Loving Sang

Bonus: Blake's POV

Deep breath in.

Slowly exhale.

Do not turn this car around to show those worthless people the same treatment they bestowed on your beautiful Sang.

Deep breath in.

Slowly exhale.

When I finally seem to have my murderous emotions under control, I glance a peek over at Sang. She seems so small curled up in my passenger seat.

I knew there was something going on at home with her. I just didn't want to push the issue. She always seemed so happy-go-lucky. It was only in rare moments that I caught the shadows lurking behind her eyes. She hid her pain away, pushing so far into the back of her mind, it was as if it was never there. I can only imagine the horrors she must have been subject to for her to come up with such a coping mechanism.

And I understand why she kept it from me. Why she hid away her pain and sorrow. She wanted something that was just her own. Something she could look forward to during the hard times.

But I could have helped her.

If I'd have known it was to such an extent, I would've gotten her out of there sooner. I had already talked to the Academy about adopting her and it's under review. It's taking longer due to the fact that I don't live in the area. They would need to establish a new contact to help. When I asked about being the one to take her in, pleading that maybe it would be better to get her out of the area, they took it under review and added it to her file. They just weren't working fast enough. Or I was being impatient.

I had extended my mission for as long as possible before eventually having to call it good and heading back home. I didn't want to leave Sang before everything was settled, but the Academy was forcing me to come back. I was devastated to be leaving my beautiful Sang behind.

And that's what she is. She is mine. I will do anything to ensure she is safe.

When she didn't show up tonight, it hurt, but I would have understood her reasoning. However, she promised me she would be there, and I take those very seriously.

My plan had been to just sneak up to her house and look in on her, see for my own eyes that she had canceled on me. When I saw that she was fine, I would leave. Knowing that she was saving herself from the same heartbreak that I was feeling at leaving her, or what I hoped she was feeling. One night, I had followed her back just to get an idea of where and how she lived. Nothing had seemed out of the ordinary.

It was a simple house buried within the woods away from society. I just believed her parents were antisocial or anti-government. Something along those lines. Wanting to live off the radar.

Nothing could have been further from the truth.

I'd overlooked the bathroom in the first round. I didn't want to look in on anyone by mistake, but then I heard an unusual noise from within. Something about the sound had my body momentarily freezing and unwilling to step closer. I knew whoever made that sound was in trouble and I think I knew deep down that I wasn't going to like what I saw.

And I was right.

There tied up under the steaming water was my beautiful Sang looking so defeated yet hopeful. Her eyes lit up with happiness at seeing my face. I was barely able to contain the fury I felt, but I knew it would do her no good. I needed to save her. Get her out of this awful situation.

I'm probably going to be reprimanded when I return to Charleston. It will be worth it. I'll take whatever they throw my way. When I have my beautiful Sang beside me, and hopefully she will be staying there for the long haul, everything will be right within the world.

Once I had pulled her from that hellhole, and into my SUV, we drove all through the night. Not once did Sang open her eyes since we'd left. She trusted me enough to know I had her back and wouldn't allow something to happen to her. It made me fall a little more in love with her. Her willingness to come along. To believe in me. It was beautiful, just like her.

I didn't have the heart to wake her, but we were pulling into the Sergeant Jasper apartment complex. Thankfully Sang must feel the vehicle coming to a halt and blinks her eyes open. Those eyes are what sealed my fate. Looking into those mesmerizing grass green eyes, seeing the love she has to give, melted my tough persona.

When she stumbled upon me fixing a wound I'd received on my mission, I hadn't expected to find myself so captivated by those green orbs. Something within them pulled at me. Tugged at my soul and demanded I give in to them. To whatever they wanted. I tried to distance myself from her, knowing I wasn't in the area for long, but with the movement she made to get closer, I was a goner. Her demeanor, her openness, her vulnerability. They called me. Called to a protectiveness I didn't realize I possessed. I knew I couldn't walk away, not without a fight.

And that's what I did.

Because she is my destiny