Chapter 56
FIFTY-SIX
Gigi
As I slip my Glock into my waistband, a cold, familiar chill runs through me. I squeeze Harry’s hand tightly, trying to calm my racing pulse. Despite the painkillers I’ve dosed up on, it’s like I can feel every wound Jamie inflicted, knowing the potential of what we might walk into.
Poppy shifts on her feet. “We know the plan?”
“We meet at the safe house, switch vehicles, then head straight for the border,” Harry confirms. “You two work to get the girls out.”
Hudson shifts. “Right, let’s—”
“Wait!” a voice calls from the hallway.
Harry pushes me back instinctively as the echo of footsteps gains on us. A mop of blonde hair rushes to the nurse’s station.
“She’s not gone yet, has she?”
My eyes widen. “Mia?”
I push Harry aside as she turns the corner, stopping in the entryway. Mia pauses, her breathing elevated from running. Her gaze flicks from me to Harry, the tears increasing to droplets down her cheeks.
In an instant I’m rushing towards her. Her arms engulf me so strongly I forget every essence of hurt. Wetness blurs my vision by the time she’s pulled me back to arm’s length.
“You saved me. I wouldn’t have gotten out if you hadn’t taken a chance on me again,” I strangle out. “I’ll never stop being sorry for betraying you back then. If I could, I’d take it all back. I swear I would.”
“I know Richard forced you to stay away at the beginning,” she says tearfully. “In case you don’t make it out of this, I want you to know I forgive you.”
I blow out a ragged breath. “Mia …”
“You don’t deserve for any of this to be happening to you. I hope you know that.”
Hudson clears his throat. “We’ve got to go.”
A tear slips from my eye, and she wipes it away, fighting to control her own. “If you make it out, we’ll talk everything through, okay?”
I nod desperately. “Okay.”
Mia turns to Harry as I pull back, straightening her spine just slightly. “I’m sorry for not telling you.”
He lets slip a small smile, ducking his head respectfully. He forgives her.
Poppy’s eyes flick to her phone screen. “There are men in reception. We have to get moving.”
I meet her gaze, panicked, then turn to Harry.
His eyes flare with a similar fear before he cups the back of my neck, pulling me against his mouth.
We share one last kiss, desperate and hungry, like we’re trying to memorise each other’s taste.
His tongue slips into my mouth, and for a second, everything fades.
But it’s quick, a robbery of how I really want to kiss him.
He pulls back, his forehead meeting mine. “I love you in every lifetime,” he says. “And I’ll find you in this one.”
“I’ll come back to you.”
“I’ll hunt you down if you don’t.”
“I love you,” I whisper. “Be safe, Harry. Please.”
He draws me into a final embrace, his hands roaming over my back. “No matter what happens, know I’ll burn the world down to bring you back home.” Then he pulls back, a final kiss lingering on my temple before he turns to Hudson fast. “Fucking look after her. You see what I did to Jamie?”
Hudson barely nods, his face void of colour.
“Don’t think I won’t do it again.”
“Guys,” Poppy stresses. “We need to go.”
Harry holds my hand until the last second, but eventually, we’re forced to let go.
I turn back to look at him one final time, meeting the magic of his forest-green eyes, before Hudson guides me into the hallway.
Then, suddenly, we’re running.
My boots thud against the stairs, each step echoing down the stairwell. I breathe through the exhaustion. Now is not the time for my weakness to remind me of its power.
Harry takes the front entrance with Poppy, while Hudson and I take the back. We’ll leave at the same time so Richard’s vehicles are forced to split. When we reach the fire exit, Hudson peers his head out, keeping an eye out for Richard’s notorious bodyguards.
“Were you the one to tell Mia?” I ask. “About today?”
He speaks quietly. “Harry must have done it.”
Perhaps.
I don’t have enough time to question it before Hudson nods tightly, pushing open the door fully.
I slip under his arm, pulling the baseball cap down on my head. His two-seater sports car sits a few metres from the door, and I rush to it, slipping into the passenger seat. Hudson enters the driver’s side, the headlights cutting through the morning fog as the engine purrs.
The radio plays automatically, and I slam it off, holding my breath tight until we’re slipping out of the hospital exit onto the main road.
