“This is all purely junk,” Reyes commented as he pulled out a flash of his credit card.
I smacked my lips, cutting him a look. “Good detectiving, Agent. I think you’re ready for your big boy badge.”
His eyebrow twitched like he wanted to snip back but just finished up paying instead. I scooped all of my snacks up in my arms and made my way towards the exit. Behind me, Reyes decided to try his piece after all.
“I was simply stating that this isn’t even remotely a healthy diet. It’s just sugar and shit.”
“And what’s your diet consist of?” Turning a 180, I put my back to the entrance door and my cocked glare on Reyes. “Raw meat and the tears of children?”
Something of warning blipped across his stare. Then, he was looming in closer with pointed steps, shadows coloring in the slopes of his face as he craned his head down to keep my eye. At his side, his arm lifted and lengthened out, palm flattening against the door right next to my ear.
“Medium rare, actually,” he murmured, dark and low-pitched. “And I prefer the tears of bratty teenagers.”
Then, the motherfucker pushed the door open for me.
I nearly fell through, catching myself by the heel of my foot just barely. Amusement played on his features, and the crunch of every pretzel he’d just bought crackled through the air as I death-squeezed the snacks in my arms.
Then, I threw every last fucking one of them at his smug face.
Surprise flashed along the circle of his honey eyes, but I didn’t stay long enough to see what happened next. I bolted, pushing earth beneath my feet as I ran and ran and ran as fast as the wind riding next to me.
The wind carried me over the edge of the sidewalk and around to face the safe haven of trees. Each one of them was encouraging me. Run faster. Push harder.
My hair was as wild as my heartbeat as it whipped red vines across my vision. My heart pounded hard as my feet hit the dirt, thumping in my ears, pulsing and breathing energy into my quick-ditch escape effort.
Behind me, another sound of pounding bounced off of the massive wall of encouraging trees—the sound of footfall slapping cement and threatening closer. Fear reached up inside of me as if it had fingers and squeezed my windpipe until I was gasping for air as the noise gained on me stupidly fast.
Before the bottom of my shoe even touched grass, arms snatched around my waist, a choked cry getting caught in my throat, and my feet were left searching for the ground.
I screamed and kicked out furiously, swatting at the arms carrying me away from the forest that begged for me to reach it. “Let me go!”
The wall of green was fading, the smell of fresh land dwindling, and along my cheeks, the rush of the wind was saying goodbye too. A cry punctured my breathing as I felt him, as I felt Johnny slip between my reaching fingers and fade into mist that painted my arms cold and my cheeks wet.
“No! Stop! I said fucking stop!”
But he didn’t. The burly arms that robbed me of my death tightened the harder I struggled. Too soon, the parking lot came back into view and I wanted to cry so fucking badly, it hurt.
My chest hurt like it had every time I’d come this close and chickened out. It was the half of my heart that was left a ghost, howling so piercingly that everything inside of me began to bleed in pain.
Setting me back on my feet, hands that were already too familiar clamped around my arms and shoved me forward. A grunt pushed from my lips as my front connected hard with the car, struggling and squirming as those warm as fuck hands yanked my wrists together.
A cry of pain squeaked through me as my shoulder blades dipped to touch and my head fell back to ease the pressure. From behind me, his husky voice found my ear.
“Try that again and watch what happens.”
His superiority raced down my neck like a drop of sweat and made me fidget in my shoes just the same. “I don’t have time for your bullshit or your empty fucking threats. Just let me go!”
“There’s nothing empty about my promises, I can assure you of that,” he bit out, his voice gravel and glass grinding together.
“And what are you gonna do? Tell on me to Daddy?”
Another cry slipped from my mouth as he pulled my arms tighter, sending a pain spiraling up to my shoulders. The angle forced my head back until it was damn near resting against his chest, bringing his rough voice right over me.
“Your father doesn’t have to know everything I do to keep you in line on this trip, Ms. Avery.”
Color me naive, but I’d almost say that sounded like a threat. Maybe even a promise if I kept pushing him. The ache he was delivering me in a poor man's attempt to punish me had laughter bubbling up.
If only he knew.