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I clenched my jaw and stared at the phone. I tossed it onto the bed next to me like it was burning hot and wiped my hands on my jeans.
“I don’t think you’re much better,” I said.
“I’m not,” he said. “But I’m honest, and I haven’t hurt you on purpose.”
“But you did.” I put a hand over my shoulder, right where I’d been shot. “You hurt me.”
His face tensed and he looked away. I was surprised by his reaction.
“Yeah,” he said. “I did. And I plan on making that up to you.”
“How?” I asked.
“Slowly at first, but I will.” He sucked in a breath. “Just be careful with that phone, all right? Don’t tell anyone where you are. As soon as someone knows, they can be used against you.”
I nodded at him and glanced at the phone. It sat like a brick on the bed. “I won’t,” I said.
“Good.” He walked to the door the hesitated. “Everyone’s okay. Just so you know. None of my guys were hurt.”
“I’m happy to hear that,” I said. “You were worried, weren’t you?”
He nodded once. “Not at first, but once the adrenaline wore off.”
“But they’re fine.”
“Yeah,” he said. I could tell he wanted to say something else, but he held back and shook his head. “Yeah, they’re fine.”
He left without another word and didn’t shut the door. I sat there and stared at the light coming in from the hall, and thought about all the trouble I could get in with a phone.
But he was right. If I told anyone about Steven and staying with him, they’d be in danger. Which meant I had to keep this from Tracy, had to keep it from everyone.
I reached over and grabbed the phone. I turned it on, my heart beating fast. It booted up again, and more missed calls and messages and emails popped up.
I stared at the screen then opened iMessage. I tapped on Tracy’s name and typed a text.Me: Hi just checking in. Things are fine, hope you’re okay.
Tracy: !!!! HEY YOU’RE ALIVE!!!
Me: haha of course I am. Sorry I’ve been so absent lately.
Tracy: Are you coming home soon?
Me: maybe, I don’t really know. I’ll try and tell you when I do know.
Tracy: I really want to keep asking about where you’re hiding but I’m pretty sure you won’t tell me.
Me: I know, I’m sorry. I’m the worst.
Tracy: But I’m happy you’re okay!! Things are SO boring around here right now. I almost wish you were around so we could get in some trouble!!
Me: ugh lol, I think I’ve had enough trouble for one lifetime.
Tracy: DON’T BE VAGUE JUST TELL ME WHERE YOU ARE.
Me: lol sorry, love you!!I turned off the phone again and threw myself back onto the bed.
The phone was almost useless. I couldn’t tell anyone about what was happening to me, so it was almost like I didn’t have a phone at all. I looked at it for a second and had a sudden, crazy idea pop into my head.
I could call my dad. Maybe he had his phone, wherever they were keeping him. I could tell him that I was okay, or maybe ask where he was.
But of course that was stupid. I pushed the thought from my mind and closed my eyes. I tried not to think about Steven running from that house, the Club guys spilling out behind him with guns.
Worst of all, I tried not to picture that wild grin on his face as he drove off, like he’d just won the greatest game of all time and couldn’t wait to do it again.
That look terrified me more than anything else. The guns, the fights, the violence, that was all a part of it.
But the way he seemed to enjoy the danger scared the hell out of me.
I pushed my phone further away and curled up in a ball. I shut my eyes and tried to pretend like the outside world didn’t exist, like a killer wasn’t downstairs drinking whisky and watching TV, like I wasn’t in a situation where I couldn’t tell a single soul about where I was or what I was doing, no matter how much I wanted to, because I no longer had any control.
Sleep wouldn’t come. I never really thought it would. I stayed on the bed for a while, waited for my mind to slow down, but it never happened. I looked at the clock and saw it was just after two in the morning. I could still hear the TV on downstairs, so I slipped from bed and walked into the hallway. I stood at the top of the steps and listened to some old western movie echo off the hardwood floors, before slowly walking down the steps.
Steven looked up when I reached the landing and turned toward him. He didn’t seem surprised to see me. He lifted his glass to his lips and sipped, his head tilted to one side, his eyes moving down my body. I stepped into the room and felt my heart start to hammer as I stared at the gorgeous, handsome man sitting on the couch. He put the glass down on the coffee table as I stopped a few feet from him.
