“I don’t have time for this shit,” Ethan says. “You have two choices: you can run and take your chances, but Logan will find you, which means whoever he’s involved with will find you, and I can assure you no amount of praying will fucking save you. Or you can get in my goddamn car right now.”
He doesn’t have to tell me twice.
I nod once, and Ethan nods back in understanding, then flicks his gaze to the inside of the car, indicating for me to get in. Once I’m completely in the car, he slams the door and then walks around to the driver’s side.
When he opens his door and climbs in, my hair whirls around my face, the cold air rushing inside. I release a shiver and wrap my arms around myself as I fight against the frigid evening air.
“Are you cold?” Ethan asks as he presses a single button to start the car. I look around, noticing how equally stunning the inside of his car is. Black leather seats, a huge monitor in the middle of the dashboard. There are buttons and knobs I’ve never seen before. I can’t even imagine how much this car costs.
“Are you cold?” he repeats.
“Yes,” I say, tugging on my sleeves. “My coat was in my car, which apparently is being crushed to smithereens.”
Ethan presses a button and a gust of heat comes out of the vents in front of me. A few seconds later my butt and thighs get warm.
“Thank you,” I tell him in an attempt at being cordial.
When he doesn’t reply, I look over at him. He’s glancing down, and when I follow his line of vision, I notice my dress has risen. I swallow thickly, pulling my dress back down. He looks back at me, not caring that he was caught checking out my legs, and backs out of the driveway.
Realization hits me. I’m about to disappear with this man and I have no idea where we’re going. The feeling is unsettling and terrifying. Ethan’s grip on the steering wheel as we drive down the unfamiliar roads tells me it’s not the best idea to ask questions. When he’s angry, it’s scary, and I’m not sure I want to be on the receiving end of his wrath. I need to be smart about this.
Glancing out the window, I try to keep track of the turns we make.
Left turn on Main Street.
Right turn Washington Avenue.
Ethan continues to drive farther away. With every turn, I lose all sense of direction, and once he hits the expressway I give up, knowing I’ll never be able to find my way back. I don’t even know where we started from.
I force myself to close my eyes and go someplace else. Anywhere else. I think of Blaire and the last conversation we had with each other. Will she notice I’m missing? Of course she will. She knows me better than anyone. Hopefully she’ll go to the police. Not that they’ll believe her… If they didn’t believe me when I told them Stephen was murdered, it’s doubtful they’ll believe I’ve been taken. Or maybe it will be what they need, to see what I was trying to tell them…
My thoughts go back to Stephen. It’s been over two days since I last heard his voice, saw his smile. He’s gone and never coming back. I’ll never hear him laugh again. We’ll never watch reruns of my favorite shows while we eat Chinese. He’ll never get married and have kids. I’ll never become an aunt. I’ll never be able to ask him what happened. Why these men are calling him corrupt and saying he has—had—a gambling problem. With my head facing away from Ethan, silent tears of loss and devastation trail down my cheeks, soaking my shirt.
“Promise me you’ll find your own life and live it to the fullest… Live hard. Love harder.”
His last words to me are on repeat. I can’t bring him back, but I can keep my promise to him. I have an entire list of things I want to do before I die, and I haven’t even scratched the surface. I’ve been so busy trying to live my life for my mom and God, I forgot to live for me. That stops now. If—no, when—I get through all this and I’m safe, I’m going to do every single item on my list, in memory of my brother.
Ethan
What the fuck did I just get myself into? The question runs through my head on repeat as I drive away from Logan’s house and toward… Fuck! Where the hell am I even going? To my house? No. That’s the first place Logan will look. To the club? Hell no. And then an idea hits me…My dad’s beach house. He hasn’t stayed there in years, and it will be the last place Logan will think to look. A cleaning company comes through once a month, so it will be clean. The perfect place to hide her while I figure out my next move.