The only problem was, they would be hitting an old highway soon, with little traffic, and it wouldn’t be hard to notice a car following them. She needed to do something. She had to end this. But, how? Without getting hurt in the process?
“Take the exit. Now.”
Her eyes darted to him, almost freezing in terror at the sight of the gun pointed at her, and did as he directed.
Maybe she should keep him talking. Keep him distracted.
“I understand why you killed your ex-wife…because of the things she did.” She didn’t understand, and even saying that made her want to gag. “But why did you kill those other women? How…how did you know them?”
He sneered at her. “What makes you think I did?”
“They were random women?” Her heart broke even more for them. They lost their lives because it was their unlucky day.
“I didn’t say that.” He chuckled. “You wanna know who my favorite was to kill?”
She didn’t dare look at him as that question swirled between them. Of course she didn’t want to know. He knew she didn’t want to know, yet he wanted to torture her with the knowledge. She’d let him, if only to buy herself time and to keep him distracted.
“Who?”
He snickered. The sound sent chills down her spine. “Amber. The beautiful college student who thought her shit didn’t stink on campus. I broke into her house so easily. I watched her from the hallway, surrounded by the dark, waiting for my moment. It’s always something watching people, knowing you’re the one in control and they have no idea what’s about to happen. She pulled a glass down from the cupboard and filled it with wine. She was so fluid in her movements, as if she did it nightly. I accidentally made a noise, which made her jump. It was so funny to watch her look around, wondering where it came from, but she never noticed me, and I didn’t try to hide my presence. Then she walked to the cupboard, pulled out a glass and filled it with wine. When she turned away from the fridge, she noticed the first one she filled up and set them down together on the counter, staring at them. I scared her so much she forgot about the first glass. I couldn’t hold in the laugh. At that, she ran. Oh, what a chase that was. As soon as she hit the bedroom and I grabbed her—”
“Stop! Please!”
Another terrifying snicker floated between them. “I thought you wanted to know.” He lifted the gun, pressing it firmly against her temple. “Don’t be dumb, Susan. I know what you’re doing, trying to distract me for some reason. You can’t escape what’s going to happen. I’m going to kill you slowly and enjoy every minute of it. And don’t worry, since you’re dying to know how each woman died, I’ll whisper everything in your ear as I do the same to you.”
She couldn’t control the trembles that coursed through her body as he shoved the gun harder into her temple and his cold words sunk in. If she didn’t do something, she wouldn’t live through the night.
“I suggest you shut the hell up now and just drive. Got it?”
Nodding, she didn’t breathe until he lowered the gun. Of course, he didn’t lower it completely. It was still trained firmly in her direction.
She found it difficult not to make it obvious as she looked in the rearview mirror once more. Stitch had managed to follow them and was still keeping a healthy distance. Not close enough to warn Chris they were being followed. But definitely not too far away to lose them.
The traffic on the road started to thin out. A few cars mingled with them, but the numbers kept dwindling down as they drove. The dark night cloaked the area in a menacing glow, almost as if waiting to swallow them whole and send them down to the pits of hell.
Now or never.
Time to make her move. Whatever it happened to be. She had no idea yet.
At any moment he could demand she turn on a side road. Then it’d be obvious as hell they were being followed. She couldn’t let that happen.
“Take a right up here.”
Her eyes had adjusted to the night, but not enough to see what turn he was talking about. Which didn’t bode well for her. This road clearly wasn’t used often. It didn’t even have a street lamp lighting its path.
“It’s close. Slow down. Let that car pass us.”
Oh, shit.
The jig would be up.
She glanced at him, the gun glaring in her face, and then it hit her.
She had her seatbelt on. A force of habit. Slide into the driver’s seat, turn on the car, and then buckle her seat belt. Every single time she got into the car.
He forgot to put his on.
What were her odds if she crashed the car and a bullet didn’t manage to hit her?
She honestly had no clue, but she was willing to test those odds. Because that alternative sounded better than his version of killing her.
Pressing her foot to the gas pedal, she suddenly swerved toward the ditch.
They hit the ditch hard.
She jerked in her seat.
Her head hit the steering wheel.
A loud shot rang out into the dark night.
Then nothing but blackness descended.
♡
“Shit!” Stitch swerved the car to the side of the road and slammed on the brakes. He just watched his car crash into the ditch and a gunshot echo into the darkness. “Stay in the car, kid.”
He jerked out of his seat and made a mad dash for his car. Smoke rose from the engine, the entire front end scrunched up, almost like an accordion.
When he pulled on the handle to get Susan’s door open, it wouldn’t budge. He could see her through the window, slumped against the wheel.
“Susan!” He slammed his hand against the window as he shouted her name.
The door was jammed and slightly dented from the crash. He could yank and pull with all his strength, but he’d never get it open. He ran to the other side. His safety was the furthest thing from his mind, but it wouldn’t have mattered if he had taken his time coming around the side, making sure the asshole didn’t shoot him.
Because he wasn’t in the car. A large hole framed the windshield, glass scattered around the outside of the car. Good. The asshole had been ejected out of the vehicle.
