I turned and looked into the room. I wish I hadn’t.
Tony was standing there, a gun in his hand. Another two men were dead at his feet. Two more men were behind Tony, both of them with their guns drawn.
And all three were staring at me.
“Piper,” Tony said, completely calm. “I wasn’t expecting you.”
It was his tone of voice that made me turn and run. The guns, the death, all of that froze me in place and wouldn’t let me leave. But Tony’s voice, completely cold and flat, made me turn and run as fast as I could.
I heard voices and footsteps behind me, but I didn’t stop. I ran as fast as my feet would take me, back down through the main floor, past Thomas the bartender, and out the front door.
I didn’t stop once I was out in the street. I kept running, my heart hammering, fear lancing through my body.
Tony was a killer. Tony was a murderer. Tony was a drug dealer.
I realized with certain horror that I didn’t know the man I was living with and I never had.
I kept running. People were staring, and at least one person tried to ask if I was okay, but I couldn’t stop. I had to put as much distance between me and Tony as possible.
Otherwise, he’d kill me. I knew it deep in my bones. I knew it the second he spoke. That flat, dead voice told me everything that I needed to know. Tony was a murderer and I was next.
Horror swept through me. My legs burned, my chest ached, and my breath was coming in ragged gasps. It didn’t matter, though. I kept pushing myself, pushing myself, unable to stop.
Finally, I couldn’t take another stop. I stumbled forward, hands on my knees, gasping for breath. I kept walking, hands on my head, terror rolling through me in waves.
I was an animal panicking, I realized. Panic wasn’t going to do me any good. I had to think. I had to figure out what my next move was before Tony caught up with me.
I couldn’t go home. I was sure about that. I didn’t think I could go to the police, because I doubted they’d even believe me. As soon as Tony had me in his sights again, I was done for.
I had to run. But where? I couldn’t go to work. He knew where I worked. I couldn’t go to Lauren and Greg, because Tony knew about them, too. I couldn’t go to any of our shared friends, obviously, or any of my other girlfriends.
I was trapped. Like an animal, I was trapped. I couldn’t go to my parents. I couldn’t go back home. I had my wallet with my cards, but I didn’t know how long I could use them.
I stopped at a corner and got my bearings. I took a few deep breaths and began to think of a plan.
I needed cash and a place to go. Cash was going to be the first thing. One thing at a time, that was how I was going to get through this.
I checked my phone and found a nearby ATM. I walked toward it as fast as I could, head swiveling around me, afraid that Tony was going to appear at any moment.
I stopped in front of it and quickly took out as much cash as I could. I emptied my checking account without a second thought.
When that was done, I collapsed up against the wall, trying to think.
Where could I go? What could I do?
And then the answer hit me like a hammer to my chest.
There was only one place I could go. One place where I’d be safe.
And it was the last place I really wanted to go.
Chapter 10
Gates
I was alone in my apartment. Usually, being alone was dangerous for me, because it let me think back onto the bad shit.
Instead, I was thinking about Piper. About the way she looked at me, her body, her smile. It was all enough to drive me fucking crazy, and I was almost glad that she had a boyfriend.
Not really, though. What I really wanted was to pull her into my apartment as fuck her until she screamed my name. I wanted to fuck her until she forgot she ever dated another man.
I cracked open a beer and turned on the television, trying to drown out my thoughts. I flipped through the channels, taking long pulls, until I found some football game that I didn’t care about. It was perfect for distracting me, though, and I stared at the screen.
Until my phone started ringing. I glanced over at it, but didn’t recognize the number. I decided to let it go to voicemail.
A minute later, my phone buzzed. The person left a message. Frowning, I listened.
“Gates, I know this is weird.” It was Piper. I sat up straight, sensing the fear in her voice, the anxiety. “Listen, I need your help. I don’t know who to turn to. I got your number from Lauren. Can you, uh, can you please call me back? Okay. I know this is weird. Thanks.”
And then the message ended.
I stared at the phone. What the fuck had happened that she needed to call me? Clearly something bad, but she didn’t say. Either way, I could hear the fear. I could sense it in her voice just like I could sense when the men under my command were stressed.