Page 85 of Justice Denied

Seth shook his head, fighting another wave of nausea. He gritted his teeth and sucked in air, willing his stomach to calm down.

“I didn’t think so.” The man snorted. “Not such a big guy now, are you?”

You wouldn’t be either if someone had hit you on the head and bound your hands.Seth wisely kept that comment to himself. Both men waited without speaking or making a move to exit the vehicle. In the outside darkness, no lights provided any clue as to where they were. The SUV’s headlights shone on a gravel road with trees on either side. Someplace rural, which could be in the middle of nowhere or down the street from civilization.

A phone buzzed, and the passenger answered. “Yeah, we’re here with the two packages.”

He listened, then dropped a string of curses. “You ordered us to grab these two and you’re saying you’ve changed your mind? What are we supposed to do with them now?”

He yanked open the door and climbed out, shutting it with enough force to shake the entire vehicle. Seth leaned into Jetta’s shoulder, trying to comfort her as best he could. This didn’t sound good at all. More importantly, whoever had ordered them snatched was backpedaling, which meant they had suddenly become a liability instead of an asset.

The man returned to the vehicle, sliding into the seat without closing the door. “She will regret this.”

“What’s going on?” The driver turned to his companion. “Are we going to get paid?”

“Shut up and let me think!”

“No, you tell me what she said.”

“Out of the car.” The passenger exited the vehicle again and the driver did as well, leaving the car running and the doors closed. The two men met in front of the hood, their bodies silhouetted in the headlights.

Seth wasn’t going to waste this chance to escape. “Can you reach the door lock button on the passenger side?”

Without waiting for Jetta to reply, he looped his hands over the headrest on the driver’s side and launched himself onto the middle console. As his knees hit the hard surface, the door locks clicked with a satisfyingsnick.

“Hey!” One of the men had spotted his movement and rounded the hood, but Seth had his legs over the console. The other man headed toward the passenger side of the vehicle. Seth would not let them get their grubby hands on Jetta again.

He didn’t pause but maneuvered his body into the driver’s seat. Once there, he used his bound hands to put the car into drive. Pressing down on the accelerator, he gripped the steering wheel at the bottom with both hands as the SUV lurched forward.

One of the men banged on a back window. Jetta screamed. Seth gave the vehicle more gas, and it leapt forward.

In the rearview mirror, he spied the passenger raising his weapon, the red of the taillights giving the scene an otherworldly appearance. “Get down!”

The gunshot shattered the hatch window right before the gravel road turned. He nearly lost control of the vehicle as he navigated the tight left, his fingers tingling and his wrists burning. But he managed to keep all four wheels on the gravel.

“Jetta, you all right?”

“Yes.”

His heart zinged with relief at her voice and confirmation she was okay. Now to figure out where they were.

“The driver took his phone, but the navigation system is displaying the map with our location.”

Excellent. With his limited ability to steer, he couldn’t take his eyes off the winding road. “Can you read the map and tell me where we’re headed?”

She leaned forward between the front seats. “Not quite sure, as it appears we’re on some unnamed road. But it looks like we’ll connect with Dry Mill Road soon.”

“Okay.” His hands ached from the zip ties and strain of managing the wheel. He thought about stopping and having Jetta drive, but fear their kidnappers had called in reinforcements kept him in the driver’s seat. “Do you see anything you can use to cut these zip ties?”

“Nothing back here, but I’ll check the console.” She opened the compartment. “Nothing. Maybe there’s something in the glove compartment. Could you stop for a minute so I can switch to the front passenger seat?”

“Let’s get to the main road first. I don’t want to stop until we’re farther away from those guys.” He wrestled with the wheel as the SUV hit a pothole.

“Okay.” She sat back, and he missed her closeness.

Which was ridiculous. They’d shared one kiss, and while he longed to repeat it, she had pulled even further away of late. That hadn’t stopped him from developing a burning need to not only protect her but to cherish her all the days of her life. He glanced at the map, which showed their blue dot only a few feet from the road. Sure enough, as they rounded a slight curve, the headlights showed a paved road up ahead.

He halted the SUV a few feet from the verge. “I think it’s safe if you want to get in the front seat.”

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