt right on him, her words resonated in his chest. In that moment he wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around her and keep her safe.
But he kept his hands down and his desire at bay. “I’ll get another room.”
“You don’t need to do that. We’ll work it out.” She slid her hand through his and squeezed, a soothing gesture that would have amused him if he hadn’t found such comfort in her touch.
“So how about we start again,” she said. “This is Doug.” Naiya gestured to the cop. He had a round, smooth face and wide blue eyes framed by long blonde lashes. Christ. If he hadn’t been six feet tall, with a good-size belly, Holt would have sworn he was staring at a kid.
“And this is Ally.”
The short, curvy blonde with the bob and way too much makeup scowled. “Don’t look at Doug ’cause if you hurt my girl, it’ll be me coming for you.”
“And my boyfriend…” Naiya looked to the door, and her brow creased in a frown. “Didn’t Maurice come with you?”