Chapter Thirty-Three Savannah
Chapter Thirty-Three
Savannah
A trickle of cold sweat ices the slope of my spine. My lungs work overtime to draw in limited oxygen since my mouth is covered by duct tape. The stenches of motor oil, blood, and my own fear puncture the tense air in the cavernous warehouse. In the middle of absolutely nowhere.
Tyler leans against a nearby metal shelf with his hands in his pockets, watching me with the kind of calm that makes my insides churn. His clothes are neat and clean, without a wrinkle. And his expression is relaxed. Like he didn’t just kidnap a woman and drag her into the pits of hell.
So here I am, my arms locked behind my back and held together with zip ties that dig into my skin every time I try to pull them apart.
As if I really believe the plastic is just miraculously going to melt away if I will it hard enough.
The same plastic ties dig into my ankles, anchoring each one to the leg of the chair.
The warehouse is dimly lit and full of shadows.
Tall canisters line the walls, crates of rusted equipment piled high on the dusty shelves pushed against the cement walls.
A chill licks at the back of my neck when my eyes slide over the eight armed thugs surrounding me.
They all share the same sadistic glimmer in their eyes as they devour me with their eyes.
Heat crawls up the back of my throat as I narrow my eyes on Tyler. That fucking sicko. He used my trust against me. Exploited my vulnerability. And I actually fell for his good-guy act.
I jerk back and forth, faint squeaks slipping through the tape as my mind screams all the words I can’t speak. Tyler just looks at me, a smirk lifting his lips. God, I used to think he was so handsome, so charming.
Now I realize he’s just the devil. How apropos. The devil always takes on the form most likely to snag trust from his unsuspecting sucker of a target.
Me being the sucker.
The heavy metal door creaks open, and my head twists toward it, a hollow ache in my gut. A man walks inside. Fifties, dressed to the nines in an expensive suit and shiny black boots. His gray hair is slicked back, face weathered from too much sun and sharp gray eyes that cut deep.
Is he Mr. Wilkerson?
The guys standing around me straighten up in his presence, backs stiff, faces like stone, just like the good little murderers they were likely trained to be.
The man looks around, his eyes finally falling on me. His thin lips curl upward. He steps closer, my blood pounding harder and harder as he approaches. I wiggle my fingers behind me, the tips icy and tingling, the same sensation flooding my insides. Tears sting my eyes.
Dammit, no! I will not cry and show him any sign of weakness. Guys like him probably get off on that kind of shit. And that’s not the woman I am. I won’t fall apart. I’m not a damsel who will unravel in the face of adversity.
My pulse knocks hard against my throat.
Don’t let him see your fear, Savvie. Don’t give him the satisfaction.
His hands are in his pockets as he circles me. He’s calm, controlled, and deliberate in his movements. When he stops in front of me, I’m forced to glare up at him. Typical power move from the guy who thinks he’s waving the biggest stick.
Reality check.
He is.
“Ms. Carlson, my name is Jack Wilkerson. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.” Motioning to Tyler, he says, “Take off the tape so we can have a civilized conversation.” He turns a pleasant smile back to me. “After all, we’re miles away from anyone who might hear if she even thinks about screaming.”
Tyler reaches for the tape and rips it off my mouth. I scream as the tape tears my skin. Deep gulps of oxygen fill my lungs, the inside of my mouth drier than a camel’s ass.
“Why am I here? What do you want from me?” I say, the sides of my throat raw as I choke out the words.
“Direct. I like that.” He steps forward.
“I want your ranch. And you’re going to sell it to me.
Your aunt was a lovely woman but clearly not a smart businessperson.
Actually, none of this would be happening if your aunt had just sold me her ranch when I offered to buy it well above market value.
Five different times. I’m hoping some of the business sense you’ve acquired at your very prestigious job at the Sterling Strategy Group in Denver will help you make the smart choice now. ”
My heart slips into my stomach. He knows about me, where I live and work.
Has he been watching me this whole time, plotting ways to take control of Red Rock?
Panic bubbles in my chest because it’s clear he’s beyond the point of watching right now.
But fuck him if I’ll let him see me cower. “I’m not selling you a damn thing.”
His smile irks the hell out of me. It’s unwavering, like he knows something I don’t. And I’m fucking tired of surprises.
“Don’t you think you’re in over your head?
” He paces in front of me. “You’ve had a lot of issues at Red Rock lately, haven’t you?
Damaged equipment, water issues, a stampede through a broken fence that killed one of your cattle and injured several others.
” He lifts an eyebrow. “Am I missing anything?”
“How do you know about those things?” I nod my head at Tyler. “Was it your little errand boy who was keeping tabs on me?”
“I have several errand boys. And yes, my nephew Tyler has been helping me out by watching over things at Red Rock. Since I have a vested interest in it.”
My jaw damn near hits the floor. “Your nephew?” I laser Tyler with a look dripping with disgust. “You played me that whole time. And I really believed you were a good guy.”
“Well, it doesn’t seem that you have the best track record when it comes to choosing men,” Tyler says.
Wilkerson holds up a hand at Tyler. “There will be time for that conversation. Later.” He turns to me. “The issues should have made you realize that selling the ranch is your best option.”
“You son of a bitch,” I mutter. “You were behind all of that?”
Wilkerson lets out a biting laugh. “No, Savannah. I don’t do manual labor.” He pauses. “I had help. Someone you trusted.”
My stomach tightens and dips. “Tyler.” Disdain laces my words. “Every time I asked for your help, you were just making things worse.”
