Chapter Twenty
I felt as if I’d slipped into a deep sleep. I was floating, warm and safe. I sighed softly and as I allowed my eyes to flutter open I looked around and saw that I was on a beach. How the hell was I on the beach? Had the whole ordeal just been a vivid nightmare?
As I turned my head I saw Dylan wading in the clear water, his arms outstretched for me. I stood, enjoying the feel of the warm sand between my toes as I ran towards him, wanting to feel his embrace. I wanted to feel the safety of his arms around me.
I stumbled into the water, nearly falling flat on my face as I threw myself into his arms. He held me close, pulling me to his chest and kissing the top of my head. Tears were streaming down my face and I looked up at him, reaching up to touch his tanned cheeks.
“Oh God, Dylan, I didn’t think I’d ever see you again,” I whispered, staring into his handsome face.
“I’m right here darling,” he said tenderly, pulling me close.
I could hear his heart beating and it made me sob with joy. “You’re here, you’re really here. I’m sorry. I’m sorry for before. I didn’t mean to yell at you. I’m sorry I walked away and went with them, but I was so scared! I couldn’t let you die!” my words were spilling out in a stream.
He stroked my hair and kissed me tenderly. “Shhh, it’s okay, Alex. I know why you did it. I don’t blame you,” he whispered, pushing me gently away.
I looked up at him, my lips trembling. There was so much I wanted to say to him, but I couldn’t get it out. He stroked my hair out of my face. “I need you to promise me one thing,” he said.
“What is it?”
“Promise me you won’t give up.”
I was confused by his words and gasped as he grabbed me and pushed me under the water. Darkness enveloped me and confusion clouded my mind. I drifted into the dark abyss, wondering if this was death.
Suddenly my eyes flew open and I was staring up at the bright morning sky. I was in the bed of a pickup truck, though I could hear motorcycles roaring on either side of me. My throat hurt and the pain brought back the memory of being lifted off the ground, an impossibly strong hand wrapped around my neck. I groaned and rolled over onto my side, looking around.
The land was green and the hills stretched out as far as I could see. I figured we were still in Tennessee, but I had no idea where. I forced myself to sit up, groaning at the effort it took. I managed to steady myself as the truck bounced on the road, looking around to see bikers surrounding the truck as if they were protecting it.
I frowned, starting to feel a surge of hopelessness all over again. I didn’t think I was going to get out of this one. As I started to lose myself in thought, the truck jolted forward and I gasped, grabbing the side to keep myself upright.
The truck rolled to a stop and so did the bikes. Coyote hopped out of the truck, cursing loudly and kicking the flat tire. He leaned down to inspect it and the moment he ducked down, bullets started flying. Within moments, most of the gang lie dead beside their bikes, perfectly placed shots between their eyes.
Coyote jumped into action, his eyes wide as he tried to figure out what was going on. A stray bullet hit the back window of the truck and the glass shattered into pieces. I quickly grabbed one of the larger pieces, hiding it in my sleeve, easily ignoring the way it cut into my skin. That was nothing compared to what I’d been through.
I was thinking about making a run for it when Coyote grabbed me and pulled me out of the bed of the truck, a gun held to my temple. “COME OUT! SHOW YOURSELVES RIGHT NOW!” he screamed.
Dylan and the rest of the gang rose from the valley between two hills, wearing camouflage and ghillie suits. My eyes widened and my breath hitched. He’d come for me. Dylan grinned and threw his hands out.
“Did you think you were going to get rid of us that easily?” he asked, starting to close the distance between himself and Coyote.
“You stay back!” Coyote’s voice was starting to shake and despite the fact that he had a gun at my temple, I found it oddly satisfying that he was so shaken.
“Put the gun down, Coyote. You’re out numbered. I have three snipers trained on you. They had the command to shoot at will and if you harm a hair on her head, you’ll be full of holes. If you hand her over now, we’ll let you live.”
I realized I was in a very precarious situation and the last thing I wanted to do was put myself or Dylan in any more danger. I stayed dead still, my eyes trained on Dylan.
“You’re lying. If you really had snipers, I’d be dead already,” Coyote growled, starting to walk me back towards the cab of the truck.
Dylan’s eyes were trained on me. He was watching me closely, trying to comfort me with his gaze. “Give it up, Coyote. You lost this round. Give her to me and you have my word, I’ll let you live,” Dylan said dangerously.
“Like hell I will. You just gave me more incentive to get her to the meeting place. You took down all my men. That just means I don’t need to share the money.”
I felt my desperation grow as I realized Coyote had nothing left to lose. As we got closer and closer to the truck, I felt my heart beating faster and faster. Dylan knew he was playing with fire and I could see the desperation in his eyes. He just wanted to pull the trigger and take Coyote out, but that would risk my life.
The shard of glass in my sleeve cut into my hand, reminding me it was there. I swallowed, remembering Dylan’s words from my dream.
‘Promise me you won’t give up.’
I closed my eyes, preparing myself for the worst. Finally, I pulled away and jabbed the shard of glass between Coyote’s legs, managing to hit him in the crotch. He let out an animalistic scream of pain and I twisted out of his grip and grabbed his gun.
Everything became a blur. I brought the gun down on his head hard, using it as a makeshift club. He hit the ground, clearly having lost consciousness. I stared down at his still body, shaking and wide-eyed.
Dylan ran over to me and threw his arms around me, pulling me close and tucking me against his chest. I shook and dropped the gun in favor of wrapping my arms around him.
“You came.” I whispered.
“Of course I did. Jesus, you were so amazing, Alex!”
I laughed shakily and shook my head. “I just had to see you again. There’s something I knew I had to tell you and I wasn’t going to die before I got to say it.”
“What is it?” he panted, looking down at me.
Tears welled in my eyes and I cupped his face with shaking hands. “I love you, Dylan.”
His eyes widened but he pulled me closer, pressing his lips to mine in a show of passion. When he finally broke away, he smiled down at me and whispered the words I so desperately wanted to hear.
“I love you more than you could ever know.”