by Zoey Parker
“Katia, hurry the fuck up,” Ryan snapped under his breath. “Come on.”
I yelped in fright as Ryan slapped the side of my face with the gun. It hurt, and I screeched as pain radiated through my face. Whimpering, I put my fingers up to my temple. They came back sticky and red, and I began trembling as I realized I was bleeding from a cut to the head.
“Keep your goddamn voice down,” Ryan grunted out. He dug his sausage fingers painfully into my arm as he began dragging me down the hall and then the metal staircase.
God, no, please, Dante come back! I closed my eyes as hot tears leaked out of my eyes. Suddenly, I was struck with the horrifying thought that I was never going to see Dante again. When I remembered how I’d felt back in the motel room, lying in bed next to Dante, I wanted to vomit.
For a moment, I’d actually thought about sleeping with Ryan, just to get him to leave me alone. Then I’d curled closer to Dante and put all thoughts of Ryan’s slimy persona out of my mind. I didn’t want him; I didn’t even want to look at him.
I wanted Dante. I wanted the man that I loved. I wanted Dante to come back and protect me.
As Ryan dragged me across the parking lot by my hair, I let out a terrified whimper when the van was in sight. I let out another shriek when Ryan whacked me over the head with the gun again.
“If you can’t keep your fucking mouth shut, I’m going to shoot you,” Ryan said through gritted teeth. “And trust me, I don’t want no dead beauty queen on my hands.” He laughed like he’d just made the joke of the century.
“I hate you,” I said, sobbing. Tears dripped down my face as Ryan forced me across the parking lot, towards the utility van. The headlights were still shining brightly over the motel parking lot, and for a desperate moment, I craned my neck and looked around, hoping that some stunned bystander was watching everything and was able to help me.
“Don’t even think about opening your yap again,” Ryan said. He shoved the barrel of the gun against my neck, and I flinched at the sensation of cold metal against my delicate skin.
“I hate you,” I repeated. The tears had finally stopped, but I was filled with an overwhelming sense of dread as Ryan guided me into the back of the van.
“I don’t give a shit about that now,” Ryan said. He seemed to have calmed down. “You’re not going to hate me forever, Katia.” He glanced up at me and smiled. “Someday, you’re going to love me because you’re going to realize that I’m the only one in the world who can understand you.”
I swallowed hard. A nervous lump had formed in my stomach, and I shifted uncomfortably, trying to get away from Ryan. He kept his fingers securely wrapped around my upper arm, even after I’d climbed into the back of the van. I winced; I knew I was going to have a bruise there.
“What are you talking about?” I asked slowly. “You’re kidnapping me, Ryan.”
Ryan snorted. “I don’t see it that way.” His eyes gleamed with a dangerous light. “I’m helping you, Katia. This isn’t bad, it’s really not.”
I stared at him. Before, I’d always assumed that he knew what he was doing was wrong. But this made everything different. Did he actually think that I was going to fall in love with him because he’d kidnapped me?
“I’m telling you,” Ryan continued. Finally, he relaxed his grip on my arm, but he still didn’t let go. Instead, he stroked my bare skin with one of his greasy, fat fingers. “This is a good thing, Katia. You’re going to realize that you were really missing out on me all those years.”
I blinked at him. “Ryan, this is illegal,” I said softly. Suddenly, I was hit with a burst of inspiration. “And if anyone catches you, which they probably will, you’re going to prison for a long time. I have a bodyguard, you know,” I said, trying to look tough. “And he’s not going to be very happy when he realizes that you’ve kidnapped me.”
Ryan burst out laughing. I stared at him in horror.
“Honey, that doesn’t mean shit to me,” Ryan said calmly. “This is just between you and me now. No one knows that I’ve got you.”
I blinked. “You’re kidding,” I said uncertainly. “I think a lot of people know that you’ve got me, and it’s only a matter of time before they come to get me.”
Ryan laughed again. He stroked my arm again, and my skin tingled and itched under his unwelcome touch. I longed to yank my arm away from him.
“Honey, you’re going to see that this is all for the best. Just trust Daddy.”
I stared at him in revulsion. “I’m not calling you that,” I muttered. “No fucking way.”
In a split second, Ryan’s demeanor changed from sickly-sweet to furious once more. When he slapped me across the face, I cried out in pain.
“You’ll do exactly what I tell you, you little cunt,” Ryan spat. “Don’t forget. I’m in charge now.”
Tears oozed from my eyes as I leaned against the cold metal wall of the utility van. Oh, don’t worry, I thought bitterly. I could never forget. Not even if I wanted to.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Dante
It took a long time to get Troy stabilized. I wasted precious minutes trying to make sure that he wasn’t going to bleed out all over Ryan Winter’s kitchen. Finally, I grabbed him and slung him over my shoulder, carrying him out of the house and then setting him down on the grass.
Troy was fading in and out of consciousness. As he looked up at me with a pained, terrified expression, I could immediately tell that he was making mental preparations to die.
“You’re gonna be okay, buddy,” I told him, patting him roughly on the top of the head. “You just gotta hang out here for a little while, okay? The paramedics are on their way.”
