“I’m sorry I know the feeling,” he says softly.
“Don’t be sorry for me. I do have one person I love and that loves me back. One is better than none.” I wish I could call her right now but I can’t tell her what my father said. It will break her heart. I lift up my butt an inch and grab my phone out of my back pocket. I have sixteen missed calls and eight unread messages so far, all from my parents. I leave my phone laying in my lap face down. My phone is on silent, so they can call all night if they want.
“Where are we going?” It just now dawned on me that I have no idea where we are driving to, or what he was doing in our neighborhood. Or his name, or anything else about him. “I’m sorry you probably had plans. Were you visiting one of my neighbors?”
I see him glancing at my phone with a weird expression on his face. “Something like that.”
4
Colt
I can’t believe she just got into my car. I don’t think this actually counts as a kidnapping. I should probably snatch her phone right now but then she would know that something was wrong. Her trusting looks would turn into fear. She would try to get away from me instead of sitting next to me contently. She would only look at me with hate.
Right now, she thinks I’m some stranger who helped her out for no reason. She couldn’t be any more wrong. I’m trying to draw this out as long as I can even though I know that using her vulnerability like this will make things worse.
“You didn’t answer my first question. Where are we going?” There is a hint of nervousness in her voice and that little hint is like a punch in the gut. I know it’s irrational but I don’t want her to be scared of me. I want to hold on to what she thinks about me just a little bit longer.
“I’m just driving around. Did you have dinner yet? We could go grab a bite to eat or get dessert.” Taking her to a public place is going to be a risk. A risk I am willing to take.
“Sure,” she agrees. Her dislike of her parents must trump her own survival instinct. I can’t believe she doesn’t sense that she is in danger. That I am a danger to her.
I pull up to a small diner I saw from the road earlier. “I don’t have any money,” she confesses. “I am really bad at this whole running away from home thing.”
“You should plan your next escape a little better,” I smile. “Come on. I got you.”
She follows me into the diner like a lost puppy. I ask for a booth in the back, the fewer people see us the better. Josephine takes the menu eagerly.
“I’m guessing you haven’t had dinner yet. I didn’t either so I’m ordering food as well.”
“I had a hand full of steamed green beans and a boiled chicken breast. If you can call that dinner. I haven’t had a burger and fries in years. I’d love to eat that now.”
Before I have time to ask her why that is, the waitress returns ready to take our order. Josephine’s look over to me like she wants a final confirmation on that I’m going to pay for her.
“Order whatever you want,” I tell her and her face light up a little.
“I’ll have the greasiest burger you have with fries and a coke, please.” Her natural politeness makes me smirk.
“I’ll have the same,” I say as I hand the waitress our menus.
“So, why haven’t you eaten fast food in so long? Are you on some kind of diet?”
“Not by choice. My mom doesn’t let me eat stuff like that.” Her mouth turns to a frown just thinking about her mother. I make mental note not to bring up her mom or dad unless I have to. “She wants me to keep my size zero. Everything else is basically being ‘fat’ and unacceptable.”
“Wow.” My dislike for her parents grows by the minute. No wonder she is so skinny. “I see now why you are trying to get away.”
She takes an audible breath and her shoulders slump down. “I should probably go back. It’s really no use, me running off. Besides, where am I going to go? I didn’t even bring any money,” she says sadly.
The anxiety of her wanting to go home and to find out who I am, resurfaces. I need to makes this last as long as I can. “Why don’t you just forget about everything for now and we just enjoy dinner?”
She nods and gives me a smile that knocks the breath out of my lungs. For a moment I am so mesmerized by her that I have to make myself look down to her hands just so I’m able to breathe normally again. She is fidgeting her fingers around her sleeves. Scratches decorate her hands and peek out from underneath her sleeve. She needs to get those cleaned up before they get infected, so I need to get some ointment for her. The thought of how I want to take care of her is unexpected and feels unnatural to me. Still, I enjoy the idea.
It doesn’t take long for our food to come out. “Enjoy!” The waitress says as she sits down the plates. Josephine looks at it like she just opened a Christmas present she has been wishing for all year. With a big smile, she takes the burger with both hands and takes a big bite. She closes her eyes while she chews with a little moan like this is the best thing she has ever eaten.
I eat my own food in silence not wanting to disturb her. I have never seen anyone enjoy a simple burger so much. She finishes a little more than half before she leans back in the seat and folds her arm across her stomach. “I think if I eat another bite I’m going to puke and that would just be a horrible waste.”
“I hate to bring it up, but if you haven’t eaten anything this greasy in years you might throw up anyway. Eating this double bacon cheeseburger might come back to bite you in the ass later tonight.”
“I promise I won’t throw up in your car,” she says holding her hand over her heart like she is making an oath.
I finish my food while I watch her closely. Her chestnut hair is flowing freely down her shoulders with her head leaning back against the headrest. She is looking out the window like she is deep in thought. Her forehead is pulled into a tiny frown and her almond-shaped eyes have a sadness to them I wish I could take away. I wish I could erase the frown on her face. Smooth it out and replace it with an everlasting smile.
