The door cracked open and the bearded brute stood there in front of them.
“Did she talk yet Jonny?” he snarled.
Jonny, the man who had said he was going to save her, instantly changed his demeanor and shook his head.
“Nah,” he said. “I’m gonna need some serious time. I’ll get her to talk though Mack.”
Mack twisted a long finger into his beard and snarled.
“Make her talk fast, I want to know where she came from.” he looked down at Eve with a hateful stare before he turned and, reaching into his pocket, pulled out a long length of wire.
“Bind her with this instead… it should get things moving,” he sneered with a gruff laugh before he turned and headed back out of the door.
Eve’s heart was pounding. What on earth was going on?
Jonny turned to her and shrugged.
“See,” he said. “They think you’re something to do with a rival gang… and they don’t want you talking.”
“A rival gang?” she stammered. “But I was just on my way to a New Year’s party. Please, you’ve got to let me go.”
Jonny smiled and bent down at the knees so he was eye to eye with her. She could smell his cologne and it was intoxicating, it was earthy, musky and powerful, just like him.
“I know you’re no threat, but things around here have been pretty crazy and they’re all on edge.”
Eve blinked back tears as Jonny reached above her head and slackened off the ties at her wrists slightly.
“I can’t undo you fully,” he sighed. “If they come back in they’ll know I’m helping you.”
“Who are you?” she whispered as she looked into his eyes. None of it made any sense. If he was part of the club and they believed her to be a threat, why was he helping her?
“All you need to know is, I’m on your side,” he said as he brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes and smiled.
Eve’s heart was racing, but it wasn’t from fear. When Jonny had touched her, it had felt electric. Her whole body seemed to respond to him, even though she was frightened and unsure of whether he could be trusted. She thought of Mack and the way he had burst into her bedroom and snatched her from her bed. And how she had woken up in the cold, dark room, tied to a set of railings and wondering how on earth she was going to escape. Now she had her answer. He was right in front of her and even though she didn’t yet know if she could trust him, he was all she had.
“Please,” she whispered. “I’ll do anything you want, just get me out of here and take me home.”
“Home?” Jonny looked at her with doubt. “The last place you’ll be going is home.” he seemed saddened by the admission.
“But…”
“You’ll be on the run,” he said. “I’ll get you out of here, but there’s no going back.”
She looked into his eyes and could see the sincerity. He meant every word. Whoever he was, he meant business.
“The man in the alley…” she changed the subject. “Who was he? What happened to him?”
Jonny broke her gaze and looked down at the floor before straightening out and standing tall.
“I’m going to need you to make a commotion,” he said changing the subject. “I need you to act like you’ve gone wild so I can take you out of the clubhouse and into one of the garages.”
“But… what?” she was so confused.
“We don’t have much time,” he spat ferociously. “We have to get out of here in the next hour before the rest of the club arrive… or we’re both screwed.”
Eve nodded and even though her mind was a mess she knew she didn’t have any other option but to trust him. Mack was clearly going to hurt her if she didn’t get out of there, and Jonny was her only salvation.
“What do you need me to do?” she said as she sat up straight and tried to gather her thoughts.
“Okay,” Jonny smiled. “I’m going to untie you and I need you to kick and scream like a banshee. I’ll restrain you, but I need you to keep fighting me, okay?”
She nodded. Her heart raced.
“They’ll come in and see that you’ve broken free. I’ll tell them it was when I was retying you with wire. I’ll say I need you in the garage so I can strap you to one of the machines in there.”
Eve felt the tears welling up behind her eyes again.
“Listen,” he said. “This isn’t the time to get precious, you need to act and you need to act now.”
She nodded and pulled herself together.
“You ready?” he asked as he leaned forward and started to untie her wrists.
“As ready as I’ll ever be.” she sighed.