Her body pushed her to jog from the hangar in a desperate attempt to get away before anyone noticed and came after her.
She had no idea what the threat was that Raven had warned her about, but something in her gut told her to heed it, to get off that plane.
As she stepped under the canopy of stars above her, she set her sights on her vehicle, her mind swirling. How would she explain this to Alex?
He’d hate the fact that she’s listened to a random warning from Raven, potentially ruining their chance to cooperate with the DHS and put this nightmare behind them.
She licked her lips. She’d just have to hope he trusted her judgment and was willing to move forward in a different direction despite their agreement that cooperating with the government was the best option.
When she reached the car, she glanced down at her key fob, ready to press the unlock button when arms wrapped around her, a gloved hand clamping down over her mouth.
“You made the right choice, Ava,” the robotic voice said. “I didn’t want to have to wrangle you off that plane myself.”
She murmured under the thick glove as he dragged her backward, causing her to lose her grip on the key fob as she tugged at the man’s arm.
Growing more concerned that this had been a ploy, she wanted to ask questions, demand answers.
As he moved to a dark corner of the parking lot, she hooked a leg behind him and flipped him onto his back, landing on top of him.
He groaned, and she struggled to get out of his grasp, rolling across the pavement.
Despite the oxygen being rushed out of his lungs when he landed, he was quick to recover, pivoting onto his side and grabbing Ava’s ankle.
“Don’t make this a fight, Ava. You came willingly.”
“I left the plane willingly,” she answered as she struggled to shake off his tight grip. “I didn’t sign up for another kidnapping.”
In front of her, the DHS plane rolled out of the hangar. Her stomach clenched. She’d lost her chance with them now. The plane was on its way without her, and she was stuck with a raving lunatic who had likely lied to get her off the plane.
He yanked her closer, flipping her onto her back. “You’re going to get hurt if you keep this up. Get in the van.”
“I want answers. Why did you tell me to get off that plane?”
“There are things you don’t know, Ava. Things that I do.”
“No kidding. You love to keep secrets. But what I can’t figure out is why you warned me off that plane. We’re not a team anymore.”
“People argue. It doesn’t mean they split up.”
Ava rolled her eyes as he loomed over her, his grip still tight on her leg though she didn’t struggle against him. “We’re not a couple, Raven. We were partners, and then we weren’t.”
“You needed time to cool off.”
Her eyes went wide. “Ineeded time?” She scoffed. “I think you needed time.”
“Your loyalty was confirmed once before, and now again. You made the right choice, Ava.”
“Great, now, let me go home and tell Alex the plan has changed. Then, we’ll be in touch.”
Raven shook his masked head. “There are things you don’t know. And something you need to see. Get in the van.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me. Are you going to drug me again?”
“Not this time, Ava. Get into the van.”
“Really?” She arched her eyebrow as she stared up at him before she jiggled her leg. “You want to let go so I can actually stand?”
He gently let go of her leg, and she scrambled to her feet, wary of him.
