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There’s no way. . . .
She typed in the four digits and blinked in surprise. It had worked! To her relief and astonishment, the phone unlocked, revealing a virtual treasure trove of information. Mia's fingers flew across the screen, navigating to the messages app. She scrolled through the list of contacts, searching for Savannah's name. Her pulse quickened with each passing second, the anticipation building like a fire inside her.
"Come on, where are you?" she whispered, finally spotting the name she sought: “Savvy.”
As she tapped on the conversation, she braced herself for what she might find. The most recent message was sent from this phone just an hour ago. It read: “I will never, ever bring Mia back to you.”
Mia felt a cold shiver running down her spine. Her heart hammered in her chest, each beat a frantic plea for help. The fear that had been simmering beneath the surface now threatened to boil over, consuming her entirely.
Jax had kidnapped her. He had taken her to the forest, off-grid. He had fucked her and now he was planning to kill her.
She was about to scroll through more messages when she heard Jax’s voice outside the tent. He sounded like he was a few yards away. “Damn, that water’s cold!”
What should she do? Her hands were shaking. Should she run? Try to bash him in the head with the phone when he walked in here?
Her fingers tremored as she hastily typed out a message to Savannah. “HELP MIA,” she wrote and hit the send button.
"Shit, shit, shit," she muttered under her breath as she tossed the phone back in Jax’s backpack. She couldn't believe she was doing this, but what choice did she have? Jax had become an enigma, and her instincts screamed that something was terribly wrong.
As the zip on the tent began to open, Mia braced herself for what was to come, her fingers clenching into fists and her jaw tightening with determination. She refused to let fear define her or control her actions any longer.
"Bring it on," she whispered, as the tent's flap began to rustle.
Chapter fifteen
Jax
Jax stood by therushing river, his fingers numb as he splashed his face with cold water. His heart raced, thoughts consumed by the message he had seen on his phone earlier that morning. He had checked it secretly, to make sure that Mia wasn’t being chased. After an incredible night together, Jax was desperate to take Mia back to Chicago, to meet Savannah, and to start a new life wherever she wanted without having to be on the run.
But his eyes had nearly popped out of his head when he saw the message. It was from an old hacking partner of his, Viper. Jax and Viper hadn’t been in touch for years. Viper had turned out to making a ton of money doing nefarious things and he and Jax had parted company on bad terms around ten years ago. Since then, Viper had clearly somehow gotten caught up in the trafficking industry. And now he had returned like a snake in the shadows.
"Give her back," the message from Viper read. Jax's mind had reeled at the idea that his former hacking partner-turned-enemy was responsible for Mia's kidnapping.
"Damn it, Viper," Jax muttered under his breath, his hands shaking as he rinsed them in the frigid water. "What do you want with her?"
He tried to clear his head, focusing on the soothing sound of the flowing water and the cool breeze against his face. But the image of Viper's message haunted him, a constant reminder of the danger waiting for them.
It sucked that Mia had caught him looking at his phone this morning. He’d only just dealt with Viper’s message, and answered a concerned text from his brother Nash, when she’d looked over his shoulder and seen what he was up to.
He should have told her the truth. Everything. But he was trying to protect her.
Jax shivered, goosebumps forming on his skin as he hastily finished washing in the frigid river water. The cold was biting, but it was the gnawing guilt that truly spurred him to hurry. He couldn't bear leaving Mia alone any longer. As water droplets clung to his muscular frame, he made a decision.
"Time to come clean," he muttered to himself, pulling on his clothes with haste. "She deserves the truth. About all of it."
He jogged back to their makeshift campsite, his heart racing with a mixture of anxiety and determination. He was going to tell her everything—but not until they’d packed up and moved on. He didn’t want to panic Mia, but they were going to have to leave this place pretty fast. Now that he’d checked his phone, Viper would be able to pinpoint this exact spot. They needed to get out of here within the hour.
“Damn, that water’s cold!” he called out as he headed for the tent, hoping that alerting her to his presence would mean she wouldn’t be startled when he entered.
The tent's entrance loomed before him, its flimsy fabric concealing secrets that threatened to unravel their fragile bond. Taking a deep breath, Jax unzipped the entrance and stepped inside.
"Hey, babygirl, we need to talk—" His words caught in his throat as he took in the tense figure sitting before him.
Mia glared at him, green eyes blazing with anger and mistrust. In her hands, she gripped a can of pineapple like a weapon, ready to swing at a moment's notice.
"Uh, Mia?" Jax stammered, taken aback by her defensive stance. "What's going on?"
"Cut the crap, Jax," she snapped, her voice tight with fury. "You're hiding something from me, and I'm not gonna stand for it anymore."
