“I told you not to mess it up again.” He grabbed her ankles then flipped her so she landed on her butt. He hovered over her, his face red and voice shaking. “I told you I’d give you one more chance.”
She stared up at him, panic swelling like a giant bubble, swallowing her insides. She was all out of ideas.
All out of hope.
The crunch of footsteps pricked her ears.
Tyson yanked on her arm and pulled her to her feet then pinned her to his chest. He hooked one arm across her throat,the other around her waist. He spun in a circle. “Who’s out there?”
Eve trembled in his grasp, the smell of cigarettes and sweat making her nauseous.
Reid emerged from the cover of trees, a gun aimed in front of him. “Let her go.”
Hope swept in and popped the bubble of panic and brought tears to the corners of her eyes. Reid had found her. Now she could jab this bastard with an elbow and Reid could take him down. Get her the hell out of here.
A subtle click of a pocketknife echoed in her ears, then a hard, sharp point pressed against her throat.
She hissed out a breath. Her body was rigid, and she kept her gaze locked on Reid.
Reid stopped. “Don’t do anything stupid.”
“I’m not the one being stupid, she is,” Tyson said, digging the tip of the knife into her skin. “If she would have done what she was told, if you would have left her alone, everything would be fine.”
“Please,” she said, her voice nothing more than a whimper. “Please don’t do this.”
Tyson took a step backward and dragged her along with him. “I’m not doing anything except taking us back to the truck. Your boyfriend’s going to stay put unless he wants me to kill you right here in front of him.”
Reid’s jaw tightened. His gun stayed in place. “You’ll never escape. Never get away with any of this. Just let her go and don’t make things worse for yourself.”
Tyson laughed. “Do you think I’m an idiot? No way. She’s my ticket out of here. I’ll never let her go.”
The statement rang in her ears, and she knew he meant every word. She’d rather die right here than be a pawn in his twistedgame. Better to act, to make the sacrifice so Reid could finish the guy off and he couldn’t hurt another woman again.
Steeling her nerve, she sucked in a deep breath and braced herself for the slice of the knife against her throat as she balled her fist. She shifted her head as far from the lethal point of the knife as she could then jammed her elbow against Tyson’s stomach. She stomped on his foot with all her strength then threw her head back, connecting with the soft cartilage of his nose.
The strong grip around her neck loosened and she dropped.
The blast of a gunshot echoed through the trees, and Tyson collapsed to the ground.
Reid rushed forward, kicking Tyson’s knife away and flipping him to his back then slapping a pair of handcuffs onto his wrists.
Madden rushed forward from the cover of trees, shoving his gun in a holster at his side. “Got his leg. Wish I could have put that bullet in a place he wouldn’t wake up.”
“Get off me,” Tyson spat with more venom than a poisonous snake. “I’ll make you pay. All of you.”
Reid hauled Tyson to his feet and pushed him toward Madden.
Tremors overtook Eve’s body, and she covered her mouth to muffle her sobs.
Reid flew to her side and engulfed her in his arms, turning her away from the blood trail Tyson left behind as he was marched away through the woods.
“How? How’d you find me?” Shock made her words choppy, her thoughts a cluttered mess. She blinked back tears and stared up into Reid’s brown eyes, unsure if he was real. If she was really safe and Tyson apprehended. None of it made sense.
“I went to the one place you loved the most.” He pressed his lips to her temple. “I was so damn scared. But you’re safe now, baby.”
She buried her face in Reid’s neck. Sobs shook her shoulders and relief washed over her, so swift and sweet. She curled against the hard security of Reid’s body.
“You saved me,” she said. “You saved my life. You saved me from whatever horrors waited for me in that tent.”
