Protecting You ("The Shadows" Series: Book I)

XXX.

Lily's POV 

I was shook from this new information, would be an understatement. I was beyond terrified after Zach told me the true identity of that girl. Several scenarios were running through my mind about how Ryan and Evan were getting treated inside that room. We had to do something and we had to do it quick. Suddenly we heard grunting and saw the man gaining consciousness. I glared at Zach but he gave me a deadpan look.

"I wasn't aiming to kill him. I just hit him to shut him up for sometime." I shook my head and stood in front of the man. He continued rubbing his head and tried to focus his eyes but when they settled on me and Zach, he flew away from us in the opposite direction as if he got burned.

"We are not here to hurt you but you have to cooperate with us." I said with my hands raised in front of me in a surrendering motion. He shook his head rapidly and groaned. Maybe he shook it rather vigorously. He held his head again and stared at us, accusation evident in his eyes.

"You hit me when you're the one trespassing and brought me inside my own room and ask me to cooperate with you!!! Are you out of your damn mind? I saw you two eavesdropping in the adjacent room. How can I agree with you? No I'm not agreeing with you at any cost. I'm calling the police and you can't stop me." He said while taking his phone out. I felt Zach shuffling behind me but I knew the man didn't see that.

"You will regret it so you better listen to us. We can give you some money to shut your mouth. Don't do it." Zach said while doing something behind me that I wasn't able to see. I don't have eyes behind my back...duh. I knew Zach's words fell on deaf ears and as soon as his phone went up to his ears Zach launched himself from behind me in such a speed that both me and the man were shocked. The next moment, Zach had plummeted the man on the ground and they were fighting. Zach was sitting over the man and suddenly pulled out a handkerchief from his back pocket, pushing it over the man's face. He knew he wasn't going to fight that and the next second, he was unconsciousness. Zach stood up and stepped towards me.

"What should we do now? We had to save Ryan and Evan." He said as if he hadn't fought and led a guy unconscious few seconds ago. He wasn't even tired. My eyes darted around the room and landed on the balcony on the other side of the living room. I made my way in its direction while Zach followed me.

"We can enter that room from here to there." I said pointing towards our balcony and then there balcony. They were pretty close and we could easily jump to the other side without any problem. I looked at Zach and saw him with analyzing eyes while he continued checking the area. After sometime my phone buzzed in my pocket. I picked it up seeing it was Alex.

"Hey fifteen men have reached the hotel. What do you want them to do?" He asked. I nodded at Alex and went inside. I wasn't going to talk on my phone while standing in a balcony while also on a mission to save someone discreetly.

"Send five of them in search of Ryan's men who were around the hotel and were supposed to guard him." I glared as I said that. " Send another three behind them as their cover. Send two men up on the 27th floor of the hotel. I'll need them here. Make sure they have earpiece with them. I need a way of communication with them. Zach would be here to receive them. Let two men stay near the cars, outside the hotel. Tell them to keep an eye on anything suspicious and report it to you immediately if they see anything out of the ordinary. You will inform me asap." I ordered him to which he said an okay and cut the call.

Zach and I checked our guns and ammo one more time before Zach left the room quietly. I stayed at my place for what felt like forever thinking how I'll kill those Adam's men when Zach re-entered with two men of my gang. They both bowed their heads slightly in greeting and I did the same. They were surprised to see me acknowledging them back. My dad never treated them as human. They were just workers for him but I wasn't going to follow in his footsteps. After they got out of their shocks they asked me what they will be doing. I told them to enter from the front door of the adjacent room and informed them about the mission. I took an earpiece from them and told them that I would talk to them on it.  After that was done, I told them to leave. They nodded again before getting out of the room. Zach and I made our way towards the balcony. We crossed the balcony and it was so hard to do. We were on the 27th floor and I was trying to calm my beating heart. One step slips and we'll be free falling. I wasn't petrified of height but I wasn't a fan of it either. And surely I never wanted to die like this while trying to save someone else. Fortunately we were able to cross the railing and landed on our own two feet. I heard Zach sigh slowly, trying to be as soundless as possible.

We were now able to hear the voices inside the room. There were a lot and I was searching for the two voices for my assurance. The doors were in the middle of the balcony so the walls gave us a great cover. I tried to peep in but was stopped by Zach. I glanced at him to see him shaking his head. He pointed towards himself and then towards the inside. I gave him space and he passed me. He peeked in and immediately his fingers curled in a fist. A shiver ran down my spine in fear. I held his fist for calming him down. He leaned back and glanced back at me with angry and frustrated eyes. I pulled him back behind me but he was reluctant. I glared at him but he was still adamant so I pleaded with my eyes which he replied with a shake of his head but let me go in front. I did the same procedure and what greeted my eyes was something I had never thought about in my wildest dreams.

Ryan and Evan were tied to a rod by a rope and the rod was attached to the ceiling. They were both almost naked. Their clothes were torn from places and only shreds were left. Their were bruises on their faces and visible body parts but they were not deep. Their faces had strained smiles and were trying to act tough. It was affecting the men around the room but the only one person who wasn't affected by their facade was Laura who was smirking at them. She glanced at them from under her lashes and walked towards them seductively.

"We were so good together Ryan and you had to be an ass and accept that girl instead of me. We could have ruled the world together along with Evans. My dad would have accepted us. He will still accept us if I asked him to." I heard Evan chuckle while Ryan acted as if she didn't even exist.

"You really think he would accept a bitch like you? I think someone pushed you and you fell on your head when you were a kid. You should book an appointment for your brain's checkup. One or two of your neurons must have been...escaped the damage." If I wasn't planning the death of Laura in my mind, I would have laughed till my tears would have spilled on the floor. But Ryan did laugh, in her face. She scowled at Evan but when she saw Ryan laughing, a creepy smile crept on her face.

"You look more beautiful when you laugh." Ryan scowled at her.

"Fuck off." He said in a low voice that showed how angry and pissed he was. Laura smiled, running her hand over his face and descended on her knees in front of Ryan. Her hand started getting lower and lower till it stopped at his waistline.

Shit! Shit! Shit!

I frantically looked around the room and saw about seven men standing in alert while enjoying the show. They had guns in both of their hands and evil smiles on their faces. I turned around and eyed Zach, showing him three fingers. I had exchanged earpieces with one of the men so we could contact and I could tell them when to enter. I held my hand in front of my mouth.

"On the count of three." I said in my earpiece. My head whipped in the direction of the room when I heard a grunting sound and immediately my eyes widened. Laura was touching Ryan where he shouldn't be touched and he was restraining from making any noises. Evan started yelling curse words at her and started struggling but since they were tied a few feet away, he wasn't able to do anything. Suddenly Ryan's eyes opened and the look he gave her scared me to my last living cell. His eyes were filled with lust and a little bit of guilt. I hoped he was thinking about me while feeling guilty. My eyes started watering but I shook myself out of my emotional turmoil and leaned back on the wall. Zach peeked from across me and his face contorted and reddened as again his fist tightened. Suddenly he looked straight at me with a look of pity but I had enough of it. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. When I opened my eyes, I saw Zach's face pale as his eyes widened. I straightened in my position and started speaking lowly as both my hands clutched the gun from behind me and pulled out.

"Ready...Three...Two...One."