“Stop asking so many fuckin' questions!” he roared so loud that I shrank a little. The elevator doors whooshed open, and he pulled me inside, not caring that I stumbled and nearly face-planted the floor.
“Please, Hut. You don’t have to—”
“Stop talking,” he fumed, his hand gripping on to my arm even harder and tears sprang to my eyes. I was sure he’d crack the bone if he weren’t c
areful. “If you don’t stop talking, I'll make you stop.” His gaze met mine, a promise in their depths as he pulled out his trusty knife—I hated that thing with a passion. “Maybe it’d be easier if you didn’t have a tongue?”
“Hut…” I trailed off, not sure what to say. There was no getting through to him when he was like this.
I had two hours until I had to meet Brody. I wouldn’t make it back to Cresthill and here in time, but maybe if I did as Hut told me and met Carson with him, it could all be over. I could be back in my apartment tonight, and once I told Brody what happened, he could get Hut out of my life for good.
Sadness hit me like a freight train. I didn’t want to cut Hut out altogether. He’d been the one person I could rely on when I was growing up, but staring at him now, there wasn’t one flash of that person. This evil version of him had taken over and strangled the boy beneath.
The elevator doors whooshed open, and I didn’t have the energy to try and pull away this time. He led me to a car—not his usual SUV—and popped the trunk.
“Get in.”
My eyes widened. “Hut—”
He pushed his face closer to mine, a sneer pulling at his lips. “Get. In.”
I swallowed, hating I was about to climb into the trunk without putting up another fight, but the glint of his knife at his side was enough to get my ass into the trunk. I didn’t have to guess if he’d use it. I knew he would.
He slammed it closed, basking me in darkness, and then the engine rumbled beneath me.
* * *
LOLA
The car shuddered to a stop.
I didn’t know how long I was in the small, enclosed space, but a clarity I hadn’t had was gained. It only took one incident to make you realize what really mattered in your life, and without a doubt, that was my baby and Brody. I’d pulled away when he came to me, afraid he’d hurt me like he did before, but nothing good came without risk. Risks weren’t meant to be guaranteed. They were a chance you took at a better life—a happy life, and Brody was that risk I was willing to take.
I pulled my hand away from my stomach. I wouldn't give Hut any excuse to hurt me. I’d push my shoulders back, do what I had to do, and then get out of here. Evening sunlight blinded me as Hut pulled the trunk open, and he hauled me up and out. He grunted as he deposited me on some gravel.
“Get up.” He stepped away from me, and I took a look around.
A house sat in front of me, a wraparound porch and one rocking chair by the front door, and to the right was a warehouse. I hadn’t been here before, so I had no idea where we were or what we were doing.
I placed my palms on the ground, the gravel biting into the soft flesh, and pushed myself up. I didn’t want to follow him into the warehouse, but dammit, I didn’t have a choice. I had no idea where we were, and no cell to contact anyone, so I moved toward him.
The warehouse was mostly empty with a stack of something covered in sheeting toward the back wall. “Hut? What are we doing here? Please, take me home.” I hated how whiney I sounded.
He stopped in the middle of the warehouse, the large overhead lights illuminating his tense body. “Home?” He turned around slowly, his face a mask of anger. “Home is with me, and you haven’t been there for nearly two months.” He widened his stance. “You’re not going anywhere...at least, not until Carson gets here.”
“But—”
Tires crunching on gravel cut me off, and I spun around to see headlights shining into the warehouse. I knew it was Carson before he stepped out of the SUV, followed by two of his men. My stomach dropped, and my gut told me this wasn’t a normal meeting. Carson had told Hut he wanted me in the first meeting I’d attended at his bar, and Hut had said he would have me in not so many words. My mind was running rampant, and however much I tried to deny everything falling into place, it was the only thing that made sense.
“I see you found my payment,” Carson said as he walked toward me. His gaze flicked over to Hut as he raised a brow. “Unharmed, like I requested.”
“She’s not hurt,” Hut growled. “Let’s get this done, I got places to be.”
Carson nodded and smiled down at me, the same smile that made me give him the nickname “Creepy Carson.” I shivered as he came closer, and my natural instinct was to cover my stomach, to protect the baby growing inside me from any evil these men could cause.
“Lovely Lola.” Carson sighed and stopped in front of me. He lifted his hand, his rough fingers trailing down my cheek. “Just as pretty as I remember.”
“Carso—”