AllFreeNovel
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Nasty. He’d been nothing but evil. So, it was all about shares. Lives would be destroyed in Grayson’s quest for power. What was the connection between him and Delbert?
She picked up the pen and reluctantly scrawled the words Grayson dictated. At the bottom of the page, she tried to make a doodle of an umbrella surreptitiously. Umbrella. Stormy weather! She could only hope Jake would make the connection. Hopefully, he would read between the lines and come to her rescue.
Grayson snatched the paper away, smearing ink across the bottom. “I told you not to try any cute stuff, bitch.”
“I’m not. Honest. I tend to doodle when I’m nervous, remember?”
He scowled, glancing from the note to her. “Yeah, I remember the doodle of a skunk you made on your note to me.” He jerked her toward the door, stopping to slap the note on the countertop.
She thought a skunk described him to a T as she walked beside him, propelled forward by the gun pressed against her side. They stepped out the door and headed toward a brown panel van parked at the curb.
Mrs. Morley from two doors down was fetching her mail.
Grayson stiffened beside her and slid the gun around to jab painfully into the small of her back.
“Good morning, my dears.” Lovely day, isn’t it?”
Samantha put a bright smile on her lips. There was no way she could let this sweet old lady place herself in the line of fire. “Yes, it’s a nice day. Looks like rain later, though.”
Mrs. Morley looked up at the blue sky. “I don’t think so, dear. There’s not a cloud in the sky.”
Samantha could feel Grayson’s finger twitch on the trigger. She stiffened. To Mrs. Morley’s eye, it probably looked like a romantic embrace.
Hoping to calm Grayson down, she said, “Right you are, Mrs. Morley. Those weathermen are usually wrong.”
Grayson relaxed beside her, and she slanted an assessing glance his way. Would he get the umbrella and storm connection?
He bestowed his most brilliant smile on Mrs. Morley. “You might as well be the first to know, ma’am. Samantha and I made up, and we are in the process of eloping. Isn’t that right, sweetie pie?”
She thought of the carnage that might result from the wrong answer and murmured, “That’s right.”
“How wonderful,” Mrs. Morley said with a bright smile. “Don’t let me detain you two lovebirds from Cupid’s work.”
Samantha watched her neighbor go back inside with a sinking heart. Now she was alone with the monster, and he’d already laid the groundwork for his claim of elopement.
Despite his promise to keep her alive, she knew her life would be worthless once she signed that marriage license.
He yanked her forward, and she stumbled toward the van. He prodded her to slide open the cargo door. She peered into the dark, dusty bay. It was separated from the driver’s compartment. Riding in there would be like riding in a metal tomb.
She slanted a rebellious scowl his way. “I’m not sitting back here.”
“Don’t give me any of your lip.” He gave her a hard shove into the cargo bay.
She slammed hard against the wall, seeing stars for a moment, before he slid the door shut, enveloping her in darkness.
She shivered as the oppressive isolation settled around her, then forced herself to calm down. She closed her eyes and visualized her dewy meadow, but this time, Jake was battling Grayson to protect their wildflower realm. Jake would decipher her clues and come to her rescue. Until he did, she’d have to keep her wits about her to escape this unscathed.
They drove for hours, and the temperature soared in the cargo hold. She coughed at the fumes that leaked inside. Good Lord, did he intend to asphyxiate her instead of shooting her?
Suddenly, he jammed on the brakes, and she hurtled toward the front, slamming against the wall with athump. “Ouch!”
She went still and held her breath, trying to pick up sounds from outside. Was it Jake? Had he intercepted the van?
The door flew open.
She blinked against the sudden brightness, then felt her hope vanish. Grayson stood outside, leveling his gun at her again.
“Get out.”
