Erin’s head slammed into the bottom of the cage. Or was it the top? She’d anticipated the bastard trying to send her to a watery grave, but being upside-down and not knowing which direction the surface was hadn’t entered the equation. Her head connecting with the cage had disoriented her, making it twice as bad. Even now, she could hear Connor’s bellow echoing in her skull. Could see his anguished face. She’d tried to calm him, telling him she had everything under control, but he hadn’t been in a very interpretive mood. She didn’t blame him. If someone put him in a cage, she would unleash unholy wrath on whoever had made such a mistake.
After an effort that had left her sweating and the beginnings of quite a few bruises, she’d found a bent nail in the van’s storage rack. It had only taken her seconds to pick the lock, but the van had stopped, her stepfather throwing open the back doors before she could climb out of the cage. Her plan had been to wait for an opportune moment to take him by surprise. Jam the nail into his foot and bust free of the cage while he howled in pain. Then the cop had shown up and forced Luther to draw his gun. No way could she make her move when he held a weapon. When Connor had shown up, it became an even bigger impossibility. She wouldn’t place him in the line of fire for anything in the world.
Beneath her in the water, she heard a splash. No, wait, it had to be above her. She was upside down, which meant the cage door was to her left. Erin felt along the metal crisscrosses and pushed open the door. A moment later, she was through it, but her legs had cramped up from being in the fetal position for so long. Dammit. She swam with her arms and twisted her hips, trying desperately to bring life back into her dead limbs. There it was up above. The surface. She could see a glow of headlights, streetlights lining the expressway above. Blood rushed to her feet, making them prickle, but she welcomed the discomfort and began to kick. How long had she been under the water? Her lungs were starting to burn. Jesus, she needed to breathe. Needed Connor.
Almost there. Almost…
Erin broke the surface and sucked in delicious air.
Once her vision came back into focus with the resurgence of oxygen, she expected to see Derek and Connor at the edge of the concrete drop-off, ready to pull her from the water, but she saw no one. Using her kicking feet, she turned in a circle and saw a male head break the surface of the water before it went back down. In the near-darkness, she couldn’t tell who it was. She kicked toward the rock piling at the edge of the water and waited. Above her, she heard tires squeal to a stop and doors slamming.
“Hey!” she screamed when another head came up. She dragged in long pulls of air to compensate for the scream. “I’m here. Over here.”
Derek. It was Derek. He gave her an incredulous look and started to say something, but a second head surfaced a few yards away. Connor.
“The cage is empty.” His voice was so hoarse, her heart splintered. “Why the fuck is it empty? Could there be more than one down there? I don’t…Jesus, she can’t breathe. I’m going back—”
“Bannon,” Derek shouted. “Turn around. She made it out.”
Connor spun around, hands flying to his drenched head. A choked sound left his mouth when his tortured gaze found her against the rock piling. He swam for her, so fast his muscular arms were a blur of water and flesh. Before she could launch herself halfway across the distance separating them, he was there, pulling her into his arms. “Erin, Erin, Erin,” he chanted into her wet hair. “Oh God. I saw you go under. I saw it and—”
“Your mom,” she interrupted him. “I-is she okay? He told me he had her, that he would kill her. I had to go. I didn’t leave you again. I had to go.”
His breath released on a heavy exhale, head dropping into the crook of her neck. “Ah, sweetheart. She’s fine. I could kill him all over again for making you think that.”
Tears fell from her eyes, fusing with the salt water on her cheeks. “I wasn’t scared. I thought of you and I wasn’t scared.”
“Don’t ever look at me like that again, okay?” He shook her. “Like you know it’s over. Please.”
Erin pushed the wet hair off his face and waited until he focused on her. “I already had the cage beat. That’s what I was trying to tell you.” Connor’s harsh exhale warmed her face. “I know you would have gotten me out. I know.” She gave him a cocky wink. “But I have a reputation to uphold.”
His laugh sounded pained. “I love you so much.”
“I love you, too.” She kissed him hard. “I just want to go home.”
“Ah, sweetheart. Me, too.” His expression changed, grew more serious. “I’m sorry. I had to…he’s gone. I know you wanted me to do the right thing, but he’s gone. I—”
“No.” Derek’s voice brought them around. He was halfway up the rock piling, looking down at Connor meaningfully. “You never had a weapon, Bannon. I fired the shots.”
Connor shook his head, a frown marring his brow. “I’ll face the consequences of my own actions. I don’t need you to shield me.”