“Dante,” Troy croaked. “Don’t leave—please don’t leave.”
“I have to go find Katia,” I said grimly. “I know that monster has plans for her, and I gotta catch them both before he does something awful.”
Troy didn’t reply. He closed his eyes and sank further into the wet grass, looking paler by the second.
“Go,” he whispered. “And make sure Anya’s okay.”
“Will do,” I said. I cuffed him gently on the side of the head. “And you’re gonna be okay, Troy. You’re gonna pull through this.”
As I ran down the wet grassy hill, I was filled with dread. I had no clue whether Troy would live or die. He’d been shot twice, one of which nicked a major artery, and my cotton shirt hadn’t done much to staunch the blood. He’d been fading fast, and if he didn’t make it to a hospital soon, he’d be gone.
I made an anonymous call to 911, alerting them to Troy’s condition and whereabouts. Then I pulled a spare shirt out of my bike’s saddlebags and pulled it down over my head. The cotton felt good against my bare skin, and I gritted my teeth as I climbed astride my bike. Before I could start the engine, I knew I had one more call to make.
Thankfully, Anya answered on the first ring.
“Hello? Dante?” Her voice was high and panicked. “Where the hell are you? Where’s Troy? Where’s Katia?”
I sighed. “Troy’s been shot, Anya,” I said heavily. “He’s outside Ryan’s home, and I’ve already called the emergency services. You need to stay with him. He was shot in the thigh and the arm, and I did all I could to stop the bleeding, but I’m not sure he’s going to make it.”
Anya was silent for a moment. When she let out a sob, I felt it tug at my heartstrings. I felt like the worst kind of shit for leaving my best buddy behind me in the grass, but I knew that unless I acted fast, Ryan would hurt Katia.
“What about Katia?” Anya’s voice was quiet and soft. I knew she was scared.
“I’m not sure,” I said. “I went to catch that asshole Ryan myself, but obviously, things didn’t go well. He shot Troy and then took off when I was patching him up. I have a feeling he went straight for Katia.”
“Jesus Christ,” Anya muttered. “What the fuck do we do?”
“Just worry about Troy,” I said darkly. “I’ll call when I have more news.”
I hung up before Anya could start crying again. Then I kick started my bike and headed back towards the Twin Gables Motel.
Part of me couldn’t help but think that maybe this was all over. Maybe Ryan had crashed on his way to get Katia, or maybe he’d lost his nerve. Maybe he’d been pulled over by the cops or something. Hell, maybe he’d even given up after he realized that he’d just shot a man twice. But I couldn’t shake the sense that something was seriously wrong.
When I pulled into the parking lot, I glanced up at the room. I sighed with relief when I saw that the lights were still off, but my mouth went dry as my eyes landed on the door that was slightly ajar. With my heart beating a thudding rhythm in my chest, I walked into the motel office.
The office was dimly lit and smelled of stale cigarette smoke. I coughed and then slammed my hand down on the little bell that rested on top of the counter.
“Hello?” I yelled. “Anyone here?”
A few moments later, an older guy came forward. He had deep-set brown eyes and bushy eyebrows. He looked harmless, but also like the kind of guy who’d been shooting heroin since he was a teenager. He could have been anywhere from twenty-five to fifty.
“Can I help you?” The man coughed. “You lookin’ for a room?”
“Uh, no,” I said. “I’m looking for a woman. She’s tall and blonde, named Katia. She was staying here tonight, but I have reason to believe that she was abducted.”
The man closed his eyes and thought for a moment. “I’ll check the register,” he said. He reached for a grimy book and started flipping through the pages. Finally, he slid his finger down a grease-spotted white page and pointed to Katia’s name. My stomach froze when I realized it was the same entry I’d made hours earlier, back when things were still normal.
“She checked out,” the man said. “There was some fuss. Then a guy came in here and gave me the key and drove off in a white van. He said that she was his wife. They had a fight earlier, and she threatened to leave him, but they made up and went home.” He chuckled as he dug into his pocket for a moment and pulled out the same plastic tag that had been in my pocket.
I groaned. “Shit,” I muttered.
“What? Somethin’ wrong? Are you her boyfriend?” he asked with a mischievous cackle.
“Not exactly,” I spat. “Did you see which way they went?” I knew it was a long shot, but I had to ask.
He scratched his head while he thought. “I think they took a right out of the parking lot, but I can’t be sure.”
“Thanks,” I said gruffly under my breath as I turned to stalk out of the motel office and stare at the parking lot. I knew I had to find Katia, but where the hell had Ryan taken her?
I was so worried about Katia that I felt like I was going to be sick. At any point, Ryan could kill her. After almost a month of taking care of her, she could be gone. I had let down the only woman I’d ever loved.
Stop making this about you, I thought. It’s not about you. You have to save Katia. If anything, you’ve just proven yourself even more unworthy of her than you already thought.
I sighed and raked a hand through my hair. Finally, I jumped on my bike. I had no idea where they would have gone, but I guess I’d go right. That road led away from Ryan’s house. I didn’t think he would dare to bring Katia back to his house, not with the blood and glass everywhere in the kitchen.
