Page 51 of Tame Me

“Are you sure?” I ask.

“Yes. Sit back, please,” he says seriously. “Call the guys and tell them we are coming to Meridian.”

“Uh… Okay,” I say. I get my phone out and call Thane’s office number. It rings and rings, but then a man picks up.

“Hello?” he answers.

“Uhm… I’m trying to call Thane Meridian? This is his girlfriend,” I say.

“Oh, okay. This is Earl. The phone lines are all weird today. Everyone is getting calls for each other. Let me go find him, and I’ll have him call you back, dear.”

“Just tell him I am on my way up there, please.”

“I can do that. This is Ayla?” he asks.

“Yeah, his only girlfriend,” I say, not liking how he said that.

“Got it. I’ll let him know, Ayla,” he says. When the call ends, I am still confused.

“Who was that?”

“Earl?” I say. “Something about calls are getting wired to the wrong lines or something.”

“You called his office? Those lines have been down since yesterday because they were routing to a dead line,” he says. “Who is Earl?”

“I have no idea. Unless that’s not his legal name. I do payroll so maybe he’s…”

I scream when we are abruptly rammed from behind, causing the truck to swerve. “Fuck,” Giovanni snaps, stomping on the accelerator. “Hold on, baby.”

“Gio!” I say as I start to panic. We are coming up on a four-way intersection, and Giovanni locks up the brakes, and they scream as we stop mere inches from a car stopped in the middle of the intersection. Giovanni yanks the glove box open and grabs his pistol. He throws his door open and motions for me to come to him. As soon as I move over, a shot rings out that makes Giovanni freeze and stare at me with panicked eyes.

“Gio… Gio, what’s wrong?” I ask, holding his face. He stumbles back a few steps, and I see the blood just as he drops to his knees.

“Run, Bunny,” he chokes out.

“I can’t leave you. Gio, no,” I cry as I get out of the truck. I don’t see anyone behind us, and the car in front of us is suspiciously empty now.

“Ayla, please. Run. Please,” he begs.

I glance over, and I see the SUV hidden behind a building. Josh steps out with a pistol in his hand, and I know I have to lure them away from Giovanni. He needs help, and he can’t get it if I am too close. I quickly unlock my phone and dial emergency services as I step out of my shoes. Giovanni nods once at me, and I turn and sprint away from all of them toward the wood line.

As I get across the road, I hear a gunshot again, and turn to see Josh standing over Giovanni.

I fucking left him to die.

Why did he tell me to run?

I can’t let him catch me.

I have to run.

I need to go.

Josh starts walking toward me, and I turn and sprint down the road. I decide I need to get as far as I can, but I can’t go as fast through the woods with no shoes on.

What I don’t expect is this motherfucker to run me down and tackle me. When I slam into the grass, I start thrashing and kicking, trying to get away. I don’t freeze, but I do stop when he manages to get me on my back as he straddles my body with his gun to my head. “Are you done, Ayla? I told you I was coming for you,” he says with a wicked grin.

Fuck…