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“As a whistle.”
Nobody speaks for a while. The air is filled with the stench of burning and the sound of us coughing and wheezing, but not a word is spoken in any language. Whether we’re all in shock or relieved to be free, I don’t know. Miri’s made a pillow for my head on her lap, but my hand has somehow wound its way around Jackson’s. He’s sitting against the front passenger seat, his head resting on his arm braced across his knees.
A million thoughts and a hundred questions fill my head, but not yet.
The van stops, and I see Heckle ease Jamie from the front seat. Jackson doesn’t move, and neither does his hand in mine. Minutes pass us by, and the tension and fear that someone might find us, the authorities, the men from the club, weigh heavy, but nobody comes.
And when Heckle returns, we drive off again.
I squeeze Jackson’s hand, hoping he knows that I’m here for him. Because, right now, I am.
Another period of silence passes. I stare at him, at the girls, at the road outside, and try to understand his reason for helping us. Nothing comes clearly, only that hedidhelp us.
Is still helping us.
We eventually stop, and this time, Jackson moves to open the back of the van.
“Everyone out.” He speaks to the other girls. “You’re free to go. Do as you want. I can’t offer you anything more than that. Don’t think you can come after me or that you’ll see me again. You can’t, and if you try, you’ll wish the Cortez brothers had sold you in the end.” His voice is cruel, full of threats and promises.
My heart thuds in my chest, but then, what did I expect?
Miri helps me out of the van after the others have made it out, but Jackson stops us.
“No.” He shakes his head and runs his hand down the side of my face. “I didn’t just fuck my whole world for you to disappear into the night.” The corner of my lips twitch with a smile. “Come on.”
We switch vehicles to a car, and Jackson gets in after speaking with Heckle and shaking hands.
“Where are we going?” I ask.
“Somewhere out of the city for now. We need to get you cleaned up and work out a plan.” Heckle brings us a blanket from the safe house and some old jumpers. They look more like short dresses on us, but at least cover us and stop us from shivering in the barely there dresses we were in.
We’re both in the back seat of the car as Jackson pulls away into the night.
Despite wanting to stay awake, my eyes close.
And despite all my fears, we made it out. Together.
Safe and unharmed might be in question, but we can think about that tomorrow.
For now, we’re safe.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
JACKSON
Driving continues while the girls sleep. They’ve both coughed occasionally, but never with enough ferocity that warranted hospitalisation. I’m more deserving of that, but I’m not concerned with myself. As proved by the fucking idiotic thing I just did back there to my building and life.
We passed the Welsh border about an hour ago, and now I’m standing out back of a small service station having refuelled and grabbed some coffees. I’ve got no way forward that I can think of and no way of ever getting Naja and Miri home.
Rolling the tension out of my shoulder, I sigh. Dragon meant every second of that fight. I doubt I would have won it or got out with my life intact if Naja hadn’t come to the rescue. He saw me trying to grab money bags from the floor while he was heaving Abel’s body out. Turned fucking savage on me. I suppose he assumed if I wasn’t helping him save Abel, I was against them all. I was.
Trudging back to the car with the coffees, I get lost in my own head. At least Heckle said he’d get word to me about Jamie when he could, but he was right when we talked – any contact with her will just put her in more danger. He said he’d get her out of there once she was fit enough to travel. Let’s hope she makes it through.
Gently shaking Naja, I smile when she opens her eyes and pass her a coffee.
“Where are we?” she mumbles, looking out of the window.
“Wales somewhere.”
