Total pages in book: 73
Estimated words: 70518 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 353(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70518 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 353(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
The first guy snickered. Mustache’s scowl was murderous.
“Your purse is gone, smartass,” he muttered. “So is your phone. Unless you’ve got some more broken-down old guys on the way to save your ass, it’s over for you.”
He had the upper hand here, but I wouldn’t allow anyone to insult my friends on my watch.
“Those old guys are ten times the men you’ll ever be,” I fired back.
“Okay, sparky, I need to tie your ankles now,” the man who had just finished tying my hands said.
Tears pooled in my eyes. I was in a bad situation, but I didn’t think I could just lie here and let him tie my ankles. If I could get the van door open when we were stopped at a light, I had a chance of running.
How would I get the door open with my hands tied, though?
“You guys, my brother is a pro hockey player,” I said. “Whatever Nate’s paying you, my brother will pay you a lot more to take me to him.”
“That decision is above our pay grade,” the nicer one said. “Ankles.”
Mustache pulled me into his lap and held on to my upper body as I kicked the other one. It was no use, though. He had my ankles bound with wire in less than a minute.
This was really bad, but I had to keep my wits about me. I had to be ready to grab any chance at escape, no matter how impossible it seemed.
All hope wouldn’t be lost until I wasn’t breathing anymore. And I still had an ace in my pocket—or rather, tucked into my bra. I’d placed my new AirTag there when I got dressed this morning. If I could keep them from discovering it until Sawyer realized I was missing, he’d be able to track my location with it.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Kon
We got home from our road trip late in the afternoon and though I wanted to see Lucy right away, I wanted to shower and change first. Lucy was making the chicken and dumplings she’d promised me tonight and invited me to join her and Sawyer for dinner before she and I headed back to my place. We were trying to find a balance between spending as much time together as possible, and not abandoning Sawyer now that he was doing so much better. Luckily, Sawyer had been one of my closest friends before I met Lucy, so I liked spending time with him. I just hoped nothing would change now that she and I were involved.
I was curious to hear about this new job she’d found too. For selfish reasons, I hoped it was something she loved so it would keep her here in St. Louis.
With me.
I’d spent a lot of time in the last few days thinking about how to deal with the situation with her ex. Sawyer and I both had money, so we could potentially pay the guy off. If he was a crook, he was motivated by money, right? Most people were. And everyone had a price. At least in Russia they did. Maybe it was different here. At some point, I needed to talk to Sawyer about all of that. He couldn’t want her to go into hiding any more than I did, so maybe between us we could find a way to help her.
Deep down, I wanted her to stay for me, but I understood fear and intimidation. Especially the threat to her mother and aunt. I was going to handle it, though. One way or another. I didn’t have a plan yet, but that was why I needed to talk to Sawyer. Maybe I could convince him to work out with me one day next week, and we could talk without Lucy there. Not that I was trying to go behind her back, but I figured she would be uncomfortable with the idea of me bribing Nate.
I sent her a quick text telling her I was on the way before getting in my truck.
“Hey.” Sawyer opened the door with a weird look on his face as he peered behind me. “Is Lucy with you?”
I frowned. “With me? I just got back from the airport,” I said. “I stopped to shower and change, but she invited me to dinner so I came right over.”
“She got a job working over at the Morelli’s Brothers bakery but they close at two and it’s…” He looked at his watch. “After four.”
I pulled out my phone and noted the text I’d sent her didn’t show that it had been read.
“Have you called her?” I asked him.
He shook his head. “She sounded super excited about this new job so I figured she was hanging out with the Morellis and then maybe going over to your place since she has my truck.”
We looked at each other and something sour twisted in my gut.