Chapter 10 Krista #2
I was rolled over and hauled to my feet seconds later by Rob, who grabbed my arm and started running with me through the hospital.
“Where are we going?” I shouted. “And who were those men?”
“I’ll explain later!”
“My sister’s here!”
“Trust me, you don’t want to be near her right now,” he shouted over his shoulder.
I didn’t know what the hell was going on or if I could trust Rob, but it was better to go with the man I was supposedly married to than stay behind and take my chances.
“I can’t believe you didn’t let me throw my grenade!” the woman whined.
“Claire, not now!”
I had so many questions, but decided to let them go until we got to safety. We ran through the doors and right past the sign on the main entrance.
Guns banned on the premises.
A getaway vehicle was waiting for us outside.
I shook my head as I climbed into the SUV and again contemplated the fact that a getaway vehicle was waiting for us.
And I was getting into it.
Like a criminal.
“Go!” Rob shouted as the door slammed behind him.
I was squashed between the woman who hit me with the book and Rob. Up front, a man was driving, and the man who yelled at Claire not to use a grenade was in the passenger seat.
And I was in a getaway vehicle.
Yeah, I was still stuck on that point, and I wasn’t sure I was going to get over it anytime soon.
“I’m Claire,” the woman beamed. “Sorry about the whole book-to-the-face thing. I was aiming for the guy holding you.”
I stared at her outstretched hand, then slid mine into hers, shaking it mechanically as my wrists stayed bound together. “I figured. Krista.”
“Krista,” Rob muttered. “I was so close.”
Glancing at him, I quirked an eyebrow. “Still can’t remember my name?”
“I’ve been a little busy trying not to die.”
I held up my hands. “Would you mind?”
With a flash, he pulled out a knife and expertly cut the tie as if he did this every day. Then again, after what I just witnessed, maybe this was a daily occurrence.
“Okay, what is going on? Why did those men attack me? And how did you know they’d be there?”
“I don’t know what’s going on,” he admitted, and then he was silent.
I widened my eyes in disbelief as he stared out into the night. The last of the streetlights from the hospital parking lot faded, leaving him in shadows, and me unable to read his expressions.
“That’s it? You said you would explain when we got in the—”
“I don’t know!” he shouted, turning to face me.
Claire snorted. “Yeah, that’s a good one. Yell at the woman.”
“Look, all I know is that since I left here, people have been trying to kill me.”
“Okay, but what does that have to do with me?”
His jaw hardened the longer he stared at me. It was like he was blaming me for his shitty luck, which I found oddly amusing.
“They wanted to know where you were. At first, I didn’t realize they were talking about you, but then one of them said something about the woman I was with. I figured it had to be you.”
“And you rushed out here to save me,” I deduced. “Did they follow you?”
“I still don’t know. They just keep showing up! It doesn’t make any sense.”
“They didn’t follow us. I would have seen,” the driver said.
When he caught me staring at him in the rearview mirror, he cocked a grin at me. “Sinner.” He straightened his left hand on the steering wheel, showing off the shiny gold ring on his finger. “Happily married with way too many kids.” He paused and frowned. “Please don’t tell my wife I said that.”
“I don’t know your wife,” I reminded him.
“Right, but if things change…”
Why would things change?
“We need to head back out to Vegas and figure out why someone’s trying to kill us.”
That had me laughing in surprise. “You’re joking, right?”
His eyes finally met mine, and what I saw there sent chills down my spine. Not because I was afraid, but because memories of what he did to me in bed flashed through my mind.
“You’re safer with me than anyone else.”
“And why’s that? I could have gone home. My brothers would have—”
“Your brothers would have tried to protect you, but they would have failed,” he argued. “They’re not trained for this.”
I snorted. “Obviously, you don’t know my brothers. I could maybe see your point if you met Jeff, but Michael? He was in the military. There’s not a single person who could get past him. Including you.”
“Wait,” Sinner chimed in. “What’s your last name?”
“Aw, shit,” Derek huffed. “Rob, are you fucking kidding me?”
“What?” Rob stared at the two of them in disbelief, though I doubt they could see it in the dark.
“Michael? Does that name ring any bells?” Sinner snapped. “Tell me you didn’t do it. I mean, it makes sense now, but—I can’t fucking believe you!”
“What is going on?” I asked.
“I thought you looked familiar,” Sinner sighed. “Parker’s fucking baby sister. Seriously, Rob!”
“Wait, you know my brother?”
“We were out here for his wedding,” Derek said.
“You were—”
Rob groaned, turning his head into his hand as he scrubbed it over his face. “Fuck, I didn’t even recognize her.”
“You should have. You spent enough time chasing her while you were here.”
My gaze snapped back to Rob’s, but in the dark, I couldn’t really see his features that clearly. He didn’t look familiar to me, other than the fact that we woke up in bed together.
“Seriously, neither of you remembers?” Sinner snorted.
“I spent most of my time avoiding you guys,” I murmured.
“He’s gonna kill us,” Derek retorted. “No, I take that back. He’s gonna kill you. We’ve saved your ass only for you to fuck it all up because you nailed his baby sister.”
“Hey!”
“Men are so predictable,” Claire chuckled beside me. “Of course your brother is going to kill him. Because you’re a woman and completely incapable of deciding what you want without his approval.”
She had a point.
Derek spun around in his seat. “Claire, this is Parker we’re talking about. He’s all about family—”
“You’re all about family. Every single one of you.”
“And we’re involved. We stole his baby sister from the hospital!”
“I really wish you would stop calling me his baby sister.”
“And we’re all gonna be dead,” Sinner agreed. “Dead as a doornail. You know, I never really understood that phrase. A doornail was never alive to begin with, so why is it dead? It’s an inanimate object.”
“He’s not gonna kill us,” Rob finally spoke up. “It’s a misunderstanding. We’ll just explain that to him.”
“Right,” Derek huffed out a laugh. “Because Parker is always so understanding about misunderstandings. Did you forget how we came to know him?”
“That wasn’t a misunderstanding,” Rob said. “He was set up. Totally different situation.”
“He won’t see it that way,” I muttered.
“See?” Sinner said. “Even she knows this is not gonna go down the way you want.”
“Look, let’s just take things one at a time. We’ll figure out who’s trying to kill us and why. We’ll solve that problem, and then take her home. We’ll explain what happened, and everything will be fine.”
A huff of laughter burst from me at his explanation. “Right. I’ll go missing for days on end, but when you return me with an explanation, everything will be fine. Michael will probably congratulate you.”
“It sounds like you’re being sarcastic,” Rob muttered.
“Because I am. You need to call him now and explain.”
“Ever heard the phrase taking your life in your own hands?” Sinner asked. “Just saying.”
Spinning, I looked at the only other rational person in the vehicle. “Claire, you agree with me, right?”
She looked up from her book that laid open on her lap with a tiny lamp turned on at the top. “Hmm? Oh, I got bored and stopped paying attention. Good book.”
“That’s my girl,” Derek chuckled.
“Look, it’s my fuck up and my call,” Rob said. “Let’s just get to Vegas, and in the morning, we can figure out the rest.”
Leaning back in the seat, I sighed heavily. “I hate to point this out, but you guys dragged me out of the hospital without my purse or my coat.”
“We’ll get you everything you need.”
The reassurance in his voice should have soothed any worries I had. After all, they seemed more than capable of taking care of me. But why did I have a horrible feeling churning in my gut that things would never be the same once this was over?