Page 87 of Keep Me Safe
“You just make sure your focus is in the right place,” I said, heavy with authority. “If you’ve got ideas of killing him, we’re getting her out first. Do you understand me?”
He grimaced. “I get you want to control an uncontrollable situation, but I know what the goal is here. You keep your ass in the car. You’re going to want to be there when we get to her, but you’ll get in our way, and someone could get hurt.” He gave it weight, to make sure I heard him. “Including her.”
My gaze left the road for a moment, giving him a chance to see my pained expression. “I understand.”
The drive was short, not giving me much time to emotionally prepare for what was going to happen. Jason wrapped a comm link around his neck, hooked the earpiece in, and tested it against Fletcher’s in the following car.
The house was less than five kilometers from the butcher shop where Kara had appeared, and we passed it on the drive in. Dense forest choked the summer sunlight from everything but the road, yet we knew the house was back there from the satellite photos. A three-bedroom bungalow. Besides that, we knew little about the site.
Going in blind, Jason had said. It could be the death of any one of us.
“Pull over here,” he said.
We paused in the shadow of an enormous pine tree, just off the shoulder, our engines still running.
“Are you ready?” he asked.
“Yes.”
We’re coming, Kara.
He tugged his Glock free from its holster, holding it barrel-down and releasing the safety. He took a preparing breath, and his gaze was fixed on me as he pressed the comm button. “Let’s go.”
33
KARA
The laptop slammed shut,ending the video conversation, and I leveled my gaze on Juric. I gave him a look that said I’d rather die than spend a lifetime with him.
He was unfazed.
“Get these off of me.” I held my handcuffs out to him. “You said I only had to wear them while I was talking to her.”
He sat beside me on the couch and undid the first cuff, moving as if he were aware I might strike at any second. When I didn’t, he undid the other and tossed the cuffs on the coffee table with a metallic clang.
“You can’t have me,” I said.
“Why not?”
“Because I’m not a possession.” My throat burned as I spat the words. “And, more importantly, because I hate you.”
“It’s a thin line between love and hate. You’re attracted to me.”
A sour taste filled my mouth. “No, I’m not.”
“Right, and I’m definitely not attracted to you,” he said sarcastically. “Are you aware your eyes shift left when you’re lying?”
“I could never be with a man like you.”
Oh, that was the wrong thing to say. A wicked smile burned across his lips. “Didn’t you say you were married to a man like me?”
I slapped him.
It was so sharp and abrupt, the action was stunning, and he blinked in disbelief. And since I was successful, it only fed my wrath. I wanted to claw his eyes out, to make him pay for everything. He was insane. After all he’d done to me, and my sister, he honestly thought I would be attracted to him?
I reared back to punch him, but he held down my arms and stopped me. It put his face too close to mine, and I shirked back. “Get your hands off of me!”
“Not until you calm down. If you keep struggling, I’ll find a way to make you stop.”
