A rush of tears flooded her eyes as thoughts of her friend returned. She forced them back, knowing she couldn’t waste time on more tears. Enough had already fallen.
It was getting harder to stay vigil and keeping her emotions in check had become more of a challenge. But hard or not, Janie knew she had to stay as alert as she possibly could.
It was the only way she’d even have if she ever wanted to escape.
These men had killed Amy, hurt Devon, kidnapped her, and were holding her captive. And while Janie understood and accepted that she may not make it out of this room alive, she wasn’t about to let them see her as little more than a wilting flower.
A sound came from somewhere outside the room. Her stomach dropped as the rest of her body froze in place. She tilted her ear toward the door and listened closely to make out what it was.
Someone’s coming!
Janie barely had time to register the thought before the doorknob started to turn. With nowhere to run, she kept her shoulders back and her chin lifted as a show of strength.
The door opened. A man entered the industrial room. Janie’s stubborn jaw lost its effect when it dropped as she saw who it was.
“You.” The breathy word escaped her gaping lips with a look of disbelief.
Christopher Campbell—the Secret Service agent she’d had words with outside the White House the week before—walked casually into the room. He was dressed in tactical gear and a backward ball cap. A large pistol was secured at his hip.
“Well hello, again.” His lips slowly curved up into an angle.
Janie’s fists clenched at her sides, and she had to fight the urge to wipe the smug smirk off the bastard’s face. She shouldn’t be so shocked, given the way he’d treated her that day at the White House. But seeinghim here, in this place, still somehow took her by surprise.
“Why did you bring me here?” she demanded.
“Oh, that? That wasn’t me.”
Tall. Muscular. Tatted arms, and a thick layer of scruff. It was a shame the mouthy man was such a crooked, murderous douchebag.
She didn’t know for sure whether he was the one to end Amy’s life. But from those bruises on his reddened knuckles, she’d bet her own life this was the man who’d put Devon in the hospital.
“Why am I here?” Janie asked for the second time.
“You’re here, because that’s what the boss wanted.”
“Your boss?” She scoffed. “And just who might that be?”
The man blinked but didn’t stop moving until he was only a few inches away. “You have a big mouth for someone in your situation.” He glanced down at her lips. “Maybe someone should shut it for you.”
“The way you shut up my friend?” She got in his face. “Did that make you feel like a man, beating up a woman half your size?”
His sinister smile confirmed what she’d already suspected.
“She was simply a means to an end.” He didn’t bother denying the claim. “Your end, to be more precise.”
“Whatever they’re paying you, it isn’t worth it.Murderingpeople isn’t worth it.”
Campbell started to laugh. “You act like this is my first time. I’d say not to worry, but I definitely won’t be gentle.”
When he lifted a hand toward her face, Janie flinched. “If you’re trying to scare me, it’s not going to work. There are people looking for me as we speak.”
“Who? Your boyfriend and his lackies?” The sick man’s chuckle caused her stomach to churn. “Honey, if they were as good as they like to think they are, you never would have been caught.”
“It’s your funeral,” she warned.
Please, God, let that be true.
“Last I checked, I’m still very much alive and well.”
