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He tackles me to the ground, and my head hits the pavement with a sickening crunch. The pain that explodes in my head is enough to debilitate me to the point that I don’t move when he picks me up and tosses me over his shoulder. Only when he deposits me in the vehicle do I finally succumb to the darkness looming over me.
My last thought before I pass out is of Hayden.
“I didn’t want to love you, Callie, but fuck me, I do. Possessively. Irrevocably. Completely.”
* * *
I wake slowly,both my head and heart pounding.
For different reasons.
When I try to move, I can’t. Not because I’m bound, but due to the fact that I’m groggy.
No, it’s more than that. I compare this feeling to the lethargy I felt on the night of my assault, and my breaths quicken. Or struggle to.
I’ve been drugged.
I crack open my eyelids a sliver and take in my surroundings as my vision comes into focus, albeit still hazy. The living room is sparsely furnished with a faded green couch and a coffee table that has more scratches than the veneer covering the surface. The wallpaper is peeling in some places, and the color scheme is severely outdated, but the man standing a few feet away is impeccably dressed. The designer suit doesn’t belong in this decrepit house, but then again, neither do I.
“Awake at last, Miss Green,” he says, his voice smooth. It drips over me like oil, staining me where I’m lying on the threadbare carpet. “You slept for a long time. So long, in fact, I began to worry.”
I open my mouth to speak, but I only manage a pained croak. He frowns and tilts his head, studying me. “Hmm. I’m not ready for you to overdose just yet.”
Fear coils within me, combining with the disgust roiling in my gut. Knowing I’m at this monster’s mercy is one thing, but knowing he’s definitely going to kill me is another.
He snaps his fingers, startling me. A henchman, the one who kidnapped me, appears with a glass of water. The man in the suit takes it and walks over to me, crouching down. He holds the rim to my lips, and I drink. The chemical taste in my mouth remains, and my body is still sluggish, but at least I’m a little more coherent.
He sets the glass on the coffee table and braces his forearms on the tops of his thighs. He smiles at me, the cruelty gleaming in his brown eyes. “Looks like putting that redhead in the hospital was enough to draw you out. I was having a hell of a time finding you and Mr. Bennett.”
“What?”
He continues as if I hadn’t spoken. “You are very pretty. Too pretty, in fact. I haven’t forgotten you, you know.”
Even though everything inside me wants to hide, I force myself to meet his gaze head-on. I won’t show him how intimidated I am, no matter what he has planned for me. If I’m going to die, it’ll be with my pride intact.
“I assume you don’t remember me, or you would’ve contacted me by now, Calista.”
I can’t stop the shudder that streaks through my body. The way he says my name is with a familiarity that’s disturbing. My tongue is heavy in my mouth, but I force myself to speak, my need for answers bubbling up in my throat.
“What… what do you want?” I manage to rasp out. “Who are you?”
“I saw you once at a political party when you were very young.” The man’s smile widens, taking on a malicious edge. “I knew your father very well.”
“Thomas Russell.”
He nods. “Guilty. Once Mr. Bennett arrives, all of your questions will be answered.”
“Hayden? What does he have to do with this?”
“He haseverythingto do with this.”
Chapter28
Hayden
The minute Calistaleaves my line of sight, I head back into my office and shut the door. Then proceed to mutter every foul word I can think of until I’m less likely to kill someone before my workday ends. I think.
The jury’s still out on that.
