Page 34 of Hacker Salvation

“My cousin is a good realtor,” the young girl replied as she bounced on her toes.

I hated firing people because I knew what it was like to be looking for a job and hoping food would be on the table the next day. But she was acting inappropriate. Luckily, we only had four days left on the movie. “Please call my realtor. Thank you.”

Needing space, I turned and headed for my trailer. Marcus, my manager, and Lucas, the producer, stepped in my path. “Please let me get ready. I’m here to work not gab.”

Marcus frowned at my comment, and Lucas nodded before he turned and walked toward the set.

I reached for the handle on my trailer when Gabriel nudged me out of the way. “Let me look first.”

I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. I stepped to the side and let Gabriel into my trailer. I looked down at my phone and scrolled back to the conversation with John. It was easier for me to ask questions about the BDSM lifestyle in a text rather than face-to-face. We had talked in depth about the lifestyle, and the more I researched, the more I wanted to open myself to that part of John’s world.

The sound of Gabriel flinging the door to the trailer open startled me. He jumped out, slammed the door shut, and pressed his phone to his ear. “You can’t go in there.”

I grabbed Gabriel’s shirt as he started to walk by me. “What happened?”

Gabriel glanced back at the trailer. “Annabella, you don’t need to worry about it. I will take care of everything. Stay right here and don’t move. Set security is standing over there.” He pointed at the building. Two men dressed in black suits stood next to the doors. “If you see anything out of the ordinary, scream. I need to grab something out of the SUV.” Gabriel turned and jogged toward the SUV.

What could be so bad that I couldn’t go into the trailer? Was there another dead body? I needed to see. Gabriel had his back turned to me when I opened the door and went in. I walked two feet and immediately regretted my decision. I counted six rattlesnakes spread out around the trailer. The one closest moved toward me. I scrambled for the door handle, but when I went to open it, it wouldn’t budge.

I turned and pounded on the door. I heard Gabriel cuss on the other side. With both hands, I tugged on the door handle, but it wouldn’t move. I was trapped. I glanced back over my shoulder and saw the closest snake coiled into his attack position. His tail rattled before he lunged forward. I jumped, and he missed me by a centimeter. Before he could attack again, I climbed to the top of the kitchen counter next to the door.

The counter was out of reach for the snakes. My only saving grace was that the snakes were babies, only a foot long. If they were full-grown, they would have been able to strike up the side of the cabinet. But I got a better look around my trailer. It wasn’t only six snakes—there were more than I could count. My phone vibrated in my hand. John’s name flashed across the screen.

I swiped it with a shaky finger. “Hi, John.”

His voice came through panicked. “Are you okay?”

“Yep, just sitting on the counter in my trailer.”

He let out a sigh. “Jesus, Annabella, there are deadly snakes in your trailer, and Gabriel can’t get back in. He went to get a crowbar. What were you thinking, going in there after he said to stay out?”

Anger bubbled up. I didn’t like being told what to do. “Well, if he would have said ‘your trailer’s covered in snakes,’ I would’ve. But he said to stay out, and I wanted to know what happened. My first thought was that there was a dead body or Nate’s body.” I took a deep breath. “Sorry.” I couldn’t hold back the tears. I wanted John, and he was on the other side of the country.

His voice softened. “I didn’t mean to yell. It’s hard being this far away. I’m going to try to find a flight out today.”

The selfish side of me wanted him to come and see me. But I knew Gabriel could protect me if I listened, and John needed to spend time with his family.

“No. You need to stay with your family. Talk to me until they can get me out of here.” Another snaked hissed. They were coming from every direction. Luckily, none of them seemed tempted to climb up the cabinet. I could hear the pounding outside the door as Gabriel tried to get in.

“It’s really her,” John said.

My heart cracked at the sadness in his voice. “Did you ask where she’s been?”

He let out another sigh. “She said our father was too much, so she left and started over.”

What kind of woman could leave her two kids?“I’m sorry.”

“I’m going to catch the first flight out tomorrow and head back to you. I’ll let my mom finish telling her side of the story today. But I need time to process what she’s said so far.”

After another pound on the door, I could see daylight through the cracks. Gabriel hit it two more times, and the door flew open. I screamed as the snake closest to the door lunged at Gabriel. He jumped to the side, and the snake slithered across the pavement outside. I heard a few screams as people rushed away.

Gabriel reached for me. “On the count of three, jump into my arms.”

He barely got to three before I jumped off the counter and into his arms. He yanked me outside of the trailer, and a man wearing a security T-shirt slammed the door behind us. I let out a sigh of relief. Gabriel’s lips flattened, and his eyes tightened. Extras and workers on the film stood in the distance, watching what was going on.

“John, I’m out of the trailer and safe,” I said into the phone. “I need to head into makeup. I promise to call you at lunch.”

“Be safe, Beautiful, and don’t let Gabriel out of your sight.”

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