Page 22 of Ruthless Bonds

I shimmied the bag up from behind me and dropped it down. He tossed it into the open door and held up his arms. It looked like there was blood on his hand.

“Why do you have blood on you?” I accused.

“What?” He looked down at his hand, then wiped it on his jeans. “There’s no time for this shit. Jump down.”

I slid down through the opening, but stopped halfway with my chest, arms, and head hanging down.

Great. I was stuck on something. This could not be happening right now. I pulled myself back up into the vent and looked over my shoulder. A screw was stickingout of the metal, and my pants were caught on it.

“C’mon, kid.” Ray looked over his shoulder.

“I’m stuck. Hold on.” I reached down and jerked on my pants to loosen them. At the same time, the sound of police sirens could be heard in the distance. They were close. Too close.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” Ray gripped his head as an alarm blared in the building.

Oh, we were so busted if we didn’t get out of there.

“Come the fuck on,” he yelled.

I reached my hands down through the vent. “Pull me down,” I shouted. “I’m stuck. You have to pull me.”

“The parking gate is closing. Fuck!” He glanced at me, then at the gate, the decision already made in his eyes.

My mouth went dry as he jumped into the car. Tires screeched a second later as he peeled out of the garage.

Oh, my God.

He left me.

He fucking left me.

The sirens were growing louder, and panic raced through me. I wasn’t going to fucking jail. Nobody would be there to take care of Dove and Dylan. They would end up on the streets, or, worse, with Ray.

With all the strength I could muster, I yanked my leg and pulled myself free. But without Ray below to catch me, I dropped about twelve feet down. My palms scraped across the cement as I rolled, pain shooting through my body.

I didn’t have time to think about the pain. If I didn’t escape in the next ten seconds, I’d be trapped.Every inch of my body was on fire as I scrambled to my knees and started running. The gate was sliding shut, leaving just two feet before my fate was determined. I pushed harder, ran faster than I’d ever run before. With about a foot of space left, I slid through and stumbled out into the bushes.

I needed to get out of there and hide until the coast was clear. We were in upstate New York, over two hours away from home. I had no money, no ID, no phone, and no way of getting back. Everything was in Ray’s car, and it wasn’t like he was going to be waiting around the corner for me. He would be on his way back home.

He’d really screwed me over this time. This was the last straw. If he thought I would ever work for him again, he was crazy. I could kill him for this.

Buildings blurred together as I ran, darkness creeping up all around me. Adrenaline kept me moving down side streets and alleyways. I ripped my ski mask off, shoved it in my pocket, then took off my black hoodie and tied it around my waist, leaving me in a white tank top and pants.

Blue and red lights flashed behind me, and I turned down another alley and leaned against the wall. I took in short, rapid gasps as the cop car cruised by, not looking in my direction at all. I jogged down further, keeping as concealed as possible.

This wasn’t New York City, but that didn’t mean it was safer up here in downtown Albany. The quicker I could get out of here, the better. I just needed to find a crowded place, snatch someone’s wallet and get a cab or bus ticket back to Brooklyn.

A wave of calm washed over me as my plan tookshape in my head. I was down, but I wasn’t out.

I realized too late that I was walking down a dead end. To the side of the alley was a restaurant patio. God, when was the last time I’d had Italian food? I didn’t think the SpaghettiOs I’d stolen from the corner store to feed the twins counted.

I glanced around, not seeing anyone. The back door was cracked open, and I took a tentative step closer. Maybe there was a coat with a wallet I could grab. I was a few feet away when the back door swung open and a man stepped out.

And by man, I mean a Greek god well over six feet tall, dressed in a sleek suit with his hair meticulously styled. I ducked behind the dumpster and held perfectly still. Maybe he was the owner. He looked like the kind of man who owned a place like this, not ate in one.

The dumpster reeked of rotting garbage, making me want to gag. I held my breath, waiting for him to discover me. When he didn’t, I inched forward, peeking around the corner.

The man walked down the steps and lit up a cigarette. When he inhaled, the bright cherry illuminated his face. He was the most gorgeous man I’d ever seen in real life. Living in a place like New York, you saw beautiful people everywhere, but not like him. He looked—delicious, like a super-rich guy in the wrong part of town. He couldn’t have been that much older than me.

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