Page 55 of Dark Reunion

CHAPTER 20

MAEVE

Maeve clenched her eyes shut as they rolled over what she originally thought was going to be a ditch, but was much steeper. They flipped, becoming ragdolls inside the vehicle. She clung to the arm Wolf held across her chest as her side window smashed out with a loud shattering sound.

She’d never forget the sound crushing metal made as they continued to roll before finally coming to a halt with a sudden jerk. They were upside down. She was disoriented and most likely had a concussion, but by some miracle nothing seemed to be broken. She tested her arms and legs, and they moved freely in the dimly lit truck. She pushed on the button to release her buckle but couldn’t get it to unlock.

“Fuck, Waya.” She jabbed her thumb at the button and had to calm herself from having a full meltdown. “Please wake up,” she cried, looking over at Wolf, who hadn’t moved.

A flash caught her attention, and she looked out her broken window to see lights headed her way. The sound of someone yelling out orders pierced through the ringing in her ears.

“Waya,” she yelled and pushed on his arm. “Please wake up. I need you.”

Only a little moan escaped his lips and nothing more. At least he was alive.

“His knife, grab his knife,” she ordered herself. The sound of her own voice was comforting, and it helped her focus.

In the darkness, she fumbled trying to find the knife Wolf always wore at his waist and almost cheered as her fingers slipped around the handle. Pulling the blade free, she braced one hand on the roof and began to cut the straps holding her in place.

As the voices outside became louder, her hand worked furiously to saw through the seatbelt. A soft thudding noise echoed as she landed and quickly righted herself. It was a strange sensation to be inside a vehicle that was upside down.

Duke was laying not far from her, and in the last few minutes of chaos, she’d forgotten about him.

“Oh no, Duke, no, please.” She reached out and touched his side but couldn’t tell if he was injured. His chest was rising and falling, so she took that as a good sign.

Male voices were getting closer, and she was unsure how to release Wolf without hurting him further. She crawled under his hanging body and pushed her back up into his chest before feeling for the two straps holding him to the seat. She sliced through the first one, and he moaned as his chest pressed harder into her back.

Bright flashlights were almost on top of them, so she quickly finished cutting the remaining strap holding Wolf. She almost collapsed with the heaviness of his weight pushing her down, but with sheer willpower and her spiking adrenaline, she managed to lower him to the floor and slip out from under his body.

He was lying awkwardly. Maeve moved his head slightly so she could check for a pulse. Her hands were shaking too much to tell, but she was pretty sure that she felt his breath on her hand. Taking a few extra seconds, she ripped the bloodied shirt sleeve off and quickly tied it tight around the bleeding bullet hole wound.

“I love you, Waya,” she said softly and laid a kiss on his forehead. “You better fucking live, do you hear me? Live for me, live for us. Live for your family. I will hold onto every second we spent together until we see one another again, and we will see each other again. Just live.”

She knew what she had to do. It was the only thing she could do to save them both. Pulling on the glove compartment, she yanked it open, and the gun fell out. Grabbing the weapon, she checked to see if it was loaded then crawled out the vehicle’s window as the men reached the bottom of the steep slope. Five men stood around her, helmets with bright lights casting harsh beams, while more stood atop the bank.

“So, is this where you kill me?” she asked, playing stupid.

The man in the front of the group snorted. “Orders have changed. We’re to bring you to our boss.”

“And who exactly is that?” she questioned, even though she was pretty sure she knew the answer.

“That information is on a need-to-know basis, but I must say you’ve proven to be a real pain in my ass,” one guy said, stepping forward from the line.

He wasn’t overly tall but had a wide build with a square jaw that reminded her of a bulldog.

“Oh really? And here I was thinking the same fucking thing about all of you,” she shot back. “What the fuck do you want anyway? Is your boss so bored that he needs to send highly trained soldiers to chase down one lowly girl?”

There was no way in hell Maeve was going to tell anyone she had her memories back or let them think she knew why they might want her.

“Nice try. All you need to know is that I follow orders and the orders were to kill you, but now they’re to capture you.” He turned to one of the other men and nodded his head toward the Hummer. “Kill him, and we’ll take her.”

She whipped out the gun that she’d been hiding behind her back. All the men froze as she put it to her own temple. “One more step, and I pull the trigger.”

“You won’t kill yourself. Keep going,” the leader ordered. Maeve cocked the hammer and once more, they all froze in position.

“You think so? Fucking try me. You kill him, and I have nothing to live for. I’m one of those crazy fucks and will do what I say I will. But by all means, go ahead, kill him and find out what happens. I’m sure whoever you’re working for would be thrilled after all the time, money, and effort you’ve put into capturing me.”

No one moved. In fact, it was so quiet she wasn’t even sure if they were breathing.