Page 159 of Tangled In Lies

I do as she says, stepping back to block most of the water from her.

She’s close enough for me to feel her warm breath on my shoulder.

“I don’t know what to do, Evie. He has his gun around me nonstop. Earlier, he . . . he tried to kiss me, and I cringed out of reflex. He backhanded me so hard I thought my cheekbone broke.”

That explains the mark on her face and the split lip.

Sniffles break through her uneven breaths. All I want to do is turn around, wrap her in my arms, and tell her everything will be okay. But I don’t do it. I can’t. The last thing we need right now is to make things worse. The fact Tyler hit her when she refused to kiss him is bad enough, and we don’t want to escalate his behavior.

I exhale loudly, the hold on my emotions slipping after her confession. “I cannot tell you how sorry I am that you got dragged into all of this, Ruby. Truly.”

“It’s not your fault he’s crazy.” Her hands leave my hair.

I step aside for her to wash off her hands.

“Rinse.”

I step under the spray and wash off my hair, wishing the water could wash away my worries and problems alongside the shampoo. But when I reopen my eyes, I’m still in the same bathroom, still held prisoner.

Ruby puts conditioner in her hands, and I lean my head back to make it easier for her to apply. “Is Mase okay?”

“I think so.” Ruby works the cream through my strands before massaging the leftovers into my scalp. “He made a bunch of noise, hoping that someone outside would hear him, so Tyler gagged him.”

Oh, Mason.

“I think he also punched him, but I was in the kitchen when it happened.”

“Ruby, why are you still here if he left you?”

She stops but doesn’t take her hands out of my hair. “Evie, he said he’ll kill all three of you if I try to run away. And I believe him.”

Tyler’s threats are simple yet effective. And the bastard knows it.

She sniffles again. “At the café, Tyler, he . . . he, after you left the booth for the bathroom, Tyler pulled me into the hallway. I thought he wanted to make out or something.”

My body is feeling numb and utterly overwhelmed, but I welcome it at this point.

She laughs humorlessly. “When I got there, he coveredmy mouth and told me what he wanted me to do. I thought he was crazy, so I shook my head. There was no way I was going to drug you and lead Phoenix to some house Tyler broke into. But then he held a gun to my head and showed me a picture of a gagged and bound Mason in his trunk. I was so terrified. I didn’t want to do it, but I didn’t want to die either. Or Mase. I couldn’t risk it, Evie. I’m so sorry. Tyler said this was just a fun little game and it would all be over soon if I listened.”

I don’t point out that Tyler might have told her the truth and this will be over soon.

There’s only one problem: he never told her we’d all make it out alive.

Chapter 41

Phoenix

Istraighten the deep-red bow tie around my neck and stare at my reflection in the mirror. Besides the dark circles under my eyes, the hardness in them, and the red, angry flesh circling my wrists, no one would be the wiser that I’m being forced to marry my fiancée at gunpoint.

I’ve wanted to call her my wife for so long that it’s more than just a little unfortunate how things played into my deepest desire in such a fucked-up way.

Tyler steps into the small bathroom. He brought me here a while ago to get cleaned up and dressed for my wedding day.

My wedding day.

This guy is so screwed up, I don’t even know where to start.

Fear is still a constant—both for Eve and me—but I’m also slowly getting frustrated. The anticipation of not knowing what his endgame is, or why he’s doing this in the first place, has me on edge. I’m fidgety and jumpy.

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