Beckett looked down at the kind woman who’d been one of the only bright spots in Evie’s childhood, and with every fiber of his being he vowed, “I’ll fucking die for her, if that’s what it takes.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Evie lay in the center of the bed and stared up at the low-lying ceiling. The entire left side of her face throbbed to the beat of her heart, and the corners of her eyes felt uncomfortably tight from the dried-up tears her earlier pity party had created.
But she was done with that now. Done with the tears and cursing her spectacularly crappy luck. Feeling sorry for herself hadn’t helped her when she’d been holed up in that Godforsaken cave, and it sure as hell wasn’t going to help her escape this freaking boat.
Actually, she’d put an end to her self-wallowing sob session several hours before. Since then, Evie had spent the passing of time trying her best to think of a way out.
There was no way for her to know what dangers lay waiting behind that closed door. But just as she had before, Evie knew she had to at least try. Step one was to convince the next person who came into this room to cut the ties holding her captive.
Several minutes passed by, and for a moment, Evie started to think no one would come. But then she heard a shuffling noise from just outside the room. A beat later, the door opened, and the man who’d brought her food earlier appeared.
In one hand was a plate holding a slice of pepperoni pizza. And in the other was a glass with ice and what appeared to be some sort of clear soda.
“You spit in my face again, and you and I are going to have a problem,” the man warned.
“I won’t,” Evie promised. “I promise.”
His suspicious black gaze met hers. With a quick nod of his big head, he set the plate and glass down onto the nightstand, but Evie spoke up just as he started to reach for the pizza.
“But first!” She caught his attention, giving him the best puppy-dog eyes she could muster. “Please, I really need to use the restroom.”
Thanks to her achingly full bladder, she didn’t have to pretend to be ready to burst.
“I don’t have permission to?—”
“I’m not kidding,” Evie spoke the truth. “I’m seriously about to pee all over this bed.” When he continued to hesitate, she let her tears of desperation break through. “Please,” she whispered, not bothering to fight the genuine quivering in her chin. “I promise I’ll be good. I just need to use the bathroom.”
While grumbling something under his breath, the man reached for a small knife sheathed at one side of his waist. Evie felt a hopeful spike in her rising pulse because…
It worked! He’s really going to cut me loose!
Keeping her excitement under wraps was much harder than she’d have ever imagined, but she managed to school her expression so he wouldn’t suspect her of having ulterior motives.
He held her left wrist steady with one hand and the knife with the other. The man’s upper body hovered directly over her face, his cologne unable to fully mask the scent of sweat as he slid the blade of the knife between her skin and the plastic tie.
Evie held her breath and waited, the anticipation enough to drive her certifiably mad. She was so busy trying to think threesteps ahead that she hadn’t expected the sudden rush of pain that immediately filled both arms the second she was freed.
A small whimper escaped before she could stop it, and she cursed the show of weakness. Then she remembered guys like him probably viewed every woman as inferior, and she pushed the useless thought out of her head.
It didn’t matter what this man thought about her. The only thing she needed to focus on was getting the hell out of here and back home.
To Beckett.
Please, God. Please, help me find a way back to the man I love.
“Come on.” The man grabbed hold of Evie’s arm and pulled her to her feet. “Make it quick.”
“Okay, okay.” She stumbled the first few steps. “Please. I haven’t walked for several hours, and my legs need a moment to adjust.”
A deep, frustrated sigh filled the room, but he granted her request and stopped moving long enough for her to regain her footing.
“Thank you,” Evie offered sincerely, even going as far as to look up at the man and smile.
The only response she got was a deep grunt and another tug on her arm, but at least he didn’t get angry or strike out at her, so that was progress…right?
“Stay here,” he ordered when they got to the bathroom door. “You move, I tie you back up, and you can lay in your own filth.”