Page 134 of Through the Water

“There’s not,” I said, having spent the last forty-eight hours exhausting every option. “I’m damned either way. Look, I’ve accepted that I’ve lost him forever, but at least this way he gets a chance to move on someday.”

She glanced down at her watch. “And is that what you want—for him to move on?”

“I just want him to be safe. If I knew of another way—one where he didn’t get killed, go to jail, or lose baseball—” I sucked in a ragged breath, squeezing my fists until my fingernails dug into my palms. “I’d do it, but there’s nothing.”

“We’ve still got time,” Morgan responded cryptically before standing up to lead me back into my room. Instead of letting me climb back into bed, she shut off the lights and dragged me over toward the door.

My breath caught as I stumbled over a shoe lying on the floor. “Morgan—what are you doing?”

After tapping her index finger lightly against the wood three times, she clapped a hand over my mouth, her eyes suddenly glossy. “Do not speak. Do not scream. Nod if you understand.”

I shook my head, my nostrils flaring with short bursts of air as I gripped her arms. No one had ever said I couldn’t leave my room, but the lock on the outside of the door had implicitly implied I was a prisoner.

“Listen to me,” she whispered. “I was supposed to be in the car that night. Tristan set the entire thing up, knowing I was the only one who drove the convertible. You were never the target. I was. And I need you to trust me right now, okay?”

The handle turned, but the hallway was completely dark. A towering figure leaned in and my heart pinged against my ribcage when Morgan pushed me into his waiting arms. I knew it was a man, I could tell by the build, but his identity was a mystery.

I didn’t realize I was whimpering until his palm moved over my mouth, where Morgan’s had been just moments before. “Fifteen minutes,” he hissed.

Her head bobbed in a nod before she leaned in to press a kiss to my temple. “I love you, Ari.”

My eyes bulged in response because it sounded like goodbye. I tried looking back as the man hauled me down the hall, but she’d already disappeared into the shadows.

We bypassed the main staircase and slipped through the doorway leading to the staff wing. Blood pumped furiously through my veins, pleading with me to escape.

Morgan wanted me to trust her yet hadn’t told me where I was being taken. For all I knew, she’d handed me over to Brad so he could finish what he started. A shiver wracked my body as I considered the possibility, before mentally talking myself down.

She’d asked me to trust her.

The man might have been holding me in a firm grip, but he’d deliberately avoided the bruised areas on my neck and torso, proving he wasn’t Brad.

My breaths grew raspy as we moved down a hidden flight of stairs, but he didn’t even seem winded. I blinked back the tears and focused on my surroundings. As long as I knew where we were, I was still safe. He took turn after turn with a familiarity that could have only come from living or working here. But if he was acting on Tristan’s orders, there’d be no reason to sneak around.

The kitchen was as dark as the rest of the house, yet he navigated the layout without once slowing. When we reached the door leading outside, he leaned down to my ear. “Don’t run.”

I nodded shakily, exhaling through my nose.

My captor released his hold on my shoulder to enter something into his cell phone. The deadbolt slid back with a low musical tone, and then we were outside.

We crept along the perimeter of the house, avoiding the lights mounted along the top of the wall. I managed to trip over my own two feet, craning my neck to get a better look.

It was Dean, the only member of my father’s security team who didn’t look like he murdered people on a daily basis. Although, without his signature smile, he seemed just as frightening as the others.

As if reading my panicked thoughts, he shook his head, the corner of his mouth lifting. “I’m not going to hurt you, Ariana.”

I wondered if they’d told Ashlynn the same thing.

My lungs suddenly demanded more oxygen, but I inhaled too fast, leaving me feeling sick. I tried again, still unable to draw enough air through the tight band around my chest.

“No one’s going to hurt you—not while I’ve got you, okay?”

I clutched at my chest, seeing black spots as I gasped for my next breath.

Dean removed the hand from my mouth, spinning my body to face his. “Purse your lips—good. Now, breathe in slowly.” He gently repeated the words while leading me farther from the house.

We pushed through a clump of Hollywood Juniper shrubs, coming face to face with a hidden door tucked into the back portion of the wall. He stopped to punch another series of numbers into his phone until it opened with a soft click.

Under the streetlights, I could easily see the gun holstered at his side. Even if I put everything into making a break for it, a bullet was faster. Morgan had wanted me to trust her. It was why I’d believed Dean when he lied and told me he wouldn’t hurt me.

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