She blinks rapidly like she is coming back to the real world when our server returns. “Are you done hon?”
“Yes, thank you,” Josephine answers courteously. “It was delicious, I am just so full.”
“I’m guessing no room for dessert then? We have the best milkshakes,” the waitress tries to tempt us.
“We’ll take two to go,” I tell her. If Josephine’s parents won’t let her eat burgers, I highly doubt she can have a milkshake. I pay the bill while we wait for our milkshakes.
“Thank you, by the way,” Josephine tells me when we walk out with our milkshakes in hand. “Not just for dinner. For everything.”
There is a knot in my stomach and an ache in my chest as I answer her. “You’re welcome.” I know I can’t stall much longer. She is going to want to go home or call someone any minute now and then I will have no choice but to tell her that I can’t let her do either. She is a smart girl, it won’t take her long to put it together and realize who I am. She will hate me, not just for what I am doing to her but also for what I did to her sister.
We walk back to the car and I feel like I am walking to my execution instead. I try to come up with another excuse to keep this up longer but I know this is useless. She will figure it out and it will happen soon.
“You okay?” She asks me. I can’t even bring myself to answer out loud. I just nod in response and try to give her a smile but I can’t get the corners of my mouth to go up. It has gotten cold outside and she is only wearing a sweater. As soon as I start the car I crank the air up all the way to hot.
I’m not even out of the parking lot when she asks, “do you mind driving me back home? I can give you some gas money. Or I can call them and tell them. They would come and get me.”
I try to keep my voice as even as I can. “Don’t worry about gas money.”
She gets her phone out from her jeans pocket and looks at it. “Actually, I think I want to call someone else first.” She scro
lls down her contact list and stops at Jenna’s number. My heart sinks. The moment before her finger tabs on the name I snatch the phone out of her hand.
She gives me a bewildered look. “What the heck?”
I put the phone in the inside pocket of my jacket. “I’m sorry Josephine, I can’t let you call your sister.”
5
Josephine
My heart stops and my lungs cease to work at the same time. He knows my name, even though I never told him. Even scarier, he knows I have a sister. No one knows that. How could I have been so naïve and stupid? I was so wrapped up in my problems that I’ve just gotten into a stranger’s car without questioning him. I didn’t even ask his name. I look out the windshield and realize we are driving away from where I live. “Please stop and let me out,” I say with a shaky voice.
“I need you to come with me.” His statement almost sounds like an apology but that doesn’t make me feel much better. I’m frozen in my seat unable to move a muscle. Even when he lays his hand on my arm I don’t flinch.
“Josephine?” He says my name like he is concerned. His hand is warm and comforting on my arm and I am nothing but confused by that. “Josephine,” he says again.
“Please, don’t call me that. Only my parents call me by my full name.” The one thing that could make this whole situation even worse is constantly being reminded of my parents.
“Okay, Josie then?”
I manage a nod while I am still staring at the dark road ahead of us. He pulls his hand away and I immediately miss the connection. I don’t understand how his touch can calm me down when he is the one causing the distress in the first place. But for some reason I can’t explain, it does. Once he puts his hand back on the steering wheel, my whole body starts shaking. My attempts to wrap my arms around myself to make it stop are futile.
“Why are you doing this? You want money?” I’m trying to imagine my dad getting a call and asking for ransom money. I honestly have a hard time picturing it.
“I just need your sister to sign a paper. As soon as she does, I’ll bring you back home.”
“My sister? How do you even…” The words get stuck in my throat as my thoughts fall into place. I am such an idiot for not realizing who he is. My burger is about to make a reappearance at the thought of that I just had dinner with the person who has been ruling my sister’s nightmares. “You’re Colt.”
“Josie, I’m not going to hurt you. You’re going to be fine, okay?” His words dial my fear down from a ten to a solid nine. How can I trust that he is telling me the truth knowing what he is capable of?
We drive in silence for a good while before I get the courage to talk again. “Where are you taking me?”
“Someplace we can lay low until Hunter and Jenna do what I ask them to do.”
“I need to use the bathroom.” I think we have been driving for two hours and I had a large soda, I really do have to go pee. If he is not willing to pull over, I am going to have a problem.
“I’ll stop at the next gas station.” I’m surprised by his quick response and how worry-free he sounds.
I use the entire fifteen minutes it takes him to find a gas station, coming up with an escape plan. I settle on behaving in the store and letting him think that I am too scared to try anything. Right before we get back into the car, I am going to make a run for it.
He parks at the side of the gas station, almost all the way to the back. It’s the darkest corner of the parking lot.
“You have two choices. One, we go in there like nothing is wrong. We buy some snacks, you go use the bathroom and then we continue driving. Two, I’ll take you into the woods back there, you pee behind a tree and then we continue driving. So, which one will it be?”
I look into the dark wooded area behind the gas station. “I’ll play along in there.”
