“I’m not going anywhere with you,” I say quietly.
“That’s too bad.” He releases me, and I fall back, catching myself on the side of the tub. A glint of metal catches my eyes before he’s scratching his head with the barrel of a gun. “I guess we’ll just have to ask your new friend what he thinks you should do.”
Jake.
My heart pounds painfully in my chest as I glance at my watch. He’ll be here soon.
“Your call,” he shrugs. “Come with me, or I'll have a nice little chat with your friend. I would hate for him to get hurt because of you. He’s probably getting bored of you by now anyway. You always were a boring fuck until I taught you how to please a guy.”
His words mean nothing to me as I let them roll off. He’s lost the power to hurt me with words, but he has no clue he has the ability to destroy me with his actions.
I can’t let Jake near him. There’s no way he will let Tim take me, and from the wild look in Tim’s eyes, he’s not leaving without me. If Jake stands in his way, he won’t hesitate to stop him…permanently.
I eye the gun in his hand as I try to come up with a plan. There’s only one thing I can do to keep Jake safe.
“I’ll go with you,” I say the words that feel like a death sentence as the knot in my stomach gets more prominent.
“You’re smart after all.” He taps the gun to the side of my head, referring to my brain. “Ladies first,” he motions to the doorway. I purposely fall into the table as I pass by it, knocking it to the floor.
“Jesus, you’re a fucking mess,” he spits out, nudging me in the back with his gun. I walk slowly to the kitchen and start to grab my purse.
“Leave it. Do you really think I’m stupid enough to let youhave a phone? Let your little fuck friend wonder where you are. He’ll never find you anyway. I’ve got everything set up for our little life together far, far away. It will be just you and me, precious…forever.”
“Where are we going?” I ask, pushing down my sleeves on my work blouse and praying he won’t notice my watch.
“Someplace I’ve set up in the middle of nowhere.” He grabs my arm and yanks me in the other direction. “Back door, down the beach,” he says, pushing me forward.
“Where in the middle of nowhere?” I try to keep him talking so I can think of something to get out of this situation.
“You need to learn to shut the fuck up unless I ask the questions,” he seethes. I notice he’s slightly swaying from the alcohol as we walk down the beach. “All you need to know now is that you’ll love it. No distractions, and you can scream as loud as you want, and no one will ever hear you. We both know how much you love to scream.”
My body goes cold as his words slice through me. If I leave this state, I’ll be just another missing person report. He’ll see to it that I’m never found.
We finally reach a car parked in a nearby parking lot. I look around and see it’s deserted.
“Get in,” he says, opening the door.
“You’ve been drinking. Why don’t I drive and you…”
“Get in the fucking car, or I’ll tie you up and do it myself.” I slide into the passenger seat as a cold sweat breaks out on my body. “And precious girl?” He asks, leaning down close to my face, his eyes hard as steel.
“Yes,” I whisper.
“You try anything stupid, and I’m going straight back to your boyfriend's house and blowing off his fucking dick that was inside my wife.” He slams the door, and I try to breathe through the rising panic. Being in a confined space with him makesme want to run in the other direction as fast as my legs can take me. His threat hangs in the air, though, keeping me chained to the seat.
He starts the car and reaches over, grabbing a bottle off the floorboard. He takes a big swig of vodka before tilting it toward me. “Want some?”
“No,” I say, as my stomach churns at his mad grin.
“Suit yourself.” He puts the lid back on and throws it on the backseat. “Say goodbye to Florida, precious. This is the last time you will ever step foot in it again.” He guns the engine and peels out of the parking lot.
I watch familiar buildings that I’ve grown to love fly by as we go through town. Tears fall silently down my face, and I swipe them away before he can see them.
My heart aches painfully in my chest when I think of Jake coming home and not finding me there. The further we go out of town, the more numb I get, leaving my heart in the rearview mirror and in the hands of someone I may never see again.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
JAKE
