“I told you don’t fuckin’ ask that!”
The car rolled to a stop.
“Remember. I get to watch,” Rhona sang out. “Maybe I’ll even help.”
Boone kicked the back of the driver’s seat. “Shut the hell up, you old cow, or I’ll take care of her and you at the same time.”
Rhona spun around to glare at him. “I already told you, I took precautions. If I don’t return safely, everyone will know about you and Talbot.”
“Don’t say hisfuckin’ name!” Boone screamed with rage and kicked the driver’s seat even harder. Rhona threw the door open and jumped out of the car.
Wait, Talbot? Talbot the rich werewolf? Talbot who was working with Grant on the database?
She had to tell Grant. She had to warn him. But she’d never be able to warn Grant, because she was going to die here.
Why did Talbot want Jeffrey? What would he do to him? What would he do to her, if she didn’t fight to the death right now? Tears filled her eyes and ran down her cheeks.
Boone opened the car door and stepped out. Then he grabbed her and hauled her out, punching her in the head several times as he did so. She kept her hands together behind her back, wincing in pain each time he hit her.
She rolled away from him and leaped to her feet, her hands still crossed together – for now.
They were at the end of a long dirt road, in a thickly forested area. She suspected that Talbot or his men would be coming any minute, to fetch her.
“You never were going to give Jennifer that million, were you?” she demanded.
“Hell, no. Why split the reward?” he sneered.
“She knew that. She sent someone else to the meetup to see what you’d do.” Someone else just as disposable as Jennifer, Celeste imagined. Someone who would never be missed. “You didn’t get a good look at her when she drove past, did you? It was the middle of the night. And then the car blew up. You killed the wrong person.”
At that, he froze, staring at her wide-eyed. “Why would she do that?”
He really was that dumb. He really had to ask. “Because you’re a slimy, lying little toad, and she knew better than to trust you.”
He swore a blue streak.
“That fucking whore!” he screamed, his face red with rage.
She started backing away from him. “That means she’s out there somewhere, Boone. I’d watch your back.”
“She’s getting away!” Rhona wailed.
Boone hurried towards her. When he got close to her, she lunged forward violently, head-butted him and broke his nose. He staggered back, screaming and wailing.
Then she turned and ran for her life. She raced into the woods. She could hear Rhona thudding after her, big and awkward.
“Stop! I’ve got a gun!” Rhona screamed. A shot whizzed past her ear.
She dodged behind a massive oak tree.
“Don’t make me shoot you!” Rhona whined. “I don’t get paid if you’re dead!”
Frantically, Celeste looked around for anything that she could use as a weapon. There was nothing. No big sticks.
“I’ll kill you!” Boone screamed, his voice high and shrill, and she heard his footsteps slamming into the ground.
This was it, then. She’d make her last stand here, make them chase her down and kill her so they couldn’t use her as bait. She’d do it for Jeffrey.
She turned and ran, and behind her she heard screams. Horrible, gurgling screams.