“Over my dead body!” I growl back. A few meters in front of me, I can see the edge of the forest floor disappearing.A cliff?!I panic. “There must be something here I can use.” I try to calm myself down. Surrounding the edges of the cliff are a couple of vines hanging low. I can take a running start and bait them into thinking that I’m going to jump off. The risk lies in whether the vine I grab is strong enough to support my weight. I curse under my breath.But, is this a risk I’m willing to take?“Well, it seems like I’m dying either way.” I grin and quicken my steps. A few yards behind me, my pursuers pick up the pace as well. “Might as well die on my own terms,” I utter cheerfully.
“You have nowhere else to go, princess!” someone expresses from behind me. “Give up or die!” I slow down a little bit to let them catch up.
“Knock some sense into her,” I hear one of them order. I look behind and see three men close my spot. The one called Jean is bleeding from his nose and I mentally pat myself on the back.
“Catch me if you can!” I break out into another sprint just as they are an arms-length away from me. Running as fast as my legs can take, I spot a thick vine hanging low enough for me to reach.
“Get her!” I jump forward and catch the tail end of the vine just as my pursuers reach the edge of the cliff. They end up falling off the edge, unable to stop their speed in time. I use my own momentum to direct the vine to turn one hundred eighty degrees and land on the balls of my feet at the other side of the tree.
Holy hell, I can’t believe that worked!
I look back to see where they landed. It is a small clearing, not enough to mortally wound them. But enough to buy myself time and let me escape. I listen closely for any reinforcements, but the footsteps stopped when the strange men fell off the cliff.
I run back to where I came from, not slowing down or stopping until I can see the familiar building of the café. I grab my keys from the pocket of my jeans and unlock the car before I can even get close.
I frantically pull open the driver’s side door and slip inside. My heart continuously pounds against my chest as I struggle to catch my breath, but I don’t let myself relax. I inhale sharply and get a strong floral scent coming from the backseat.
I feel my eyes go wide just as a hand encloses my throat. I can feel a cool, sharp object lightly scratching against the soft part of my jaw.
“Ah, finally,” the unidentified voice says. “You kept me waiting, Isabela.”
Chapter Four
“Kill me,” I sigh, slowly raising my hand to grab the pointed edge and pull it closer to my throat. “If you dare,” I mutter.
“Or what, princess?” I can hear the stranger practically smirk.
“I’ll curse you myself,” I say with a strangled breath. This time he actually laughs.
“Nice try. I know your family’s secrets so I know you’ve yet to gain your place among your pack.” He leans in. “Also, you’re not very convincing. Anyone can see through your empty threats.” His hot breath fans the side of my face and I fight the urge to roll my eyes in disgust. I struggle deeply, but still, he carefully slides the weapon across my face. A knife with a serrated edge is now pointed directly at my right eye. “Try to move again and I’ll blind you,” he whispers.
“Fine. What do you want?” I deadpan.
“Start driving—” he starts.
“But you just said don’t move. Why don’t you drive?” I smirk. He starts to move his lips closer to my ear and I feel my airway constrict. I fight my instinct to start clawing at his hand.
I won’t give you the reaction you want,I think to myself as I close my eyes and concentrate on calming myself down.
“Why aren’t you fighting? Giving up that easily?” he taunts but I try my best not to dignify his presence with a response. After a few beats, he sighs and loosens his grip.
“Just drive,” he instructs as I try to catch my breath, “and don’t get smart with me again.”
“Fuck off,” I spit, affixing my gaze on the rearview mirror. “It’s you!” I yell. My eyes
widen at the image of the man looking right at me. Posture hunched over the backseat, broad shoulders engulfing the entire driver seat as he keeps the knife pointed at my throat and his other arm poised to grab my neck at any moment’s notice. His hazel eyes narrowed in anticipation of what I had to say next. “You, the guy from earlier? Gregory?” I ask in disbelief.
“Surprise,” he responds emotionlessly. His deep voice sends my mind into a frenzy.
All my life I’ve been carefully guarded, and the moment I allow myself to relax for an hour I get into trouble.
I mentally continue to berate myself, unaware of Gregory’s knife starting to dig deep into my neck.
“Now then, Isabela. I’m growing impatient. Get us out of this parking lot, and get on the main road,” he commands. I grip the steering wheel and start backing out from my parking space.
“Where are my friends? Did you do something to them?” I ask cautiously. I keep my eyes trained on the road before me, but I do my best to keep my other senses focused on what Gregory’s doing in the backseat.
“They’re fine,” he breathes into my right ear. “We just talked.” He chuckles. “I was kind of hoping you were going to give me back my wallet but when they knocked on my window side, I had to switch to plan B. Though as soon as I sent all my people after you, I knew you’d give them trouble.” He points to his right and I turn to a long dirt road that is illuminated by street lamps. “I had to act fast, I didn’t want to lose you.”