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“Stop,” my voice is croaky, barely recognizable. Not that my attempt to speak matters. I’m ignored. Nothing changes in the tense interior of the car. Pebbles continue to grate under the slowly turning tires. The engine purrs without pause.
“Cole,” I rasp, inching forward in my seat. “We need to go back.”
“We can’t.” His tone is frosty, so damn cold as Luca accelerates onto the road.
Guilt makes me tremble—my arms, my hands, my feet.
How can I escape to find sanctuary when other women are about to endure far worse?
It’s not right.
It’s beyond redemption.
“We can’t leave them behind.” I grab Cole’s shoulder, demanding attention. “Please.”
“It’s okay.” Luca meets my gaze in the rearview. “We’ll help them once you’re safe. But we need to get you away from here first.”
“No.” I shake my head. “I can’t. Please, Cole.”
He doesn’t respond. The car doesn’t slow.
“Fine.” I slide to the door, grab the handle, and shove, flinging the heavy weight wide.
“Jesus. Fuck.” Luca slams on the brakes, the wheels screeching with the sudden impact.
I don’t wait for them to deny me again. Once the car stops, I scramble outside and start ru
I’ll make it back to that house. I don’t know what I’ll do once I get there, but I’ll do something. Anything.
I’ll find a phone. I’ll contact the embassy.
Rushed footsteps approach behind me. Strong arms engulf my waist. I’m lifted, hauled off the ground and into a hard body.
The restriction is suffocating.
“Don’t.” I thrash. I beat at the familiar arms enslaving me.
“We can’t go back, Niss.” Cole’s voice brushes my ear, the apologetic tone tearing me to pieces. “You need to listen to me.”
“We can’t leave them.” I kick. I fight.
“You don’t think this is fucking killing me, too?” His hold tightens, squeezing me to his chest. “But we can’t help them right now. If we go in there guns blazing, we’re only going to get them killed.”
“No.”
No. No. No.
I deny him even though logic stabs through me, the truth in his words too brutal to handle.
My eyes burn. Tears consume my vision. I’d rather die than be responsible for their continued torture.
“I’ll make this right.” He lowers me to the ground and grabs my arms, turning me to face him. “Believe me, Nissa.” He continues to hold me, not letting go. “I’ll make them fucking pay.”
I clench my fists and thump his chest. I fight against myself. I battle the injustice one punch at a time.
“It’s okay.” He pulls me close, cradling the back of my neck. “We’re going to help them. You just need to trust me. But right now, we have to go. I don’t want anyone seeing you.”
“I don’t know how to leave them behind.”
“You can.” His hands slide away, leaving me empty as he steps back. “And you will. Trust me enough to believe I’ll get them out of there.”
“Today?”
He winces. “No, but eventually. I need to get you Stateside first. We’ll go back to the island, grab our things, then head home where I can work out a better plan with Hunt and Decker.”
“That will take days. If not weeks.”
“There’s no other choice.” He grabs my hand and leads me to the car. “Not unless you want to risk some of them dying in a shootout, and that’s not something Luca needs on his conscience.”
“What about yours?”
A lone brow rises. “You think I’ve got a conscience?”
“I know you do.”
“Then I guess mine has taken enough of a beating today to last a lifetime.” He directs me into the back of the car, this time following in beside me. He holds me close against his side as he slams the door shut, then barks an order to get us to the boat.
I can’t switch my brain off as we speed through the narrow, winding streets. My stomach roils with shame at every corner. Guilt accompanies every breath. And the worst part is the relief. Every mile we move away from Luther makes me stronger.
It helps when Cole huddles me close, his arm never losing its protective hold as he bundles me against his side.
Yes, in the heat of the moment I blamed him for today, but I’m the one who fought to stay. I begged not to be sent home. I wanted to be here. And I can’t pretend I didn’t know the risks.
I relax into him, ru
He stiffens and remains taut.
He doesn’t trust me. I guess he has no reason to.
But I trust him.
He could’ve left me with Luther instead of risking every future opportunity to take his father down. He didn’t have to fight for me. He did some crazy shit in an effort to help me escape.
“Your dad could’ve demanded my death when you a
He strokes my hair, his fingers tangling in the knotted strands. “I know.”
The confirmation makes my stomach turn. “You weren’t worried?”
“I was fucking petrified.”
I close my eyes and wince through the pain in my ribs as I sink farther into his warmth. “He’s not going to let you keep a walking, talking liability. At some point, he will want to make sure I’m silenced.”
Cole doesn’t answer. He doesn’t do anything apart from drag his fingers through my hair.
“Cole?” I push back from his chest to look at him, but he doesn’t meet my gaze. “He’s going to come after me, isn’t he?”
“He can try. I won’t let him anywhere near you.”
The adrenaline rollercoaster reaches another peak. My pulse intensifies. My throat tightens.
“Don’t worry.” He shoots me a half-hearted grin, his gorgeousness not doing anything to appease my churning insides. “He’s going to take stock of what happened today and realize he fucked up. If he has anything pla
“Are you sure?”
He drags me back into his side and plants a kiss on my forehead. “You’re safe, little fox. I promise I’ll get you home in one piece.”