Frustrated, I threw my arms in the air. “How the hell am I supposed to know? Declan resigned from the FBI right after your brother killed his. And it’snot like he talks to me about the FBI stuff. I don’t know that much about what he did or what he’s done.”
Vincent’s gaze narrowed as if he was trying to figure out if I was being truthful or not.
“So, you don’t know how he tracks us?” he questioned.
I shook my head. “Not at all.”
His jaw muscles clenched. “Those men are like ghosts. I want to know their secrets.”
“Good luck with that,” I snapped. “Why don’t you ask Declan when he gets here.”
Vincent chuckled menacingly. “I’ll be too busy killing him, love. I was hoping you’d be a little more useful.”
“Sorry to disappoint you.”
“Yeah, I can tell,” he said, smirking as he sat back in the chair. “How long do you think it’ll be before he finds you? I’m shocked it’s taking this long. For a man who supposedly loves you, he should’ve been here hours ago. I know I would’ve if the situation were turned.”
I stared at him as if he’d lost his mind. “Do you even love anyone other than yourself?”
His gaze darkened. “I loved my brother and that fuckhead Parker took him away from me.”
There were so many things to say, but I didn’t want to rile him up even more. The violent tension in the room was already choking me. I averted my gaze from his and tried to calm my breathing. I didn’t want to be scared of him, but I was. I’d be a fool not to be.
He waved a hand for me to go, his voice a deep growl. “You can go now. It shouldn’t be too much longer.”
I took my leave and rushed upstairs, wanting to be as far away from him as possible. When I got to the bedroom, I shut the door and went right to the dresser to pull out the tied blankets from underneath. I had to get out of there.
I dragged the blankets to the furthest window and pulled back the curtains. Before I could even lift the window, I heard a tiny creak from the bedroom door. My fingers halted on the windowsill as I glanced over my shoulder at the door. There was a shadow through the crack at the bottom; someone was standing out there. My whole body froze and the breath left my lungs, especially when I watched the doorknob slowly turn.
So many horrific scenarios ran through my mind. Was it Vincent wanting to catch me in the act of trying to escape? Or was he coming in to dosomething nefarious? Whatever his plan was, I was going to jump out the window. I’d already made up my mind. Even if I broke my leg in the jump, I’d push through it and run as fast as I could. And if I didn’t get out the window fast enough, I’d fight like hell for my life. Vincent wouldn’t get out unscathed.
I lifted the window the rest of the way just as the door shifted open. With one leg swung over the ledge, I sat on the sill and prepared to jump out. Vincent would have to rush downstairs and out the door to get outside. It’d give a few minutes head start. He might be tall and strong, but I was short and fast.
I took in a deep breath and exhaled quickly. I was about to jump when someone other than Vincent snuck into my room. It was Linda, dressed in her favorite floral shirt and green pants, holding a cast-iron frying pan. My mouth dropped in shock, and I climbed back inside, shutting the window quickly.
She held a finger to her lips and gently closed the door. A sense of relief washed through me that she was here, but it didn’t last long. She set the pan on the bed and threw her arms around me.
“How the hell did you get in here?” I asked, hugging her tight.
Linda squeezed me back and didn’t let go. “I’mgood friends with the Hamricks. Jeff has a habit of locking himself out of the house, and he always keeps that one large basement window unlocked so he can get in. It’s a good thing it’s low to the ground because I wouldn’t have been able to climb in otherwise. My joints aren’t as flexible as they used to be.”
I let her go and grabbed her shoulders. “Is Declan close by?”
She frowned. “I don’t know. I stopped by your house this morning and he was there with a guy named Ian. Declan told me it was too dangerous to get involved. I told him about this house, so hopefully, they’re checking up on it.” She cupped my cheeks just like my grandmother used to do when I was a little girl. “When I heard you were in trouble, I couldn’t just sit by and do nothing.”
I nodded over at the cast-iron pan. “Is that your weapon of choice?”
She shrugged. “Hey, it was all I could find in the time I had. Plus, I had to be quiet with Mr. Scary Pants downstairs in the living room.” She grabbed the pan off the bed and smiled at it. “Besides, when Sipsey used her pan on Frank inFried Green Tomatoes, it was game over.”
I leaned against the door to see if I could hearVincent downstairs. There was no sound, so I had no clue where he was.
“Well, let’s hope that if you have to use it, you’re just as successful as Sipsey,” I said.
Linda held up the pan and flexed her arm muscles. “There may be a lot of flab hiding what’s underneath, but I promise you, I’m as strong as an ox.”
I peered over at the tied blankets, but Linda wouldn’t be able to climb out the window. If she fell, she’d break a lot more than just her legs. But if she was able to find me so quickly, I had to believe that Declan and Ian weren’t too far behind. If that was the case, then what were we supposed to do? Should I wait for them? Or go with my original plan and try to escape?
Keeping my voice quiet, I hurried over to the tied blankets and shoved them back under the dresser. “Well, Linda, you got in here undetected. Do you have a plan on getting out?”
