Page 107 of Roaming Holiday

53

NINA

Arlo leaves the room.

Pavlos takes his spot, his eyes studying every bit of my figure. I squirm when he stops on my legs. He notices and smirks. The closest weapon is the bottle of alcohol on the minibar. I uncross my ankles in case I need to lunge for it.

Arlo reenters the room and claps his hands once. “I hope your bags are packed!”

My blood runs cold, poisoned with dread. I know Wesley is planning something; he won’t stop until I’m home safe.

I only hope that it happens before I’m flown into another country.

Pavlos grins as he takes a zip tie from his pocket. He stands in front of me, closer than necessary, as he binds my wrists. He hauls me up as we head toward the elevators.

Don’t get into the car.

No matter what, I need to fight. I could die, but I’d rather fight here than in a foreign country. Arlo drapes a suit jacket over my bound wrists before we walk through the lobby.

“Same rules, princess,” Pavlos says. “You scream, you run, you die.”

Fuck that.

He grips my arm tight as we walk outside. The heat smacks me in the face as I notice the car’s open door in front of me. Deep breath. Time to fight.

Fssss-pop!

Something warm splatters my face. Pavlos’s hold on me loosens as he drops to the ground, blood pouring from the hole in his head. My ears start ringing, muffling the shouts.

Pop! Pop-pop-pop!

I turn in time to see Arlo grabbing me, a gun to my head, as the royal guard approaches, armed with weapons. Someone leads Jack, who clutches his bloody arm, behind a van that pulls up. I spot another dead body—one of Arlo’s men. I shake the jacket from the wrists as Arlo tries to back us into the building, only to find the doors shut and locked. He bangs the glass and curses, still using me as a shield.

My entire body vibrates and the buzzing hasn’t subsided. I can’t decipher the shouting. I can’t do anything with my wrists bound and an arm wrapped around my chest. How is this happening so fast? Time moves at increased, warped speed—and I’m stuck in slow motion.

Arlo drags us a few feet down the sidewalk, and I look at Pavlos’s body again. The bullet wound is on the left side of his head, but the royal guard approached from the right.

Wesley.

It has to be.

The thought pushes the world back into my mind just enough to move. Arlo still cowers behind me, shouting threats and demands. I brace my legs and pour all my strength into shoving us back against the brick wall. The ricochet from his gunshot helps, and I knock the wind out of him enough to loosen his hold. I instantly drop to the ground and curl into a ball, knowing what’s next.

A whizzing sound hisses through the air, followed by wet gurgling. I scramble out of the way the moment before Arlo’s body falls, and my stomach lurches at the sight. The ringing in my ears gets even stronger as the world cuts to a halt again. I can’t rip my eyes from the torn hole in Arlo’s throat. Blood oozes out, drop by drop. His mouth is open. His eyes are vacant. Hands close around my arms to lift me, but my limbs have lost all feeling again. I don’t know who’s holding me, but he drags me away from…

Chaos.

An ambulance opens its rear doors, and whoever carries me—Silas—sets me on the edge. He slices my zip ties and frees my wrists. I shut my eyes as the buzzing pierces my head. The paramedic steadies me, asking questions as she searches for signs of injury. I can’t hear her over the ringing. She clamps her mouth shut when she realizes I won’t answer.

What the fuck just happened?

“NINA!”

I startle, looking up to find Wesley. Energy slams back into my body, and I sprint to him. He captures me in his arms, reaching up to lock his hand on the back of my neck. A sob scratches from my throat as warmth floods me. I dig my face into his neck.

“Thank god,” he cries in a whisper.

I clench his shirt, the tears finally breaking free amidst the chaos of ambulances and police. He hugs me almost too tightly, but the feeling of his chest against mine calms my heartbeat.

---