I don’t even know if that’s okay to ask. Should I use his name? Should I be more discreet? Is there some kind of code or etiquette I’m unaware of?
“Who wants to know?”
I take that as a yes. “My name’s Annabelle. I was… um, I was kind of given your number by Liam. Liam Hunt,” I add, more excited than I should be that I know his last name.
“Look, I don’t care how blonde or buxom you are, it’s 2 o’clock in the goddamn morning and I was asleep.”
“I’m neither of those things. Liam’s in trouble.”
That seems to get his attention. “What?”
“I’m his… girlfriend?” I say, for lack of better word.
“What?” he says again.
“He told me you wouldn’t believe me. He told me to ask you how the ladies like the scar he gave you?”
I can hear my own heart beating as I wait for him to say something. I need help and I don’t know what I’ll do if he doesn’t believe me. Or if he does, but there’s just nothing he can do.
I need to get to that party with Liam by my side. I don’t know how, but I’m confident we have a far better shot of getting out alive if we’re together.
Finally breaking the taut silence, Ryder demands, “What happened to Liam?”
Annabelle
I haven’t slept.
Ryder told me to, but I couldn’t.
I’d gotten a few hours before Pietro called, and though they burn, my eyes are just going to have to push through this morning, then whatever comes after it.
The sound of a fist pounding against the door startles the hell out of me. It’s still dark outside and even though I know it must be Ryder, I can’t shake the paranoia that it could be Pietro.
“You awake?”
I’m relieved to hear what must be the voice of the man from the phone.
I open it, a little at first, then enough for him to come inside. The fire died and it’s bitterly cold outside. A gust of wind follows him in and chills spring up all over me. I cross my arms over my chest, rubbing my arms, trying to keep warm.
Ryder is tall. That’s the first thing I make note of. He’s handsome. Smaller than Liam. Tall and lean with brown eyes and a clean-shaven jawline.
He casts a sweeping gaze around the cabin as he comes inside. Don’t know what he expected to find, but then his gaze makes it to me. He makes no attempt to disguise his brief perusal, apparently appraising the woman Liam decided was worth risking his life for.
I can’t tell if he’s impressed or not. These guys don’t give much away when it comes to what they’re thinking.
“Ready to go?” he asks.
I nod, glancing around the room uncertainly. I have Liam’s go-bag and some granola bars I tossed inside, but I don’t know if we’ll ever be back here. I don’t know if there’s anything I should take.
“Were you able to get that guy?”
He said he might be able to call on someone local for help.
Ryder nods. “He’s meeting us with a car.” Then, taking a moment to actually check on me, he asks, “Are you ready to do this?”
“I have no idea,” I tell him, shaking my head.
“You were raised around mobsters, weren’t you?”