Chapter 4
PAYTON
Other than the trips to the outhouse that came at completely random times–except when I threatened to piss all over the floor like a dog if they didn’t take me outside right fucking now–I hadn’t seen daylight since the men kidnapped me at the river.
I took a deep breath in through my nose and held it, using the steadying technique to keep the panic at bay.
I’d done my best to keep track of the days, but in the depths of the old building, the only thing I had to go by was the tiny sliver of light that occasionally brightened the room.
I’d promised to be home by Christmas.
My heart ached with a savageness I didn’t know I possessed.
I would not die here.
I twisted and pulled on the ropes holding my hands behind my back.
The wooden chair gave me zero leverage, and the fresh zip ties cut into my skin when I tried to yank my hands apart.
They were meticulous about the zip ties.
Every time I went outside, they cut the old ones off, moved my hands in front of me, and used a fresh zip tie, repeating the process when they brought me back to the chair.
I’d tried to keep track of their faces, but they always wore some kind of cowl over their heads when they were with me.
A shudder danced along my spine as the man’s earlier threat came back to scratch and claw at my receding strength.
No one had touched me except to move me from place to place, but I couldn’t place bets that the threat wasn’t real.
I’d rather die.
The thought solidified into an icy brick in my gut. I’d fight them, make them kill me, if it came down to that.
Maybe I’d get away in the process.
“You have the wrong person.” I tried again to talk to the man on the other side of the room.
There was always one with me, always out of sight, but I felt the presence like a malignant tumor pressing into my stomach.
“Stop talking.” He’d warned me several times already, but I’d noticed a shift in his voice these last few tries.
If I could get through to him, maybe he’d talk to the man in charge. “My father is Frank Rivers. My name is Payton Rivers. I don’t know anything about an arms dealer that you want to flush out of hiding.” I should have left that part out.
I’d overheard them talking about the man they thought was my father.
No names were mentioned, but it was obvious they had the wrong woman. “My father will pay the ransom, but he doesn’t know you have me. You can call him. My phone is…” Where was my phone?
Surely Dad would have it tracked as soon as he realized something happened to me.
“Shut. Up.” The man stalked forward, the sound of his steps an angry tattoo of noise that rattled my teeth.
A shiver that had nothing to do with the menace in his words sent goosebumps popping out on my arms.
They’d taken all my outer clothing, leaving me in my jeans and T-shirt and socks.
I didn’t let that stop me from working out an escape plan.
Clothes were secondary to getting away from the men who would kill me the minute they discovered their arms dealer wasn’t coming.
That was why I kept playing the ransom card. “Look, Dad has money. Lots of money. I’m telling you, let me call him. You can send him an email from my account. He’s not stingy.” I didn’t mention the police. That was a sure way to get a bullet in the face.
My current guard grunted. “If I’d known you’d be this annoying, I would’ve asked for more money.”
Oh, there was more where that came from. So much more.
I’d talk until I lost my voice if it meant he’d leave the room and give me a few minutes alone.
“You know, I heard that there’s this thing where men piss and moan about women because their mothers didn’t hug them enough. You think there’s any truth to that?”
I fully expected the blow that cracked against my cheek.
It whipped my head around, my neck popping in the process.
I laughed and faced him. “Guess that means it’s true.” I tsked. “I bet she’s ashamed of you. Probably stopped sending Christmas cards and doesn’t even call you on your birthday.”
A dark, twisted face leaned into my space.
Holy hell. I’d gone too far.
The sneering face wasn’t what bothered me. No. It was the brutal coldness in the way he stared me down. “My mother’s dead. And I’m glad.”
He lifted his hand for a second slap, and I spat a glob of blood on his boot.
“Shift change.” The unfamiliar voice came the instant his hand came down.
The strike wasn’t as hard, but it fucking hurt. I forced out another laugh to cover the threat of tears. “See you later.”
His muttering echoed off the stone walls, and I let out a relieved breath that did nothing to stop the ache in my jaw.
Bastard busted my lip.
I poked at it with my tongue, wincing at the fresh sting of pain.
The sunlight I craved inched into the room, touching the rocks on the opposite wall.
That bit of light was the only way I’d seen my surroundings, and they hadn’t changed.
Same circular room with one door.
Same uncomfortable wooden chair that made my ass go numb.
One other chair was tucked against the wall opposite me, but I’d never seen anyone use it.
I pulled on the zip ties again. If I could just get some momentum, I might be able to snap them apart.
