Page 9 of The Perfect Kiss
Just as I was about to turn and head toward the back door located at the end of the hall, Gwen grabbed my arm. She held up her index finger to her lips, signaling me to remain silent. I had no idea what she was up to, but when she started moving in the opposite direction toward the kitchen, I held my breath. The last thing we needed was to get caught escaping. While I stood like a statue, afraid to make a move, the thought of what our relationship turned into crossed my mind. We were in love with the same man and should hate each other. But that wasn’t the case. Not anymore. If we got out of here without getting caught, I would do my best in getting to know Gwen with no judgments. We had a connection to one another, no matter how insane it was.
Not knowing what was going on was killing me. No longer could I wait to find out what Gwen was doing. Taking one careful step at a time, I tiptoed toward the kitchen and prayed that I wouldn’t make any sound. As I was getting ready to round the corner, Gwen appeared—scaring me half to death. My hand went to my mouth to muffle the sound of surprise. “Jesus. You scared me half to death,” I mouthed with no sound coming from my lips.
Once again, Gwen placed her index finger across her lips. Then, to my surprise, she lifted her other hand, showing me Crosby’s cell phone. Seeing his phone concerned me and, at the same time, made me happy since it gave us a way to contact Davian.
Gwen stepped past me down the hall to the back door. Once there, she carefully turned the knob. I sucked in a deep breath and held it until she pushed the door open. It was only when we were outside that I let my lungs deflate. Unfortunately, my easiness was short-lived when I saw a set of headlights between the trees slowly approaching the cabin. Gwen must have seen them too because she took hold of my hand and quickly led me away from the cabin. It was awkward running with her holding onto my hand, so I released my hand from hers without hesitation while still keeping up with her as she zig-zagged between the trees.
I had never been so scared. Not because I didn’t know what was out here, but from fear of getting caught. The headlights were getting closer, so Gwen fell to the ground. I immediately followed her and fell to the ground as well. It was strange seeing Gwen this way. She seems so reserved and timid when we first met. I would never in a million years have thought she would be so calm and quick to act. Maybe her internal instinct to survive was taking over. I had no idea what she went through when she was taken five years ago, but I sympathized with her since I knew how I felt when Rui Salko took me.
When we saw the vehicle’s tail lights, we got to our feet and move through the trees. Gwen held up Crosby’s phone, hoping to get a signal. “I think the trees are too thick. We need to find an opening,” she said as she continued walking.
“We need to hurry. Whoever was in that car will surely find us gone.” I picked up my pace, putting a wider distance between us and the cabin.
Gwen was on my heels as I jogged through the thick trees blind. I had no idea where I was going and prayed that we wouldn’t get lost, or worse, caught. All I knew was that we needed to keep moving. If we used the road, it would prevent us from getting lost, but it would be a sure way to get caught.
∞
It seems like we had been walking for hours, and my feet were killing me. Why hadn’t I worn more sensible shoes instead of my favorite kitty heels? Already I could feel blisters begin to form, and taking them off wasn’t an option. God only knew what I’d be stepping on with my bare feet.
My thoughts were elsewhere when Gwen took a firm hold of my arm. “I think someone is out there. I could have sworn I heard voices.”
Standing perfectly still, I waited for any kind of sound. The only sound I heard was the tree leaves rustling against the light wind. Maybe the voices Gwen thought she heard were just the trees talking to each other. Past experience told me that the darkness could play tricks on you. “Are you sure you heard voices?” I asked. “It could be just the trees.”
“I’m sure I heard….” Gwen took hold of my arm. “I told you I heard voices,” she said, barely above a whisper. She was right. I heard them too, and they were definitely all male.
Without hesitation, Gwen and I pressed our bodies against the biggest trees we could find. The voices were getting nearer, and I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. Just when I thought things couldn’t get any worse, Crosby’s cell rang. I left it to Gwen to silence the call before it gave away our position. Besides being scared to death, I couldn’t figure out who else would be in the woods and coming from the other direction unless Crosby found us gone and called in reinforcements. It would explain the car heading toward the cabin.
The sound of crackling leaves beneath heavy boots came closer and closer to where we were hiding. I feared that Gwen and I had a chance of being caught. My instincts told me to run. No way was I going to go back to that cabin. Then it happened. Crosby’s cell rang again.
~7~
Davian
The night provided a blanket of silence other than an occasional breeze whipping through the tree leaves. We were deep inside the wooded area, and as far as I could see with my night goggles, there wasn’t any movement. As we continued to move forward, I could have sworn I heard a cell phone ring in the distance.
“Hold up, guys. I thought I heard something. It sounded like a cell phone ringing.” I held my position and concentrated on the sound I heard.
“I don’t hear anything,” Patton whispered a few moments later.
“Maybe it was an owl or something,” Axe chimed in.
“I doubt it. Let’s keep moving.” I knew what I heard, but I knew we had to keep moving. Time was of the essence.
I wasn’t losing it because just as we moved again, the sound of a cell phone rang through the trees, and it was louder than before. As I stopped my movement once again, I looked around to see the men had also stopped moving. This time they had heard the cell phone, too.
Keeping my eyes focused on the trees ahead of me, I saw something or someone moving 50 feet in front of me.Were my eyes deceiving me?Running away from behind a tree, I could have sworn it was Reyna. The only way to find out was to pick up my pace. I ran between the trees in a full-blown sprint while keeping my eyes on the moving figure. When I got closer, I could see it was a female. I would know that body anywhere. It was Reyna.
Waiting until I was a few feet away, I called out her name. “Reyna, stop.”
There was no hesitation on her part as she turned around to face me. I couldn’t have been more relieved to see her and know that she was okay. Running to each other, we met halfway and wrapped our arms around each other. “I was so scared that Crosby’s men had found us,” Reyna said, holding back her emotions. “He’s a monster, just like his brother.”
Before I could say anything, Axe stepped up behind me with Gwen at his side. When we planned this rescue, no way had I expected to save two women. Even though I didn’t fully trust Gwen, she was out here for a reason.
“I think we should head back before Crosby McCall finds the girls missing.” Patton stepped forward, scanning the area for any movement.
“I’m with you on that.” The last thing I wanted was to put Reyna in any more danger.
I kept Reyna close to my side as we headed back to the SUVs. It was a good mile through the woods back to the vehicles, and I prayed we had enough time to get out of here safely. Even though I would have loved to face McCall face-to-face, keeping Reyna safe was more important. Once we reached the SUVs, I would make a call to the authorities. Soon McCall would get everything he deserved.