I twist in my seat, watching the hospital disappear behind us in the fog.
No cars are tailing us.
We’re clear.
For now.
“Do you think they bought it?” I ask.
Hudson balances one hand on the wheel, the other resting loosely by the gearshift, his knuckles pale. “Richard’s smart,” he mutters, more to himself than to me. “He’ll have eyes everywhere.”
My pulse runs rampant, droning out everything round me. Though there’s no noise. No music. No talking. Just the thrum of tyres running down the A-roads into Central London.
Hudson drives fast but steady, weaving through traffic, taking the long route towards Harry’s safe house out of fear we might be followed.
“Shit,” he curses, glancing in the mirror. “We’ve got company.”
My heart leaps into my throat. “Richard?”
He shakes his head. “I recognise the vehicle. It’s one of his men.”
I turn my head over my shoulder. Headlights are gaining on us in the rearview, closing in fast.
Fear for Harry comes through blindingly. Have they caught up to him yet? Did he manage to make it out? All questions disappear as Hudson floors the pedal, making the engine roar as we surge forwards.
Another car slips out from behind the tailing vehicle: a sleek black SUV, identical to the other one. Shit. It matches our speed, inching closer.
“Hold on.” Hudson swerves to avoid a slower vehicle.
The SUV speeds up, ramming us from behind – a jarring impact that lurches me forwards, forcing my hands to brace on the dash.
A growl races up Hudson’s throat. He fights the wheel, jerking it to the right.
As he straightens out, the second car gains momentum, slamming into the rear of our car again. Rain splatters the windows, blinding us of sight for a fearful second.
Everything’s moving too fast.
The wipers sweep over the windscreen, Tower Bridge appearing in the distance, a few hundred yards from where Hudson’s swerving through the sparse cars on the roads. The lights of the bridge flicker red in warning, the barricade starting to lower as a boat with high vessels comes closer.
Hudson doesn’t stop, the car now screaming as it reaches its max speed.
“Hudson …”
But the cars are still on our tail, showing no signs of stopping.
The wheels shudder as we cross the threshold onto the bridge, the River Thames dark and ominous below us. Hudson lowers to second gear, throwing me back in my seat.
“W-wait!” I shout.
But it’s too late.
The car speeds up the ramp, and for a terrifying few seconds, we’re airborne.
I squeeze my eyes shut, the action lasting barely a moment before we’re descending, tyres screeching on the road as we slam down onto the tarmac.
I’ve barely inhaled a shredded breath before the landing car clips our bumper.
Hudson’s hands slip from the wheel, losing control, right at the minute the other car spins out from its landing, brutally slamming into our side.
We crash into the stone railing. Hudson’s head slams against the wheel, jolting back with a force that sends him out cold.
“NO!” I shake his shoulders. “Hudson, wake up! Wake up!”
I grab the wheel, but it’s no use. The SUV drives full force into my passenger door, snapping my body sideways. I black out for a moment.
As I blink back to the present, the car whines.
We’re teetering over the edge, suspended in mid-air.
The stone railing crumbles, the thick current of the River Thames below us howling through the crack in the car window.
Oh … oh fuck. Any little movement will plunge us nose-first into the water.
Hudson grumbles, coming back to consciousness.
Rubble and stone splatter into the dark abyss below us, the car groaning deeply as we’re suspended on the precipice. My hands reach out as if to help maintain the balance.
“Stay calm,” I say slowly.
But it’s no use. Panic sends an exaggerated jolt through his body, forcing his hands against the wheel.
Time slows as the car slides.
The world tilts.
Metal groans and buckles, and then we’re plunging into the water. The car crashes down with an almighty bang. My head snaps back as we make impact.
The car wails with the weight of the water as it tips forwards, bubbling in front of the bonnet as we lower into the darkness.
We’re sinking.
Water creeps in through the vents, through the doors, filling the car up fast. Hudson moans, one hand hovering over his bloodied head, the other thrashing against the water.
“That was my fault,” he says.
“Apologies later.” I grapple with my seatbelt, and it pops free. “We need to get out.”
