Page 20 of Music City Diaries

“Help,” Bill groaned, but I ignored him. “You won’t get away with this,” he wheezed.

“Watch me.” Maddox pulled me into his arms, carrying me, which was much faster since my foot hurt. Still worth it.

“How’d you get here?” he asked, scanning the hallway and heading out in a different direction.

“Bicycle.”

“Shit,” he mumbled. “Okay, we’ll have to leave it and jump his truck.”

We stepped out into the night air, and I felt like I could breathe again. My blood pounded in my ears, adrenaline racing through me.

“What are we going to do?” I asked.

Maddox glanced down, worry lining his brow. “I dunno. Leave, I suppose. I really don’t know. I’m sorry, Darcie. I can’t believe he tried that.”

“Where were you? Why didn’t you answer?” I asked, not knowing if I wanted the response.

His brow furrowed, and a harsh look crossed his face, but he shook his head, not wanting to tell me. I’d let it go for now, but I knew it was something I needed to know. I couldn’t deal with secrets. Maddox opened the truck door, placed me down gently, and buckled me in. He shut the door and went around to the other side. He paused, walked back to grab my bike, and threw it in the cab.

I watched in amazement as he pulled the cover down and hot-wired the truck quicker than I could ask how we were going to get out of there.

“Okay, you’ve gotta show me that!”

Maddox glanced over, a smile spreading across his lips. “Sure thing, Princess.”

He pulled out of the neighborhood, and we both sighed in relief, the energy-draining from me. My body began to shake as the adrenaline wore off, and I realized how cold I was.

“I really need to stop only getting your clothes when I’m naked,” I said, attempting to joke. It fell flat, Maddox’s jaw tightening.

“You can have anything of mine, Darce.”

I sighed. “So, where to now?” I asked, looking out the window.

“Let's worry about getting out of here first. Grab what you want to take with you, whatever will fit into a bag.”

“Okay.” My voice was small, but I knew it was the right choice. We couldn’t stay here now. As much as I hated my job most days, I’d miss Joe and Jodie. They were friendly, and I liked them.

“I’m—”

His words were cut off by the red and blue flashing lights. We looked at one another, panicking.

“Just stay calm. I’ll take care of it.” I nodded, fear climbing up my throat.

The officer knocked on the window, shining a light on us. “Roll down the window, sir.”

“Yes, officer.” Maddox nodded, keeping his hands visible. “Can we help you, sir?”

He eyed us, shining the light on Maddox, probably checking his eyes. “License and registration.”

“Well, here’s the thing, officer. It’s my boss’ truck.”

“I bet it is. License and registration.” He shined the light on me. “Real careful there, miss, reach in and grab the registration. No funny business, now.”

“Of course, sir. We don’t want any trouble.”

We both pulled out the items he asked for and handed them over. He glanced at them, looking back up at Maddox.

“What happened to your face, son?”

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