Another male comes into view, and I realise with tears rolling down my face that the calm, deep voice was Kingston’s, my gentle giant. Of course. I beg him with my eyes to understand, to help me escape from this silent terror I’m trapped in.
Frowning, he watches my movements, and I see the moment he understands. “It’s her shirt, she’s reliving being strangled.” Kneeling at the side of the bed, he reaches towards me with an apologetic expression. “You’re not going to like this, but it will only take a second,” he promises, and my eyes widen as he reaches for my neck, only to take my top in his large hands. With one swift movement, he tears it down the middle, freeing me. The relief is immediate, and I take large gasping breaths.
“Thank you,” I croak, tears rolling down my face as I look up at one of the loves of my life. I can see them clearly now, but trapped in a flashback, everyone was a threat. “I’m sorry,” I whisper before turning to look at Liam. My happy-go-lucky Liam is watching me with a sad smile, and I feel awful for being the one to make him look like that. Leaning forward, I press my face against his chest, listening to his steady heartbeat.
“Gabby, you’re safe now,” he soothes. “We won’t let anyone touch you again.”
Kingston joined us on the bed for about an hour after that. Their touches were reassuring and soft, nothing more as they held me, which was exactly what I needed. Eventually, they helped me get dressed. I could barely stand, so they had to prop me up and dress me like a child. Their hands were soft, their eyes locked on me with every movement to check on how I was. My emotions were raw, and I ended up crying and not knowing why, so they held me. My body shook in their arms as desperate sobs burst from my chest, and after…after, I was okay again. I was almost calm as they finished dressing me, leaving me in one of their shirts with the top couple of buttons undone. I just couldn’t cope with anything tight around my neck.
I’ve not looked in the mirror yet, but I’m sure I look awful, if the bruises over my ribs are anything to go by. The marks have turned to a deep purple hue, so I’m sure my face and neck are a sorry sight.
Now dressed and relatively calm, I know I have to face the other guys, which I’m dreading. I’m embarrassed and ashamed, but they love me, and I can’t hide from them forever, so taking a deep breath, I walk into the living room area of the hotel room. They all look up as soon as I enter, falling silent. Liam and Kingston follow behind me, acting as my security blanket, but also stopping me from chickening out and running back into the bedroom.
“Sorry, guys.” Smiling sheepishly, I play with the hem of the shirt, needing to do something with my hands.
Blake practically explodes, pushing away from the wall he’d been leaning against. “What the hell do you have to apologise for?”
“Blake,” Kingston warns with a grumble, and to my surprise, my tattooed bad boy backs off with a scowl. He paces like a caged animal, his hands clenched into fists as he shoots me worried glances. I want to reach out to him, to calm him, but I’m still pretty jittery myself.
As if sensing that, Damon approaches me and opens his arms wide. As soon as I see him, I fall into his embrace, trying to hold back my tears as he wraps his arms around me. He’s gentle, rubbing calming circles up and down my back. “Never apologise for what happened, Gabby. It wasn’t your fault,” he tells me, hitting right at the center of my insecurities.
Wincing, I pull back from his touch. “I just…” I trail off as they all turn their confused gazes on me. “I feel like… It was my idea to set the trap.” Their expressions turn sour as they comprehend where I’m going, so I rush to continue before they try to stop me. I need to get this out in the open. They may say I shouldn’t think this way, but that doesn’t mean these thoughts don’t creep through my mind, making me feel guilty at every turn. “We all knew it was a possibility I could get hurt. I knew I was probably going to be injured, so I don’t know why it’s affecting me so badly, why I’m having flashbacks—”
“No,” Leo interjects, stepping up and taking my hand in his, his expression uncharacteristically stern. “Don’t you dare do that.”
“He’s right, Angel,” Liam says from behind me, wrapping his arms around me and keeping me grounded. “You’re the victim here. I don’t care what led up to it, that sick bastard made a choice to lay his hands on you and hurt you. He nearly killed you, Gabby.” His voice breaks, and I realise how hard this has been on all of them. “Hell, I’m fucking traumatised, and I wasn’t harmed. Not to mention this went on for months before what happened last night. You’re allowed to feel this way.”
I’ve been so selfish, focusing on how this has affected me when I should have been thinking about how it affected my family. Taking a deep breath, I lean against him and nod.
“We should go see Emmett, ensure he’s okay, then get some breakfast,” I suggest. After all, he’s just as much a part of my family as these guys are. The guys all murmur their agreement, and I hear someone’s stomach gurgle, making me chuckle. It hurts my throat, and it sounds different than usual, but it feels good to laugh, and the smile stays on my face while the guys hurry around, getting dressed.
Once they’re all ready, we leave the hotel room and head down to the lobby, Kingston’s hand in mine. Blake is walking just ahead of me and keeps glancing over every couple of seconds, as if to check I’m still safe. I’m still smiling as we round the corner into the reception area.
“What the fuck?” Blake comes to a stop, sounding really fucking angry.
“Blake? What’s happening?” I ask, touching his back, but he’s already moving.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”
Releasing Kingston’s hand, I hurry after Blake, rounding the corner to find Emmett by the front desk…with all of his luggage. The guys are close behind me, and they curse when they see their friend.
“Emmett?” I slowly walk up to him, knowing what this looks like but really hoping I’m just misunderstanding. He avoids meeting my gaze, instead narrowing his eyes on Blake.
“You knew this was coming, don’t pretend this is a surprise.” The venom in his tone takes me aback, and even Blake seems confused by it, glancing at the others with a raised eyebrow. It seems I was the only one Emmett confided in about his issues. Despite what he seems to think, I never shared them with anyone else. They were private conversations between the two of us.
“Emmett, look at me,” I demand, my voice scratchy and hoarse, but it does the trick. Reluctantly, he looks down at me, wincing as he takes in my bruised face and neck.
“Gabby, I can’t stay anymore,” he blurts out, and I know this is a conversation he’s been planning in his head for a while, I just don’t know why he’s going now. What’s triggered him to leave me today? Last night, he was smiling and supportive, he was hugging me and saying he was family, and now he’s looking at me like I’m a stranger. “You’ve got your family. I don’t have a place here anymore.” His piercing words hurt me worse than my broken ribs do. I take a small, gasping breath as I step back, as if putting space between us is going to help lessen the pain of what he’s saying, but he just keeps going, oblivious to the injuries he’s causing. “I need to find another show, or maybe go solo.”