Chapter 27

Phoenix

Dr. Chamberland's head slowly lifts, the drug taking an effect on him. I put more in his wineglass, knowing he'd only drink one and drink it slowly. Bill's gaze slides to McKenzie, but I step in the way.

"Don't look at her. Look at me."

Bill's eyes widen and he backs up slightly, running into the couch, then he stumbles and falls back. Dr. Chamberland jerks slightly from the sudden movement. Bill tries to stand again but sways, so he puts a hand out to catch himself.

"What did you give us?" Dr. Chamberland asks, but I ignore him.

Bill stands again, and he rotates his head to look at Dr. Chamberland. Their movements are so slow it would be comical if I wasn't filled with rage at what they did to McKenzie. I nod at Rex and he walks to the door, letting Jason in. They both grab Dr. Chamberland and escort him into the room McKenzie and I left earlier.

"What's going on?" Bill asks, falling back on the couch again. The drugs I gave them cause temporary muscle paralysis. Bill is our top fighter for a reason, so I had to do something to put him at a disadvantage.

McKenzie hasn't said anything in a few minutes, so I glance at her to make sure she's okay. Her eyes are brimming with tears and something akin to hatred shines in her eyes as she looks at Bill.

Bill turns his head slightly like he's going to look at her again, but I step in front of her so he has to look at me. "You remember?" His head lifts, trying to see over my shoulder. McKenzie steps beside me and clutches my bicep, her nails digging into the skin.

It reminds me of the night I bought her when I told her to dig her nails into my forearm. Her eyes narrow at Bill and she nods. Bill's mouth turns up into a demeaning smile. "The best fuck I ever had." I whip my head around to look at him, and Bill turns that smile on me. "All that time you were looking for her and I had her."

I take a step toward him, trying to decide if I kill him now or torture him longer than I planned. But a streak of silver flies past me. McKenzie grabs a beer bottle, pulls her arm back with such fierceness it makes me proud, and breaks it across his cheek, screaming the entire time.

Bill's face jerks with the force of her hit, a shard of glass sticking from his cheek. Blood pours down his face to his neck. He doesn't react to the pain I know he must be feeling. The drugs I gave them paralyzes them, but it doesn't block the pain. I did that intentionally, especially for Bill, because he's a strong fucker. He slowly turns his head back around and gives a bloody smile.

McKenzie still has the bottleneck in her hand and she pulls her hand back to strike him again, but I put my hand on her shoulder gently. She whips her head around pissed I stopped her. I lift my hands. "All I'm asking is that you don't kill him. Not yet."

"I wasn't going to." She snaps and turns back to glare at Bill. "What did you do to Shay?" My girl is still worried about someone else.

Bill's head lags against the back of the couch. "She's chained to my bed."

My hands ball into fists. Fucking shit! This is a hard lesson learned. I"ll begin conducting check-ins with all the girls from now on.

"Which arm is his strongest?" McKenzie asks me. I know she's doing it to taunt him and make him think he'll get out of this alive.

I nod toward his right. "He's good on both sides, but his right side is his dominant." Before I'm done with my sentence, she sinks the remainder of the bottle in his right bicep and twists it, shredding flesh and muscles. Bill screams, blood dribbling out of his mouth. The scream is filled with pain and the knowledge he'll never win another fight again.

Rex and Jason come storming through the door, guns drawn, but they stop short at the sight of McKenzie standing over Bill as she breathes hard. She spits on him and turns away, tears spilling down her cheeks. She has blood splattered on her arm, neck, and chest, but she doesn't notice. She falls into my arms, sobbing.

I hold her and motion to Rex and Jason to get Bill. While they take care of him, I pull Kenz to the other side of the room. Sitting in an overstuffed chair, I pull her down on my lap and try to soothe her, while she lets go of all the emotions running through her. Some of the blood that was splattered on her rubs off on my shirt. That's why I keep a wardrobe here. Grabbing my phone, I call Felix.

"Hey boss." He pauses for a moment. "Everything alright?" I'm sure he hears McKenzie, but I don't care right now.

"Do you know where Bill lives?"

"Yeah."

"Go to his place and get Shay. He's got her chained up there."

"What the fuck?!?" Felix shouts so loud I have to hold the phone away from my ear. "I'll kill that motherfucker."

"Don't worry, that's being taken care of." I promise him, rubbing my free hand up and down McKenzie's back.

Her sobs have turned into hiccups and she's clinging to me. I'm going to make them pay. And the fact my mother was here tonight too is unbelievable. What the hell kind of game is she playing? Why is she always lurking? All the years I wasted looking for her and it seems she's tried to sabotage me at every corner.

"Tell me where you bury him so I can go piss on his grave. I'll head to his place now."

"Make sure to watch your back. He had help." It's all I can tell him for now, at least until I can figure out what to do about my bitch of a mother. I hang up and wrap my arms around McKenzie, holding her until her muscles lose some of the tension.

"I want to kill him," she whispers. I lean back and push her hair away from her face. I study her, my eyes narrowing and my lips pursing as her eyes lock with mine.

"Kenz—"

She shakes her head. "He violated me in the worst way imaginable and he laughed about it. How many other women has he done this to?" Her voice cracks on a sob. I cup her face with my hands and rub my thumbs over her cheeks. A small speck of blood smears as I do it.

Her face is flushed, and her pulse is beating hard beneath my grasp. "I'm sorry I didn't find you soon enough," I murmur. She grips the sides of my neck with her small hands, her skin cold even though she's flushed.

"It's not your fault, Nix." Her lips brush over mine as she speaks.

My heart beats heavy in my chest with guilt. "It is. I was so focused on my hatred of your father. I never considered someone else took you, let alone my own fucking mother." I squeeze my eyes shut, wishing I could do things differently. Wanting to kill my father for not being honest with me. "If I hadn't received a tip of where you were, I don't know if I would have ever found you."

She leans back slightly and tilts her head at me. "You received a tip?"

I heave a sigh and brush my lips over her forehead. "Yes, an unaddressed envelope showed up at my office with your rings inside and the address of the place you were being held at."

She shifts and sits back, her lips twisting to the side. "Who sent it to you?"

"I don't know. We tested it for fingerprints, but nothing came back." I swallow as I feel a hole opening in my chest that aches. "I assumed it was your father toying with me."

Kenz pushes off my lap and begins to pace. "I need to find my father. Does he go to the auctions anymore?"

The last thing I want is for her to go looking for her father. He may not have been behind her being taken, but I still don't trust him. He still sold her. He still trusted a man that shouldn't have been trusted. I scoff inwardly. Not that I'm any better. I trusted my father. I trusted Dr. Chamberland. I knew Bill was unhinged, but didn't realize how unhinged. I push my hands in my pockets as the pit in my stomach grows more pronounced.

"He hasn't been to one in a while. He might go once a year. I used to think it was his way of reminding me he was still around, but knowing what I know now, it was probably so he could check on you and make sure you were okay."

Before she can respond, Rex comes back into the room. "Everything is ready, sir." I nod at him and extend my hand to McKenzie. She stares at it for a long moment. I wouldn't blame her if she didn't take it. After all the shit I've put her through, I wouldn't blame her if she walked away from me and never returned this time.

But she does put her hand in mine. Then she looks up at me with those big brown eyes of hers and gives me a small smile. "We'll make it through this. Together." Relief courses through my veins.

"Together."