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“We’re done,” I announced and stalked away, pulling out my phone and hitting a number as soon as I knew I wouldn’t be overheard.
“Reed?” Cash answered after one ring.
“I need your help.”
3
Cora
I’d kept my eyes on Huntley the entire time the robber dragged me out of the bank. He was my lifeline, keeping me calm right up until the moment when the door to the white van slammed shut. I felt as though all of the air was knocked out of my lungs when I was shoved down and the van sped forward, but not because of how hard I landed. The loss of Huntley’s steady gaze was what impacted me the most.
I was filled with regret over waiting so long to speak up about my feelings for him. If I’d said something sooner, forced his hand before he’d been deployed four months ago, maybe we would have had time together as a couple. Then I would’ve had the chance to get to know Huntley. To learn about the things he liked. Go out on dates. Feel his lips brush against mine as our tongues tangled together while we kissed.
Being taken hostage by two bank robbers—one of whom creeped me out big time with all his talk about the things he wanted to do once he got me alone—made me wonder if those things were ever going to happen. I didn’t doubt that Huntley would do everything in his power to find me, but I wasn’t sure I would be the same person when that happened.
I’d already seen someone die after Huntley shot the robber who’d been ready to aim his gun at my boss, Mr. Jones. And I was ashamed to admit that a part of me had wished that the one who was using me as a shield had been the one he’d killed instead because then I’d be free. Or at least the creepy jerk wouldn’t be in the back of this van with me now. While his partner was busy evading the police cars who were chasing us, he’d taken full advantage of our position to cop a few feels. But he’d paid for it when I nailed him in the balls with my knee and was still cupping his groin a few minutes later.
“Secure the girl and get up here,” the huge guy in front growled. “I need you to keep an eye out to make sure we aren’t spotted by the cops.”
“Didn’t the trick with the other vans work?” the robber holding me grunted as he reached for some rope to tie me up. I cried out when he yanked my arms behind my back and roughly secured my wrists together. “Serves you right, bitch. I’m not going to be gentle with you when we get to the warehouse, either. With the setup Jack has there, the cops and that jackass who killed Steven will never find you, and I’ll have all the time in the world to make you pay for your little stunt.”
“Shut your fucking mouth or you won’t have the chance to do a damn thing. I’ll kill you and let your body rot in the back of this van.”
I shivered at the deadly threat, but the skeevy dude didn’t seem to understand that his partner meant every word. As he climbed into the front passenger seat, he whined, “What the hell is wrong with you, man?”
“No names. I reminded you of that rule right before we walked into the bank, remember?” Jack snarled as he took a sharp right, sending me rolling onto my side. “Now the girl knows my name, which will make it easier for the cops to figure out who I am.”
“Not if they never find her,” the creepy robber argued, leering at me over his shoulder.
“You really are a dumb fuck.” Jack sighed and shook his head. “The guy at the bank meant his threat. If she dies, he isn’t going to stop hunting us until we’re both six feet under.”
The other guy rolled his eyes before turning forward again. “You’re acting like he’s Liam Neeson. This isn’t an action movie, and that dude has no fucking clue where we’re headed.”
“The guy was clearly military, you idiot. Special Forces, if I had to guess. And now he’s motivated. It’s personal for him.” There was zero emotion in Jack’s eyes when he looked at me through the rearview mirror. “Because we took her.”
I gulped down the lump of fear in my throat, even while I offered up a silent prayer of thanks that Huntley had picked today of all days to come into my branch. Jack was right—even though he’d been doing everything he could to resist the pull between us, I knew Huntley would do whatever it took to find me. The promise had been there for me to see in his gorgeous hazel eyes when he’d told me that I was going to be all right.
The skeevy guy had to have been blind because he hadn’t seen how determined Huntley had been. “I’m sure we’ll be fine. We’ve pulled six jobs together, and the cops have never been able to ID us or find the warehouse. Without their resources, that dude doesn’t stand a chance.”
I pressed my lips together to keep myself from disagreeing. Although I didn’t know a lot about Huntley, there was a guy I’d seen him talk to a couple of times when they’d been at the bank at the same time. Both of them were in the Navy, as were a lot of our customers because of our proximity to the base. But I was pretty sure Huntley and his friend were SEALs, especially because they were stationed here, where one of the special warfare groups was based. I’d never worked up the courage to ask Huntley if he was a SEAL, but I hoped I was right because I really needed a hero to rescue me right about now.
“The police can only go so far. They have rules they need to follow. Not him. The way he moved and handled his weapon told me everything I need to know. He’s a stone-cold killer who’ll stop at nothing until he gets her back.”
Typically, I wouldn’t want to agree with a guy I assumed was in charge of a robbery crew, but I took comfort in the fact that Jack seemed just as certain about Huntley as I was. I didn’t stand much of a chance against these two on my own with my hands tied behind my back and knowing they had guns. The only thing I had going for me was the warning that Huntley had given them. Shuffling to a seated position, I used the weapon he’d given me as best I could. “You’re right to be worried. Huntley meant what he said back there. Your best bet is to drop me off now and put some distance between us before he catches up. As long as I’m not hurt, he won’t go after you. I’ll make sure of it.”
Jack’s gaze turned considering as he glanced at the rearview mirror again, but his partner wasn’t convinced. “C’mon, man. She’s our only leverage. We can’t give her up now.”
“Are you really going to trust him to make the decision?” I raised my eyebrows and shook my head. “He’s not worried about using me as a bargaining chip if you guys get caught. He wants to keep me around because he’s a pervert who’s pissed that I kneed him in the balls when he tried to feel me up.”
“Fucking hell, man.” Jack glared at the creepy dude. “Do you have a death wish? Because I’m damn sure her man is going to take you sexually assaulting the girl a fuck of a lot more seriously than her breaking a nail.”
“I barely even touched her,” his partner whined, crossing his arms over his chest as he turned to look out the window. “And I still say that you’re making too much out of that dude’s threats.”
I barely stifled a gasp when Jack pulled a handgun out and rested it on his thigh. The other guy didn’t notice, and I wasn’t about to warn him when he was the one who was the bigger threat to my safety. “You’re wrong. We’re down two men already because of that guy.”
“We don’t know what happened to Larry.”
Jack’s finger slid over the trigger, and my whole body tensed in fear. “Her man was in the lobby and had a fucking silencer on his weapon. What the fuck do you think happened to Larry? He’s dead, just like Steven.” He lifted the gun and fired a bullet straight into the other guy’s head. “And just like you now, too. Fucking idiot.”
