Forgetting all about the two that were on him, Niklaus’ attention shot to Sarah as a gorilla of a man caught her, dragging her back to the idling van. He didn’t care what happened to him, but he couldn’t let her get hurt.
But just as he got free of the one that had taken him to the ground, the second came out of nowhere and struck him, sending him back to the ground, his vision blurring. He felt like he’d been hit by a cinderblock, his head bouncing off the concrete so hard he saw stars.
Niklaus was dazed, could almost hear Sarah yelling his name again, but before he could latch onto it, a shadowy figure loomed over him, and the last thing he saw before blackness stole him was a booted foot coming down at his face.
Chapter Two
Jolted awake by rough hands strapping him to a chair, Niklaus renewed his struggles, but there was hardly anything he could do to ward off what was happening now that his ankles were secured to the legs of the chairs with zip-ties, and his wrists were next. More than that, a headache pounded away in his head, the wound to the back of his skull throbbing in time.
He would have continued to fight if not for the soft whimpering across from him. He stilled immediately, jerking his head in every direction, trying to shake off the musty smelling black bag that covered his face.
It was only after his wrists were tied down did someone remove it.
Squinting from the sudden light hurting his eyes, he blinked repeatedly, waiting for his eyes to adjust as he searched the room for Sarah. As she came into focus, he almost wished he hadn’t.
She was bound, very much like he was, but while he could feel where his lips were cut, and knew from the tightness of his face that it too was bruised, seeing her this way made him ashamed that he hadn’t fought harder, protected her from this.
Tear tracks were stark against her tan cheeks, her eyes wide with fear. A cloth was tied around her mouth, preventing her from speaking, but everything she could have wanted to say was reflected in her face.
Why hadn’t he warned her sooner? Why hadn’t he told her not to wait for him, to save herself?
Yet, while regret weighed heavily on his heart, his attention was stolen by the men entering the room, joining the two that were already inside still wearing masks.
The latest arrivals didn’t bother with them. Trepidation filled Niklaus at what this might mean. He might not have known for sure, but he doubted that these men would allow them to see their faces if they weren’t planning to kill them.
Niklaus tried to make out their faces, hoping that some kind of recognition would hit him--he needed to understand why they had been targeted. His boss down at the construction site in Florida was not always on the right side of the law when it came to his business—not that anyone really cared since he was a pretty decent guy who got the job done—but Niklaus couldn’t imagine that he would be involved with these kind of men.
They seemed too…powerful.
One stood out amongst the others, wearing a long black coat, a suit of charcoal gray beneath it. His eyes were cold, lips turned down in a deep frown, and much like the other men, there was an air of menace that surrounded him. He was obviously the leader, radiating an authority that the others lacked.
“You did well,” he said.
Niklaus could only guess which of the two masked men he was speaking to, but he watched as the pair approached him, one a shade more eager than the other. This one ripped off his mask, his sweat-dampened hair sticking to his forehead, eyes feverish with a hunger that made Niklaus’ stomach turn.
“It was nothing.”
The other, and if Niklaus had to wager, the one that had gotten the best of him, remained off to the side, as if he wasn’t completely a part of this group, and yet was. He reached for his own mask, drawing it up over his face, and unlike the others, his hair wasn’t dark, nor were his eyes the same obsidian colors as most of the others. No, his hair was blond and slightly curly, reaching below his ears, and his eyes were a bright shade of blue.
There were so many emotions in the eyes of the men in this room, from impassiveness to downright excitement—but this one? His were empty.
There was nothing there, and Niklaus sensed if there was one person he should fear, it was him.
He looked like a man that didn’t care whether he live or died.
“Were you seen?”
“Nope,” said the eager one. “They were alone—didn’t even have his guards on him.”
For a moment, the man looked doubtful. “How sure are you of this?”
While the eager one opened his mouth, ready to answer, the man turned to the blond instead, his brows raising as he awaited an answer. Niklaus didn’t miss the eager one losing his manic smile, or that a flash of irritation sparked in his eyes, but as quickly it had formed, it was gone again.
With his arms folded across his chest, the blond glanced over at Niklaus before returning his gaze to his boss. “They were alone. Surprising, considering who he is.”
Who he was?