Chapter 34

Chapter 33
She had to let him go to get Marnie to the hospital, she was more important, she looked as bad as she had felt when she first woke up after the first beating she had ever gotten from Burly. She groaned as blackness began to crowd around her and she let herself sink into oblivion. Hopefully jumping in front of those bullets were enough for Justin to know how she really felt about him. Hope was all she had at this point.

Justin tried to get the girls to move faster but they just kept stumbling over the fallen trees and downed branches. He was about to lose his patience when suddenly Ben came crashing through some low hanging branches, “Ben, thank God.”

“Where’s Bree?” Ben’s hazel eyes flashed around like lightning at each face of the girls behind Justin and then Marnie.

“I had to leave her back there, she’s been shot twice, it doesn’t look good, but I couldn’t get her and Marnie here, I need you to take them, get Marnie to the paramedics, tell them about Bree having two gunshot wounds, please, Ben.” Justin was a frantic mess, he knew he wasn’t keeping his head straight, but he had to get to Bree.

Ben took Marnie, “I got this, bro, go, I’ve got this here.”

Justin wanted to believe him, but it was so hard to. He hesitated for a moment then took off into a run from Ben, Marnie, and the others. His heart pounded in his ears feeling as if he was racing against fate, time, and just about everything else as he ran. He would be so lost without Bree, the short amount of time they spent together, and he was addicted to her. He finally saw the disgusting building everyone had been imprisoned. His feet couldn’t move him fast enough to get to the girl who had finally claimed his heart.

He finally got to the front of the house and Bree was still in the same spot he had left her in. God, he wanted to hurl, he couldn’t believe himself that he left her alone and defenseless, she deserved better than him. He leapt over the railing and skidded to a halt beside her, “Bree?” he called gently as he leaned down and cupped her small, overly slim cheek. He felt another wave of wanting to lose everything he had in his stomach, but it held it at bay. “Bree, honey, please.”

She still didn’t respond to him, he placed his fingers at the base of her neck, he let out a little sigh of relief once he felt her faint pulse. He pulled Bree closer to him and he figured out why. Even with tying his shirt along her wounds, her shirt and his shirt were soaked with dark red blood. He let out a string of curses, then calmed himself. “Bree, no.” He had to get her out of there and fast, but it risked her losing even more blood. He scooped her up as carefully as possible. “Babe, don’t worry, I’ll get you help, please pull through this, you’ve come so far, overcame so much, just for it to end like this, I don’t want to lose you, I’m so sorry I left you.” He whispered and cradled her fragile, limp, ghostly pale body close to his and headed back to Ben and the others.

He managed to clear every branch, fallen down tree without hurting Bree any more than she already was. He wanted to kick himself, yell at her for taking the bullets for him beat every piece of trash that was involved in this sickening scheme. This was going to be a long night, and it was only the beginning.

He finally made it back to the end of the woods and found two paramedics already checking Marnie over and getting her into the back. He rushed over as Ben was managing to get the others into the car they had shown up in. The other girls hadn’t looked as bad as Marnie and Bree, he didn’t understand why, but he would soon figure it out.

Two more paramedics made their way over to Bree and him and they took her quickly.

“Ben,” Justin shouted. “Take them to the station, did they take Martines in already?”

“Yeah, they did, questioning him now as we speak, Iris and Clay along with Amelia are on their way to the hospital, I’ll be there as soon as I get them turned over to their parents, Cierra will be too,” Ben gripped his shoulder tightly. “Just don’t worry about anything, Justin, they’ll fix her up.”

Justin glared at Ben a little bit, “Don’t think your making me feel any better, if anything happens to her,”

“I know, Justin, but just think we got all the other ones out and safe, Marnie should be okay, too, just keep your head up.” Ben tried to reassure him.

Justin still brushed off what his friend said, he couldn’t keep his head up, he was going to lose the one girl he had ever loved and would ever love. No one could fill the spot that Bree would leave him with if he lost her.

He froze for a moment as he watched the ambulance disappear with Bree in the back. He watched time slow down, everything, the ambulance leaving, Ben getting the other girls into the car. He couldn't believe this was happening, what if Bree was truly gone? What if there just was no hope. He didn't want to think this way, but he had to be logical. The scream of logic ran through his head, before he knew it, he was running over to Ben. "Ben, we need someone else questioning everyone, the girls that you're taking to the station, Marnie and Bree, along with the scum Martines, Sal, all of them. Seems pretty funny to me that no one could find the building, what if they are all in on it? I want to sit in on most the interviews as well, I think we should get the FBI involved."

"Okay, no problem, I'll make a call to a buddy of mine, see what he says, maybe they have been on their radar for all we know."

"I don't know, all I know is I want this ring stopped, we may be changing our investigation criteria, I guess I just thought other people were handling this bull crap sickness, maybe they do need help." Justin let out a sigh as the last girl got in the back seat of their car, granted it was a tight fit, but they made it work, and he slowly got in the passenger side.
"Where to, boss?" Ben asked as he got in the driver's side.

"Take me to the hospital, I want to be there with Marnie and Bree, shut down any questioning as soon as you get the girls there, if you need help let me know, probably grab Cierra on the way to the station, she probably a nervous wreck."

Ben made the way to the hospital, Justin didn't know what would be waiting for him when he arrived.