Forcing a calmness through him, he pulls his handle, slamming all his weight into the door. It slips open a fraction, only for a surge of water to come racing in.
It’s freezing, filling the car deeper at a speed we’re unprepared for.
“Close it!” I shout.
As I brace my hands against the roof, I look out the window, obstructed by the rising water submerging the windscreen. But I still see it. Up on the bridge are the two SUVs, headlights shining bright on us. They’re still alive.
And on the riverbank, another vehicle is parked up. I can just about make it out through the slosh of water.
A figure steps out, along with his notorious bodyguards.
FUCK.
“Richard’s here.”
Hudson doesn’t bother to look up, still desperately searching for a way out.
The water is up to my neck now, splattering my cheeks and spreading over my chin. I gasp, tilting my face towards the ceiling, fighting the panic that attempts to claw its way through.
A piercing whoosh, followed by a loud crack, sends the windows shattering.
I jolt from the sudden movement, swallowing a mouthful of water.
Was that a gunshot?
Hudson whips his head towards the jagged window, eyes widening. He forces himself round in the small space, clutching the edge of the windowpane, ready to pull himself through.
“Don’t you dare leave me down here,” I choke.
He takes my hand, clutching tight. “Hold your breath.”
The water submerges our heads, and we duck down, pushing out through the hole in the shattered window into the cold, relentless current of the Thames.
Everything disappears.
Hudson’s hand slips from mine, and panic claws at me. I reach out into the darkness, feeling for him, but nothing. Despite my efforts not to scream, I swallow a mouthful of river water, my lungs burning. I kick wildly towards where I think the surface is, fighting to reach through.
Something grabs me.
Fingers tangle in my jacket, yanking me out of the dark.
The cold air rips into my lungs. I gasp, choking, blind.
“You okay?” Hudson pants.
I nod barely, struggling to keep myself afloat through the rippling current. Searchlights slice through the night, voices shouting from the banks.
A boat cuts through the water, pulling up beside us.
Panic blazes through me as an arm reaches out. I kick the water frantically, but hands close round my biceps, dragging me aboard and flopping me onto the slick deck like a half-dead animal.
A figure stands over me, a predator watching a wounded deer. They’re nothing but darkness, shielded through the sharp lights and the hammering rain.
“You always had a flair for theatrics,” Richard mutters. “At what point will you understand your life is mine?”
I want to scream, but my throat is raw.
Another splash, followed by more hands. Hudson is pulled aboard, coughing, bleeding, soaked to the bone. He collapses beside me, too breathless to speak.
“I don’t appreciate you damaging the merchandise. It makes for a cheaper sale.” Richard narrows his gaze at me. “What? You thought I couldn’t still profit from you now Jamie’s dead?”
I try to push myself up, my limbs quaking with exhaustion. “Go to hell,” I spit.
He smiles, turning his gaze to Hudson, the amusement in his expression dying as withdraws the gun from his inside pocket so quickly Hudson barely blinks before it’s at his temple.
“You have three seconds to explain why you thought this betrayal wouldn’t come with consequences … Three … two …” The safety switches off with a click. “One—”
“She’s here, isn’t she?” His voice doesn’t falter. “You said you needed her back.”
Something inside me fractures.
No.
I sit up fully despite the pain screaming in every part of my body. “You tricked me to get me back?” My voice shakes, traitorous tears mixing with the rain. “You lied this whole time. I-I trusted you! We trust—”
“I had to make it real,” he says softly, “or you wouldn’t believe it.”
“I should put a bullet in your skull.” Richard straightens, pressing the barrel of the gun that slightest bit forward.
Hudson’s eyes narrow, bracing for impact.
“But I’ll let you live.” Richards cocks his head to his men. “Get him off my boat. He’s done here.”
Hudson doesn’t fight as the two bodyguards drag him up, my Glock glistening in his back pocket. My eyes flare, noticing the sudden loss. He’s left me disarmed.
The boat rocks as he’s thrown onto a smaller vessel tethered to the side. He turns, meeting my gaze one last time.
“I’m sorry,” he says.
Then he’s gone.
I collapse back against the deck, rain washing over me.
Richard crouches down, brushing wet hair from my face. “The Circle welcomes you home, sweetheart.”