Page 97 of One Filthy Kiss

Closer. I keep praying that Ric or one of the other bodyguards will open the door and take control of the situation, sheltering us inside while they hunt down Amber’s father and make this all go away. But it doesn’t happen.

I tug Amber around to the back of the darkened cabin and sink onto the damp ground surrounded by trees and foliage, breathing so heavily I can hardly speak. Amber sits next to me, crying on my shoulder. Blood is oozing from the grazed skin on her knees, and she yelps when she touches me with her hands. I turn them over to find that she has scraped the skin from her palms too when she hit the ground.

I wrap my arms around her and hold her close. “I’m sorry I made you run, sweetie.”

I want to tell her that it will all be okay, but I can’t. That promise isn’t mine to make and, I realize now with a jolt that makes me feel nauseous, it never was. It feels like we’ve been living on borrowed time, waiting for him to make his move and stake his claim on his daughter. And this is it.

“M-m-my legs h-h-hurt.” Amber’s body shudders with her sobs.

“I know, baby, but I can’t make them better right now.”

We can’t stay here. The only thing I am certain of in this batshit-crazy situation is that we have to keep moving. It’s our best chance. Our only chance.

“W-why can’t we go back?”

“It isn’t safe.”

It’s all I can manage while my brain is frantically trying to figure out our next move. I can see the cabins higher up the mountain slope, all in darkness. To our left, there’s another cabin occupied by the security team. Down below, I can see Stowe lit up for the evening, and the golden lights shimmering across the surface of the lake.

We need to reach the town. More people. Someone will help us when they see that Amber is hurt, and it will be more difficult for him to abduct her if there are witnesses. The only problem is, I have no idea how far away it is. I don’t even recall how long it took to reach the town by car because I was too excited about Nikki being here to pay attention. The lights look like tiny fireflies from here which doesn’t fill me with confidence.

It occurs to me then that he shot Nikki, but there are no police sirens heading this way.

I don’t move, trying to blank out the sound of my blood gushing through my ears and listen for the sound of movement from inside the cabin. Something. Anything.

Silence.

Where are the bodyguards? I didn’t keep a head count, but there’s a whole team of them trying to shield us from one man, and now that we need them, there isn’t a single one of them to be found. A terrifying thought steals inside my head and makes my heart skip like a child wearing her mom’s shoes.

What if he has killed them all?

“Meggie, w-where’s Auntie N-Nikki?”

The innocent question sucks the tears that I’ve been trying so desperately to contain from my eyes. “She’s gone, baby.”

“Gone w-where?”

“Away.” I move Amber away from my shoulder so that I can see her face. “We have to keep moving, okay? We can’t get back into the cabin, so we’ll find somewhere else to stay in town.” I try to make it sound like an adventure. “Maybe we’ll get pizza and ice cream, would you like that?”

“Okay.” She sniffs loudly.

“Good girl.” I stand up and help her onto her feet. She cries when I take her hand again, but I can’t let go. “I know it hurts, sweetie, but we’ll run faster if we hold hands. You know, like when you had sports day at school, and we did that race together.”

She nods.

“Do you see that cabin over there?” I point to our left. “We’re going to run that way and hide in the trees out the back. On three. One. Two. Three.”

I don’t give her a chance to think about her sore knees and the blood squishing between our palms. I hold on tight and sprint towards the trees. I don’t look left or right. I keep my eyes fixed straight ahead and murmur a silent prayer that he can’t see us in the dark from wherever he’s hiding.

I almost can’t believe it when branches sting my face. I drag Amber down onto the mulchy ground and take shelter behind a dense clump of thorny bushes.

The next cabin will bring us closer to the road that leads down to Stowe. I’ve no idea how exposed the route is, something elseI didn’t pay attention to from the safety of the car, but we’ll have to figure it out as we go.

There is still no sign of Ric and his team, but I thank God that there has been no more gunfire. Did he mistake Nikki for me? Did she get shot because she was in the wrong place at the wrong time? My heart breaks for her parents, but it’s one more thing that I can’t allow myself to think about right now.

A glimmer of light catches my eye near the next cabin, and my heart starts racing.

Placing a finger to my lips to keep Amber quiet, I focus on the spot where I thought I saw the light. The cabin is in darkness again, and despair floods my chest. But just as I’ve convinced myself that I must’ve imagined it, I see it again.