Page 106 of Happily Never After

A strangled yell escaped her throat as she kicked it. She needed to get back to Luke’s for what was sure to be a sound lashing. Now she was going to have to rely on the memory of the one time Roy had showed her how to change a tire when she was a shiny-faced sixteen-year-old.

“I can do this. I went to college,” Claire said as she opened the trunk. If she could ace her sociology final, she could absolutely change a tire. She pulled up the floormat. Where there should have been a tire, there was a crumpled energy drink can. What the hell, Luke? Now what?

Something moved behind her. She whirled around, grabbing the nearest object—a travel umbrella. What was that? Her shoulders tensed and her heart thudded in her ears. It had sounded like pebbles crunching underfoot.

“Who’s there?” she called out, gruffer than usual. Her voice sounded unfamiliar to her own ears. One hand slid into her purse, and she searched past a spare dog leash, pack of sticky notes, and a dozen assorted pens until her fingers rested on the stun gun.

“If you’re after money, you’re going to be sorely disappointed,” she called out to the empty parking lot. There was silence. She shut the useless trunk and put her back to the car.

“If you’re in ESA, I’ll be able to hear you coming because of your tiny, tiny balls clanging together like a Newton’s Cradle.” She took a step to the side. The vaguely threatening tree line was still, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that there were eyes on her. All she had to do was get in the car and lock the door. Then she could call AAA. Or maybe she should run back to the ranch?

She took another step to the side and pivoted. Maybe it was all her imagination. But something inside was screaming at her to call the police.

Her phone was halfway out of her bag when she almost collided with a man leaning against her driver’s side door.

CHAPTER FORTY

To Do:

- Panic

“No!”The word ripped itself from her throat. It was happening again. They had found her, tracked her like an animal. Luke was right to tell her to stay home. Was she going to die? Panic shot through her veins like ice.

Instinctively, she threw her purse at the man’s head. He caught it by the strap and lowered it onto her hood. Her phone tumbled onto the dirt parking lot, and he grabbed it before she could even take a step forward.

Oh hell. She had just thrown every weapon in her arsenal at this stranger. Great job, idiot. Way to not panic.

“Hello, Claire. We’ve been waiting for you,” the man said.

She was silent as she scanned every direction for assistance. Calculations bloomed in her brain like drops of blood. She could run back to the ranch, but he was clearly faster than her. She would never make it. What choice did that leave her?

“Help,” she screamed. “Fire!” Surely one of the four million Angelenos would hear her. She repeated her cry for help. It reverberated off the hills, but there was no answering call.

The man glanced behind him, cocked his head. His arms were casually crossed in front of his scrawny chest, his posture relaxed. Why wasn’t he worried? What did he know that she didn’t?

“No one’s going to come save you, Claire. We’re in the middle of nowhere. Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum won’t hear you this time. They’re dealing with an incident.” He gestured up the hill, where a plume of smoke was rising.

Numbness shot through her arms and nausea rose in a wave. Every cell in her body was screaming, screaming, screaming.Get out.

The man stood up straight. He took a step closer to her. Then another. She stepped back. What were her options?

“You’re a hard girl to pin down. But you’re going to come with me now.” His eyes were blacker than night.

Her blood chilled. Never go to a second location. Her mom had drilled that into her ever since she was a child. If she left this parking lot, she was going to die. They would probably never find her body. Rosie would never know what happened to her. Luke would hunt them down and get himself killed in the process.

Snap out of it. What did she need to do? She had already stupidly thrown every potential weapon she had at him. She had no phone, no Taser or mace. On the off chance she made it out of this encounter alive, she needed to memorize his face. Keep him talking. Buy herself some time. The fire department would have to respond to the fire up the hill, wouldn’t they? They would drive straight past them.

“That’s not going to happen,” she said, surprised at the lack of tremor in her voice. Her hand shook, and she clenched itinto a fist. Could she incapacitate him and get her phone back? “You’re going to get the fuck away from my car and leave this place, or my FBI agent father will personally make sure you go to prison for the rest of your cowardly life.”

“Oh, we know all about your dad. Bit of a dick.” The man took another step toward her. He was short, maybe 5’7”. Skin pale as skim milk. His feet, clad in black sneakers, were too big for his body. Dark, greasy hair was matted to his head. His ears were too small, his nose too red. A toothpick rolled around in his mouth, and a flash of gold peeped from his gumline. A scar slashed through his left eyebrow.

She took a step back. He moved toward her. They marched around the car in a bizarre, waltz-like cadence, each of them keeping their eyes on the other. Maybe she could kick him in the balls and then make a run for it.

Without consulting her, her body hurled itself toward the mouth of the lot. She sprinted, arms pumping at her sides. The gate to the ranch was only fifteen feet away. If she could just get close to enough to call for help, she stood a chance of?—

Something plowed into the side of her head. Pain hit her like a lightning bolt. She cried out as she sprawled, crashing to the dirt lot. She flipped onto her back. He crouched over her, and she aimed a kick at his face. The crunch of bone split the air, and blood poured from the man’s nose. Great. Blood all over her sneakers. But that wouldn’t matter if she was dead.

She threw another kick at his chest and toppled him to the ground. A cloud of dust rose from the lane. Blood dripped onto the earth as she rolled onto her side and clambered to her feet. She lunged forward, but he caught her ankle, and she tumbled again onto the rocks. They bit into her skin, and her head stung from the impact.

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