Chapter 34 - Jenna

The back of my head was pounding when I came around, being dragged toward a car that was wedged onto the trail. That asshole was grunting, trying to get me into the backseat, his few strands of hair falling into his beet-red face. This was my last chance to get free.

As dizzy as I was from the blows to the back of the head, I kicked out at Hardy and thrashed until he dropped me. Flopping to the leafy ground, I scrambled to my feet, so furious I was almost willing to give up the precious seconds I had to run away by kicking him again.

I made it to the trunk of the car, about to haul myself forward on it for leverage, when the middle-aged lady I'd seen with Hardy at the resort stepped around the side, holding a gun aimed at my face.

Where Councilman Hardy was red-faced and panting with exertion from dragging me, Mrs. Hardy was stone-cold and calm. Dressed like she'd just come from a yoga class in lemon yellow leggings and a light cardigan thrown over her t-shirt, a single strand of pearls disappearing into the neckline, she waved the gun toward the car.

"Just get in and be quiet," she said.

Hardy grabbed a handful of my hair as I was frozen at the sight of the gun barrel, only inches from my nose. He jerked me back and shoved me into the car, hurrying around to the driver's seat. Mrs. Hardy unceremoniously pushed me over to sit beside me, still keeping the gun trained on me as if she did this every day of the week. The car revved to get off the dirt trail and inched its way along until we came to a larger dirt road leading further into the forest.

I had no idea how long I was unconscious while Hardy dragged me to where his car had been hidden, and risked raising my arm slowly so I could dab at the back of my head. Bits of bark and pine needles clung to my hair, and I winced when I found the bloody spot that had slammed into the tree trunk.

"You'll be fine," Mrs. Hardy said without any trace of sympathy.

"You're wrong," I said. "I don't know why you think I'm married to—"

"Shut up," they both interrupted in unison. "The information's been thoroughly checked out," Hardy said, giving me a smug glance in the rearview mirror. "I've been trying to get rid of Lev Fokin ever since he arrived in my city over a year ago."

I shook my head, feigning ignorance for as long as I could. "Who? My boss's last name isn't—"

"Just be quiet," Mrs. Hardy said. "You're not a good actress or a good liar, so stop wasting your breath."

Her tone and the emptiness in her eyes made me wonder if she was the mastermind behind this plan. Hardy himself was sweating like he was about to have a heart attack, and I wished he would. If this was how it was, then so be it.

"You're not going to get away with this," I said.

Anger made me unaccountably brave, or stupid. I'd been thoroughly fooled by Hardy's good guy act, but then again, so had everyone in town who'd been voting for him to stay in office. Lev hadn't been, though, had he? I searched my memory, wondering if there was ever a time he'd spoken out against him when I had nearly idolized the man.

Why hadn't he told me straight out that he was corrupt? Didn't he promise to be honest with me?

He promised to answer any of my questions honestly, and I never once thought to ask anything specific about the councilman. The only thing Lev had told me in regards to him was that things were never black and white. All of Hardy's outreach programs actually did good things for the community, but here he was, bashing me into trees and taking me to some undisclosed location in order to… what?

My blood ran cold, and I stopped thinking about what came next. I stuck out my chin and kicked the back of Hardy's seat.

"You can't possibly think I'm going to go along with your setup now," I said. "As soon as Lev finds out you kidnapped me, he's going to kill you."

It was gratifying to see Hardy go pale and wipe the flowing sweat off his face. But his wife reached over and thumped me in the side of the head with the barrel of the gun.

"What you're doing is the opposite of being quiet," she said.

I made a futile attempt to swipe the gun from her like I'd seen people do in movies, but the barrel slipped through my fingers and only further enraged her. Slapping me hard across the face, she rummaged in her fancy designer bag and pulled out zip ties.

It took every ounce of my strength not to beg her to put them away, and it was only when the gun was pressed into my chest that I calmed down enough that she was able to whip them around my wrists.

Seeing me in this new, pathetic state emboldened Hardy in the driver's seat. He glanced back and laughed. "Your husband isn't going to get the chance to kill me," he gloated. "Because as soon as we get him out in the woods, there's going to be a terrible accident, and he won't be causing anyone anymore problems."

"He'll never fall for it," I said, my throat closing up, because, of course he would. As soon as Lev knew where I was, he'd come for me.

"Oh, come on, it'll be much easier than a divorce. Your only way out of the Bratva, my dear."

This weak, cowardly man, who was only able to goad me and laugh when I was zip-tied by his wife, made me realize that Lev was wrong about things not being black and white. Some things definitely were. No amount of community involvement could negate the fact that Councilman Hardy and his wife were pure evil. The moment their plan to set Lev up went sideways, they immediately turned to a murder plot. Maybe that was their actual plan all along. They deserved whatever was coming to them, and it wouldn't be bad enough as far as I was concerned.

I sat there as we continued winding along the deserted forest road, trying to stay one step ahead of whatever the Hardys were planning. They were obviously using me as bait to lure Lev somewhere, but not if I could stop them. I'd do whatever it took to keep them from killing him.

