56. KADENCE

KADENCE

W e got married that day in Santa Barbara. Holden told me he wanted to surprise me with something, wanted to take me someplace special, and drove us both to the courthouse. At first, I had a sliver of panic roll through me. Was it too fast? What would everyone else think? But then he kissed me. Soft and slow in the way that makes my insides melt and I realized then that marrying him made the rest of the world melt away. It doesn't matter if it was too fast or if everyone thought we were crazy. It was the one good thing we could look back on and not regret. And now? If we both die in this warehouse at the hands of men who thrive on cruelty, then at least I would die married to a man who loved me with his whole being.

Whatever Holden meant to do to try and distract Jeremy works. His hand holding the knife against my throat drops to his side though the grip he has on my hair never relents. " Your what ?" Jeremy seethes as his head cocks to the side with narrowed eyes.

"My wife," Holden repeats and my heart starts to race in my chest. We have kept it a secret for weeks and hearing him say it out loud felt like claiming a part of me that had been sitting in limbo.

His fingers tighten in my hair to the point that it feels like he's ripping my scalp as he yanks my head back again. Dark and stormy eyes glare down at me. "You married him!" Jeremy booms.

I know he catches the glint in my eye when I see his fist raise in my peripheral. Before there's even an impact I push back in the chair again, landing on my back and this time the chair breaks and splintered wood digs into my back as I roll to the side in an instant. I see Holden lunge for Jeremy landing on top of him and delivering blow after blow to his face. Jeremy grunts as he kicks and tries to shove Holden off of him but it's no use.

Every instinct in me screams to fight. I glance around looking for anything I can use to help him. More grunts and a howl of pain echo in the warehouse and when I look up Cole and Watson are trading blows back and forth. There's so much chaos going on with the sounds of bones breaking and men yelling that it's hard to tell who has the upper hand. Although deep down, I know no one wins in this situation. Everyone ends up hurt one way or another.

"You motherfucker!" I hear Cole growl, "Fuck you!" He throws his fist into Watson's nose, knocking him back a few steps.

I look back to Holden and Jeremy. Holden is on his back, scrambling backward out of Jeremy's reach. Our eyes meet and in that second Jeremy reaches down to his ankle, pulling out a small handgun and aiming it right at Holden. "I'm going to kill you and then I'm going to fucking kill her!"

My eyes widen and my heart stops as the sound of the men fighting behind me fade away when his finger pulls the trigger. I move to scramble towards Jeremy but the sound of gunfire has me frozen, my eyes slamming close and when I open them again Holden's flat on his back. "Nash!" I scream watching his chest heave as he tries to catch his breath but from here I can't tell if Jeremy missed or not.

I know Jeremy knows all the weaknesses of the vests that Holden and Cole are wearing. He knows where to aim and the thought of losing Holden to him has me scrambling to my feet. I push up off of my shoulder and yelp in pain as the fire spreads to my fingertips again but I manage to get up. I spot the shotgun Holden dropped and sprint after it hearing Jeremy boom behind me.

I hear another yelp of pain and glance back at Cole as my fingers wrap around the shotgun. He's on his back and a knife sticking from his own shoulder. "Watson!" He growls but he's no longer going after Cole. The door the men have all been coming through slams closed and I know he's gone.

“You think that just because she’s here she’s yours!” Jeremy yells, lifting Holden by the collar of his tactical vest, his face inches from Jeremy’s. “Kadence will always be mine.” His voice is strained and so dangerously low that I don’t think. I stand, pulling back the forend of the shotgun, pin back my shoulders and steady myself for the fight I’ve been running from for months.

“I won’t ever be yours Jeremy,” I spit, aiming for the back of his knee and pulling the trigger. He screams out in pain and his right leg buckles out from under him. Jeremy rolls onto his back scrambling backwards away from Holden as his eyes narrow in on me.

“You bitch!” He yells, “What the fuck!”

A feeling that I’ve never felt before courses through me. Power and hatred so pure it burns my veins. I pull back the forend again, loading another round. My eyes flick to Holden and the pool of blood gathering around his left pec. His bright glossy blue eyes are focused on me as he gasps for air. “Cole!” I yell, “Get to Holden.”

