Page 78 of Venom and Velvet

“Open it.” I was breathless as he ripped it open.

My pulse quickened as each second passed, and he dumped out the contents of the bag. A dress fell out, and I blinked rapidly.

“That’s my dress!” Excitement ran through me as I picked it up. It was covered in blood and practically ripped to shreds. It looked like someone had cut it from my body. My stomach rolled as I saw a flash of Ryzen screaming at me, his eyes murderous. I squeezed my eyes shut and shook my head.

No, don’t freak out. Now is not the time.

The chain of the onyx necklace was tangled in the chiffon, and I tugged it loose. Most of the stones had been knocked loose, except the big black one. The watch lay on the ground, the band broken, and I picked it up.

“The FBI gave these to me. There’s a camera in both of them. I just have to…” I pressed the buttons on the side of the watch, but nothing happened. The same thing happened when I pressed on the necklace. Absolutely no indication that they were working. My gut told me it was a dead end though. If the tracking device in the watch had been working, the FBI would have shown up already.

“Never mind, I think they are too damaged.” I tossed them on the ground and grunted in frustration.

“Here’s the phone.” He gripped it and held it up, his face lighting up with a smile. The screen was cracked, but otherwise looked OK. He pressed the button on the side, trying to power it on. The screen turned white, and then black.

“Is it broken? Press the button again.”

Valik pressed the buttons on the side, then all over the screen. “It looks on, but the screen won’t work. We can’t make any calls. Fuck.” He shook his head and handed it to me. “It’s garbage.”

I wasn’t going to give up that easily. Maybe it just needed to be charged.

“OK, if this is all useless, then it’s time for a different plan.” I stood, almost stumbling over the hole. I threw the dress, necklace and watch back in the ground and started covering it back up with dirt.

He raised his eyebrows as he helped me. “Which is?”

“Come with me.”

We made sure the holes were covered back up and that they looked untouched. The last thing we needed was for Ryzen to come out here for whatever reason and find out that someone had been messing around in his little dirty den of secrets.

We made our way up the hill and down the slope of granite. The sharp edges of the rock dug into the soles of my shoes, making my feet hurt. But it would all be worth it when we were out of here. He followed me down the ladder on the side of the pier and over to the little boats.

He let out a whistle and scrunched up his nose. “These are fucking tiny, Nova.” He stood next to one, and I gulped. They were the perfect size for me, but to someone like Valik who was well over six feet and built like a firetruck… no, it might be too dangerous for us both to fit in one. It made more sense to take them both. Especially if something happened to one of the boats out on the open water.

“OK, well, let’s go over our options again. We have no cell phone, so we can’t call for help. What about the walkie-talkies, can we call someone on the mainland from those?” I placed my hands on my hips, nibbling on my bottom lip.

He shook his head and exhaled sharply. “No. The other guards or Ryzen would hear us. We would be caught right away.”

“OK, and the ferry is not an option because it only comes twice a week and it’s far. We would never get there without a car. Ryzen would find us right away.”

He eyed the little boats, his back tensing as if he’d just realized he was going to have to squeeze his big-ass body into one. The silence between us stretched.

“It’s fucking dangerous out there on the open water, Nova. If the tide is too strong or the current works against us, we could get lost or be out there for hours.” He was talking more to himself than to me. “I don’t know, it might be too dangerous.”

I dug my nails into my palms, my lips in a flat line. “I’d rather take my chances out there on the open water than here with Ryzen.” There was no way I could stay here another day. If Ryzen was having a priest come out here to marry us, then who the hell knew what he had planned after that? Nothing good. No, I wasn’t going to die on this island, especially not at the hands of Ryzen Goodacre. “No, we need to go, and it has to be tonight. I’m out of options.”

“OK.” Valik looked over the water. “OK, if it stays clear all night, then we got a shot.”

I wrapped my arms around him and squeezed. “We can do it, Valik. I know my arm is fucked up, but we can make it there. I know it.”

He chuckled and patted the top of my head. “I will never underestimate you again, Nova.”

We washed our hands in the water, scrubbing all the dirt and grime from them. We walked back, coming up with a plan.

“We’ll leave at midnight. Ryzen will be asleep by then,” Valik murmured as we got closer to the house. “I’ll try to find a lantern or flashlight. We can’t use it in the woods, but it might come in handy out on the water.”

Butterflies flew around in my stomach, and I held my hand there and tried to control my breathing. I wasn’t going to lie, this was fucking terrifying, but there was no choice. Escape or die trying. End of story.

“And Nova, dress warm. We’re going to get wet and the last thing we need is hypothermia.”

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