Page 16 of Kat Bethel

The way my shadow connected made my stomach twist, like I expected him to leap out of the forest after me.

I shot him two stiff middle fingers, hoping to appear more confident than I was. “What now, fucker?”

“You can’t escape, Dandelion.”

Chapter 7:

Igasped,sittingstraightup. Goosebumps rolled over me, and it took longer than was acceptable to get my bearings.

Every muscle locked in place as one feeling became abundantly clear. There were eyes on me.

As soon as the night before came back to me, I scanned the shadows. It was another basic hotel room, average and boring, just like every other one in America. Nothing hinky in sight.

So why did my skin prickle and the hair on the nape of my neck stand on end?

After double and triple checking the room, I sighed in defeat and slumped against the headboard.

Muscles I didn’t even know I had ached and my bones throbbed as the adrenaline settled. I pulled the covers off me, mentally preparing to check the damage on my body.

A shiver rolled over me when the cold air hit my skin. That’s what I got for being too lazy to toss on anything more than an oversized T-shirt and underwear after my shower.

The wound on my shin was swollen and bruised with one open gash where the edge of the foundation made contact. The rest ofmy skin was covered in fingers and hand-shaped bruises. He’d done a number on me.

Yet the knowledge he could have done much worse nagged me. Why did he let me leave?

My phone rang on the end table. I grabbed it and answered it without checking the caller ID. I was too busy grabbing the cheap alarm clock to figure out what time it was.

“Quit being a worrywart, Willow. I’m not dead yet.”I should be.Maybe she finally found out what I already knew. This thing wasn’t as simple a job as we thought.

It was three in the afternoon.

“Sasha.” William’s familiar voice filled my ear.

I froze in place. My heart raced and the saliva in my mouth turned to ash. I smashed my lips to make sure nothing stupid or impulsive crossed them.

It was the first time I’d heard from him since that last job I was on.

“Sasha?” Why was his voice so normal?

Not like he destroyed me.

Tears pricked my eyes and hot rage boiled dangerously in my chest. I swallowed the hard rock lodged in my throat. The air itself grew heavier, making each breath harder.

“Why are you calling me?” There I managed to make it come out like a rabid bitch, instead of a broken one. I deserved a fucking medal.

“Don’t be like that.”

“What do you want?” I answered slowly, punctuating every word with enough contempt to hide how much I wanted to crumble.

“That attitude is what drove a wedge between us.”The light on the bedside table flickered as if it sensed my agitation.

“Actually, that was you sticking your cock into anything that gave you attention.” What did that say about me? That I was only loveable because I poured everything into him.

Just a stupid woman who wanted someone to love her.

I gritted my teeth. For someone who prided herself on outthinking and maneuvering the worst of the worst, I sure was stupid.

Every light I’d left on that morning when I dragged myself inside dimmed and flickered threateningly. Oppressive rage filled the air like an aura that had me double checking the shadows for the shape of a man hiding inside them.