My self-defense instructor had taught me a couple tricks for getting out of zip ties, but none of them worked when I factored in the ropes around my waist, wrists, and even around my ankles.
A whisper of cloth snapped my head up.
The outer door creaked open, and two men rushed in on silent feet.
One shut the door, and both men straightened. “Get her.” The taller of the two jerked his head in my direction. “I’ll keep watch.”
“The fuck you will.” I rocked my chair side to side, trying to knock it over.
If I broke its legs, I could get my feet free. After that, well, I’d have to rely on the instincts that had gotten me this far in life.
“Don’t make a sound.” The shorter one approached me and pulled a wicked looking knife from his boot.
There was just enough light to highlight his eyes. Blue.
Not just any blue either, but the kind of blue that reminded me of the ocean at daybreak, with an inviting lure that promised you might have a good time, or you might die depending on the water’s mood that day.
This man had seen some stuff. Bad stuff.
To him, I was nothing more than a tally mark on the hilt of that knife.
I could see them from here when he angled the blade downward.
Deep gouges that scored the dark wood. Groups of five, and five groups before they disappeared beneath his hand.
Oh shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. I’d really done it this time.
I should have kept my mouth shut. My tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth as panic set in.
I whimpered against my will and threw my entire body weight backward.
The chair tipped, and right as I would have crashed, he grabbed the rungs and brought me down to face him.
“Stop.” He slashed the knife toward my feet.
I winced as I waited for the pain. It came with a tingling sensation, the pins and needles tickling of circulation returning. “What do you want?”
Stupid question. I knew what they wanted.
Several of them had asked about spoiled goods. I wasn’t naive enough not to realize what they meant.
The man outside might have decided he’d had enough of my bullshit and turned his men loose on me.
Over my dead body.
I waited, breath held, as the man shifted to my side and hacked through the ropes and zip ties binding me to the chair.
“Let’s go.” He grabbed my elbow and pulled me to my feet.
The touch was almost gentle, but that didn’t mean anything.
These were rogue mercenaries intent on taking what they wanted would not be gentle.
I skirted around the thought and lunged toward the door where the second man had his back to me.
An instant later, I landed on my stomach, the breath knocked clean out of my lungs as a weight settled on the backs of my legs and ass.
“Get off me.” My voice screeched higher.
If these two thought they could have a go without me screaming my guts up, they had another think coming.
A hand covered my mouth, a low voice whispering in my ear. “Quiet. They’ll hear you.”
That was the whole fucking point. I twisted my body and bit his hand the same way I had my captor.
“Did you just bite me?” He removed his hand.
The man by the door laughed.
“Damn it, Reed, it’s not funny.” The one pinning me to the floor shifted his weight.
I managed to haul in enough air to speak. “I’d rather die than let you touch me.” I used one of the moves I’d been taught, bucking my hips and twisting at the same time.
It wasn’t perfect, but it caught him by surprise and threw him off the side.
I leaped to my feet, elbowed the fallen man in the mouth, and wheeled to catch the other in the solar plexus, following it up with a hit to the face that snapped his head back.
The gust of expelled breath told me I’d hit the right spot, and by the time he doubled over, I was out the door and running.
My stocking feet gave me an advantage as I ran, but I had no idea where to go.
The door leading outside was supposed to be straight ahead, but all the light I’d expected to see had vanished.
I turned to the right, my hand outstretched as I attempted to find a wall to guide me.
Something scraped along the floor, my brain recognizing the sound of a footstep before my body caught up enough to turn away from the sound.
I slammed into something solid…and warm.
Hands settled on my waist and pushed me backward. “Careful.”
The low, husky voice reminded me of velvet and leather.
Soft but rough, the coarse edginess bordering on sinful.
It was the kind of voice that lingered in the night.
I threw myself backward and to the side, using my hand on his chest for added momentum. How many of them were in on this?
Didn’t matter. I refused to stop running, to stop fighting, until I drew my last breath.
I ducked around a corner and sprinted forward.
“I wouldn’t go that way.” The voice almost taunted me with its casual tone.
“Fuck you.” I let the adrenaline push me harder.
My arms pumped, and a woozy sensation sent my vision spiraling.
Dehydration and lack of food, combined with terror and adrenaline were a bitch to conquer.
I gritted my teeth and kept going.
One second, I was gaining ground–based on the steps behind me growing faint–-and the next my head cracked against something even harder than the man’s chest.
I windmilled my arms and tried to keep going, but gravity took me down, and my world went black.