“Actually,” Wilkerson says, looking like he’s enjoying every second of this fucking cat-and-mouse game. “Tyler wasn’t responsible for those things. He was just watching you and reporting back to me. No, someone else was taking care of my business on your ranch. The sabotage was much closer to you.”
My eyes glaze over, the words bouncing against the side of my skull. A wave of dizziness assaults me, and I blink fast to clear my vision.
Because I know who it was.
And Wilkerson smiles wider.
“Blaze.” His name tastes like poison on my lips.
“Ding, ding, ding. Good girl. You really are a swift one, aren’t you?
” Wilkerson steeples his fingers and stares down at me.
“Except Hartman has been fucking around more than he’s been helping me to get my hands on your ranch.
So although he was my go-to guy, he’s not fulfilling his end of the bargain.
He’s causing me problems and needs to be handled. ”
My thoughts scatter like cockroaches.
Blaze. While I was falling in love with him again, he was torching my future but making it look like he was helping me. He listened to my plans for the future, all the while knowing he was there to crush them.
“Why do you even want my ranch? Why can’t you find some other unsuspecting landowner to torment?”
“Water rights.” He says it simply, like it’s obvious. “Your property controls water access I need for a business deal. A very lucrative, very time-sensitive business deal.”
“So you made Blaze screw me over by sabotaging my efforts? Make me question my ability so I’d just decide to give up and sell the ranch?”
Wilkerson flashes a cold smile. “I gave Hartman a job. He didn’t get it done. Got too attached. Made himself useless to me.”
“Well, I’m not selling,” I say. “And I’m not going to abandon my ranch. I will make it profitable. I’m not giving up. So it looks like you’re shit out of luck.”
Wilkerson’s smile fades. “We’ll see.” He pulls open his jacket and takes out a thick envelope. “According to my sources, your aunt’s will gave you the right to sell the property. I’m willing to pay off all existing debts and give you fifty thousand dollars cash to walk away.”
“Are you deaf?” I yell. “I’m not selling. It’s my family legacy. I won’t give up what my aunt left me.”
“Your aunt is dead. That ranch is just property. You could buy something else, somewhere else. Make the smart choice, Ms. Carlson.”
“I would rather die than give in to you.” As soon as the words are out of my mouth, I know there’s a possibility they may be some of my last since I don’t have a single bit of leverage while tied to this damn chair.
The blood ices in my veins when my eyes latch onto the men and their guns surrounding me.
If I don’t sign Red Rock over to him, he will kill me. I have no doubt about that. A knot of tears catches in my throat. But how can I just give up on the only thing I have left?
His jaw tenses, his facade finally crumbling to reveal the snake behind the mask. “Let me make this very clear. If you refuse my offer, Blaze and your brother, Nash, die.” He pauses, his eyes glittering with malice. “While you watch.”
My blood runs cold.
“Sign the contract. Take the money. Walk away. Blaze and Nash will be safe.” Wilkerson leans forward. “Or refuse, and watch what happens next.”
A ringtone cuts through my frenzied thoughts. Wilkerson clicks to answer the call.
“Yes?” His eyes slide to me. “How much time do we have?”
More silence.
“Keep me updated.” He stabs the screen and sticks his phone back in his pocket.
His expression shifts, annoyance flickering across his face.
“Seems we’re going to have company. Your boyfriend is coming to play hero.
And your brother, Nash, is with him.” He tucks the envelope into his jacket.
“Convenient, hmm? We’ll deal with Blaze first. Then we’ll revisit this conversation. With better . . . motivation.”
Tyler puts his other hand on my shoulder and leans into me. “He doesn’t deserve you. He never did. But you never saw the writing on the wall, did you?” His lips curl into a smirk. “And when he gets here, I’m going to kill him.”
“All in good time, Tyler,” Wilkerson says. “Savannah, this is all Hartman’s fault. If he’d have just done his job without letting his dick lead him around, we wouldn’t be sitting here right now. You would all be safe right now.”
After a few tense minutes, Wilkerson pulls out his phone.
“They’re close,” he says. He looks up at the armed men who’ve been silent this whole time.
“Take your positions. When they come in, make it difficult, but keep Hartman alive. I want him to see what happens when he interferes with my business. Then we’ll finish this. ”
My skin crawls with dread. The warehouse door is a trap, and Blaze is walking right into it.
My heart hammers. Nash . . .
No, no, no! They need to stay away from here.
But I know Blaze. No matter what I say, no matter how angry I am, he always comes for me.
And this time, his defiance might kill not just him but everyone with him.
Oh God, I don’t want him dead. I hate him, and I will never forgive him for everything he’s done to me and my family. But he doesn’t deserve to die.
What fucking irony is this? I spent weeks pushing him away, telling him to leave me alone, to never come back. And now I’m terrified he’s going to die trying to save me.
Wilkerson and Tyler pull out their guns and check the clips.
I tug my wrists apart, adrenaline flooding my insides. I have to do something, anything that can help save him. I can scream, warn him to run. But he has to know what he’s walking into.
“You’re never breaking free of those ties, darlin’,” Tyler says, his voice still unnervingly calm.
“Don’t call me that,” I snap. “When Blaze gets here, he’s going to tear you apart.”
“He’s welcome to try.”
“Hartman’s had this coming for a long time,” Wilkerson says. “It’s time to remind him who’s in control.”
Wilkerson checks his gun again. Tyler stands perfectly still, completely composed. The armed men are positioned and ready. And I sit in this metal chair, plastic ties cutting into my wrists, waiting for the man I told to stay away forever to walk through that door anyway.
Some things you can’t stop. Some people won’t be saved.
Blaze Hartman is both.