Page 20 of Last Destination

“As soon as we reach civilization, I’ll call my sister,” Nikki said. “We’ll need a good lawyer. She’ll get the Baron to pay for it and I’ll owe one hell of a favor, but I can’t see any other way.”

The Baron? Oh, right, his father. There were days I completely forgot Nikki was a descendant of royalty. For all his charm and grace, he was too compassionate, too “of the people.” The resonance of Ambrose’s response vibrated through me, but I didn’t hear it. My chest bloomed with warmth as I sat between two of the three men who risked their lives to save mine, their hands each touching my skin in some capacity and their protectiveness and care evident in every action.

Even the tattooed brute who watched me now cared. He whose touch still made me shudder long after he’d licked my cum off his lips. Was this weird connection between us even real? Or some sort of survival bond that would disappear as soon as we got to safety?

My eyes were getting so heavy, grit gathering in the corners, spreading with every blink. Was this delayed hypoxia?

“Can we focus on getting out of here first, please?” Tessa’s quiet request instantly snapped Nikki’s mouth shut. “I get you want to make things right, but my priority is just to live.”

Her words weren’t unkind, but the message slapped me all the same. Being tired didn’t detract from the seriousness of our situation. Tomorrow, we were heading toward the danger, not away from it. And we didn’t have what we needed to fit in.

We needed to make a decision.

“Nikki, do you remember what kind of bracelets the cartel is using to identify people who’ve paid? Is it something we could replicate?”

Please let us find one advantage here, universe. My soul couldn’t handle another person’s death. I fought the inevitable chest expansion as a yawn hit me harder than a freight train.

“I wish, baby girl.” His solemn frown confirmed my fears. “You know those colorful, jelly ones from music festivals? We have nothing like that with us. The only option is to get them from the source. We’ll have to take them from someone.”

The source. Shame burned through my chest and reached my cheeks in record time. Our lives — my life — in exchange for someone else’s. Considering how much of my life I wished I wasn’t on this side, it felt like such hypocrisy.

“I’m still not on board with that.” I muffled the words through my clenched teeth, but my heart sank into my chest as I relented. “But I recognize I don’t make our decisions. We do.”

Releasing my hand from Nikki and Ambrose’s grips, I shifted in my seat of dirt and nettles. “Can we take a vote on it?”

“Who is against this plan?” Madman asked before I could get out the words. My arm felt like an anchor, but I lifted it above my head. Body stiffness was setting in, along with swelling from a lack of hydration and protein. Jamie’s arm raised across the fire, his gaze intent on mine. Whether this was how he really felt, or if he was still desperate for my forgiveness, it didn’t matter. My head dipped of its own accord, grateful for his support.

“I can’t have anyone else dead because of my choices.”

His words echoed my thoughts, but the agony etched into the weathered lines on his face matched my pain. I saw it then. Past the desperation for forgiveness from his colleagues, Jamie really was seeking atonement.

Madman’s abrupt snort made his thoughts clear. No matter what Jamie said or did, he would never have Madman’s forgiveness. His gruff voice carried across the fire with the question I didn’t want to consider. “Who is for this plan?”

Tessa’s gentle features were full of guilt, but it didn’t stop her from confidently raising her hand. The three men I’d hoped would see my side raised their arms almost in synchrony, and I knew I’d lost.

To save my life, I’d have to doom another.

Emotion clogged my throat and my eyes burned from weariness and disappointment. My ribs raged at me like a punch in the chest as I struggled to my feet. My body flushed with heat as if I had walked right into the fire. A light, high-pitched ringing grew to a crescendo between my ears and the back of my head balanced on clouds as I pitched forward.

A tattooed hand gripped the front of my shirt before everything went dark.

“Amelia. Charlotte. We are going on a trip tomorrow.”

I looked up from my supper to my father standing in the kitchen doorway. Mama hadn’t mentioned anything, though she and Papa barely spoke a word to each other these days. Charlie and I shared a glance, our mirrored faces showing the same crinkled brows and down-turned frowns. We were used to Papa’s erratic behavior, but an unexplained trip was new.

“I don’t want to go on a trip. I’ve got riding lessons tomorrow, Papa.” Charlotte folded her arms across her chest in the stubborn way teenagers did for just about everything. She was always getting away with her defiance, but I didn’t have it in me to question him and risk his anger. Charlie made him angry enough for the both of us.

“Where to, Papa?” I asked instead, and his burning eyes softened when they landed on me.

“It is a surprise, bombón. We will leave before daybreak, but your mother will pack your things.”

Where would we even go? We’d lived in Michigan for a few short months and hadn’t explored any of the country yet. My heart lightened. I’d been begging him to let us go to Six Flags. Was he finally going to take us?

“I’ll stay here with Mama.” Charlie glared daggers at him from across the table.

“No, Charlotte, you won’t. End of discussion. I will wake you in the morning.” He disappeared behind the wall that led down the hallway, and I could feel the extent of my twin’s wrath with every fading step.

“Fuck him,” she grumbled under her breath with a scowl. “He’ll have to drug me if he thinks I’m going.”