Chapter 10
Willow
Oh, this was going to be easy.
The blue-eyed one was the key to freedom. He was much sweeter than the other one, all things considered.
The fury emanating from them once they’d seen her scars was palpable.
Every other guy who’d seen them treated her with soft pity.
Sure, it was nice that most guys wanted to be careful, but it got boring very quickly.
Maybe she needed someone like the two currently holding her captive.
Someone who could loom over her and make her breath catch with the slightest touch.
Or someone who could work his amazing fingers into the stiff joint plaguing her with pain.
No, she shouldn’t be thinking about that. This was just a scam like all the others she’d pulled against companies and idiot men.
Willow assessed the bathroom, still rubbing her sore wrists. The bindings were annoying. Maybe she could convince them to let her keep her hands free. Eating would be a pain in the ass if they didn’t.
As quietly as possible, she opened a sink cabinet—nothing useful. Only toilet paper and extra soap. Another cabinet revealed towels folded a little sloppily. The corner of her mouth lifted at the thought of one of those hulking guys folding up towels to put away. It was weirdly domestic.
She sighed, checking the one drawer and finding a pack of toothbrushes and some toothpaste. Nothing sharp or useful to be found. One corner of the room had a stacked washer and dryer unit. That would be useful if they were stuck here a while. It wasn’t like she had a change of clothes.
Willow pulled her pants down to pee and winced as the cold rim touched her skin. The cabin was still very cold as the woodstove had only been lit for a short time. Her teeth chattered as she finished up and stood. Why couldn’t she have been fully bundled up when she’d been kidnapped?
While washing her hands, she heard the voices of her captors whispering harshly back and forth. She left the water running so they wouldn’t know she was done.
Carefully, she pressed her ear to the door that smelled strongly of cedar.
“—if she’s one of Davidiuk’s we might be fucked, so be prepared.”
“No way,” the other said, maybe the light-haired one. “That’s not why—”
“Even if she isn’t, Xan might still be pissed about this.”
Wait, were they still going to kill her? For fuck’s sake. She’d been toying with the fact that maybe she didn’t really need to slip away, but if they were debating her fate like this? Then fuck them.
There was some shuffling around, making her unable to hear. Who the hell was Davidiuk, and why would they think she was connected to him?
Heavy footsteps approached, so she backed away quickly and switched off the faucet. She opened the door to the masked face of the gruff one staring down at her. His hazel eyes were quite striking—well, so were the blue eyes on the other one.
Stop it, dumbass.
“I don’t know who you think I am,” she said, shaking off the intrusive thoughts, “but I have no connections to a ‘Davidiuk’. So don’t think of killing me over something you don’t know.”
He placed a hand on the top of the doorframe and leaned in. Wow, he was tall. “Then tell us who you owe money to.”
“I don’t owe anyone money,” she replied, pressing her lips into a thin line.
“Uh, huh.” He reached out to take her hands and bind her wrists together again.
“Are you really going to keep my hands tied this whole time? What am I going to do? I’m assuming we’re in the middle of nowhere.”
Instead of answering, he took her by the elbow to lead her back to the chair in front of the woodstove. It had heated up nicely and she couldn’t help but let it wash over her.
Nice One approached and placed half a sandwich in her hands.
Then, he took a piece of cloth and wrapped it around her head like a blindfold.
Willow liked this one the most. He was more tender and would be the easiest to manage.
Tricking Mean One would be preferable, but was going to take a lot more work.
And seeing their dynamic, chances were that the jerk had the van keys.
“Thank you,” she said sweetly.
She couldn’t see, but heard the chair against the floor as he took a seat.
“I picked up some of your noodle shit,” Mean One said. “It was cheap and no one else had grabbed it. They all went for the stuff written in English.”
“Thanks,” he grunted.
That didn’t sound like a normal partner in crime exchange. “So, are you two friends or…” she tilted her head.
Nice One laughed. “Quiet down, pretty girl.”
Willow sniffed, still playing nonchalant. “What’s your favorite brand?” It was a risky question since they may realize where they knew her from if she brought up ramen. That had to be what they were talking about.
“Anything with spicy chicken,” he replied. He almost sounded excited.
She hummed, the corner of her mouth lifting as she took a bite of her sandwich. It was peanut butter and jelly. “Do you use the full sauce or only a little?” That shit was spicy.
“Christ,” Mean One muttered. “There’s two of you.”
“Full packet with cheese.” Nice One’s interest was piqued. He was so cute, all excited like this, especially for someone so big and scary. He would probably get along with Landon.
“That’s the way I like it too,” she said.
Once they finished eating, they put their masks back on and removed the blindfold. Apparently, they didn’t trust her not to peek.
The wind howled outside as the sun was starting to dip below the horizon. She wasn’t sure of the time, but it had to be getting close to the evening.
The lights flickered overhead, turning all their attention to the ceiling.
“What do we do if it goes out?” Nice One asked.
“There’s a generator that runs on propane,” the other replied, poking at the fire.
“I’ll check how much is left. In the morning, one of us can drive down to find out if the road is clear.
There’s no signal up here to check.” This cabin must belong to him.
It was a nice place, if a little bit dated.
The couch was an older style, and none of the decor looked like something a giant tattooed murderer would pick out.
He stood and gave her another assessing glare. “Maybe my friend can convince you to tell us more about you.” He made his way to the front door and groaned. “Stupid fucking wind.” Then he stepped out as a strong gust blew a few leaves inside before he could yank the door shut.
That left her alone with the easy one.