Shattered (Koa #5)

21. Lila

Chapter 21

Lila

I ’m sitting in my vehicle checking my emails when I see Bane storm out from the back towards his vehicle. He’s absolutely furious and doesn’t see me as he takes off in a rush.

Something’s wrong.

My heart races as I throw myself from my vehicle and bolt for the house. I don’t know the code to get in, but I try the same code for my home, hoping they just used the same code. Thank fuck, it opens.

I barge into the kitchen, leaving the door wide open, to find Asher lying on his back, his head on the floor. He’s not moving.

Before I can fully panic, he screams.

“Get the fuck out, Bane!”

He’s absolutely furious; it’s evident in his voice, and I consider bolting for the door in fear .

But I won’t.

“It’s me,” I say simply.

That fact doesn’t ease his anger. “I don’t care who it is, I said GET THE FUCK OUT!”

His voice isn’t as strong this time. I feel it. His dumb ass must’ve fallen down the stairs, and by the sound of it, his pride broke his fall.

“Are you okay?”

I approach him cautiously, unsure of what he’ll do. He’s a volcano, and I have no idea what will come out, especially once I spot the fist-sized hole in the wall beside him.

“Do not take another fucking step,” he finally hisses.

I stop short, keeping some space between us, and watch as he turns around and sits up against the wall. His face twists in pain as he moves, and I can’t stand to see it.

“Just let me help you,” I urge, taking another hesitant step forward.

He manages to prop himself up to a sitting position, his back against the wall. His legs stretch straight out in front of him, and he clutches one with his hand in a white-knuckled grip. His face contorts in pain, and I find myself wincing.

“You don’t understand. No one understands,” he says, his voice hardly audible in a whisper.

“Then talk to me. Help me understand.”

“No.” He’s so firm with that no.

“If you’re not gonna talk, let me help you off the floor. ”

“Fuck off.”

That’s when I lose it. “Asher, I swear to god, if you don’t let me help you up off this floor right fucking now, I’ll call an ambulance, and you know they’ll just sedate you; I sure as fuck would!”

His nostrils flare as he glares up at me, and I swear he’s going to breathe fire and incinerate my entire body.

“Do not fucking touch me.”

The irony of his words is not lost on me as he struggles to brace against the stairs and pull himself up. He stops halfway, unable to lift himself, and growls as he struggles. I see the moment he’s going to either pull something important or fall and hurt himself more, so at my own risk, I step in, sliding under his arm and using my whole body to push him up. I can feel the fury pouring off him as he reaches a stand, finally able to relax.

“Let me help you upstairs.” I nearly add that he should lie down, but I choose life and bite my tongue. Still, he tries to shrug me off, but he’s tired enough, and I’m rested enough that he can’t budge me. “Asher, I wasn’t fucking asking.”

Something in him caves, and though he won’t look at me, his whole body softens at that moment. Finally, but reluctantly, he allows me to help him up. We climb side by side, with me holding the weight he can’t handle. When we finally reach the top, I help him into his bedroom, and he collapses on the bed. He huffs when I sit beside him, shutting his eyes toward the ceiling.

“Never invited you to stay!” he hollers like a fucking child.

“You just fell down the stairs, you stubborn prick. I’m not leaving you here.”

“Y’know, that first night you charged over here to confront me, I wondered if you were ballsy or just stupid. You’re leaning stupid. ”

“Shut up.”

Much to Asher’s disapproval, I settle into the bed, facing him on my side with my head on one of his pillows. It smells like him, a scent I find strangely comforting.

“You don’t know when to stop. It’s gonna get you hurt one of these days,” he grumbles.

“By who? You?”

He lets out a harsh breath, still refusing to open his eyes. “I don’t have to outrun you. You come right to me.”

It takes me a moment to realize he’s referencing the dig I made to him when I confronted him that first night, that I could outrun him, and suddenly, my chest feels tight.

“I didn’t mean anything by that, you know. I would never think less of you because of your leg.”

That actually gets a smirk out of him. “I can’t exactly hold that against you. I may have sexually harassed you.”

I shrug. “Nothing I couldn’t handle.”

“Oh, I know, Sunshine. Like I already told you. It pisses me off how well you handle everything I throw at you.”

I can’t help but smile at that. “It’s my superpower.”

“Yeah. I wish it were mine.”

My heart breaks for him at that moment. As cruel as he can be, I can see it’s because he’s hurt. His shattered femur put in such a massive roadblock for him. Hell, he’s so stubbornly strong that he won’t use a cane or something to keep him off the ground. Everything must be so different for him now. It’s like a whole new life.

When he turns his head and pries his eyes open, they melt into mine—a deep brown. A frightening urge washes over me, the desire to lean in and press my lips to his. I don’t kiss people. It’s always been my rule not to kiss hookups. But Asher isn’t a hookup. He’s been a constant.

As furious as I’ve been, meeting Asher has been the most fun I’ve ever had. Even when he pisses me off beyond belief, I still come back for more. I refuse to surrender.

But I’m also scared for him. If he doesn’t come to terms with his leg, he’s going to make it so much worse, and where will it end?