Pulling on the passenger’s side door, he sighed in relief when it opened without an issue. Crawling across the seat, he shifted Susan so her head lay against the headrest. A large gash cut across her forehead and blood dripped down her arm.
Tearing off his shirt, he hesitated which wound to staunch the bleeding first. Her arm won out when the blood looked to be flowing more steadily than her head. He wrapped his shirt as tightly as he could and then tied it into a knot.
She moaned at the contact.
He cradled her head, bending low to her ear. “Oh, I’m sorry, Suzey baby. I know it hurt. I had to.”
“Stitch…” Her eyes opened slowly.
“Yeah, I’m here. Right here.”
“I crashed your car.”
“I don’t care. You can crash it ten times over and I wouldn’t give a shit. You are what matters.” He pressed a tender kiss against the side of her head. “I have to pull you out of the car. We have to get you to the hospital.”
“I’m sorry about your car.”
Grasping her cheeks softly, he kissed her. “Stop talking about my car. It doesn’t matter.”
“But you love her.”
“Yeah, but I love you more.” He grinned at the sparkle in her eyes.
Then he panicked when she closed her eyes.
“Susan? Baby, wake up.”
He shook her a little, but nothing happened. No moan. No opening of her eyes. Nothing but silence from her and the hissing of the engine outside.
“Shit. Hold on, Suzey baby.” He unbuckled her belt, twisting the strap off her as best as he could without jostling her too much.
He couldn’t help this next part, but he needed to get her out of the vehicle and to the hospital. Sauer had said he would catch up with them, but surprisingly enough, even with all the information he had relayed, he never
saw one cop car.
Figuring the easiest way to get her out was to pull her, he gently twisted her body, tucked his arms under her arms, and dragged her across the seat until he was able to step outside and pick her up and cradle her in his arms.
With quick, even steps, he climbed out of the ditch and headed for the kid’s car. Not too far away he could see the first sign of red and blue flashing in the night.
“I called that Sauer dude. He said they were right behind us.” The kid hesitated. “I told him we might need an ambulance.”
“It has under thirty seconds to get here or I’m driving her myself. She passed out on me. She hit her head hard and I think she got shot in the arm.”
“Where’s the guy?”
“Somewhere in the field. The birds can have him for all I care.”
To his relief, the entire area suddenly swarmed with cop cars and an ambulance.
The paramedics took her from him and immediately went to work. When they started to close the doors on him, he gave them one look that said that shit wouldn’t fly.
He connected eyes with Sauer before the doors shut and they drove away. So much was communicated in one simple glance. Almost like he could communicate with Deena at times. A simple understanding that Sauer had stood down and given him the distance he demanded on the phone. Sauer had put his trust in Stitch.
In the end, Susan saved herself.
Because his Susan was one tough woman. She didn’t need anyone to save her. It didn’t mean it would stop him from being protective and possessive of her in the future.
The drive to the hospital felt like forever. Like his entire life flashed before his eyes and he was old and gray and waiting to die.
This time, when they tried to wheel her out of his sight, a nurse, who had a scarier glint in her eyes than even he could produce, waylaid him. She also happened to threaten to call hospital security and have him banned from the premises if he didn’t stand down and wait in the lobby like everyone else.
He conceded that small battle and took a chair in the corner away from all the other harrowing people waiting on news of their loved ones.
As he sat there, he realized his heart was pounding with dread that he might still lose her. But he wasn’t freaking out over the fact he confessed he loved her. To her face, no less.
He was damn calm about that.
It felt good to say. Like he should’ve said it a few days ago. A strange kind of calm peace settled over him immediately as soon as the words came out.
The twinkle in her eyes could only mean one thing.
She loved him back.
Now he had to wait for her to wake up and hear her say it. Or demand it. He wouldn’t settle for anything less. Of course, he wouldn’t be a complete asshole about it. He’d give her a few days to heal before he pried those words out of her.
She had to love him. She just had to.
“Stitch, where is she? Is she okay? Are you okay?”
He didn’t have time to react before Deena was flinging herself in his arms, not even waiting for him to stand up.
“Talk to me.”
He managed a small chuckle before her arms started to cut off his airflow as she squeezed his neck a little too tight. “If I could breathe, I would.”
She backed away, a strained smile on her face. “You scared the shit out of me with your phone call.”
“Yeah, I know the feeling. My heart was pounding right out of my chest the entire time. Still is.” He stood up slowly, surprised to find Zoe and Rina behind Deena. “You guys didn’t have to come. How did you know where to find us?”
“I’ve been on the phone with Sauer like a crazy woman. Like triple crazy than my normal crazy. Is she okay?” Deena all but shrieked.
A calm hand on her shoulder from Rina instantly had the panic in her eyes slowing down.
“How bad is it? Sauer didn’t go into detail,” Rina said softly.
He could deduce pretty quickly why Sauer wouldn’t go into detail. Deena couldn’t handle to hear it.
“She crashed the car. He wasn’t wearing his seatbelt, so I’m assuming she figured that was her only option to get out of the situation.” While he commended her quick thinking, he hated himself for not saving her before she even left in his car. He should’ve done something. He should’ve tackled the guy to the ground and pounded the life right out of him.