“Good choice, come on.” He opens his door and steps out of the car, never taking his eyes off of me. I open my own door slowly. By the time I make it out of the car, Colt has already walked around to stand right next to me. He somehow seems taller than before, or maybe my fear makes me feel smaller.
I had managed to stop shaking in the car, but being outside in the middle of the night without a jacket brings me back to a teeth-shattering shiver. I wrap my arm around myself as we walk toward the entrance of the gas station. Colt walks closely beside me. I expected that much. What I didn’t expect is him putting his arm around me.
“Just relax,” he says, his voice low and oddly soothing. To my shame, I do relax a little. I don’t know how he does it, but he has the ability to calm me down with his touch alone. His arm around my shoulder feels like a warm heavy blanket, protecting me from not only the cold but from my fear as well. I am so confused about what I am feeling that I don’t even realize how I am leaning into him until we are in the store. I straighten up and Colt loosens his arm on me. We walk to the back of the store where the bathroom is. Only when we are right in front of the door does he release me all the way. “Don’t do anything stupid,” he warns right before I walk into the lady’s room.
I close the door behind me and almost slump down to the floor. My knees are wobbly and weak but I manage to do my business and wash my hands without falling down. When I get back out Colt is still where I left him, right next to the door. He grabs a few snacks and some sodas on our way out. The guys at the register doesn’t even look at us while Colt pays. Not that I was planning on giving him some kind of signal. Even if I would ask him to help me, the 150-pound skinny guy wouldn’t be able to stop Colt, who has at least fifty pounds of muscle mass on him.
Colt puts his arm around me again while we are walking outside. I’m sure he does it so I can’t run away, but I am just going to pretend he does it because I’m cold. This way I’m less scared of him and I can muster up the courage to make a run for it when we get in the car.
He walks me to the passenger door and waits until I get in and buckle up. My heart rate speeds up with every step he takes walking around the car. I need to wait for just the right moment. My hand is a few inches away from the button to unfasten my seat belt. The driver’s door opens and Colt gets in. I unbuckle and open my door at the same time. My foot barely touches the ground when he gets hold of my wrist and pulls me back into the car. I try to hit him with my free hand but he is faster than me and grabs my other wrist instead.
Until now, I have done as he asks and he hasn’t hurt me yet. With his fingers digging into my skin like tight shackles around my wrists, he is telling me that he is about to show me another side of him. My panic is reaching fever pitch. He manages to pull me all the way back in the car even with me struggling as much as I can. In my last effort to fight him, I feebly attempt to head-butt him. He twists his body at the last second and my nose hits his shoulder at full force.
Explosive pain erupts across my face in an instant. My eyes are already tearing up and I feel something running out of my nose. The warm coppery liquid hits my lips informing me that I am bleeding. I loud sob escapes my mouth before I start to full on cry.
“Shit, hold on.” Colt lets go of one of my wrists and starts digging for something on the back seat. I look up to the roof of the car, trying to stop the blood from running down my face. Tasting it in the back of my throat makes my stomach churn. “Don’t put your head up, put it down.”
I follow his command and he pushes a shirt in front of my nose. He lets go of my wrist and grabs the back of my neck instead. His hold on me is firm and threatening, but not so much that it hurts. He starts to move his thumb in a circular motion and I try to just concentrate on the little massage at the nape of my neck.
“Close your door.” I reach over without looking, feeling for the handle until I find it and pull my door shut.
Bile is rising in my throat and I don’t know if it’s the terror of the situation, the blood I just swallowed, or the greasy meal from earlier. “I think I need to throw up.” My voice sounds so nasally and shaky, I can barely recognize it as my own.
As soon as the cold air hits my lungs I double over and puke all over the parking lot. Embarrassment is only in the back of my mind with fear taking up so much space already.
By the time I am able to grasp a coherent thought, I realize that Colt is holding back my hair and rubs my back. What the heck? Why is he pretending to care? Is he trying to brainwash me?
Once I emptied out the entire contents of my stomach and my nose has stopped bleeding, I straighten up my aching back. Colt, apparently not fazed by how disgusting I look and smell, puts his arm around me and walks me to the back of the car. It isn’t until he opens the trunk that I start panicking again.
“Please don’t lock me in there,” I say rough and raspy sounding. I don’t like the dark or small spaces and I hate being alone. I try to take a step away from the car but Colt holds me tightly in place. “I swear, I won’t try to get away again!”
“I’m not going to put you in the trunk.” He takes some water bottles and a towel out of the otherwise empty trunk and hands me one of the bottles. With the other one, he wets the towel and starts cleaning my face. “Take your sweater off and put it in the trunk.”
I strip down to my camisole quickly and do as he asks. He takes off his own hoody and throws it on top of my dirty sweater. When he leads me to the driver’s side again, he makes me go in this way, with him following close behind.
The Lies We Tell: An Enemy to Lovers Young Adult Romance (Pushed Aside Book 3) Page 2
