Twenty minutes later Sophie steps outside.
Even from this distance I feel my chest tighten when I see her.
Her dark hair hangs loose around her shoulders and a black coat wraps tightly around her waist. Sunglasses rest on top of her head as she steps onto the sidewalk.
She looks relaxed and comfortable. That’s about to fucking end.
She pauses near the entrance while a clerk hands her a white shopping bag. They speak briefly. Sophie smiles.
The sight of that smile makes my jaw tighten.
Seth watches her through the side mirror.
She turns and walks down the sidewalk toward the SUV without scanning her surroundings. Her heels strike the pavement in steady, confident steps. She opens the rear door and climbs inside.
For a moment she notices nothing.
She places the shopping bag beside her and adjusts the sleeve of her coat.
Then she looks up.
Her eyes move toward the front of the vehicle.
The driver’s body still leans forward over the steering wheel. Blood slides slowly down the side of his neck and onto the console.
Her body freezes.
Seth turns in the seat and looks directly at her.
Recognition strikes her immediately.
Her hand flies toward the door handle.
Seth presses the central lock button and the mechanism clicks loudly through the SUV.
She yanks it again.
Panic spreads across her face.
“What the fuck—”
She twists toward the opposite door.
Locked.
Her breathing begins to speed up.
Then she hears my voice behind her.
“Miss me, Sophie?”
She turns just as I pull the plastic bag tight over her head.
Her reaction is immediate. Her hands fly upward as her body jerks violently against the seat. Her heels slam against the floor while she twists beneath my grip.
The plastic tightens over her face every time she tries to inhale. Her fingers claw at the bag as panic surges through her.
I brace my knee into the seat behind her back and hold the plastic firmly in place.
