Deadly Obsession (The Obsession Duet 2)

For a moment, I think he is going to change his mind. I can see him thinking about it, weighing his options.

“Look, Xander, you treated me well, and like you said, you did save me from Christian. I owe you, if you bring me to Zane and I find something out that could harm you or your family, I will tell you. I swear.”

Xander examines me for a long minute. Just when I think he is going to lock me back in here, he disappears into the hallway but leaves the door open for me. Relief washes over me. He is still letting me go.

Hesitantly, I step outside. There are still two guards outside the door, and all three men resemble that of bouncers at a club, tall and muscular, making me feel even smaller than I am.

Looking up at the men, neither of them make eye contact with me. Without a word, Xander starts walking, the two men flanking him. I fall into step and follow them down the hall. When we get to the entrance, I find more men waiting at the door, and even more outside. All dressed in black, weapons attached to their hips, looking like an army about to take down a city.

“Everyone knows their orders, so let’s go,” Xander calls out, his voice void of emotion. There are four blacked-out SUVs parked in front of the building, and at Xander’s word, the men start piling into them. I stare, trying to figure out where I fit in in all of this. Do I just go to one of the SUV’s and get in? As if Xander can sense my confusion, his dark gaze turns to me.

“You’re coming with me,” he says.

Before I can take a step, Xander’s hand circles my upper arm, and he starts pulling me toward one of the cars. Excitement and anxiety over the unknown swirls deep in my gut. What’s going to happen next? Am I really going to be reunited with Zane, or is this a joke?

Xander opens the back door to one of the SUV’s and shoves me inside. I’m surprised to find someone already sitting in the back seat. The moment his eyes meet mine, I have this odd sense of deja vu. This man looks at me the same way Xander looked at me the first time we met. On top of that, he resembles Xander, almost to a tee. Like they could totally be—

“This is Damon, my brother,” Xander says before I can finish my thought.

Forced into the middle seat, I place my hands in my lap. Xander slides in next to me, sandwiching me between him and his brother.

The car starts, and before I know it, we are driving away from the building and off the compound. An eerie silence settles over us, and I don’t know where to look. The two men sitting in the front? The two men sitting on either side of me? Or just straight ahead on the road before us? Yes, I’ll go with the road. It’s the safer bet.

With my hands in my lap, I squeeze my shoulders together, trying to make myself as small as possible. When my eyes wander, and I look out to the side window, I catch Damon’s eyes on me. Even when he sees me looking, he keeps staring at me, and I don’t know how to feel about that. It’s like he doesn’t care that I caught him watching me, which intensifies the anxiousness that I’m already feeling.

“Xander tells me you’re twenty-one?” Damon finally breaks the silence. His voice is just as dark and ominous as his brother’s.

“Yes.” I nod my head, not understanding why my age is being brought up, yet again.

“We’re almost there,” Xander announces. “Lean forward.”

“Huh?” I twist around to look at him, but he is already pushing on my shoulders, forcing me to lean forward.

“Put your hands behind your back,” he orders while digging for something in his pocket. My eyes catch on a pair of cable ties, only then, do I realize what he is up to.

“I won’t run…”

“That’s not the point. Just do it,” he growls, and I slowly bring my hands to the small of my back. Every inch of my body is shaking. I’m not sure if I’m scared of him, or of what’s going to happen next. Xander grips my arms and fastens the cable ties around my wrists to the point of pain. The plastic cuts into my skin, but I don’t complain.

With my hands tied behind my back, I awkwardly and uncomfortably lean back against the seat. Neither of the Rossi brothers says anything to me, and once again, the car is blanketed in silence. We drive a few more minutes before pulling up to a large parking lot behind an abandoned warehouse. Oh no… I’ve seen movies.