Page 78 of Keeping Collette

Oh god, did that mean? No, it couldn’t be. It didn’t make any sense. But she remembered how Courtney had been killed, and how it had been the same way as the other victims. He’d even said he preferred knives to guns. And throat to belly.

Was Hound’s brother the serial killer?

This was the man who killed her sister.

“It’s you, isn’t it?” she whispered.

Jim didn’t say anything, just looked at her again before returning his attention to the road.

He didn’t have to confirm it, she could feel it in her bones that she was right. She gazed out the window trying to see if she could get a handle on where they were headed, but her mind wasn’t retaining anything. All she could think about was that she didn’t want to be Jim’s next victim. That whatever she had to do, she’d do it. She’d fight and hang on for as long as possible. She believed that Deal would come for her. That he would find her. She only hoped that it wouldn’t be too late.

Jim turned off the road, and the ride got significantly bumpier. Not to mention, there weren’t any lights around, suggesting they no longer in a residential area.

A shiver rippled down her spine, and fear threatened to choke her. If there was no one around, there was no one to help her if she somehow managed to escape. And she had to escape; she wasn’t going to become Jim’s next victim.

The car pulled to a stop, and through the windshield she could see there was a squat wooden structure. The door opened, and the silhouette of a person appeared on the front porch.

“What the fuck is he doing here?” Jim grumbled as he got out of the car and stormed up the front steps to where Mal was standing.

With him there, did that mean Mal and Jim were the ones responsible for the deaths? Did they take turns in killing the people the same way?

Collette banished those thoughts. This was her chance to escape. The fact Jim had bolted out of the car and hadn’t given her a second thought surprised the heck out of her. It didn’t seem like something he would normally do.

Why was he mad that Mal was there?

She reached for the door handle and found it wasn’t there. She hustled over the bench seat to the other side, and found that one missing as well. But Jim had gotten out of the driver’s side, so that must mean that one had a handle. Did the passenger side still have one too? If she could get out of that door, it would be better, as it was on his blind side.

Collette looked out and found that Jim was still arguing with Mal. This was her chance.

Carefully, she climbed over to the passenger side of the car. The handle was there, and she said a silent thanks that something was on her side. Praying that the door wouldn’t squeak open, she pulled the handle and pushed, holding her breath, only letting it out when it made no sound.

She slid through the small opening and pressed the door closed with a click. Now out of the car, she could hear the two men arguing. She didn’t pay attention to what was being said; it didn’t matter. All that mattered was that she was out and the tree line was twenty feet away from her.

Whether it was a good idea or not, didn’t matter. Getting lost in the trees was a better prospect than whatever Jim had planned for her. All she needed to do was find a hiding spot and bide her time, while hoping that, by some miracle, Deal had found out where she’d been taken and would rescue her.

Perhaps if she kept herself hidden by the trees and followed the driveway they’d traveled down, she might get to the main road, and then she could get help.

Whatever she decided to do, she need to do it now. The longer she waited, the more chance there was of Jim and Mal finishing their argument and coming for her.

Crouching low, she dashed toward the trees, tripping automatically on a root, but she didn’t let the sting of pain in her knees and palms stop her. Adrenaline pumped through her, propelling her deeper into the darkness.

“Fuck!” The yell pierced the night air, and Collette stilled. As much as she tried to keep quiet, she’d been running through the bush, crunching leaves and sticks. She was giving Jim and Mal everything they needed to find her.

She took a second to get her bearings–her eyes had adjusted to the lack of light–and she looked around for a place to hide. The plan to try and find the road forgotten, because all her focus had been on getting as far away from them as possible.

“Where are you, bitch?” Jim yelled out. “I’ll find you. Half the fun is in the chase. I wonder if you’ll scream as much as your sister did?”

Collette stuck her fist in her mouth to stop her whimper, hating to think of what her sister went through, and confirmation that Hound’s brother was responsible.

She had to find somewhere to hide.

“Keep running, but you have nowhere to go. Oh, it’s going to be so much fun to make you pay for this.” Jim’s taunts appeared to come from close by.

If she didn’t find somewhere to hide soon, it would be all over for her. That wasn’t going to happen. Even if he did find her, she would fight him.

Tonight wasn’t her time to die.

Chapter Thirty-Eight