43. Isabella
43
ISABELLA
T he moment her arm ripped from Travis’s grasp was the moment her hope died. The dim daylight filtered through the canopy above them, revealing a ghost.
Gunner.
The shock of seeing him was quickly eclipsed by the terror that gripped her arm and sucked the breath from her chest. She hadn’t killed him. In fact, she’d only killed herself.
And Travis. She hadn’t gotten a look at the other man, but it had to be Switch. The two friends had a bond between them born of violence and sickness. They’d killed together before, and they were here to do it again.
Gunner pulled her out of the truck before she could get her feet beneath her. Her knees hit the ground, crunching the dry leaves covering the forest floor. He held tight to her arm, pulling her up before she could gain her balance.
“No! Stop!”
Gunner’s strong arm wound around her front, jerking her back against his chest. A hoarse scream tore from her throat, but Gunner’s dirty hand clasped over her mouth, cutting off her cry for help. A gritty, metallic taste hit her tongue as she tried to pull away.
“Shut up!” Gunner snarled against her ear before calling her a string of obscenities through clenched teeth.
His hand covered half of her nose, preventing her from breathing. Panic rose higher, overflowing inside her.
The arm holding her to him disappeared, and she squirmed as much as she could, trying to break the hold he had over her face.
A second later, something hard poked her back.
The barrel of a gun. There was no mistaking the brand that seeped through her coat and sweater. It was his favorite way to torture his enemies. She’d seen him use it before without an ounce of remorse in his eyes.
Gunner’s mouth was at her ear again. His hot breath sent a chill running down her spine.
“Walk.” The word was steady and controlled, leaving no room for argument.
Hearing Gunner’s voice only stirred the panic in her more. She’d been afraid she’d killed him, but now she was terrified to know he was alive.
Her escape had been temporary this whole time. He’d probably been looking for her or waiting in the woods for his moment to strike.
No. Nathan would have known. He would have warned her.
A shot rang out from the other side of the vehicle, and Bella jerked to a halt.
The gun at her back prodded hard against her spine. “Walk!”
There were more grunts and shots as Gunner led her away from Travis. Her nostrils flared as she fought back sobs. She had to help him, but she couldn’t even help herself.
They walked a few more steps before she stumbled. His grip on her face slid off as she tumbled to the ground. Sticks and debris bit into her palms as she caught her fall.
“Travis!”
“Shut up!”
The toe of Gunner’s boot struck her in the side, and the pain radiated through her back. She gasped and curled around her stomach as she fell to her side.
The baby.
She had to fight back. She had more to live for than just herself now.
Gunner grabbed her arm and jerked her up, but she pulled against him, using every ounce of her body weight.
Her weapon. Travis taught her how to use knives and guns, and she carried one or the other everywhere. Today, Travis had a gun, and she had a knife strapped to her belt.
The shots she’d heard could have come from Travis. She had to believe he was winning on his side of the fight.
Bella pushed back the side of her coat and grabbed the knife from its sheath by her hip. She didn’t allow herself to think twice as she plunged the blade into Gunner’s side.
He screamed and released her arm. She held onto the hilt and pulled down as she jerked it out of his side.
Gunner cursed at her and slapped the back of his hand across her face so forcefully that she fell to the dirt. Her cheek throbbed, and each breath was tinged with a searing pain in her side.
His fist closed around a chunk of her hair and jerked, pulling her to her back. Rocks stabbed into her spine and shoulder blades as Gunner covered her mouth with his hand and leaned onto it.
“You thought you could get away with it. You thought I’d let you leave.”
He leaned harder on the hand covering her mouth, pressing the back of her head into a rock until a scream hummed in her throat, unable to escape.
Cold tears slipped from the corners of her eyes and into her hair. When she opened them, Gunner’s face was inches from hers. His dark eyes were wild, and a sinister smile spread over his lips.
A smile on a man like Gunner was a distortion of something beautiful. He was happy–happy to be hunting her. He found joy in the sounds of her screams.
He leaned closer until his breath was hot against her cheek. “I’ll make you pay for every breath you’ve taken since you left.”
She bucked beneath him as he positioned his knee over her hand holding the knife. He pried it from her fingers with one hand and pressed the blade against her side.
Bella’s attempts to escape halted. She froze as Gunner locked his gaze with hers.
He pressed a little harder on the blade against her side. “ This is mine, and I know just what to do with it.”
She stayed as still as possible as he leaned closer to her.
“Try to get away, and this blade kills you both,” he sneered.
Gunner moved the hand over her mouth to her neck and leaned on it. Her vision blurred as she clawed at his hand. She tried to scream, but the words wouldn’t come out. Her heart pounded in her chest as she kicked wildly. The air inside her didn’t move in or out. Seconds ticked by, and darkness tinged the trees above her.
She couldn’t get to Travis, and he wasn’t coming to save her. Her limbs grew heavy, until her kicks stalled, and her hands tingled as they fell from her throat.
The will to live was still alive inside her, but it didn’t matter. Her body had given up, and she sank into darkness.