Unfortunately, those two weren’t the only ones, and I froze at the feeling of a firm nudge in my back. “Hands out beside you,” a low, heavily accented voice hissed at me. “One sudden move and you’ll never walk again.”
The scar in my back chose that second to ache, as if in remembrance of the last time Ialmost didn’t walkfrom being shot. Or more accurately, almost didn’t live.
Despite the rising panic, I kept my eyes locked on Connor, who was still firing back at his enemies. It allowed me to lift my hands to the side and obey the order, and then I was jabbed hard in the spine. “Walk.”
If I looked away from Connor, I found I couldn’t move, but keeping my eyes locked on him helped me step through the bushes, adding a few extra cuts and scratches to my body, until I was out in the open.
Connor swung his weapon around and trained it on whomever was behind me. Meanwhile, I just kept moving my feet, even as my head spun and I was seconds from screaming hysterically.
“One move and she’s dead,” my captor snarled.
Connor scoffed and didn’t bother to lower his weapon. “Ihave no fucking idea who she is. Some rich bitch from Meadowridge who snuck out to meet her boyfriend or buy drugs. Why would you think I’d give a single fuck about her?”
Another jab in my back, and I took another step forward, my eyes locked on Connor’s too gorgeous face, even as he scowled at us both. Connor denying any knowledge of my existence would probably bother me normally, but tonight, I was beyond the ability to care about such a rejection.
I was about to get shot again, and I had the feeling that there wasn’t another chance waiting for me in the wings.
23
EVELYN
Even with the rising panic, in my peripherals I saw the approach of the tatted guy, another man who looked eerily similar to him, and a giant blond man who carried a machine gun and could have given Haze a run for his money in sheer size.
“Told you your confidence would be your downfall, Sullivan,” Tatted Guy said. “Now, as I also said, we’re not here to start a waryet. I don’t need the sort of heat your father would bring down on theCrusades,but I also think a nice lesson is in order.”
Connor’s angry expression morphed into one of boredom halfway through the speech. “What do you want?”
“You and your girlfriend here, who just saved you a bullet in the side—painful injury to recover from, trust me—need to go for a little drive. I need you out of Meadowridge for a few days while I take care of some business.”
He turned his gaze on me and ran his eyes up and down my body. “You’re a pretty little thing, aren’t you. What’s your name?”
I wasn’t sure my voice would work, but I managed to stutter out Nina’s name, instinct—or maybe Connor’s brief shake of his head—telling me not to give my own away.
“Well, Nina. I need you to get in the trunk and shut the fuck up. If you do that, I won’t shoot your guy here in the knee before I dump him in there, giving you both the best chance of surviving.”
He hit a button in his hand, and with a beep, the back of his black car opened revealing a fairly tight trunk space.
“You’re making a huge mistake,” Connor growled. “I don’t care about Nina. And you’re not taking me anywhere, Elijah.”
Tatted Guy aka Elijah just shrugged. “Well, if you don’t care about her, you won’t mind if we take her for a little ride on her own then.”
My heart, already slamming in my chest, picked up pace to the next dimension. No one would have to worry about me in a second because I’d have a heart attack and die right here in front of the school.
I heard the roughly mutteredfuckfrom Connor, and then I was shoved into the trunk, tumbling down hard and crying out as my arm slammed against the metal edge, before a boot on my stomach shoved me back even farther.
“So, what’s it to be, Sullivan?”
There was a snarl from Connor, but to my relief, he moved toward the car. I could see that his gun remained trained on them as he crossed closer and slid into the remaining space in front of me. The edge of my panic attack had me unable to breathe easily, but as his size filled the trunk and the scent of spice and cinnamon surrounded me, it got worse.
The others kept their guns pointed on us, and I wondered if this had all been a ruse to kill us once we were inside, making the disposal of bodies and evidence slightly more convenient. They looked wary though, all the way until the lid was slammed down, shrouding us in darkness.
A few seconds later, the car started, and I couldn’t contain my sobs any longer, pressing my hand over my mouth to try and choke down the panicked squeaks that wanted to escape.
I had no idea if Connor heard me or not, as he spent many minutes maneuvering his giant frame to kick out one of the taillights. He managed eventually, and then he hit the other with his fist before he stilled.
“The broken lights might lead them to getting pulled over by a highway patrol, but I wouldn’t bank on it,” he muttered, as if it annoyed him to have to explain his actions. “They disabled the release lever already, so we’re most likely stuck in here until they get to wherever they’re going.”
I’d have loved to reply, maybe ask a few questions of my own, but I was too busy hyperventilating. Connor started to move again, right as the breaths heaved in and out of my lungs, and my brain started to go foggy. He turned over to face me, and I have no idea how he managed it in the tight space.
