“I told you want would happen if you ever came near her again,” Cane gritted out, before hauling Lamar back to his feet. The woozy Lamar threw in a weak fist from the side but Cane deflected the blow easily. That was when Cane methodically smashed his foot into Lamar’s calf, making the man scream in agony as he crumpled, the sound of breaking bone unmistakable. Lamar painstakingly rolled away groaning and spitting out blood. Cane advanced, his face a mask of dark, terrible fury.
“You sonofabitch!” Lamar howled, suddenly reaching behind him into his waistband before whipping out a gun which he aimed straight at Cane. Cane didn’t stop in his tracks. He saw Lamar pull the trigger and ducked sharply to the side. He felt the searing sensation of lead whipping through his shoulder, making him grunt. Lamar was staring at him wide-eyed, about to shoot again only to hear the ‘click’ sound that spoke volumes. “Fuck!” Lamar cursed shrilly, just as Cane reached him, making a grab for the gun. There was only a brief struggle before Cane had the gun in his hand, wasting no time in smashing the butt against the side of Lamar’s head, knocking him out cold.
Cane was hardly breathing heavy as he flung the gun away as Lamar’s head rolled to the floor. Cane straightened off his knees and headed straight for the back of the van, and only then did his heart begin to pound erratically with fear. He had no way of knowing if that bastard had hurt Alexandra. And what if she got injured from the crash?
His chest tight, he finally tore the van doors open - and there she was. “Oh, baby,” Cane breathed, his chest constricting. She was blinking from the sudden brightness coming in from the open doors, and he climbed into the van, his hands reaching out first for the rags tied around her mouth. His jaw gritted with fury as he saw her breasts were naked. Controlling the wave of utter rage that threatened to engulf him, he wrapped her with the blanket he found in the corner.
“Cane,” she whimpered, licking on her parched lips as she gazed up at him with wide, relieved eyes that tore into his soul.
“You’re okay now,” he said soothingly. “You’re going to be fine.” He embraced her tightly for a few moments, his face buried in her disheveled hair as he inhaled deeply, garnering strength. Holding her this close made him feel sane again, freed him from the murderous urge that made him want to go back to the unconscious Lamar and pummel him to the ground, till he was nothing more than a bloody pulp.
“I’ll find the keys to those shackles and then we can get you out of here, alright?” he said softly, and her trusting, silent nod cracked at his heart even more. He’d found her; that was all that mattered now. She was safe. And beneath the reprieve he felt, was another, underlying emotion that he didn’t need to ask himself its origin or definition. It was enough that it existed, and thrived. It had blossomed to full life when he’d opened the van doors and seen her there, alive and otherwise unhurt.
Nothing could ever describe the feeling that had overcome him then. It was worth almost as much as all the medals or the many successful missions he’d had in the past. Because if anything had happened to Alexandra, if he had been too late…then Cane knew, without a question, that his own life would have been over.
“Cane…you’re hurt!” he heard Alexandra exclaim as he reluctantly pulled away from her. He glanced at his bleeding shoulder, the red spot spreading over his shirt. For the first time, the throbbing pain registered.
“I’ll be okay,” he told her reassuringly, staring down into her face for a few moments before, without thinking, he sealed his lips over hers.
She gasped against his mouth but didn’t protest, her lips molding to his as he kissed her deeply, almost desperately. She strained against her shackles, moaning into his mouth as he cupped her face in both hands. Cane closed his eyes tight and drank in her sweetness until his head reeled. He’d had to taste her or he’d have gone insane. Knowing she’d been inside that van had killed him almost, as he’d relentlessly come after Lamar. And now here she was, her lips soft and eager against his. It was a passionate kiss but it wasn’t sexual, just soul-binding. If he’d had any doubts about his true feelings for her, they were completely gone now.
However, it didn’t make his heart ache any less. Once more, he withdrew, very slowly, his eyes pinned to hers as he brushed his hand over the side of her face. Her other eye was swollen and purpling, and there was dried blood around the tiny cut on her neck. Cane gritted his teeth tightly thinking how she must have suffered at Lamar’s hands. It was all Cane could do to not go back and finish what he’d started and bash the motherfucker’s head in. Instead, he pressed one more kiss, this time on her forehead, and told her once again that she was safe.