I grabbed the wheel, jerking us back.
The semi passed us with a honk, and once clear, Sinclair shoved me off the wheel so hard my head hit the window.
Groaning, I dragged my head off the glass and when I faced Sinclair, his eyes were no longer on me.
Wild, they darted toward the floor of the van, my phone there.
In seconds, he reached for me, seeking the device, and I clawed at him, digging my nails into his skin.
A roar and he punched me in the face, my jaw searing. He worked around my legs for the phone, and I forced my head up, seeing the crosswalk. I angled down. “We’re coming up on the intersection of Ivy Lane and Robin Road. Hurry—”
A fist to my jaw again, my teeth lodging into my tongue so hard I tasted blood.
I moaned, and finally getting the phone, Sinclair opened the window. I had just enough time to see the screen flash with LJ’s name before Sinclair threw it outside.
“You’re going to pay for that, you stupid bitch,” he seethed, claw marks on the side of his face. I guessed I’d gotten him a little, the welts deep. He wet his lips. “You’re going to fucking pay for that. You could have had me, and you called him!”
His foot accelerated the van again, toward a tree this time, and I screamed, reaching for him, but he held me back.
He had a full hand around my neck, cutting off my air supply, and I closed my eyes, not sure if it was from his hold or fear.
I braced myself for impact and went flying when it hit.
Sinclair’s hand left my neck with a jolt, and strapped in, I hit the side of the door.
The wind instantly knocked out of me, my right impacted but not my front. The airbag exploded in my face, my screams radiating through the air as the van scraped off the road and came to a stop in a shallow ditch.
No sounds then, my head heavy and weighted. Dragging it up, I glanced over to the left side. Sinclair’s airbag had also gone off, but he was pinned between that and his door. The windshield had exploded and he had a piece of glass shoved so far into his skull blood seeped over his closed eyes.
My stomach rolled, and I clawed at the seat belt until I got it off. I fought around the airbag to get out of the door, and the moment I did, I fell into a hard chest.
“Billie, oh my God!”
Shaking, LJ grappled me to his chest, so hard I thought he’d fuse me to him.
The tears filled my eyes instantly, gasping for him. “You’re here.”
“Yeah. Holy fuck.” He kissed my hair; over and over, he kissed me. Hands framing my face, he studied me. “Are you okay? God, baby. I didn’t know what to do. I saw him going for that tree, and I panicked.”
To the side, Sinclair wasn’t moving, but behind him a familiar car sat on the other side. It’d crashed into us. LJ had crashed into us and managed to stop him.
LJ spoke wildly in front of me, and I missed most of it until he hunkered down, running his fingers through my hair. “Thank God for your dad.”
“My dad?”
He nodded. “He knew these woods. Told me where to go. He was right beside me the whole time. We drove here together.”
Something in my heart stopped just then, something made me look for my dad who wasn’t with him. LJ said he’d been with him, but he wasn’t now.
Until he was.
Right behind LJ, he stood, so much fear and raw terror in his eyes I felt it myself. His bright hair was swept, his fists clenching like he wanted to do something but couldn’t. Like he wanted to come over, but felt he couldn’t. His mouth opened. “Billie…”
That word broke me, my tears overflowing a dam, and LJ let go and allowed me to go to my dad.
I ran to him, literally in his arms, and he gathered me up like I was his little girl. I was his little girl, a familiar home in his arms.
“Billie…” He felt that too, had to have. Emotion lined his voice as he grappled me back and lifted me off the ground. He covered my head. “I was so scared, sweetheart. I was so scared.”