Chapter 2
Penny
Penny couldn’t breathe.
Her hands automatically went to her throat, frantically trying to tug the seat belt away, but it was pointless.
Her panicked eyes cast around wildly, catching a glimpse of Bielak in the rearview mirror.
She attempted to suck in a breath as the lack of oxygen began to pound in her head like a drum, but she only succeeded in making a high-pitched rasp.
Penny desperately pummelled the horn with her fist. The sound echoed around the empty garage. Someone was going to come and help, weren’t they? Anyone.
I don’t want to die underground. The thought brought tears to her fading eyes. Was this truly how it was going to end?
Consciousness began to leave her, her hands falling to her thighs. She flinched as one landed in the piping hot coffee in the cup holder next to her seat.
With the last of her strength, Penny picked up the coffee with an unsteady hand—and threw it over her shoulders, directly into Bielak’s eyes.
Her shoulders sagged, gulping down air as Bielak’s deep scream filled the car. Penny ignored it, half-conscious as she threw open the door and staggered from the car. She fell to her knees almost instantly, but the sound of the rear door opening sent a shot of adrenaline straight to her heart.
She ran.
Each step came easier as she ascended the ramp, exiting onto the deserted London street. Her lungs burned with exertion, but she didn’t stop. Pain lanced through her feet as she ran, and she was surprised to discover she’d lost her stilettos at some point.
Hope exploded in her chest as she neared a junction and sighted a passing car. It was the first sign she’d seen that she wasn’t alone in this fucking district. Please don’t go, she begged it, but as she rounded the corner, she saw something she never thought she’d be pleased to see.
Rhys Stone’s stupid convertible supercar was waiting at a traffic light, a cloud of cigarette smoke lazily drifting away above him.
“Rhys,” Penny shrieked with the tattered remains of her voice, running towards him with everything she had.
The light went green, but his head turned towards her. His face immediately morphed into a bewildered expression.
But Penny didn’t wait for an invitation. She dove inside his car.