by Zoey Parker
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 t
eeth 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.
The slap across the face was almost welcome. I still cried out. It hurt more than the previous slaps. Ryan was escalating.
“There’s more where that came from if you can’t fucking be respectful,” Ryan snarled out. He leaned closer. Instinctively, I flinched and tried to flatten my body against the wall of the back of the van.
“Okay,” I said quietly. “What are we going to do, Ryan?”
Ryan perked up at the way I’d said his name.
“No, that’s not quite right,” he said. He frowned. “You’re not going to call me Ryan. Try Mr. Winter.”
I shook my head. Just as I was about to protest, I felt a hot shock of pain surging through my body. Crying out, I glanced down and realized that Ryan was pressing something small and hard and made of plastic against my thigh. The pain was still vibrating in my limbs, and I felt dizzy. My mouth tasted like burnt metal.
“You know what this is?” Ryan asked. He held up the plastic device. I whimpered when I saw the two tiny metal prongs sticking out of the plastic box.
I shook my head. My body was still buzzing from the last shock, and I didn’t want him to hurt me again. I shuddered at the thought that he had even worse things up his sleeve.
“Well, that’s fine for now,” Ryan said. He smirked at me. “You don’t have to know a lot of things to be a beauty queen, do you?”
I slumped down against the metal wall and pulled my knees close. Resting my chin on them, I tried to pretend that I was just in a very uncomfortable waiting room. I’ve not been kidnapped , I thought as a tear leaked down my cheek. I’m just waiting for my doctor .
“Tell me, Katia, what’s the most important part of being a beauty queen?” Ryan raised his eyebrows. “I wanna know.”
“Why are you asking me this?” I stared at him. “Can’t you just do whatever you want with me and let me go again?” As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I regretted them.
Ryan’s stare turned murderous. “If you’re not going to play my little game, I’ll just have to make you realize that’s your best chance,” Ryan said. He reached out and grabbed me, pulling me close to him.
I struggled and fought, but when Ryan held up the small plastic Taser again, I went limp.
He grinned. “Good girl,” Ryan said softly. He pressed his lips to mine and pressed down. I screamed and shrieked, pulling away from him. The shocking pain that blasted through my body seconds before was horrifying, but not as horrifying as being forced to kiss Ryan had been.
“Leave me alone!” I shrieked. I began kicking and thrashing, trying to hit him with the balls of my feet. Somehow, Ryan managed to evade every kick.
Ryan grinned. “Okay, Katia. If that’s what you want.” He grinned again, and I felt my stomach sinking. “Trust me,” he added. “You’ll be begging me to pay attention to you again by the time this is all over.”
I blinked. I wanted to ask him what he meant, but I was sick of talking to him. As Ryan pushed me further into the back of the van, he wiped his hands on his jeans and began crawling towards the front. I watched breathlessly as he climbed into the driver’s seat and shifted the van into gear. We sped out of the motel parking lot with alarming speed, and I cried out in pain as my body slammed against the wall of the van.
“Yeah, that’s right,” Ryan called from the driver’s seat. “Go ahead and scream, baby. No one’s listening to you!”
My head was thumping in agony, and I had a sharp pain in my ribs that hurt whenever I breathed. Curling up in a ball, I rested my head on my arms. Ryan turned on the radio and soon the van was filled with the cheery, chirpy sounds of pop music.
“I hope this music is okay!” Ryan called loudly. “You’re gonna be hearing it for quite some time!”
The adrenaline rush that had started back in the motel parking lot was beginning to ebb but hearing the pop music made me feel panicked once more. The volume was so loud that it was hurting my head, and every time Ryan turned the van around a curve, I thought I was going to be sick.
I closed my eyes and began to pray.
Dear God,
Please let Dante save me. Please let him be okay. I know I haven’t always been very nice to him… or to anyone else. But I really love him. I swear, I wasn’t thinking about hooking up with another guy just to make him jealous!
Well, okay, maybe I was.
But I didn’t mean it! You know that! You know me. God, please, I’m so scared. I promise if you get me out of this or help Dante get me out of this, I’ll never be a bad Christian again. I’ll even start going to church again .
The van lurched to the side, and I slid across the metal floor, slamming my head against the opposite wall. I saw stars fluttering around me and moaned softly, burying my face in my hands. The cut on my temple had scabbed over, but I could feel that I had a huge, egg-sized knot on the side of my head. It ached with every heartbeat, and my eyes filled with tears even though I knew crying would just wind up hurting me more.
“You’re awful quiet back there!” Ryan yelled. He slowed the van down and pulled
off on the side of the road.
I gasped. I didn’t know why we were stopping, but I didn’t like it.
Ryan turned the ignition off and climbed into the back of the van. He was carrying something in his hand. It was a pink case with a white zipper.
“You recognize this?”
I shook my head. My heart was in my throat because I just knew it was going to be some kind of awful torture device like the Taser.
“No,” I said softly.
“By the way.” His voice had gone back to sounding kind and warm. “I think I do want you calling me Mr. Winter. Let’s try it out, shall we?”
I licked my lips. My mouth was dry, and my lips were so chapped that the skin was flaking off. It ached, and suddenly I wished that I had lip balm in my pocket.
