Chapter 19 #2
You’re going to turn around and take us the other way.
I already knew he wouldn’t, but I was offering time. His entire body stiffened, but he didn’t act as if he would comply.
“If you don’t, I will pull the trigger.”
The flash of his eyes in the rearview mirror was a clear indication he knew English. The information was something I’d store in the back of my mind for later. Right now, I had to deal with terminating his life while still keeping us safe.
Especially since he pressed down on the accelerator. Shooting the fucker wasn’t in our best interest. He would crash and potentially kill us and at this point, I had no doubt I needed his vehicle.
“Resisti, tesoro.”
Hold on, baby.
Reaching over, I tried to get control of the steering wheel, but the man was stronger than I’d believed. We both struggled and as we did, the car started to weave back and forth across the road.
“Look out!” Emmeline yelled.
“I’m trying.” I managed to prevent the bastard from getting into a head-on collision. But not by much.
“You need to watch where you’re going. You also need to get his weapon before he does.”
The discord in her tone was fucking amusing. I had no idea how I could find any of this remotely amusing.
She was suddenly climbing over the headrest of the passenger seat, slithering down as if she’d done the move before.
“What the fuck are you doing?” I barked.
The driver figured out what was happening, daring to let go of my arm where he was fighting me to keep from getting control so he could grab her thigh.
“Oh, no, you don’t.” She was quick with her knife, driving the blade through his hand into the seat.
“Argh!” The man’s scream was sharp, far too loud for the confined space. I’d be damned if her actions weren’t effective as hell.
Next on her agenda was wrenching his weapon from under the seat, jerking back when she heard a volley of horns.
I jerked the steering wheel just before we clipped the side of a truck. We’d already gone way past the airport.
“Fuck,” I hissed.
The asshole was still moaning in pain.
“Shut up!” both Emmeline and I yelled at the same time.
After shoving the weapon into the pocket of the jacket she’d worn, she threw me a look. “Just hold it steady while I hit the brakes. Do you think you can do that?”
“Fuck you,” the driver hissed. There was an accent I hadn’t detected before. Where the hell was he from?
My answer obviously didn’t come fast enough.
The woman was as lithe and nimble as a gymnast, somehow fitting between the console and the assassin’s outstretched arm.
“What the fuck are you doing?” I gritted out. “Get away from him.”
“Someone needs to stop the car from moving. Now, I’m going to put my foot on the brake. Do you think you can steer while I do?” Her tone was filled with agitation.
“Sure, honey. Whatever you say. I think turning up the heat on your curse would be an excellent decision right about now.”
“My curse?”
I’d be damned if she didn’t snap her head in my direction, narrowing her wide eyes until they were busy scrutinizing me.
“Yeah, the gris-gris you had in the kitchen. It had a spicy scent, so I knew it was being used for evil intentions. Something else I adore about you. Be a good little witch and add some additional spice so we can get out of this alright. Can you do that for me?”
As soon as she started to say something, she snapped her mouth shut. But damn if she wasn’t hissing through pursed lips. What the hell did I say that was so wrong?
The fucking bastard decided to turn the wheel sharply then take his hand off the steering wheel. He even had the nerve to laugh.
And of course, we were heading straight for a building.
Fuck me. This was one hell of a bad idea.
“Better hurry, honey.”
My words didn’t inspire gratitude. As soon as she managed to drive her leg under the dashboard on the driver’s side, she turned to look at me, her entire face full of venom.
“Just do your job, sugar britches,” she hissed.
“That’s my girl.”
With the fight still on for control of the gas pedal, I wrapped my arm around his neck, slapping my hand on the steering wheel.
When the asshole tried to move, his struggle only further enraged the beast that had already breached the surface. I squeezed his neck, cutting off his air supply.
The next few seconds were straight out of some ridiculous action flick with Emmeline playing footsie with the assassin until she was frustrated enough to stomp on his foot while driving her butt down on the handle of the blade.
His howl was followed by one that she let off while jamming her foot onto the brake.
I did my best to concentrate on avoiding hitting the building if she couldn’t stop the car.
The fight continued, the asshole still struggling with me even though he was coughing and wheezing. The car swerved back and forth.
“We’re getting too close! Stop the car.” My yell was strangled, my statement ridiculous.
“I’m doing the best I can do. Okay?”
We crashed through a fence and I knew I had to do something or this would end badly.
Using every last ounce of strength, I yanked him up, forgetting all about his hand being secured to the seat.
“You’re going to need to take full control!” I hissed, hoping to hell she heard me.
The bastard screamed as his hand was ripped free of the knife.
