The others nodded their agreement and then quickly arranged their weapons so they wouldn’t make noise as they climbed into the two chutes, but they left them within easy reach in case they chose wrong and surprised an unsuspecting victim.
Isaac used the palms of his hands to reach upward and provide traction against the narrow walls of the chute and heaved himself up, repeating the process until he reached the hatch that led into the room. He held up his hand for the men behind him to halt and then signaled them to be ready on his go. He counted down by folding one finger at a time and when he got to three, he busted out the boards closing up the entrance to the hatch and dove through, rolling even as he brought his gun up, his gaze scanning the room for a target.
When his stare finally lighted on the huddled form in a fetal position on the floor several feet away, his heart nearly exploded out of his chest.
Jenna!
“Cover me,” he whispered to the others as he scrambled to his feet and dove toward her, reaching immediately for his knife to cut the ropes at her hands and feet.
Anger boiled in his veins as he unwrapped the tightly bound rope to reveal raw, bloody circles around each of her wrists and ankles. He yanked her up and into his arms, holding her tightly enough that he could feel her heart racing wildly against his chest. Then he pulled her away to inspect her for injuries, ignoring the fact that she was staring agape at him, eyes wide with shock.
Her blond hair was disheveled and as he took in the dark bruise to her cheek and the dried blood where her skin had been split, his nostrils flared in fury. But oh God, she was breathing. She was here. She was alive and he’d held her in his arms. For the first time since waking up alone, knowing she was gone, he felt himself relaxing and he could finally, finally breathe without Herculean effort.
Her lips curved into a surprised O and her gaze went from shocked to perplexed.
“What are you doing here?” she whispered. Her face lost some of its dazed look and her voice grew more urgent as she took in the other DSS members spilling into the room.
“You can’t be here!” she said in agitation. “Oh God, they’ll kill you. You have to go. Hurry! I’m begging you, Isaac. Go!”
She wrung her hands, drawing even more attention to the ragged, torn flesh. Every man’s eyes were locked on the bruise on her face and the abused flesh of her arms and legs. Their expressions were murderous, and Jenna begging them all to leave only pissed them off more.
“If you think I’m going anywhere without you then you’re crazy,” Isaac bit out as he herded her resisting body toward the laundry chute.
She sent Dane a pleading look. “They’ll hunt every single one of you down. They’ll find you,” she said brokenly.
“Good,” Dane said savagely. “I’m looking forward to it.”
“Fuckin’ A,” Zeke growled.
Jenna stared at them all in bewilderment, her shoulders slumping in defeat.
“No man left behind, darlin’,” Shadow said, curling his arm around her waist to give her a one-armed hug. “That’s the way we operate. Now come on before our presence is discovered.”
Fear made her go rigid, her eyes wild as she frantically glanced back at the door to the room. A round of curses went up and the moods of the men were savage. They were all practically snarling, pissed off that not only was Jenna scared out of her mind, and they had no way of knowing just how much she’d endured after Ramie had broken the pathway to her. Knowing what had been done to her for the short span of time Ramie had been able to connect with her was already more than they could stand. But they were also pissed that even now, she begged for them to go and save themselves like a bunch of fucking pussies and actually leave a defenseless woman to a life of degradation and pain.
The men surrounded her, forming a tight circle of protection. When she tore her gaze from the door and saw what they’d done, her eyes became bright and red-rimmed and she gave a nearly silent sniffle.
“Time to go,” Dane said tersely. “Brent’s in position, so we have five minutes to make it to the rendezvous point. Let’s load and go.”
Unwilling to stand there while Jenna argued for them to save themselves and leave her in this godforsaken hellhole, Isaac scooped her up and hustled to the opening of the chute.
Shadow pushed in front of him. “I’ll go first so I can catch her at the bottom and make sure no one is there.”
“I’m going behind you,” Dane said grimly. “If you hear anything at all except my okay to proceed with Jenna, find another way out immediately.”
Not waiting further, Shadow tucked his feet downward and hoisted his big body through the narrow passageway, barely managing to fit his broad shoulders. Dane slid after him with no hesitation. Isaac carried Jenna to the opening and turned her sideways so her legs went down first.
She gripped him tightly, her fingers curling around his shirt as her frantic gaze found his. “Where does this go?”
“It’s a laundry chute and don’t worry, baby. Shadow and Dane will catch you. They won’t let anything happen to you. I’ll be right behind you. I swear.”
She reluctantly let go of his shirt, but her hands shook as she inched farther downward.
“Use your hands to control your descent,” Isaac said soothingly. “Press them against the sides and inch your way down.”
She looked back sorrowfully at the men still standing behind Isaac, all alert, guns in raised positions as they monitored the doorway and listened for any sounds from the hallway.
“I’m sorry,” she choked out. “You should have never come.”
As the others let out growls of disagreement and Isaac felt his blood pressure rise to the point of exploding, she simply let go and disappeared from view. Isaac lurched forward, holding on to the edge of the opening, his ears straining for any sound.
“Got her,” Shadow softly called up. “Move out. We’re on the clock.”
One by one, the men rapidly shot out of the chute and into the laundry room. The room was musty and neglected, its age evident in the crumbling sheetrock and the cracks in the ceiling and foundation.
“How often did they check on you, sweetheart?” Dane asked Jenna gently as they moved as a unit toward the kitchen where they’d gained access to the building.
“They left me alone after the first time when . . .” she trailed off, her gaze dropping and her cheeks turning pink with embarrassment.
The others exchanged grim expressions. They knew well about that first time and as angry as Isaac was about the son of a bitch who’d put his hands on Jenna, he was relieved that from that point no one had bothered her.
“They tied me up and left me on the floor,” she said, her chin coming up, defiance glinting in her eyes. Almost as if she’d admonished herself for feeling shame for something she had no control over. Now if he could only get her to see reason in other areas . . . “I don’t think they were overly concerned about me going anywhere. They were busy planning their move to a more secure location.”