Page 143 of Naughty Ride

Pain exploded across my scalp, and I hit the pavement hard when he let go once I was overbalanced.

I landed hard on my ass and pain spiked up my tailbone.

Don’t stay down.

My instructor’s warning shot through me and I tried to leap to my feet.

A solid kick in the spine sent me sideways.

“You little bitch.” The leader wheezed in pain, still clutching his balls.

He’d managed to stay upright, and he aimed a kick at my exposed ribs. “You’re gonna pay for that.”

I curled inward to protect my organs as his foot came down.

A second man kicked me from behind.

Pain radiated through my torso and up my spine. I couldn’t move until they stopped.

Endure. Embrace thepain.

A third kick sent me spinning across the pavement.

Black danced at the edges of my vision.

“Enough.” The leader’s voice cut through the haze of pain. “We need her conscious.”

I rolled onto my back and tried to sit up.

My head and chest throbbed, but I was alive.

Three faces loomed over me, their expressions ranging from amused to psychotic.

My blurry vision darkened, and I blinked hard to focus.

Movement from the leader forced me to concentrate.

He reached behind his back.

Even someone without my training knew what that meant.

Gun.

I thought it a split second before he moved his hand back in front of him.

The sleek black pistol gleamed in the streetlights with a dull sheen.

Probably stolen.

Definitely untraceable.

I held up my hands and stood.

He’d already said they wouldn’t kill me.

But they could wound me.

That made any chance of escape more difficult.