I was totally fucked.
Finally, I closed my eyes and tried to sense Katia. I know it sounds stupid. Hell, it was stupid. But that was the only thing I had to go on. Starting up my bike, I took a breath before turning right down the dark, cracked road. I had to catch up to them; I had to make sure that Katia was safe.
I was going sixty, seventy, eighty, ninety on the back roads outside of L.A. As I sped down the road, the trees turned into a blur. I closed my eyes as the wind stung my face. Even though it wasn’t cold outside, my arms were soon freezing from the fast breeze whipping past me. Still, I pushed on faster and faster, until I was passing cars left and right.
Finally, I caught a glimpse of a white utility van. It was speeding down the side of the road, swerving and turning. I didn’t know whether or not it was Ryan’s van, but I had to take a chance. I caught up, tailing the van until it was so close I could memorize the license plate. If I closed my eyes and listened, I thought I could almost hear Katia hollering through the metal van and into the nighttime air.
“I’m coming!” I yelled loudly. I didn’t know if she would hear me. Hell, Ryan might have her bound and gagged. But I wanted her to know that I wouldn’t give up on her without a fight.
Still, I didn’t know what to do. Ryan could theoretically keep driving for hours. But at some point, he’d have to stop for gas. It was risky, but I decided my best chance was to wait until he’d pulled into a gas station. When he went inside to pay, I could rescue Katia and get her the hell away from that monster.
I couldn’t do anything that would put Katia in danger. I couldn’t hurt her or even take a risk. After all, she was probably traumatized and terrified. I couldn’t imagine what that asshole had said to her to make her get in the van. When I thought of him turning a gun on her and forcing her against her will, my blood boiled an angry red. I wanted to make him pay.
It was enough to make me forget about my past troubles with the law. Ryan was one big fucking monster, but that didn’t mean the cops would show up and instantly let me off the hook. After all, the Heaven’s Veil was responsible for some of the worst crime in L.A.’s history. It was ironic; I’d somehow thought that working for Katia would spare me from anything else illegal and here I was, fucking tailing a van, just because I thought she was inside.
The van swerved and almost spun off the road, but the driver managed to right it at the last second. We were crawling up a steep embankment now, and my bike was really feeling the incline. As I pushed on further and harder, I gritted my teeth and leaned over the handlebars. I knew that I was still acting risky since I was within eyesight of the van. Ryan still had both guns, and it wouldn’t have been hard to shoot me. All he had to do was aim.
Please don’t notice me, I begged silently as I tailed the white van.
Finally, the van slid into a service center. I slowed down by a clump of bushes and peered around, waiting for Ryan to climb out of the van. But nothing happened. No doors opened, and there was no sound. Frowning, I listened as closely as I could.
It was then that I realized I was going to need help. As much as I wanted to show up and be Katia’s knight in shining armor, I wouldn’t be able to do this myself. I’d need some serious help from the rest of the guys.
As quickly as I could, I pulled my phone from my pocket and dialed Tristan.
“Yo,” Tristan grunted out. “What’s up?”
“I’m outside of L.A., tailing Katia,” I said. “Ryan’s got her in a van. And the bastard shot Troy. He should be on his way to the hospital now, but I’m alone.”
“You want me there?”
“Bring Marlo and Pauly,” I said quickly. “And fucking hurry. We’re stopped at the Wooden Creek gas station, but he hasn’t even gotten out of the van. Some bad shit’s gonna happen if we can’t rescue her.”
Tristan sighed. “Dante, you got this,” he said carefully. “Don’t fuckin’ worry. We got your back.” I could picture him smirking. “We’re the Heaven’s Veil, ain’t we? This is nothing.”
I hung up and shoved my phone in my pocket. There was still no sign of life or movement from the van, and I knew Tristan, Marlo, and Pauly would be at least half an hour away.
And right now, all I could do was wait.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Katia
Ryan dumped me in the back of the van and crawled in with me. I stared out the windshield at the distant blinking lights of the motel sign in a state of shock, until Ryan’s face loomed over me.
“You know what we’re gonna do?” Ryan leaned close. His breath was stale and foul like he’d been eating canned tuna.
/> “I don’t want to know.” I moaned. I closed my eyes and let my head rest against the metal sides of the van. I knew that I should feel exhausted. After all, I’d barely slept in days, and napping next to Dante didn’t count. But I was high on adrenaline, and my blood was singing through my veins.
“That’s no way to talk to me,” Ryan snapped. I stared at him. The switch was immediate; again, he’d vacillated quickly from calm and seemingly happy to angry in seconds. “You need to show respect!”
I narrowed my eyes. “I need to show respect to an asshole who kidnapped me?” I couldn’t keep the sarcasm out of my voice. I knew it was dangerous to piss Ryan off, but I was so fucking tired of being told what to feel and what to think. It was something I’d had to deal with every single day that I’d lived in L.A., and it didn’t seem like Ryan was going to cut me any slack.
