Broken World (Book 3): Mad World by Kate L. Mary Page B

Hadley.
    “Who wants her?”
    Linebacker One rolls his eyes and pushes me aside. He grabs Hadley and pulls her forward. “We’ve got guys dying out there on the Strip for a chance to get with Hadley Lucas. She’s going to be very popular.”
    He yanks us toward the door. Each one of his meaty hands gripping an arm. He moves fast like he can’t wait to deliver us to whatever form of hell these men have created in this hotel. I try to keep up, but it isn’t easy. My feet stumble over the blankets and pillows spread out on the floor. Hadley has a difficult time, too. And she’s crying. I can tell she’s trying to be quiet about it, but it isn’t working. The sound of her sobbing squeezes my heart, and I desperately try to think of a way out of this. But there’s nothing I can do. We are screwed.
    A short, round, balding man stands in the hallway when we step out. His face lights up, and he hops around on his toes like a little kid. My stomach lurches.
    “I told you we’d bring her down,” Linebacker One snaps. He shoves women toward the elevator where Linebacker Two waits.
    The bald man smiles and looks Hadley up and down. He acts like he’s won the damn lottery. I just can’t wrap my mind around what’s about to happen. He looks so average. Like an accountant or an elementary school principal. A dad. Not a rapist. Not someone who’s so freaking happy to be a rapist.
    “I couldn’t wait,” he gushes.
    My stomach twists inside out.
    The linebacker shoves Hadley toward him. “You can handle her?”
    The man nods and pulls her toward the elevator. “Oh, I can’t wait to handle her.”
    Hadley turns her tear-stained face toward me like I can do something to save her. I can’t. God, I wish I could. I do my best to put on brave face. It’s fake. There isn’t a brave bone in my body right now. My legs are like Jell-O, and the Snickers bar has turned into a rock, churning the contents of my stomach as I walk.
    The elevator is crowded tonight. The linebackers, seven other women, me, Hadley, and the bald man. He shoves Hadley against the wall the second we’re in and starts groping her. Kissing her. He runs his tongue across her face, and I gag. She struggles, but he presses his body up against her and pins her hands to her sides. He’s stronger than he looks.
    I can’t watch, so I turn away.
    The elevator opens on eight, and the linebacker pulls me forward, laughing. Like this is a carnival or a comedy club or Disneyland. He’s lucky I’m not armed. I’d happily chop his head off. Then spit in the stump.
    I squeeze my eyes shut and allow the chuckling linebacker to drag me down the hall. Please let it be Jon. Please. Or another desperate person. Surely there’s someone else in the hotel who wants me to help him rescue a family member. Wouldn’t that be funny? Men lining up to get me to help formulate an escape plan. Like I’m a secret agent, not an ex-stripper.
    Linebacker One comes to an abrupt stop, and the click of a door makes me open my eyes. He hasn’t even knocked yet. Tat stands in the open doorway with an evil smile curling up his lips.
    My legs wobble, and I stagger back. Tat grabs my arm and jerks me into the hotel room. I fall to my knees. The door slams behind me, and I scramble to my feet. My heart pounds harder. Faster. Trying to escape my body. Escape. I need to escape. I frantically look around. There has to be a way out. Some way to get free. I’m panicked. More terrified than I’ve ever been in my entire life. It makes my body shake. I can’t control it.
    Tat chuckles, and I spin around to face him. His hand makes contact with my cheek, and my head jerks back. My face stings and my eye throbs where his fingertips smacked against it, but it brings me back to the present. To who I am. Tat isn’t any scarier than my dad was. Not really. I put up with Roger’s rage for years. I can take this.
    I can.
    Tat’s eyes cloud over and he takes a menacing step forward, but I don’t flinch.