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He didn’t stir, and I straightened, then stymied when it hit me.
The food.
Someone must have put something in the takeout.
Everyone except me had eaten it, ingesting the knockout drug, or agent, or whatever it was. This meant the house was defenseless. All of the guards and men were down for the count.
Without realizing it, I’d put a hand on Ty’s shoulder while I stared into the darkness.
You can run.
My fingers tightened in his shirt as my eyes went to the nearest window. All it would take was for me to unlock it, hop the sill, and steal out into the night. I could escape.
Hell, I was pretty sure this was myonlychance to escape.
And yet I didn’t move, not even when I heard the noises outside getting louder.
I looked back at Ty, certain that this would be the last time I ever saw him if I left now.
A frigid wave of awareness went over me, making my skin prickle and my breath catch and I clenched my fists, urging myself to move; to do something.
But for a moment, uncertainty overwhelmed me.
I was also confident that this was the last time that I’d ever have to run — to escape to some distant place, to start over and never look back.
The pressure in my chest increased, and my fingers twisted tighter in Ty’s shirt. Time seemed to fracture around us, drawing out each second as I gazed down at him and I slowly realized that I was waiting for him to wake up.
I wanted those dark eyes to open and sense me standing there and for him to gaze up at me while his big hand latched gently, carefully and mindfully around my hurt wrist.
An injury that he’d caused,screamed some part of my brain.He’s done nothing but make your life more miserable. Get out while you can.
Get out before you get sucked deeper into his world.
But that internal scream faded into distant noise before being swallowed up by thoughts of Ty and his strong arms carrying me earlier, of the way he’d kissed me and looked at me, and the way he’d stumbled through that apology this morning; so desperate for my forgiveness.
I wasn’t going to take back my forgiveness. My injury had been an accident.
And if I were going to run, surely, I would have by now.
I can’t,I acknowledged, and I made myself let go of Ty.Nor can I wait for him to wake up and save me, not this time.
Calm flowed over me, and energy sizzled in my veins as I rolled my neck. Moving across the room, I began to put together a plan. But first, I had to secure the room. Going to the far double doors, I locked them and then I seized a heavy chair, puffing a little as I carried it over and shoved it underneath the handles.
The house was quiet, and I guessed that whatever way these guys had attempted to get into the house had failed, so they were trying something else. Sure enough, as I got to the door that I’d come in through, I heard the distant sound of breaking glass.
“Shit,” I muttered and felt around for a lock. But there wasn’t one—only a deadbolt that locked from the inside, along with a keyhole and a keypad. Glancing back to the windows, I debated whether I could escape and get back in, but I didn’t like the idea of leaving the window open or trying to go that way.
Instead, I ran back to Ty, feeling in his pockets for his phone, then hitting the phone’s light on to search the desk.
At that moment, I thought I heard a gunshot and straightened. My blood went cold when I heard another.
No. Not Ty.
Frantic, I was about to slam the door shut and guard them when I yanked open a drawer and saw a keychain with two keys right on top.
Shoving his phone into my bra, I sprinted back across the room. Thankfully, the first key that I shoved in locked it. Pressing a hand against the door, I told myself that the heavy wood would hold up against an onslaught but only as a last resort.
These assholes had no idea who they were up against.
