Page 73 of Game On

Shane jostled his way between two oversized Giants fans, causing one to spill his beer. “Hey,” the guy bellowed, but Shane pressed on. He had to find Thompkins and stop him before he did something to Carly. Or Troy. Christ, the creep had a gun on the two most important people in his life. If he wasn’t so frantic, he might have taken a moment to realize the enormity of that thought. Shane actually had people in his life. Two, in fact. Two people he cared about more than anything. Well, technically he didn’t have Carly in his life, but he’d remedy that as soon as he killed Thompkins.

“Over here!” C.J. yelled from a few yards ahead. Donovan followed on his heels as they turned right into a shallow hallway. Four security guards followed.

“We’ll take the lowermost floor,” Donovan ordered the guards. “You four split up on the other two floors. Search every space. He could have them anywhere.”

The elevator doors sprung open and Molly charged out. Tears streaming down her face, she threw herself into her brother’s arms. “Oh, C.J.!” she cried.

“Molly! Are you alright?” C.J. asked as he got down on his knee to hug her. She nodded into his shoulder.

Shane checked the elevator for any signs of Carly or Troy. “Molly, where are they?” he asked. His relief at finding Molly quickly evaporated. Dread settled like a rock on his heart.

With another gulping sob, Molly lifted her head. “She told us to stay there. But Troy said we had to go after them. I didn’t want to go, but I didn’t want to stay there alone.”

“Stay where?” C.J. asked.

“Go after them where?” Shane asked at the same time.

“Whoa,” Donovan said, crouching down on his haunches. “Molly, baby, start at the beginning, okay?”

Shane didn’t want to start at the beginning. He wanted to get to the end where Carly and Troy were safe in his arms. He plowed his fingers through his hair as he listened to Molly.

“We were walking on the concourse. Troy wanted nachos.” She sounded annoyed, as if Troy’s nachos had led to this. “And then Joel was there and he was pulling us into the elevator. He was really mad we were with Aunt Carly.” Molly gulped another sob. “He had a gun.” This came out in a whisper.

“Told ya,” C.J. said.

The idiot did have a gun. Shane squeezed his head in frustration. They needed to find Thompkins. Now.

“Then what happened, Molly?” Donovan prodded.

“He said Aunt Carly was his. Not Shane’s.” She tossed an accusing look at him. Shane’s chest felt like it was going to explode. “Aunt Carly talked him into leaving us there. She told us to stay, but Troy wouldn’t. He said he had to save Aunt Carly.”

It was hard to make out what she was saying now because she was crying so hard. The pounding in Shane’s head joined the pounding in his chest. Leaning down to look at Molly, he dreaded her answer to his question.

“Where’s Troy now?” He had to push the words around the lump in his throat.

Molly’s lips trembled as she tried to form the words. “He went after Joel.”

Shane couldn’t ask another question because all the breath had left his body.

“Do you know where they went, Molly?” Donovan asked, his voice annoyingly calm.

“To Aunt Carly’s car.”

Both Donovan and Shane shot to their feet.

“VIP parking,” Donovan barked to the waiting security guards. “Where is it?”

“Portal B. It’ll be faster if we cut through the concession loading dock,” one answered as they moved as a unit into a jog.

Shane didn’t wait for them. He took off at a sprint.

It was a good thing Carly’s body was numb. Otherwise, she’d be unable to endure the last few minutes with Joel. The corridor leading to the loading dock was crowded with food vendors preparing for the game, forcing them to hide in a secluded cubby behind a narrow wall. They had a clear view of their escape route out to the VIP parking, but Joel was too preoccupied with feeling his way around Carly’s body to make the next move. Apparently, he took her capitulation back in the storeroom to mean she was willing to be with her in every way. The touch of Joel’s tongue in her ear coupled with the stench of stale beer seeped into concrete should have made her faint.

Fortunately, she remained upright because she needed to move this along. The farther she got him away from Molly and Troy, the safer they would be. Maybe they’d already gotten help. Part of her wanted them to stay put, while another part hoped they’d found someone to rescue her.

Shane, perhaps. He’d been her rescuer before and she wished he were here now. But he was probably already suited up for the game. Carly stepped away from Joel’s roving hands, causing him to stagger a bit.

Concession workers were still moving about, but there were fewer of them than before. A still-stoned Joel seemed oblivious, and needed a little prodding. Her plan was to get him to her car where she could try to make a run for it. It wasn’t great, but it was all she had.

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