Before I can say another word, shots come from the cabin.
Fuck. Emi!
This shitbag ain’t worth my time. The bullet tears through his skull, and his body goes slack.
My hip screams at me with every step, but I ignore the pain. I have to get to Emi.
Emi
Footsteps thud over my head. There were only two red dots on the security screen, but it sounds like there are at least three people upstairs. Maybe more.
The knob rattles. Someone shouts, but the words are too muffled to make out.
Do they know I’m down here?
Wood splinters above me. They’re trying to break in! Oh, God. Where’s Jasper?
The door slams open, and I adjust my grip on the gun.
A man creeps slowly down the stairs. Black boots stained with mud. Black pants. Knees. Thighs. Belt. Two more steps, and I fire.
My first shot goes wide. The second and third hit him in the leg and the gut. He collapses, falling down the last few steps to the concrete floor.
Blood spreads out in a pool around him.
Another man shouts, “She’s down here!”
Heavy steps race from another part of the cabin. I think there might be two more of them. I have enough bullets. I think.
I’d give anything to know where Jasper is. If three of them got inside…
Swallowing my sob, I focus on the stairs. He’s okay. He has to be.
It’s so quiet. Why haven’t they come down already? One of the stairs creaks. I take aim, though my hands are shaking so badly, how am I supposed to hit anything?
Something hard bounces down the steps and rolls into the center of the room. I stare at the metal cylinder, confused, until a deafening boom fills the basement and light sears my eyes.
My ass hits the floor. I can’t see. Can’t hear. Can’t think. My hands are glued to my ears. Where’s the gun? I don’t remember dropping it…
Rough hands grab my arms and haul me to my feet. Acrid smoke burns my nose. I try to pull away, but someone backhands me. The pain is like nothing I’ve ever felt. My entire face throbs with each beat of my heart.
“Where is it?” a voice snarls close to my ear.
“Wh-what?” Tears brim in my eyes. Shadows loom over me as my vision starts to clear.
“The recording, bitch!” The thug shakes me, hard. “Of Trowing’s confession. You sent a copy to the FBI. Where’s the original?”
That’s what they want?
“Nowhere…you’ll ever…find it,” I manage. “Let me go!”
The second man slams his fist into my jaw. Blood fills my mouth, dribbling down my chin from my split lip.
“You’re gonna regret fucking with us,” he grits out. “Once we’re back in Austin, we’ll break every bone in your body one by one until you beg us to kill you.”
I’mso dizzy. Blinking hurts. Where’s Jasper? I need Jasper.
My arms are pinned behind my back, and something hard bites into my wrists.
