Charged

The man gasped as I put even more pressure on his arm. “I wanted to ask you to use your phone. I have a flat and I forgot mine at home.”

I grunted and leaned farther into him. I used my free hand to give the man a quick pat-down and turned out the pockets on his coat; I wasn’t surprised when a switchblade fell out of one and when I found a gun in the other. I took the snub-nosed revolver and tucked it into the back of my pants, under my suit jacket, and shoved away from the man, who turned around and immediately groaned and listed to the side as his injured shoulder was released.

He blinked at me through a scowl as I kicked the knife under the truck.

“I thought you were some kind of suit. The guys said you were an attorney, not a fucking commando.”

I pushed him out of my way and reached for the door handle once again. “I wasn’t always an attorney. The guy that pays you should have done more research.” I wanted to tell him that he could pass that message along to his co-workers, but I didn’t want the men that had Avett to have any kind of heads-up that I was coming after my girl and that I would do whatever needed to be done in order to make sure she was safe and returned to her parents unharmed.

The truck started with a growl and I was pleased that the state patrol already had people on the highways and interstates looking for the SUV. I gave them directions to the turnoff and tried to explain the best way to get to the cabin, but I knew that it would eat up too much time as they combed the dense wilderness that surrounded the homestead. I was the only one that was going to get to Avett before something unthinkable happened.

I sent a haphazard text to Brite giving him the general vicinity I was sure that Avett had directed the men to take her and wasn’t surprised at all when he told me the men that had freed him were already on the road. No one was going to let Avett fight this battle on her own, even though that was what she had set out to do. Her actions might seem brave and heroic to some, but I knew her well enough to know that she was once again surrendering herself when she didn’t have to. Avett wasn’t planning on leaving those mountains alive if that meant the people she loved were safe. I wanted to throttle her for being so noble and so stupid. When I got my hands on her, she would never again be able to doubt that she was the most valuable thing in my life and that if she sacrificed herself for the greater good I would be left with nothing.

A car honked at me as I drifted lanes because I was focused on my phone instead of my driving. I put the device away and floored the big truck, making it jump and speed up to miles per hour the big beast wasn’t ever made to see. The body vibrated around me as the engine roared. I kept my eyes locked on the road as I weaved dangerously in and out of city traffic on my way to the interstate that would take me out of town. I hoped no one called the cops on me, and if they did, I had no intention of stopping until I hit the turnoff that led to the cabin. The cops were going to have to follow me into the mountains, that was all there was to it.

The drive typically took a little over three hours. I made it in two and was amazed I didn’t get pulled over. The truck was screaming and my nerves were shot when I rounded the last turn with gravel kicking up and the tires barely sticking to the road, but I saw the turnout and the black Yukon. I also saw the guy that was sitting behind the steering wheel perk up and take notice as I came to a skidding halt in a cloud of dust and exhaust in front of him.

It was a less than subtle entrance, but when he reached for his phone, presumably to call in a warning that I had joined their party, my foot found the gas pedal and before I could fully think about what I was doing the truck lurched to life again and raced hard and fast for the front end of the Yukon.

Metal shrieked against metal, and the air bag knocked me stupid when it deployed, but when I was able to shake the fuzzy from my vision, when I adjusted to the ringing in my ears, and the tang of blood on my tongue, I noticed that the entire front end of the SUV had crumpled up like an accordion up to the windshield and the driver was slumped over his own deployed air bag and steering wheel, limp. His face was covered in blood, and he didn’t appear to be moving. Smoke billowed up from the front end of both the vehicles and it was obvious that neither was going to make it back down the mountain without some help.

I was wobbly on my feet as I climbed down from the cab, and when I touched my fingers to my forehead where something was burning, I wasn’t too surprised they came away smeared with crimson. I’d knocked my own head pretty hard in the collision but not hard enough that I was going to go into the woods without making sure the driver couldn’t get away, in case the state patrol showed up.

As I walked to the mangled vehicle, I made sure to tuck the gun I took from the thug back into my belt, because I wasn’t taking any kind of chance when I knew I was the only hope Avett had of getting out of these woods alive. It took a bit of effort to pry open the door, considering the way the front was smashed in; the driver flopped to the side without the metal there to prop him up. He definitely wasn’t going anywhere soon, but I still pulled my tie off of my neck and used it to lash the man’s wrists around the steering wheel several times. The silk pulled tight and I knew it would be impossible for him to work his way free unless he ripped the steering wheel loose and, considering his current state, that seemed highly unlikely.

I shook my head—hard—to get my focus back and cringed as the motion sent blood spattering to either side of me. I looked down at my wingtips and swore I would sell everything I owned to be dressed in jeans and hiking boots. If I’d ever needed a sign that all the expensive and luxurious stuff I surrounded myself with was absolutely useless when it came right down to it, this was it. Right now, I needed to be the man I tried so hard not to be in order to be someone worthy of the girl I was trying to save.