At this point, I couldn’t care less. Thankfully, the guy wasn’t that big, but it took me two tries to wrangle his body up and over the headrest into the backseat.
With a primal roar, I pummeled my fist into the asshole’s face just as the car began to slow.
The man was a fighter, trying desperately to regain control.
Over my dead body.
The last thing I wanted was to risk firing off a shot in such close quarters. With him fighting me, there was always a distinct chance that bullets would ricochet.
That didn’t mean I couldn’t pistol whip him into unconsciousness.
Which was exactly what I did.
Tires squealed.
The car lurched and skidded, going sideways by several feet.
Now my beautiful companion was the one screaming, her loud roar containing even more rage than the one erupting from my lungs.
The car finally spun to a stop, creaking as soon as it did.
Hearing her heavy breathing, I almost laughed. “Fuck. Fuck. That was… Wow.”
“Don’t tell me.” My laugh sounded bitter. “You enjoyed it.”
“That was a rush of adrenaline. What now?” She turned in her seat, staring into my eyes before noticing the driver was out cold.
“Now, we get the hell out of here. Come on. Let’s find out what we’ve picked up from our friend here.”
“And what about him?”
I glanced out the window, noticing we were in a more rural area. “I’ll dispose of him.” Perhaps I expected some level of pushback or even demanding that I allow him to live.
She didn’t.
What she did do was help me check him over for any identification. While he had some, my guess was that it was as forged as hers. What we did find in the trunk of the Cruze was rope, additional weapons, and ammunition.
Bingo.
At least now we had our arsenal back.
“What are you doing?” I asked after closing the trunk lid, noticing she was looking under the hood.
“Checking to ensure we don’t have any leaks. We’ll need to dump the car and purchase another one at some point, but we’ll need to get as far away from here as possible before the cops chase us down. That means the engine needs to be in decent shape.”
I walked toward her, quickly glancing into the backseat. I’d tied the motherfucker’s hands with zip-ties I’d found as well as quickly scoured the interior of the car, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t have hidden a weapon somewhere I hadn’t seen.
When I was able to see what she was doing, I had to admit I was thoroughly impressed. “Wait a minute. You work on cars too?”
She held the oil stick into the headlights, appearing satisfied.
Slipping it back into the slot, she finally wiped her hands on her jeans.
“That shocks you that much? My daddy taught me many things so I wouldn’t need a man.
I can change a tire as well. Would you like to see me do so?
” Her look was full of mischief while shutting the hood.
“No, I think I’ll believe you.” What few knew about Baptiste Prince was that for as powerful and ruthless as the man was, he’d loved his family more than anything. When I’d been with him during the few private times, if any family member had called, he’d excuse himself and take the call.
No matter what business he was in the middle of.
Including interrogating an enemy.
Jaxon had told me how many times his father had coached him in football, helping Jax make the high school team. That had surprised the hell out me. When I first arrived, he helped me with enhancing my English skills so I could finish high school and apply to college. Which he’d paid for part of.
He’d also taught me how to fight like a boxer would, avoiding as many hits as possible while doling them out.
A memory flashed through her mind and I could see it in her eyes. “We should get going before sunrise.” With her voice low and even, I realized I’d also been non-formally introduced to another side of her. I’d thought there were two. All business and frivolous.
Yes, she was an incredible businesswoman, but nothing about her was frivolous. Daunting.
Hardheaded.
Impressive.
Mechanically inclined.
Fearless.
Hell, yes. I’d even go as far as to say badass. But never frivolous.
“Yeah, and we still need to check on the pilot. I’m not leaving him here stranded.”
She bit her lower lip and as with myself, there was a hell of a lot going on behind her eyes. Questions to ask. Concerns to be raised.
Not here and not now.
My chest was tight, maybe from the intense fight, but I managed to drag the asshole from the backseat. Fortunately, he was still unconscious.
While only ten minutes had passed, I feared he had a few buddies that would soon be checking on him. He had a phone, a high dollar one.
“I’ll be back in a couple minutes,” I told her as I hoisted him over my shoulder. “If the phone rings, don’t answer it.”
As soon as I started to walk away, she moved closer, holding the phone out. “Let me get into his phone. Then I’ll change from face recognition to a password.”
I wasn’t going to bother asking her if she knew how. There didn’t seem to be anything the woman couldn’t do.
Just something else to impress me and I wasn’t impressed easily.
Yet not only had the woman opened my eyes about so many aspects of life, she’d also made protecting her that much more palpable.
There was something delicious about owning a woman’s body and soul.
Now it was time to lay claim to her heart.