Page 34 of Queen Of WildCards

AsIstarted the car, his demeanor changed drastically, and instead of hammering away on the hood, he was now banging on the back of the backseat.Ihad no idea how long it'd take him to break free, butIhoped it was long enough thatIcould get away.Orat least get somewhereIwas safe.

Myfingers fumbled over the visors, finding no sign of a garage door opener, and decided on the course of actionI'donly seen successfully executed in movies.

Timeto bust through the door.

Itdidn't occur to me that these doors might be made of something more robust than regular garage doors, not untilIwas jamming the car into reverse to move as far back in the stall asIcould get it to go.WhenIthrew the gearstick in first and slammed down on the gas, wheels spun, smoke flew, and my whole life flashed before my eyes asIwas propelled into the seat, and we rocketed forward like the car had been fired from a damn gun.

Thescreaming in the trunk stopped momentarily, and then we slammed into the garage door—and through it, thankgods—and into the daylight.

Freedom.

Ispun out a little as the tires hit the pavement and gripped it like glue.Gettingcontrol of the car was easier thanIthought it would be, andIstopped the fishtail just in time to avoid oncoming traffic.Somepart of the back of my brain recognized the wharf district immediately, warehouse after warehouse lining the street on either side of me, mingling with the seagulls that flew overhead and picked scraps off the sidewalk asIflew by.Ina matter of blocks,Imanaged to get better bearings and took a turn that would lead me home—ifImade it that far without my captive breaking out of the trunk.

Itilted the rearview mirror to focus on the backseat just in case and stepped on the gas, propelling us into the morning traffic.

Thebanging in the trunk returned with gusto, and now it sounded like he'd turned around to use his boots for more leverage.AsIsped along, counting the blocks to my apartment, to safety, the hammering sound quieted, andIbreathed a sigh of relief.

Maybehe'd given up.

Yeah, and maybe pigs would sprout fucking wings and fly, too.

Idrifted around the next corner in my haste to get as far away from that warehouse compound as possible and nearly took out a cop coming the other way.Asif a divine light shone on me from above, his lights came on as he spun around in the intersection and came racing after us, though the carIdrove was far too fast for him to catch up to unlessIslowed down.

WhichIstarted to do until an arm snaked around me, and a cold, deadly sharp blade pressed into the skin right beneath my chin.

Howhad he gotten free without me hearing?

"Ifyou slow down to let the pigs catch up,I'llslit your throat and end it before you can hit the brakes.Whenhe gets to you, only a lifeless, broken body will be left, sweetheart, andIwon't feel an ounce of remorse about it."Hisblade pressed into my skin, nicking me until a drop of blood trickled down the hollow of my neck. "Now,Iwant you to step on it and do exactly asIsay.Doyou understand me?"

Inodded frantically, already regretting my decision to try something this stupid.He'dtake me back to their compound, andAcewould string me up and beat the shit out of me, making me regret every life choiceI'dmade up til now.Ormaybe they'd have him slit my throat now and dump my body somewhere nobody would find it.

Allmanner of murderous scenarios traveled through my mind asIfollowed his orders to the letter, turning when he demanded it, staying just a few steps ahead of the cops.Whenwe came up on the bridge that led into my neighborhood, his hand tensed, and the blade pressed even deeper into the skin of my neck, my eyes going wide asIwondered if this was the end.

"Gripthat wheel and gun it.Twentyfeet before the bridge, cut hard to the left, and you're gonna slip into the service tunnel.You'llhave an inch or three on either side of the car, so you'd better hope your aim is as pretty as your ass in that skirt, or we're both dead."

"I'mnot a skilled getaway driver,"Ibalked, knowing damn wellIoperated like shit under pressure. "Youcan't mean for me to—"

"You'rethe one in the driver's seat, and there's no time for a switch, so you're it.Nowbuck up and hold on tight.Thingsmight get a little bumpy until we get through to the other side."

Iblinked back tears of panic at what might be my last minutes on earth and sent up a silent plea to get me out of this alive, then braced for impact as the service tunnel came into view.

"Slowdown and let the cop think he's got you."

Myfoot automatically lifted slightly from the gas pedal, and sure enough, the cop behind us sped up, jetting like a rocket to get in range.Myeyes flicked from his car to the road in front of me and back again, my stomach in my throat and my heart hammering a pattern of intense panic against the inside of my ribcage as the window of opportunity neared.

"Now!Gunit!"Heleaned over the seat, and the blade fell away from my throat for a second, letting me breathe asIcrushed the pedal to the floor and let out a battle cry, barely resisting the urge to close my eyes asIprepared for the end.Withnot a second to spare,Ijerked the wheel to the left and slipped away from the cop before he had enough time to blink.

Thewall of the concrete barrier came into my line of sight, with just enough space on either side to slip the car past.Mywhole body seized up asImeasured the distance as bestIcould and committed to a side.

"Fuck!Fuckfuck fuck fuck fuck—"

Myhands probably could have snapped the steering wheel with how tightlyIclung to it asIslipped by the barrier and down the service tunnel, a solid six inches on either side of me asIheld speed and curved the damn thing around the turns beneath the city streets, wincing as the scrape of paint warned meI'dgotten too close to the edge.

Ididn't breathe again until we popped out underneath the bridge, safely concealed under the concrete and steel wire contraption that handled the vast majority of inter-city traffic.Mybreath left me in a whoosh, andIslammed on the brakes, the car coming to a screeching halt in the shadows of an overpass.

Ididn't even think, didn't hesitate;Ijust flung my door open and fell bodily out of the car, my knees scraping the concrete asIlanded with a thud, my legs too weak to support me.Mylungs worked overtime, sucking in air like every breath was my last, andIwouldn't get another.Withshaking hands,Ishoved off the ground and stood up, leaning against the car for support.

Holyshit,I'malive.

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