Page 103 of An Eye For Illusion

Once I’m finally on my feet, I struggle to keep my balance. A combination of being battered to hell, malnutrition, and dehydration.

“Pull yourself together, Colin.” The taller one emphasizes my name, my real name. Fuck. They know who I really am. My heart races, but I keep a calm exterior. I steady myself and look the taller one directly in the eyes.

“Let’s go,” he says as the shorter one opens the door and walks out of the room.

The taller one gives me a shove to follow the shorter one. I turn back to face him, but he just laughs in my face. We both know I’m not strong enough right now to do anything. This isn’t over yet; I will get the last laugh.

“Where are you taking me?” I ask as we make our way to a staircase, confirming my earlier thoughts that they kept me in a basement. I still have no idea where we are though.

“We’ve got a wedding to attend,” the shorter one says nonchalantly without looking at me.

His statement throws me off initially, but by the time my feet are on the top step, I know I’ll use this outing as a way to escape. My only concern is getting back to Jade and keeping her safe from Vinny and Moore.

The light is bright when the door at the top of the stairs opens. I blink several times as my eyes adjust. The big guy behind me shoves me again, and I’ve got my bearings back now.

I spin to face him. “Don’t fucking push me.”

He leans in close to my face. “Or what?”

I turn away without answering. I won’t be baited into overreacting and cluing him in that my adrenaline kicked in the moment I realized we were leaving. I grow stronger and ballsier by the second. Fuck it, let him think he won.

“That’s right. You can’t do a damn thing. You’re a dead man walking. Keep your fucking mouth shut, do what you’re told, and maybe it’ll be quick.” He laughs, showing just how true he thinks that statement is.

I clench my jaw. Everything in me wants to beat his ass, but even if I could, that isn’t my priority. They’re taking me directly to where Jade is, and I need that to happen. Once Jade is safe and Vinny and Moore are behind bars, this big son of a bitch will get what he deserves.

The shorter one opens the front door, and I step out and look around to see if I recognize my surroundings, but I don’t. This isn’t one of Vinny’s houses I’ve been to before. I turn back to look around the house itself to take in any details that may help get the police back here. There’s no furniture and nothing hanging on the walls. In fact, nothing is memorable about the house at all. It looks like a vacant home. For all I know, these two could’ve broken into an empty rental or listing.

“You aren’t coming back here,” the tall one says.

“No shit,” I bite back.

Shorty holds the door open for Tallboy and me to pass through. The yard is large, open, and well maintained. There are no neighbors to be seen, which means we must be pretty far out of town. A sedan is parked in the driveway; the back windows are blacked out. Convenient.

The three of us make our way to the car, and Shorty opens the back door for me to get in.

“Sit in the middle, and don’t try anything stupid,” Tallboy orders.

As much as I want to lose it on this asshole, this is a means to an end. Jade is worth taking shit from a meathead if it means getting to her before she says “I do.” My stomach churns at the thought of her uttering those words while standing across from Elliott Moore.

Once I settle into the seat the best I can with my hands bound, Tallboy closes my door before taking the front passenger seat while Shorty drives. The zip tie they have around my wrists cuts into my skin. The pain has been there long enough I only notice it sometimes.

The second we’re on the road, I work my wrists to loosen the ties to free my hands. I tried while I was still in the basement to no avail. Now, I stand a better chance of getting away from these two than I did in that basement, so I’m spurred on to try again. My adrenaline helps.

I watch those two assholes the entire drive while working my hands back and forth against the plastic ties. My wrists are raw, but it feels like I’m close to slipping the left one free.

The car makes an exit off the interstate. We’re outside the city and headed toward vineyard country. I’ve never been to the estate where Jade is getting married, but I know where it is, and we’re headed straight for it.

The clock on the car dashboard tells me the ceremony is supposed to start in ten minutes but I really fucking hope Jade or Donovan were able to stall it or get her out of the whole damn thing.

My stomach flips when I think I might’ve failed her, but I stop myself from going down that rabbit hole. If I know one thing about Jade Foster, it’s that she won’t go down without a fight.

And neither will I.

Finally! I wiggle my left hand out of the restraints, but I’m careful to keep my face blank. I don’t need these two dumb fucks to do something stupid. Once the car pulls up to the estate I can make my move. With the pain searing my wrists, I don’t doubt I’m bleeding.

They drive for another twenty minutes before pulling into a sprawling country estate with hundreds of acres of grapevines. The actual house—if you can even call it that since it’s more like a damn mansion—sits back on a rolling hill overlooking its abundance of grapes.

It’s beautiful, massive, and one hundred percent out of my league. Just like Jade.

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