CHAPTER 83
JESS
I jolted awake, my eyes snapping open to find I was staring at the ceiling of a car. I blinked a few times to focus and looked around. Someone was driving, but I could only make out a blue baseball cap. My vision was still blurry. My first instinct was to scream, to cry out for help, but it came out muffled, and the heavy metal music drowned it out.
Every time I tried to open my mouth wide enough to get the tape to loosen, I could feel my skin tear on the side of my face. Then I remembered something knocked me out. I squirmed against the ropes that were burning into my wrists behind my back; my arms were going numb. I finally got myself upright and then screamed when I saw Laura slumped on the back seat next to me. Her mouth was taped, her feet tied, and her hands tied behind her back, just like mine.
Shit.
This is bad.
This is really bad.
Oh god, we had walked outside to meet Sam… Was Sam…
Fuck.
I can’t remember.
I blinked a few times, then focussed back on the driver. There
was a grid between us, almost like in a police vehicle. Maybe this was a police vehicle?
I tried to wake Laura, but she didn’t move. I needed to think, and I needed a plan. My wrists were bound, yes, but there was little room. If I could just…
Suddenly, the truck stopped, and I jerked forward as the driver slammed on the brakes. The force of it sent me tumbling off the seat, my body rolling awkwardly into the metal cage. My shoulder hit the hard metal with a sickening crack, and a wave of pain shot through me so intense it took my breath away.
I wanted to scream, but the tape muffled my cries, trapping the sound in my throat. I lay there, stunned, as pain radiated from my shoulder, spreading like fire through my arm and chest. I was like 99% certain I just dislocated my shoulder.
Tears welled up in my eyes, blurring my vision as I tried to process what had just happened. I looked over at Laura, who slumped forward but was moving now.
She was waking up. I felt the tiniest bit of relief.
The truck had stopped, and my pulse raced as I listened, straining to hear any sound, any clue about what was going to happen next. My body shook with the pain and fear, and I could barely breathe, but I needed to get my shit together. I needed to get us out of this, whatever this was.
The metal music stopped, and the truck door opened.
Fuck.
Using the back seat’s rough material, I dragged my face over it,
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pulling the tape off and feeling the tear in my skin. I got the corner off, and that was enough.
Then I heard footsteps, heavy and deliberate, coming toward the truck. The sound made my heart skip a beat, dread pooling in my stomach like ice. Whoever was driving was coming for us.
Laura was awake, looking around, and I could see the panic in her eyes. I turned my body around so my back was facing her legs and focused on the knot. When I felt the release of the rope, I spun around and looked at her.
“You have to run. If this man opens the door, you have to run!”
The truck’s back door swung open, letting in a rush of cold night air. I couldn’t make out the man’s face with the bright streetlight outside, but I didn’t need to. All I had to do was give Laura a chance to run. My heels connected with the driver’s stomach, and the impact reverberated through my legs. A satisfying grunt of pain followed as the man stumbled back, falling to the ground with a thud.
“You fucking bitch!” He bellowed and pulled himself back up just in time for me to kick again, but this time, he caught my flailing legs, which meant Luara had a shot. I looked at her, pleading with her to run and with tears streaming down her face, she started kicking his head while I struggled to get out of his hold.
It was chaos, and I wasn’t really sure what was happening until his fist connected with my face, and I saw literal stars.
“Hold still, or I knock you fucking unconscious.” He growled, but I didn’t stop. Somehow, Laura got past him, and when he realized she was out and making a run for it, I did my best to get
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out of the vehicle and make a run in the other direction. Well, hop, I hopped in the other direction.
I turned back to see the asshole stop, looking between us, deciding who was worth pursuing until he turned on me and yanked me back to the ground by my hair.
“I’ll just go pick her up. She won’t get far.” He snarled, but I saw Laura run into the woods just outside of our town. He wouldn’t find her…
