Desiree
“Where are we?”
My eyes quickly roamed the interior of the cab. There wasn’t much to see because of the tinted windows. The only illumination was the little ceiling light.
“Who was shooting at us? Why do they want me?” I had a million questions, and my frazzled nerves had them spilling free in a rush.
“We’re inside the trailer of a friend’s semi-truck. He’s going to drop us near a safe house.” Although I couldn’t see him well, the squeak of the front seat and his voice shifting and growing louder told me that Khane had turned in our direction.
“I don’t know who was chasing us. I first noticed them pointing out the spa before they decided to enter,” he stated before the unmistakable sound of a gun being charged registered and widened my eyes. He was in the front seat, loading a gun. When the sound of another bullet sliding into the ready position sounded, I swallowed a gulp.
“Before this is over, I’ll find out who that was and kill them,” he stated matter-of-factly, and I believed him. The man was fearless. Who in their right mind decides to go walking up to a man aiming a gun at you, then strip him of the gun and his life?
“Normally, I wouldn’t stop until I’d found out who they were and destroy them. But, if I leave you in the hands of someone else and something happens to you, Arjen will kill me. If I let anything happen to you while you’re with me, Arjen won’t have to kill me. I’ll do it myself.”
His words gave me a strong sense of security and the reassurance that he would protect me or die trying. The bad guys were getting away, but as long as Khane wasn’t going to leave me, I believed I would be okay. Was it wrong of me to be proud of his words? Hearing them vocalized with such emotional force had all types of heart-pounding emotions thundering through me.
“Dayum!” Patrena hissed in my ear. “I do believe he’s in love with you.” She spat the words, her teasing lips brushing my lobe. She was set to keep talking, so I reached up and cupped a hand over her mouth.
Khane turned in the seat again. I had adjusted to the dimness, so I saw him more clearly. His eyes were aimed at Patrena, “Ms. Davis. Do you have a problem with anything you’ve witnessed so far?”
How in the heck did he know her last name? It meant he knew her or had researched her.
“I haven’t seen a thing. My head’s been down the whole time. I left the spa, went home, and realized, oh damn, I left my purse,” Patrena stated, glaring at the gun in Khane’s hand. She was acting like he intended to harm her or something.
My wide gaze rocked back and forth between them before meeting Khane’s stiff glare and her stressed one. He wouldn’t hurt Patrena? Would he?
“Okay,” he stated, finally ending the stare off and allowing us to breathe again. “We’ll regroup at the safe house for a little while. A spa representative has secured your purses and clothing. Ms. Davis, I’ll make sure you get back home safely, and you’ll have your belongings by morning.”
He was talking like he knew things that we didn’t. Had we not been witness to the same situation? There weren’t any updates pouring in, and I’m sure I hadn’t heard him placing any calls. And how the heck were they going to keep dead, bloody, and beaten bodies from being broadcast on the news?
When the ride we had hitched started to slow, the questions that stacked up in my brain had narrowed down to only a few. Who was after us, and where the hell were we?
At a complete stop now, Khane exited the truck and opened the door near me. I gripped his big hand and stepped down, glaring at his darkly-shrouded face. There wasn’t enough room to maneuver so he put me against the wall of the semi. Patrena was helped down and positioned behind me.
Khane stood in front with his back to us, his body a shield as he faced what I suspected was the exit. One of his guns was out and at the ready. The back of the large door to the truck’s trailer started to rise, the movement setting off a loud screeching roar. The orange glow of the sun setting peeked through a cluster of trees, the mountains a dark looming canvas behind them.
The gradual rise of the door set fire to my nerves and spiked my heartrate because we were clueless as to what awaited us on the other side. The two men that stood waiting were about as deadly looking and imposing as Khane.
Air found its way into my lungs when Khane lowered his weapon at the sight of the men. The blanket of fear that had covered me lifted.
Khane hopped from the truck and reached up for me. One of his men standing next to him reached for Patrena, taking her by the waist. The man’s surprising move caused a yelp of surprise to escape her before he set her on her feet.
Now that we were on solid ground, I noticed the men were of the same eye-catching build and towering height as Khane. There were no introductions, and I knew there wasn’t going to be any.
Patrena reached out her hand to the big burly man that towered over her like a skyscraper. “Patrena,” she stated as the man glared at her hand. Surprisingly, he took it. I suppose she wanted to know the name of the man who had her in his capable hands and had likely been fighting for us.
“Tywin,” he offered, and I couldn’t tell if it was a smile or a frown that had surfaced on his face. Khane had told me about his cousin Tywin, but it was good to put a face to the name. I had also heard Khane talking to him on a few of his phone conversations that he had openly allowed me to listen in on.
No further intros were made, so I assumed the blond of the group wasn’t feeling friendly today. However, I caught the scar on the man’s neck in the shape of a crescent moon. I cast a glance at Khane, who responded with a lifted brow. Was this the boy he had fought with when they were younger? The man hadn’t spoken, and I recalled Khane saying he’d never talked right again after that day.
“Let’s go,” Khane called out. Tywin followed us, but the blond man yanked down and slammed the truck’s door before he walked around the driver’s side and climbed aboard.
“This is the closest we could get to the safe house without leading searching eyes to our location,” Khane stated. Unblinking, my gaze lifted to his and stilled. The confusion on my face must have registered. “Anyone following us or attempting to track us by other means, specifically digitally, can’t.”
Was that why they had backed so close to the woods? The sight of thick roots and broken tree branches scattered across the lumpy forest floor had me glaring at my feet. With no shoes on, our feet were about to be destroyed. Sensing my hesitation, Khane glanced at the bed of roots, broken branches, and unruly terrain.
“I’ll give you a lift,” he offered. “Tywin,” he called, aiming a finger at Patrena. This time, I didn’t miss the smile that appeared on the man’s face.