Page 52 of In My Blood
“I’ll allow you to believe that for now, big guy, but don’t underestimate me. I don’t follow orders well,” I told him playfully.
“Seem to follow them just fine to me. I think you might even enjoy it in the right environment,” he teased, throwing me a wink as I stood stock still choking on fresh air at his suggestive words. Where the hell did that come from?
Callan just bust out laughing when I looked to him in shock, then dragged me behind him after Dante without even a word.
***
“Oh my God! Was that your stomach?” Callan laughed from where he sat across the back seat of the Range Rover, which Dante was driving us home in, later that afternoon. I was just relieved the shopping was over. Dante had refused to leave the shopping centre until we had literally bought everything he had on a list he had written, even down to me buying waterproof trousers in case of the event of deep snow. I did try to point out that we lived in the centre of London, where the streets wouldquickly be cleared, but one thing I learned fast about Dante that day, was that he was not a man who relented easily, or at all it seemed. He was blunt, short, and very direct, but I didn’t hate it. Honesty was a pleasant change and I could respect that.
Callan had gentled Dante’s rough edges, and made things more fun, so that even after hours of trudging from store to store, I still found myself smiling and happy to be with the both of them, as different as they were.
“We should have stopped to eat. I’ll find somewhere we can stop now,” Dante announced as he looked to me via the rearview mirror up front.
“No. Let’s just go home, please. I’m not that hungry, but I am completely worn out. I just want to take these shoes off and relax.”
I had been forced to borrow an old pair of Gia’s sneakers, since I didn’t know where my own had gone. I had a sneaking suspicion Rafe or Dio had stolen and hidden them so I couldn’t run away the first night, but I didn’t accuse anyone. Instead I just asked Gia to borrow a pair of hers. It had been fine for the first hour, but they were three sizes too big for me, and they had started to rub me as my feet slipped in and out of them, somewhere around hour two. Now they just hurt a lot.
“She’s right Dante. Her feet hurt in Gia’s shoes. Let’s just go home and Terza can make us all a sandwich or something,” Callan suggested. I was relieved when Dante’s grunt was followed by a nod of agreement.
“Thanks,” I whispered as I looked to Callan gratefully.
“How about you take those trainers off now? I can carry you into the house when we get home.”
“If you’re sure? They are killing me,” I groaned dramatically.
“I think I can manage it,” he laughed. “I’m not quite as nerdy as I look…or maybe I am, but I’m a nerd who works out too.”
“I believe you,” I assured him with a smile. I leaned down to unlace the sneakers then slid my feet out of them one at a time with a wince of pain. I’d been wearing my own socks and the ones Callan gave me, but apparently it wasn’t enough to stop the too big shoes giving me blisters and making my feet bleed. The blood had soaked through both socks on my heels.
“Ouch. Let me take a look, Cara,” Callan said as he went to grab my foot.
“No way! You are not touching my gross feet!” I cried.
“I’m a medical student. I think I can handle a few blisters,” he argued. We were both laughing as he tried to grab my feet and I scrambled to keep them away from him.
“Fuck!” Dante’s hissed curse had us both freezing in place and looking to the front.
“What?” I asked when Dante just continued to look in the rearview mirror and not utter a sound.
“Fuck! The team following us just got cut off at the lights by a huge fucking lorry. It looked like a set up. Check your seatbelts and stay low!” he explained as he put his foot down and the car sped up so fast I was thrust backwards into the seat.
“You think someone’s, what? Coming after us?” I asked as I tried to turn to look out of the back.
“Stay down, Cara,” Callan said as he grabbed my arm and pulled me across the middle seat so I was bent down over it sideways. “Do we have a tail?” he asked Dante.
“We do now. Fuck!”
The car started to swerve around, but I didn’t lift my head to look out of the windows, mainly because I couldn’t because Callan was holding me down with a hand on my back. Also because I was freaking out that whoever was following us, was probably coming to try and abduct me, just like those men in the parking lot of the club in Chicago.
“Arran, I need back up right now!” Dante barked loudly, and I could only just hear him over the squealing of the tyres of the car as we sped all over, or at least it felt that way. I was being thrown around all over the back seat, and Callan was the only thing keeping me in place as he held tightly onto the tops of my arms.
“The team was cut off from us and we have a tail. Three dark SUVs. Track the location and get some men the fuck over here!”
“Do ye still have Cara and ma brother with ye?” Arran asked.
“Why do you think I need back up? I’d have led them all into a trap and killed the bastards if I were alone!” Dante bit back angrily. I don’t know if he ended the call, or Arran did, but they didn’t talk again after that.
“What’s the plan here?” I asked as I gathered my wits enough to get the words out. They trembled slightly, but other than that I was keeping it together pretty well.
