Page 80 of Red Dreams

She knows where I am!

I hold my breath, not daring to even blink, as her movements pause. The boots pivot slowly, deliberately, as if she can sense my presence beneath her feet. A shaft of wan sunlight filters through the slats, casting the last bars of illumination across my face. I remain perfectly still.

Suddenly, Cassie drops to a crouch.

I shrink back, pressing my spine against the slimy wood, but it's too late. Her chipped, sapphire eyes lock onto mine through the narrow crack, widening with triumphant malice.

Wicked red lips curve into a smile as cruel as it is beautiful.

“Oh, hey, future stepmom,” she purrs. “Found you.”

I press myself farther into the shadows, my hand closing around the knife strapped to my thigh. Kaden's parting words echo in my mind.“If they corner you, don't hesitate. Strike fast and true. Go for the kill.”

I tighten my grip on the hilt, steeling myself. I may not survive this, but I'll be damned if I go down without a fight.

A hand plunges into the water, grasping for me. I lash out blindly with the knife, feeling it connect with flesh and bone. The man screams, recoiling.

Gunshots explode above me, splintering the wood. I flinch and cry out as shards rain down.

Cassie's voice rises above the onslaught. “I said she was under there, idiots! Don’t kill her yet!”

In the confusion, I seize my chance. Sucking in a breath, I dive under the water, knifing through the murk. I surface on the other side of the dock, gasping for air. It’s just dark enough that maybe I can float to shore without them noticing.

I take one stroke, then another, trying to be silent as I cut through the icy black water. My muscles scream in protest, cramping from the cold, but I grit my teeth and push on. The shoreline beckons, a distant haven shrouded in mist and shadow. If I can just reach it...

Shouts erupt behind me, followed by the thunder of boots on the dock.

“There! In the water!” a man bellows.

My heart leaps into my throat. I don’t dare look back, my strokes becoming frantic and graceless. The water churnsaround me, choked with seaweed that tangles around my limbs like grasping fingers.

A gunshot cracks the air, the bullet slicing into the water inches from my head. I yelp and dive under, the frigid brine enveloping me. I swim blind, lungs aching, praying I'm heading the right way.

A hand clamps around my ankle like a vise, dragging me backward. I thrash and kick, but more hands grasp at me, seizing my arms, my hair, the back of my vest. They haul me roughly from the water, throwing me onto the dock.

I land hard on the weathered planks, coughing and sputtering. A boot presses into the small of my back, pinning me in place. I struggle weakly, but the man above me just laughs, grinding my stomach into the splintery wood.

“Not so fast, cutie pie,” he sneers. “Miss Morelli wants a word with you before we slit your pretty throat.”

The other men laugh, the ugly sound rolling over the black water. I squeeze my eyes shut, trembling with cold and fear.

Cassie's boots appear in my line of sight. She lowers to her haunches and grabs a fistful of my hair, wrenching my head back.

“Layla, Layla,” she tsks. “You've been a very naughty girl.”

One of the men kicks me in the ribs, sending blinding pain shooting through my body. I curl in on myself as much as I can, gasping.

“Where's your attack dog now?” another taunts.

A knife kisses my throat, biting into my skin under Cassie’s watchful observation.

“Kaden will kill you,” I rasp out. “All of you.”

The men laugh, but there's an uneasy edge to it. They’ve seen the state in which he left the VIP suite.

I say to Cassie, “When he finds out what you’ve done…”

Cassie throws her head back and laughs.

---