Sadie looks at me with anguished eyes. “Why would Charlie lie to me? We are friends. He’s one of the good guys in this town. When we were filming, he was always so respectful. Some guys will take liberties during love scenes and take it way too far under the excuse of acting, but he was never, ever like that.”
“There’s probably a logical explanation like he got a message that it had been changed, contacted you, and then didn’t have time to tell you that it was a mistake.” I make up an excuse because the hurt expression on her face is killing me.
She nods, but I don’t know if she believes me. I am so caught up in trying to comfort her that I don’t hear the sound of shuffling across the floor until it’s too late. I see her face, the shocked expression, then the fear. A pain pierces the back of my neck. I get up swinging, my balance off, my vision blurred. The figure—the man—in front of me, brings up a heavy object. I raise my hand to ward off the attack. The sound of metal meeting flesh crackles in the air. Sadie screams.
“Get out,” I yell to her. “Run to the lobby. Now!”
She darts to the door. I block the body, but my movements are slowed. The drug, a tranq, I think, is numbing my limbs, making everything harder. I push him back, ignoring the pain in my broken hand. He tries to get past me so I throw myself at his body, hoping my big frame will take him down.
The door of the bungalow bangs open, and it’s the last thing I remember before I black out.
Chapter Fifteen
Sadie
I hate this. The feeling of being helpless is debilitating. No matter how many times I ask, no one will tell me anything. As far as everyone is concerned, Locke's and my relationship is purely a work one. That sours my stomach even more.
For the first time in my life, I am debating throwing my name and money around to see where it might get me.
“Anything?” Sparks asks, rushing through the hospital doors. It’s a relief to see her.
Out of everyone on Locke’s security team, she’s the one I know the best. She normally does the driving, but this afternoon Locke and I had gone out alone. Guilt fills me at the thought that he drove us alone because of what I’d done earlier to him in the SUV. I basically jumped him.
“Nothing.” I shake my head. It feels as though it’s been an eternity since we arrived here. No matter how many times I pace back and forth, the worry or fear doesn’t subside. It actually grows with each minute that passes without an update.
“You shouldn’t have come here alone,” she says, snapping right into security mode.
“The police are with me.” I motion toward the two uniformed officers that brought me to the hospital. We followed the ambulance that had brought Locke in. Sparks rolls her eyes at that.
I hadn’t really given the police officers much choice. Plus, I really did need to get out of there before the story started to unfold.
“What happened?” she asks.
“He saved me.” I sniffle. “There was some mix-up. Honestly, I think it was bullshit. Someone lured me to that cabana. It all happened so fast. One second Locke and I were alone in the room, and the next thing I knew there was a man in all black standing there.
“He injected something into Locke and then tried to hit him over the head, but Locke blocked it and managed to tackle the man. In the process, the man hit his head on the side of the table. I remember there was a lot of blood. Thankfully, hotel security was paying attention because they followed the guy and got him.”
“He’s going to be fine, Sadie,” she tries to reassure me.
“They won’t tell me anything.” I start to cry harder. I’m pretty sure they brought the guy in that attacked us here too.
“I’ll get answers.” She reaches into her back pocket, pulling out her phone. She types away quickly.
“Romy is coming out. He’s in the back.”
“Romy?”
“Sorry.” She shakes her head, and I swear a small blush forms on her cheeks. “Detective Benson.”
“He’s here?” Why hadn't I thought to reach out to him? He was the one who originally got me in contact with Locke because of the whole stalker mess. A few moments later, Detective Benson is pushing through the doors into the ER.
“He’s going to be fine. Got a broken bone in his hand. We’re still waiting for whatever that asshole gave him to wear off.” That should make me happy. It does, but I only cry harder. Sparks wraps me in a hug.
“Trust me. That man is not leaving you,” she whispers into my ear.