Page 11 of The Unbuttoned Ranger
The hair on her neck rose.
She swung her leg through the window and heard,“You’re forgetting something.”
She gasped when he gripped her wrist. Fighting against his hold, she managed to slide away from him and fell through the window, hitting the iron platform hard. The fire escape shook and rattled. Before she could move, he made it partly through the window. She felt the tug of his grip on the backpack. Rain poured over her, her wet hair slung into her eyes as she battled against him. The backpack slipped off her shoulders and she scrambled to her feet, but he was fast and strong. His fingers wrapped around her ankle and pulled her feet out from under her. She hit the iron again. CaDee clutched the rail, feeling the rusty metal cut into her skin, but she didn’t stop fighting. His legs were still inside the window, otherwise he’d have her right where he wanted her.
She couldn’t allow him to overpower her.
Turning onto her back, she saw his expression lit by the security lamp in the parking lot. He didn’t look like the Danteshe once knew. Evil had chased out any emotion within him. If she didn’t get away, she’d be stuck in his clutches. She’d worked too hard to build her life away from him to go down without the fight of her life.
She brought her foot up and hit him as hard as she could in the face. He howled in pain, engulfed by the booming thunder, and his grip loosened long enough so that she could free herself.
As if her life depended upon it, because it did, she soared down the stairs. She slipped and rolled down the last set, bouncing over the steps until she landed on the asphalt and her breath was knocked out of her.
Jumping to her feet, she ran toward the street hearing Dante’s bellowed threat,“You can’t hide!”
Chapter Five
CaDee looked down at her sleeping son stretched out on the ripped vinyl seat with worn and ragged Tommy tucked under his arm. She held her coffee cup between shaking hands, still trying to calm her anxiety after the altercation with Dante. Her body ached but thankfully she didn’t have any serious injuries.
Mark and Albert were sitting on the other side of the table, looking very concerned, but allowing her a moment to gather her thoughts.
She set her cup down and swallowed against the constriction in her throat.“Thank you for keeping Carsen safe.”
“I still think we should call the police,” Albert blurted as if he’d been saving it up until the right moment.
“He is the police so believe me when I say it won’t do any good.” she said quietly, scanning the inside of the diner. The place was empty outside of two men sitting at the counter, but she’d learned no one was to be trusted.
“There has to be someone who can stop him,” Mark said in a lowered voice.
She didn’t respond. What could she say? She’d lived the horror of Dante for years. At times she felt guilty for hating him so much while she’d gained something so beautiful from their union. She pushed a curl off Carsen’s forehead.
“What will you do, CaDee?” Mark stirred his coffee out of nervous habit.
“We can never go back there. It’s not safe.”
“What about your bag? With the clothes and cash.” Albert had become CaDee’s good friend too. They had the relationship she wished she would have found.“We could go and see if it’s at your apartment. Maybe it’s on the fire escape.”
She shook her head.“No. You two need to stay away from the apartment. Hopefully, he has no clue if you are involved. He has the bag. He’d never leave that behind.”
Mark slid her car keys across the table.“We did exactly as you had asked for us to do if the time came. We drove it and parked it a block down.”
Albert reached into his jacket and took out an envelope. He laid it in front of her.“This was everything I had at the apartment.”
She peered inside at the stack of money.“I can’t take this.” She pushed it back toward the men.
“You’ll need it,” Mark said firmly.“Take it. If not for you then for Carsen.”
All the money she had was in the bag that was now gone.“I can’t thank you both enough for all your help.” Her eyes filled with tears, and she blinked them away. Their friendship had gotten her through a tough time and they’d been so good to Carsen. She didn’t have much back at the apartment, but the freedom had been priceless.
“Do you have plans?” Albert asked.
“I-I don’t know.” Suddenly she had the weight of the world on her shoulders. What would they do now? She’d done a great job with an escape plan but not the future.
“I have an idea. My Aunt Piper was telling me that she’s hiring someone to help around her farm. She can be a bit cantankerous at times, but she’s fair and will make sure you have what you need.”
“I have no clue how to work a farm.”
“I stayed there a few summers.”
