Chapter Sixty-Four

Danica

W e ride in silence on our way to the hospital. My thoughts are racing as I go through the possibilities over what could have happened to Jonathan. I had visited him earlier in the day, before heading into the office and everything had seemed fine at the time. He didn’t look like he was feeling unwell, as he moved about his apartment. In fact, he had been griping about wanting to get back to our sparring sessions because he was going stir-crazy sitting around waiting for news from Finn. Oh no! What if he had done something reckless? Gotten some crazy idea in his head to try getting back into the gym? He could have seriously re-injured himself.

I am so lost in my own thoughts that it takes me a few moments to register that we drive past the main entrance of the hospital, instead, heading down a side road that leads to the back side of the building.

“Um, Tony, I’m not sure if you’re aware; you probably don’t come to the hospital often, but the main visitor entrance was actually back that direction.” I gesture out the window to the opposite end of the lot from where we are currently headed.

Glancing over at me, he smiles and reaches across the console to give me a reassuring pat on my hand. “I know. The employee entrance is over this way. I have a friend who can get us in without the hassle of having to go through the emergency department. Speaking of, why don’t you let your friend know we’re just about here? ”

“Right. That makes sense. Okay, yeah, shoot. I should let him know.” I pull my phone out of my pocket to shoot a quick message to Roberts, letting him know we just made it to the hospital and would be parking closer to the employee entrance.

Tony carefully weaves through the crowded parking lot, maneuvering around patient’s walking to and from the connected buildings. He turns, rounding a sharp corner and suddenly, the campus seems much less crowded. There aren’t people milling about over here, just a few harried employees, looking down at their phones as they travel out of the building. Driving slowly, he slows down, passing the employee entrance to turn into a garage that looks mostly empty.

“It’s an employee garage. Permit only.”

I don’t bother responding as he parks the car and I reach for the handle. “Here, let me get that for you.”

Quickly, he hops out of the car and rushes around the front to my passenger door to my side. I unbuckle as he goes to open my door, checking to make sure that I have my phone with me, and as I move to get out, I feel a sharp sting, and my world goes dark.

With a groan, I blearily blink back against the darkness threatening to drown me. Nausea hits me like a tidal wave, and I bite back a groan. My brain feels heavy, weighed down by a fog that I can’t quite blink away. I feel tired. So, so very tired. What happened to me? The world fades to black once more.

My sense of awareness comes back in mismatched patches through the inky haze clouding my brain. Eyes heavy, my body is leaden, but there is a tingle in my fingertips as I become aware of a swaying motion. There is a ringing in my ears. What the hell happened? I move to bring a hand to my aching head, but can’t move them; a sharp pain in my shoulders and biting at my wrist feels like the familiar touch of an old enemy and I fight against the fog clouding my thoughts. Shit. My hands are tied behind my back. What the hell happened?

I still can’t open my eyes, but the realization that I appear to be restrained has me doubling my efforts to focus. Taking a deep, slow breath, I still my body, falling back on years of training as I concentrate on what I do have control over.

The ringing is starting to clear, and from the swaying motion and white noise I would assume I am in a moving vehicle. Okay. Think. I’m bound, lying on my side, not yet in full control of my body. Think, Danica. What were you doing? What do you remember? The haziness clears a little more, and I can hear a voice, talking to me? No, not me. Must be someone else in the car? Or on the phone? With deliberate effort, I fall back into long-practiced habits of slow, even breaths, pretending to be asleep, or in this case, unconscious.

“I got her. No, there were no complications. Yeah, didn’t even fucking hesitate, just went running. It was a good call, using her friend as bait, but the stupid bitch wasn’t even at her work. No, just like I thought she would. First chance she got away from those two idiots, she left the safety of her office. Yep, plain view, in public, made it too easy. . . No, you listen! I held up my end of the fucking bargain. I got the bitch for you, now you need to deliver. . . You better! Or I’ll fucking kill the little whore myself.”

That voice. . . it sounds so familiar. . .

Oh shit! Memories come rushing back. Darrion and Jayce leaving, running into Tony at the coffee shop, the call from Roberts. Oh no! Jonathan! Is he really in trouble? Or was it all just a ploy to get me in the car without a fight?

That voice! It’s Tony. I don’t understand. Theo’s cousin did this to me? Why would he do that?

A wave of exhaustion hits me and the blackness threatens to drown me once more. No, dammit! I have to stay awake. Have to find a way out of this. My best chances of survival are getting out of this car before we get wherever Tony is planning to take me. If we get to the end destination, there is a good chance I won’t be leaving.

Carefully, I move my bound hands, shifting slightly so that I can reach the exposed skin on my back where my jacket has ridden up. The angle is awkward, but I pinch myself as hard as I can, biting my cheek to stop from making noise as the sharp sting brings everything into focus once more. Good, okay. Now I need to make a plan.