Page 154 of Tangled In Lies

The air stalls in my lungs. Two minutes for what?

He shoves me through an open doorway and stalks off, leaving it wide open.

A bathroom. It’s a fucking bathroom.

I blow out a breath and don’t waste any time. I do my business, wash my hands, and splash water on my face. Movement up in the corner catches my eye. The red light of a camera blinks at me.

Fucker.

Was he watching Eve too?

I inhale deeply and repeat my new mantra.Bide your time, and you’ll get your revenge. Lose your cool and lose everything.

More images of my hands squeezing around Tyler’s throat soothe me.

As if summoned, he appears in the doorway, his gun trained on me. “Pick up your leash, pet, and hand it to me.”

This pet thing is getting really old, but he clearly gets off on the shaming.

So I do as he says, and he yanks me out of the room. A hiss escapes my teeth, and I watch his pleased smile reappear.

“Let’s head back downstairs to your betrothed. It will be a big day for all of us tomorrow, and you both need your rest.” He rams his gun into my back hard enough for me to stumble.

A thousand ants seem to crawl over my skin.

Thankfully, I catch myself before I reach the staircase, carefully moving downstairs. The setting sun offers a new hurdle. It’s dark in the space, with only a few high basement windows letting in light.

Every step toward the corner room is filled with new thoughts. I’m bigger than Tyler. I need to find a way to overpower him. The second he uncuffs me, I’ll have to take my chances. If he never removes them, I need to find a moment when his guard is down. When he doesn’t aim his damn gun at me.

Bide your time, and you’ll get your revenge. Lose your cool and lose everything.

When the time is right, I’m going to take this bastard down.

I turn the corner into the room and sigh in relief when I see Eve sitting on the bed. She was probably waiting for me the same way I was waiting for her.

Tyler reattaches my chain and promptly walks toward the doorway. “Night, night, my pets. See you tomorrow.”

Eve and I immediately turn toward one another, holding on to each other’s hands like they’re our lifelines.

I lean in as close as possible and open my mouth to say something, but Eve is faster.

“Ruby thinks he can’t hear us if we whisper.”

My eyes go wide. “Ruby talked to you?”

“No, but she had a message ready on her phone for me and slid it over with my food when Tyler was distracted.”

I squeeze her hands, wanting her to say more. Wanting her to tell me something that will help us get out of here. “What did she say?”

Eve nods. “She wrote it like short bullet points, but basically she apologized and said Tyler is keeping Mason in one of the upstairs bedrooms, and he’ll kill her and Mason if she disobeys.”

“Anything else?”

Eve sighs. “Something about a signal jammer.”

A low sound emerges from my throat. “Fuck. That complicates things.”

“No cavalry, I’m guessing?”

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