Page 19 of Sapphire Tears

I just nod.

He scurries around to release me from my restraints. “Are you hurt?”

“No, I don’t think so… but my face hurts. And so does my arm.”

“Let’s get you home,” he says. “I’ll see to your wounds when—”

“We can’t go back there,” I say urgently. “That’s where he found me. He knew exactly where I was.”

Adrian looks momentarily stumped. “Shit. You’re right. That means the laundromat is no longer safe…” He saws away at the ropes that are tying me to the legs of the chair. “Come on, I’ll help you up. Put your weight on me.”

He hoists me up to my feet, but my legs feel like jelly at this point. “I… I can’t walk, Adrian.”

“I’ll carry you to the car,” he says, heaving me up into his arms. It ought to be comforting, but his chest feels thin, frail, insubstantial. Like he might crumble to ashes if I poke too hard.

He grunts as he hauls me over to the car, my world rocking and swaying with every step.

Once I’m tucked into the passenger seat, he dashes around the car and gets behind the wheel. We drive for the next twenty minutes. I don’t ask where we’re going and he doesn’t volunteer the information.

He stops on a deserted stretch of road and turns to me. “How’s the arm?”

“It feels… funny,” I admit.

“Fuck,” he mutters under his breath. “I should have made sure I killed the bastard. Now, he’s probably gonna run off and report to Kolya.”

“How do you know Kolya even sent him?” I ask.

Adrian gives me a look that saysCome on, now.“Who else, June?” he asks. “He’s looking for you, I already told you that. He must be intent on getting our baby.”

“T-that’s not what the man said,” I say, unable to hide the fearful stutter in my voice.

“No?” Adrian asks. “What did he say?”

I’m on the verge of telling him, but then, for some reason, I don’t. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter.” I cover my face with my hands. “I need to rest.”

“I know,” he says softly. “I know.”

“We need to find a place to stay for the night. A motel or something.”

Adrian’s face sours. “No! No motels.”

“Adrian, I—”

“All my money is back at the laundromat. I’ll need to go back there, just to collect my stuff.”

“That’s risky,” I protest. “You just said it’s not safe anymore.”

“Kolya’s not going to expect us to go back right away. He probably doesn’t have any men scouting out the place. It’ll be fine.”

“But—”

“Just trust me, June,” he cuts in.

I’m too tired to argue with him. So when he starts the engine again and steers us back onto the road, I say nothing.

Something occurs to me a few minutes down the highway, just as the city starts to materialize in the distance. “Adrian, how did you find me?”

His face scrunches up strangely. “Oh. Uh, well… I came back to the laundromat and the door had been pried open. There were obvious signs of a struggle.”

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