Chapter 26 #2
“Yes.” Again, she kept her voice calm even though everything inside her was screaming.
“You are very obedient,” he said, then chuckled. “I like that. A lot.”
Her stomach rolled hard, nausea rising so fast she had to swallow it back. “Can I talk to my son?”
“If you do as I say, you’ll see him soon enough.
” His voice settled back into that calm control that made her want to reach through the phone and claw his face off.
“And he will walk away from this, but that is in your hands. Hurry up. I know the Warriors have trackers on their vehicles, and if you fail, Frankie dies.”
The line went dead.
“Fuck you!” Becky screamed, tossing the phone onto the seat before pounding her fist against the steering wheel. “Fuck you.” Tears streamed down her face, but she didn’t slow down. She couldn’t. She would not fail.
Getting herself under control, Becky sped down the Double A, her gaze flicking to her phone more than it should. She wanted so badly to call Sloan, but she couldn’t.
Pulling off the Double A, she drove up the old country road, her eyes searching for the field.
Seeing the pull-off on the right, she quickly drove into the field and parked.
Grabbing her bag, she opened the door and got out.
The wind was picking up as lightning flashed in the distance.
Hurrying toward the road, she began walking toward the fairground, thunder booming as if warning her of the danger she was walking into.
Staying to the side of the road and walking toward traffic, her eyes searched for any sign of anyone, but there was nothing other than trees and an old barn on the right.
She knew the back entrance to the fairgrounds was around the bend up ahead, so she picked up her pace.
Then she heard a vehicle coming from the opposite direction.
As she turned, bright lights flickered on, blinding her. A white van with dark tinted windows slowed to a stop, and the side door slid open as Frankie was shoved out, falling to his knees.
“Frankie!” Becky screamed as she took off running.
Frankie looked up and got to his feet just as Becky reached him. She wrapped her arms around him, holding him tight, needing one second to feel that he was alive. “I told you not to come!” Frankie pulled back, his face full of fear and anger.
Before Becky could answer, two men jumped out of the van and grabbed her. Frankie wasn’t having it. “Get the fuck off her!” he shouted, swinging hard and catching one in the face.
“No!” Becky fought against the hands holding her, trying to get back to him. “Frankie, go!”
“Yes, Frankie,” a familiar male voice mocked from behind her. “Go.”
A gun clicked, then passed the side of her face grazing her cheek, aiming straight at Frankie. “No!” Becky froze, rage and terror crashing through her so hard she shook. “I’m here! You said he would walk free. Please.”
“I like the way you say please.” The man’s voice brushed close to her ear just as the gun disappeared.
Relief hit her so hard her knees buckled.
“You son of a bitch,” Frankie snarled, his glare locked on the man behind her. A man Becky still hadn’t seen, but she knew that voice now. She would never forget it.
“Get out of here, kid,” the man ordered, his voice hard before he chuckled. “I’ll make sure your momma is well taken care of.”
Becky was dragged backward into the van, the door slamming shut as she twisted to look out the window and make sure Frankie was okay.
The van started moving as Frankie ran after them, banging on the side and yelling for her.
Then the van sped up, leaving her son behind.
Tears streamed down her face as relief and loss tore through her at the same time.
He was alive. Frankie was alive. But she was leaving him there, and every inch between them felt like something ripping out of her chest.
“Don’t cry, Becky.” The man’s voice was soft, almost soothing, and it made her skin crawl. “He’s alive, just like I promised. Maybe one day I’ll even let you see him again.”
“Fuck you,” Becky hissed, swiping the tears from her eyes as she turned to finally face her captor.
He sat across from her, relaxed like he didn’t have a care in the world, but it was his eyes that shocked her.
He was a half-breed. One eye glowed the golden hue of a vampire, and the other was a vibrant blue, both standing out against the golden hair that framed his harsh face.
His smile sent a cold wave of fear through her, her thoughts instantly turning to her own safety and the life growing inside her.
He reached out to touch her face, but she slapped his hand away. With speed unseen, he grabbed her chin in a brutal grip. “Let’s not start this relationship off on the wrong foot.” His eyes flared as he moved closer.
Her phone rang, causing his eyes to narrow. One of the men grabbed it out of her back pocket and handed it to him, but he never took his eyes off her. Glancing down at the screen, he smiled, then gave the man behind her a nod. The door slid open, and her phone was tossed out onto the road.
“That was your husband.” He patted her leg, making her skin crawl. “Don’t worry. We’ll give him some hope. I know they have trackers on your phones also.”
“Who are you?” Becky whispered, jumping when the van door slammed shut again, but she didn’t look away from him.
His mismatched eyes dropped to her stomach, then lifted back to her face. “My name is Darius Vane,” he said, his smile spreading slowly. “I am the man who is the father of the child you carry.”
Vomit rose quickly to the back of her throat, but she forced it down. “I’m not pregnant,” she spat the lie, her eyes narrowing.
“We shall see about that.” He smirked, then glanced at his watch. “In about ten minutes. If what you say is true, then we’ll correct that soon enough. This time in a more enjoyable way.”
Becky stared at him, every ounce of fear inside her hardening into something sharper.
This bastard thought he had won. Thought he could sit there, touch her, threaten her son, and claim a child that belonged to Sloan.
He didn’t know the truth, and she sure as hell wasn’t going to be the one to give it to him.
Let him think what he wanted. Let him believe she was nothing more than some scared woman trapped in the back of a van.
Her gaze flicked to her bag. They hadn’t even checked it.
The second she got the chance, she was going to show Darius Vane exactly what happened when a mother had nothing left to lose.