Page 143 of Rear View
“Sean!” Alec snarled.
“The Hawthorne Circuit.”
The circuit. Sure as hell it was a message…for me. No other reason to go there.
“Last chance to change your mind, Alec.” I side-eyed him. “Shit’s about to get ugly.”
“Drive the damn car, asshole.”
I gave him a tight nod. My foot dropped. I punched it, doing a 180 as I whipped the thing around. “Use my phone. Call EPD. Let me talk.”
He cocked a brow in question.
“Cops are comin’ whether they like it or not.” ’Cause I was about to become a problem. I wasn’t trusting them to do shit. But the point was Ryah. Forcing them to move meant more people headed her way. Yeah, I wanted the backup, but I wasn’t counting on it.
Alec’s smirk was dark as hell. He made the call. When it was done, I rolled my shoulders and got to work.
He pointed out obstacles as I tore through the city, the car’s engine loud as it echoed off the buildings. Vehicles honked, people dodged. I kept glancing skyward. The first siren blared, then the second. The familiar sight of red and blue cruiser lights painted the night. Giving chase.
The whop, whop, whop of the helicopter sounded out.
I stared straight ahead and slowed my breathing, then my heart. I drew my lip up, baring my teeth. “Here we fuckin’ go.”
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Ryah
My head pounded as my blood drummed behind my eyes. The hum of Barlowe’s tires filtered in, the whir of his fast-moving engine loud.
Leaning against the front passenger door, I stared wide-eyed out into the bleak, dark night. The headlights lit the Hawthorne Circuit sign before those all-too-familiar mountains came clear in the distance.
Adrenaline seared my veins, my body trembling. But I couldn’t let the panic take over. I needed to think.
“You’ve been a bad girl, Ryah Jane,” Barlowe crooned, then accelerated. The car lurched toward the security gate. My arms flew up, shielding my face as we crashed through it. Metal shrieked against the bumper before that gate tore away and we blew by.
My body went rigid, my brows lowering as I shifted in my seat to glare at him. He veered us toward the mountainside, then started climbing.
Gesturing at the road ahead, he said, “Your boyfriend took you here once.”
He had. Teaching me how to drive…and breathe again.But I hadn’t shared that day widely, which meant only one thing. “You were tracking me.”
“Always.” Barlowe lifted a shoulder, then, as if I were an idiot, said, “How else would I keep tabs?”
I needed to keep him talking. For what, I had no clue, but the blaring warning in the back of my mind told me it mattered. “Why me?”
He stared straight ahead, menace brimming in those cold, calculating eyes. “Because it amused me to control you. Because it was fun to see your fear.” His stare raked my way, sending a chill down my spine. “Because Icould.”
He was twisted beyond help or reason, so talking my way out wasn’t possible. But the gun…where the hell was the gun? My gaze flicked around. “Why take me here? Why take me at all?”
“Because you and Stanley caused a very big problem for me. I can’t go back anymore. My options have run out. And I’m simply not willing to share.” He flourished his hand. “The setting is apropos. It’s too bad, really. You were so obedient until that driver came along.”
I rubbed my scar and swallowed hard. My attention darted across the car as I looked for something—anything—to defend myself with. Light caught on the butt of his gun where it poked from the belt of his dress pants. My heart drummed in my chest. “He’ll come, you know.”
His lip arced up. “Sooner or later.”
My tone darkened when I vowed, “Sooner. Much goddamn sooner.” Taking a deep breath, I steeled myself. Three. Two. One. I lunged, grabbing for the gun.
He cursed, the wheel jerking when he latched on to my wrist. The car skidded as he fought to keep control. My fingers brushed the cold metal.