Maybe that person Lev had been ordering someone to make an example of was no different than the Hardys. Just plain terrible people who couldn't be redeemed. Whatever Lev might do in his business, I'd never seen him be cruel or unfair. He seemed to go out of his way to give his enemies the chance to back down.

Was I trying to justify things that Lev did, or was my way of thinking changing? With the hard plastic zip ties cutting into my wrists, my head bleeding and throbbing with pain, and nasty Mrs. Hardy still pointing a gun at me, I didn't have much sympathy for bad people at the moment. And in my heart, I didn't believe Lev was a bad man.

I spent so much time stoking my anger that I got myself into this mess. I should have shown Lev the first text that Councilman Hardy sent me, asking what the hell was going on between them. One thing I was certain about was that Lev would have given me a straight answer. Oh, maybe he would have waffled around a bit to save my feelings, but I could have pushed. If Lev got hurt or killed, this would be on me.

I closed my eyes and rested my head against the window, trying to let the cool glass ease the recriminating thoughts that pummeled me. I could almost hear Lev's stern voice telling me not to be so hard on myself.

Even as I was about to be used to lure him to his death, that's exactly what he would do. It was the same when he was encouraging me with my classes or hyping up my performance as his assistant. It was a completely fake internship, a cover story to our secret marriage, but he still explained the inner workings of his lobbying company since it was so interesting to me. He did that because he liked seeing my excitement, loved making me smile.

A tear ran down my cheek through my closed lids, but I remained still, not wanting Mrs. Hardy to have the satisfaction of seeing me wipe it away. Oh, what did I do?

Was it going to be too late to ask Lev's forgiveness for my part in this plot? Would I get the chance, or would these evil people succeed?

It might have been a half an hour or more, but we finally arrived at a tiny cabin, deep in the woods. It was little more than one of those places that lost hikers could wait out a storm, and, by the looks of its exterior, had been long abandoned by the park services. With her gun stuck painfully in my side, Mrs. Hardy reached across me to push open my door. The councilman dragged me out and hustled me toward the door.

The wood was practically rotting, and the hinges were rusted and creaky. Every spongy step inside the damp, moldy place made me feel like I was about to break through the filthy floorboards.

I barely got a look around, desperate to see some kind of old-fashioned phone plugged into the walls, but Hardy shoved me into the only other room in the place. I grabbed the handle with both hands, still stuck together, but he was too fast, turning the lock before I could stop him. What did it matter if I was locked in? With them staking out the front room, armed and outnumbering me, there wasn't going to be much of a fight.

This fear didn't compare at all to when Lev had locked me in his bedroom on our honeymoon night. As difficult as it was to my pride to admit, I kind of liked that. Wow, way too late to admit I actually liked his bossy, almost controlling ways. It was my pride all along that kept me angry at him, never letting me accept I liked being married to him. Certainly liked the benefits. And actually liked him.

A whole new vision of my future swirled into my head, so breathtaking that it almost blotted out the pain. I'd been so busy clinging to the long-held dream of running for office one day that I'd ignored my present happiness. And Lev had made me happy.

Oh God, why was I soul-searching when I should be looking for ways to escape? If I gave up now, it would definitely be too late to figure everything out. There was one window in my dinky room, and I pushed aside the dusty, tattered curtains to try to open it. As much as I heaved and tried to turn the lock, it was painted over with several thick, years-old layers and wouldn't budge. My hands hurt trying to pry it open, and blood was trickling from where the zip ties cut into my skin with effort.

There was nothing in the room to try to smash the window with, so I clasped my fists together, closed my eyes, and slammed my hands against the double-paned glass. It rattled but didn't crack, and when I tried it again, Mrs. Hardy burst into the room.

"Knock it off, or we'll get rid of you the same way we're getting rid of your husband."

Hardy appeared behind her, putting on one of his faces, which had tricked me into believing he was a kind, helpful person. I could see his eyes had nothing behind them but malice now.

"Do you want your family to be heartbroken by the tragic accident that claimed both your lives, or do you want to be showered with pity as a new widow?" His cajoling voice made my skin crawl. "There's a place for you in my office when this is over," he continued. "If you cooperate."

As if I didn't see through him and recognize his lies. It might have taken a minute, but my vision was crystal clear where he was concerned. No matter what he said, I wasn't going to make it home, and if I didn't find a way to warn Lev, his blood was on my hands.

All I could do was nod meekly and sink into a corner of the room. They retreated and locked me back in, and I curled my knees to my chest, resting my forehead on them. My hands ached as much as my head, awkwardly pressed against my stomach, which was beginning to churn from the flood of adrenaline.

I made a valiant effort not to cry, but wishing more than anything that I hadn't been so stubborn had me dissolving into tears. The only good thing about the fresh flood of regret and heartache was that it distracted me from the pain in my head that had me yearning towards unconsciousness to get it to cease.