I have to be careful here because I know how defensive he is. But I can’t stand to see him like this. I choose my words carefully. “Why don’t you want to use a walking aid?”

His anger is immediate. “Because I don’t f-”

“No, stop,” I say, cutting him off calmly, and he’s quiet as he waits for me to speak. “We’re just having a conversation. Let’s try again. Why don’t you want to use an aid?”

He considers, and though his feathers are still ruffled, he speaks calmly. “It’s embarrassing.”

“But why?”

“I don’t know!”

“Asher,” I growl. “It’s me. I’m not judging you; I’m worried about you. Help me understand.”

He considers it for a long time, but he doesn’t have an answer for me. A tear tickles my nose as it rolls down my cheek, and before I know it, I have to force back a sob, clenching my lips together. I shut my eyes, spilling more tears as I close the distance between us and place my arm over his soft T-shirt.

And finally, I break.

“Kiss me?” I plead .

His eyes flicker to my lips, and he presses his together, moistening them with the tip of his tongue. As if in a dream, he leans in, and I meet him, his lips molding with mine, holding so tight. Even in a kiss, I’m his prisoner.

And it’s perfect.

He turns on his side and wraps his arms around me, pulling me into his chest so effortlessly and tangling a hand in my hair, pulling just hard enough to make me moan against his mouth.

I swear an earthquake is ripping through me, leaving every piece of me shuddering. More tears spill down my cheeks as every inch of me gives in to him.

“Please…” I whimper.

When he breaks our kiss and reaches for my pants, I grab his wrist, and he stops with me, even though he could easily overpower me. That’s when I realize it’s not sex that I’m asking Asher for. I want him to open up to me. I want him to let me help him, but not out of a place of pity.

I find myself closing in on him, desperate for the warmth of his body, and he meets me halfway. He pulls me into his arms, and his lips consume mine. His kiss lights me on fire like no other kiss has. The way he holds me so possessively, like a willing prisoner, I think he feels it, too.

“Asher…” I whisper against his lips.

He breaks our kiss but keeps his mouth against mine, and I swear my heart might burst out of my chest as I’m consumed with fear. Fear of losing him, or worse…

Loving him.

BANG !

We’re both jolted with fear, and we shoot up in bed. The two men from the other day, Rocco and Rooney, are standing in his bedroom doorway, having slammed the door against the wall. Before I can process what’s happening, both brothers pounce for Asher, and I’m crushed beneath one of them as the other sprays some kind of aerosol right in Asher’s face, which seems to knock him out instantly, wiping the brief panic off his face. The second the weight lifts off me, I’m yanked backward, my arms locked behind my back by two rock-firm hands.

NO! JESUS, FUCK, NO!

I won’t go down without a fight, thrashing within an inch of my life and probably pulling half the muscles in my body in the process. The effortless way the brothers overpower me has my whole body heaving in panic.

“Smart enough to get a security system, stupid enough to leave the back door wide open,” one brother says.

“LET ME THE FUCK GO!”

“Knock the bitch out, too!” one of them growls.

The sound of the aerosol is the last thing I hear.

I wake up with what feels like lead in my lungs. When I attempt to throw my body upright to cough, I’m knocked back down by my neck, my air stolen. I wheeze as I slam back against cold metal.

“Lila?”

After managing a few deep breaths, the heavy ache in my chest is less, and I can open my eyes straight into a nightmare. I’m completely naked, with a metal collar around my neck attached to a cold metal table. Beside me, attached the same way to another, is Jared. He’s also naked, facedown, and white as a sheet. The fresh dragon tattoo on his back is gone, deformed beyond recognition under a thick layer of raised, dead, burnt skin.

Oh my god, what did they do to him?

“Lila, does Asher know where you are?” he asks, his voice hoarse and afraid.

“I don’t know, they knocked him out…” I whisper, struggling to find my voice. “Where are we?”

Glancing around, I find we’re in some dungeon with stone walls and floors. A single steel door is shut, obviously locked.

“They have this cabin; we’re in the dungeon underneath. This is where they torture people.”

“Torture who!?”

He turns his head to the wall behind me with an insidious look on his face, and I turn, my heart racing to a dead fucking stop.

Skulls. There’s a shelf of skulls extending the whole wall like trophies. There’s got to be two dozen of them.

“Whoever they want,” he says, his voice dead. “I heard about this place but never imagined it was this bad. They livestream these snuff films on the dark web, and people pay for them. It’s sick.”

The door suddenly swings open, and my chest seizes up in sheer terror as both their eyes lock on me.

“Oh good, you’re awake.”

The sinister voice makes my body shudder.

When they shut and secure the door behind them, they separate and come at me from opposite sides. Rooney motions up to the ridiculously high ceiling, where a security camera is mounted, a red light blinking at me.

“Say hi to your boyfriend. He’ll be watching live soon.”

I want to be brave, not to give these bastards the satisfaction of begging for my life. But I think the fear ripping through my veins right now might just be what kills me.

My lip quivers. “Why are you doing this? I haven’t done anything to you!”

Rocco chuckles. “No, sweetheart, this is all about what we will do to you .”

A violent full body shudder tears through me, and a sob slips from my lips.