Yeah, and then that asshole would’ve shot Susan right in the head. She’d be dead, and his life would feel meaningless.
“How badly was she hurt?” Rina asked again, this time a little more firmly.
“She hit her head on the steering wheel and…and I heard a shot when the car crashed. She was bleeding pretty steadily from the arm, so I’m thinking his gun when off and hit her before he flew through the window.”
“Bastard better be dead or I’m gonna—”
“Gonna do nothing, doll,” he said quietly, as he wrapped her into a hug and cut off anymore words before she could go into another rant that could send her stress level up. “You gotta calm down. For the baby. For me. I need someone in control when all I feel like doing is pounding the walls until I break my hands.”
“I can do that. I can totally do that.” She hugged him tighter. He could feel the tension drain from her body, which surprisingly, helped the tension in his as well.
“Susan’s tough. She’ll be fine,” Zoe said as she took a seat next to Rina.
Deena and him joined the other two and they waited. And waited.
By the time the doctor met them in the waiting room, his nerves were wired to the extreme and he was ready to punch something. Unfortunately, if the doctor had bad news, he’d be the one on the receiving end of his fist.
“She’s going to be fine. The bullet grazed her. We stitched up her arm and bandaged the gash on her head. I’ve spoken to her a few times. She’s in and out of it right now. She has a concussion and will need to spend the night. Perhaps a day or two to make sure she’s fully recovered. She can have one visitor. But a short one.”
“Me.” Stitch took a step forward, the anguish on his face clear, as well as his determination. “And I’ll be staying with her until she leaves this hospital.”
Chapter 22
She grinned at the obstinate man pacing in front of her bed as the nurse walked out of the room with a scowl on her face.
“I’m okay, you know. You don’t have to jump down everyone’s throat.”
“I didn’t like her tone.”
“It’s sweet when you get like this.” Her smile dimmed a little. “But you have to stop.”
Stitch stopped and walked to the left side of the bed. Sitting down, he gently grabbed her hand. “Suzey baby, I can’t help it. I’m trying as hard as I can, but every time a nurse walks in here, or the doctor, and they even hint at something remotely wrong, I go nuts. She said your blood pressure was a bit high.”
Yeah, maybe because he spent all night with her since she arrived and not once said he loved her again. Perhaps she imagined it. Maybe she hit her head harder than she thought on the steering wheel.
She couldn’t be sure that’s why her blood pressure was a bit high, but her nerves were jangling like a jolly elf bouncing around, waiting and hoping he’d say it again. But nothing.
She was also praying the doctor gave her the all clear to leave today. One night in the hospital was enough. She needed to get him away from people and lower his stress level. She found it sweet, and a little bit crazy, how worked up he got when he thought she was hurt or in pain. He wanted to fix it immediately, and when he couldn’t, he went nuts.
She honestly didn’t think he’d ever stop this protective behavior. Somehow, she had to get him to tone it down. Just a notch.
“Don’t be mad at me, shorty.” A silky, sweet, and deadly grin punctured his face. “I am trying here. I’ve held back quite a few nasty words I wanted to say.”
She didn’t doubt that. She could see it in his eyes every time someone came in and said someth
ing he didn’t like. How much more did she need him to tone it down? Maybe she didn’t. She couldn’t help but adore how loved and protected she felt by his behavior.
Ugh. But did he love her? Why didn’t he say it again? She didn’t want it to be a figment of her imagination.
“I know. You know how much I appreciate you staying here with me, right?”
“They would’ve never pried me from your side.”
No doubt whatsoever about that. She smiled, then shifted, moaning in pain from the wound in her arm.
“Do you need more pain medication? How bad does it hurt, Suzey baby?”
“I just had some. I’ll survive.”
He lowered his head, resting it on the bed.
For some reason, he blamed himself. Like he could’ve stopped that madman with a gun from taking her. There was nothing they could’ve changed without someone getting shot and probably dying. No matter how many times she tried to tell him it wasn’t his fault, he shook his head and ignored her. He wouldn’t believe her.
Him and his crazy thoughts that he could save everyone. That he had to.
She didn’t want saving.
She wanted his love.
“Knock, knock.”
Stitch’s head snapped up with wariness and a bit of anger as soon as he saw Sauer, who looked just as wary, walk further in the room with Dee by his side.
“Hey, Susan. I’m so glad you’re okay,” Dee said as she walked to the opposite side of the bed from Stitch. “Zoe and Rina wanted to come, but we figured we’d bombard you with a bunch of visitors when they release you. Do you know when you get to leave?”
“I’m hoping later today. It’s been a long night. My head hurts, but not as bad as last night. My arm’s bothering me some.”
“I’m glad it wasn’t worse. We’ll crash your house when you leave, which I hope is today. I hate the hospital.” Dee rolled her eyes at Stitch. “Don’t look at me like that.”
He stood up. “Like what? Like you’re nuts. She’s going to rest. Without visitors.”
One Taste of Sin (A One Taste Novel Book 4) Page 21
