He nodded thoughtfully as his eyes crawled over my face.“You look familiar.”
I swallowed hard, my heart racing in my chest.
I could tell him the truth.That my name was Ariana Kane.That I was abducted several days ago and held prisoner in some cabin up in the mountains.That the man who took me was hired by the Bratva.
But considering this was the first gas station I’d come across, I worried he might know Henry.I didn’t want to do anything that might draw attention to myself.Not until I was far enough away.
So instead, I reached for a pack of crackers on one of the shelves.“I get that a lot.”
He didn’t argue, but he watched me as I grabbed a bottle of water, a candy bar, then walked to the counter and dug into the roll of cash I’d taken.
“I’d also like forty worth of gas.”
The way his eyes lingered on the cash made my skin crawl.
He rang me up without a word, but I made a mental note to move the rest of the money to a safer spot.
“You be careful out there,” he said as I turned to leave.“World’s not as safe as it used to be.”
Didn’t I know it?
Outside, the air felt colder.Sharper.The kind that slipped beneath my skin and reminded me I was exposed.Vulnerable.
I filled the tank quickly, glancing over my shoulder every few seconds.I felt like a target, standing out here alone, in the middle of nowhere.Every pine needle that shifted in the wind sounded like footsteps.Every creak from the building could have been someone about to attack from behind.
But no one came.
Once I finished pumping, I closed the gas cap and jumped back into the Wrangler, cranking the ignition.
I turned onto the two-lane road again, trees thick on either side, the pavement stretching on for miles.
Where was I going?
I still didn’t know.
I figured I’d know when I got there.
So I kept driving, hoping for a highway.A town.A sign that I was closer to something human again.
Then I saw it.
Headlights.
The first I’d seen since escaping.
I blinked against the brightness, my heart lifting a little.Maybe I was finally getting close to civilization.A diner.A police station.Maybe even a bus stop.
The idea filled me with relief.
But as I glanced in the rearview mirror, my heart dropped when I noticed the SUV I just passed slow its speed, then turn around.
It was probably nothing.Just my paranoia getting the better of me.
They didn’t tailgate me, but they stayed behind me.
My grip on the wheel tightened as I continued to float my gaze from the road to the mirror and back again.
Was Henry in that car?I couldn’t make out a face in the darkness.Did he know some shortcut off the mountain and had tracked me down here?