Cole groans in the background but the shuffling that follows tells me that he’s moving. “You okay, baby?” I ask in the same way he did. He gives me a quick nod before I turn my attention back to Jeremy. I know what I have to do and the guilt, the shame I thought I would have in needing to do it, is nowhere to be found.

“That was for my mother,” I hiss, pulling the trigger again and this time aiming at his left knee. “That? Was for Maria.”

“What the fuck are you doing!” He screeches between a scream.

“Giving you back every ounce of pain and more that you gave me.” I say through my teeth. “You never deserved me or our child.” Tears burn in my eyes as I cock the shotgun again shooting his right hand. “That was for Holden.” The words are clenched between my tightened jaw and I repeat the shot on his left hand. “That was for every time you put your hands on me.”

Jeremy is screaming out in pain, over and over until the sound becomes strangulated. His skin has turned a ghastly shade as he watches me with shock and horror on his face. “Stop, stop, please, stop,” he begs me.

“You want mercy?” I narrow my eyes on him. I know both Holden and Cole are watching me. I can feel the heat of their gaze on my back as I step over Jeremy’s legs. “Do you think you deserve any mercy for what you’ve done to me? To my family?” I hiss looking down at him. “You’re a pathetic excuse for a man. You use power like it’s heroin, Jeremy. You had to know that it was going to end like this one way or another. One of us was going to die and you failed to kill me the first time.”

I crouch over him, gripping his chin between my fingers. The scruff I once loved years ago now feels like coarse sandpaper under my touch. “Now it’s my turn,” I rasp before dropping his head and aiming for his chest. “This is for my child that you killed .”

The last shot rings out and finally, the already barely there light dims behind his dark eyes. Blood sputters from between his lips and he’s gone. I toss the now empty shotgun down and sprint to Holden’s side.

“Hey!” I almost whine grabbing his face. His eyes are opening and closing lazily and blood is pooling at the base of his throat. “Where is it?” I ask, looking up at Cole, who has his hand pressed against his collarbone. His eyes are glued to Holden’s paling face. “Cole!”

They flick to my gaze and he shakes his head. “We have to get him out of here,” he says in a broken whisper. His own blood drips down his arm but he doesn’t seem to care.

I look back to Holden, those blue eyes bore into mine and tears fill my own again only this time they’re for him. “You better not die on me, Nash.” I whisper, pressing my forehead to his. “Don’t you leave me.”

A ragged chuckle leaves him followed by a cough as his hand grabs my sweatshirt in a loose grip. It’s a small sign that he’s still in there, that the Holden I know is still fighting.

The door to the building slams and my eyes instantly flick up to see Dex and Scottie running towards us.

Dex skids to a stop when he sees Jeremy’s body.

“Jesus, Mary, and Joseph,” Scottie whispers under his breath as both men’s eyes fix to me.

“We need an ambulance,” I choke out as I feel Holden tug at my sweatshirt. I look back down at him and his eyes have grown heavier. “Hey, hey, hey, whoa,” I panic, patting the side of his face, trying to keep him awake. “Holden? Holden, stay awake, okay? Okay, baby? Please, look at me.”

He opens his eyes and smiles. The man actually smiles at me. “ Sunflower .” The word comes out raspy as his eyes close again.

“Holden!” I yell, my voice is desperate and threaded this time. “Do something!” I screech at Cole who stares at me. “Cole!”

“Kade!” Dex booms. “911 is on the way. He’s gonna be okay.” I feel him crouch next to me and I look down at Holden again. His eyes are closed but I can feel his chest barely moving and as long as it’s moving he’ll be okay. I have to hold on to that. “We can’t come this far just for him to die,” I whisper.

“He won’t,” Dex whispers back, wrapping an arm around my shoulder. I wince in pain and pull away from him. The adrenaline is starting to wear off and I can feel just how bad my shoulder is.

“Did you guys get Watson?” I ask looking back at Dex and Scottie. The two men look at each other with brows furrowed.

“No. We thought he was still here with you,” Dex says, looking at Cole. “He ran off?”

“We’ll find him,” Scottie chimes in. “We have to.”

I look at Cole. His face has turned green as he sits back and drops his head into his hands. I want to comfort him but any energy I have is gone. I can’t. Not until Holden is safe. Safe and alive.