Page 13 of Wanted

In the end, I had to leave without my phone, and I headed to Jeremy's school first to ask that they pull him from class so I could, at least, speak to him.

The woman in the front office wasn’t too happy with my request, but she did it, anyways. And a few minutes later, Jeremy appeared, his young, handsome face a mask as he stepped through the door. It was habit, of course. The Blackwood kids don't have the best of luck in school offices.

The instant he saw me, his eyes lit. "Are we leaving?" he asked in a hushed whisper.

"Not yet, but I'm working on it," I promised. I pulled out some cash and discreetly slid it into his hands. "Get a room to stay in if you can't stay with friends. I need more time. Protect yourself."

He shoved the money into his jean pockets. "I got your message. Why don't you have your phone anymore?"

"It's a long story," I said, "and you need to get back to class. Can't let your GPA drop now. Not when we're so close." I ruffled his hair and kissed his forehead. Any other teen boy would have cringed and rolled their eyes, but not Jeremy. I'm all he's got, and vice versa. I’d die for him. Hopefully, he knows that. Hopefully, it'll be enough.

I waited until he headed back to class and then left, ignoring the suspicious glare of the office secretary. At least he'd be safe now, I mentally repeated as I slid back into my car and drove to the department store.

Once I’d returned my dress and shoes by depositing them in the dressing room, I just sat in my car, letting it idle as I calmed my nerves and prepared myself for the next stop.

I wasn't looking forward to my next destination. More like I was dreading it, actually.

It only took a few minutes to reach his house, and by the time I knocked on the front door, I was shaking from head to toe.

He opened the door, his dark eyes narrowing the instant he saw me. He banged the screen back with a vicious kick, grabbed me roughly by the arm, and pulled me into the house.

I shoved him away as hard as I could and rubbed the soon-to-be bruises where his fingers had been. Like I needed more. "Back the hell off. I can't show up to work covered in marks," I snapped.

"Do you have what I need?" he asked.

I forced myself not to slink back as I pulled what was left from my advance out of my purse. "This is all I could get for now, but if you give me a bit longer, I can get you more. It's just taking time."

He leaned over me, one arm above my head, hand pressed against the wall, pinning me against him as with his other hand, he grabbed my jaw and squeezed tight. "I don't want your pocket change. I want the big payout we talked about. The reason I sent you to this job in the first place. If you don't come through, I'll start taking my interest in blood and body parts, and they won't be yours."

My heart clenched in fear. "There's a safe," I squeaked as he loosened his grip enough for me to talk. "Gemstones and cash. You'll make a fortune."

"Good. Tell me more."

"You need a key to the office and a code for the safe. I don't know about other security measures yet."

"Find out. You have a month."

His hips pressed against mine and I could feel his arousal at having this power over me. I squeezed my eyes shut. I had to get out of here. I couldn't go through this again.

Finally, he let my face go and I pushed him away. "I have to get back to work if you want this pulled off that fast.”

I’d taken no more than three steps when he asked, "How's Jeremy doing by the way?" He gave me a sadistic smile. "He still staying with his friend Rick?"

The threat hung in the air between us as the blood rushed from my face.

"Leave my brother alone…" I warned through clenched teeth.

"Or what?"

"Or I will kill you." I stormed out of the house shaking, my breathing coming in short, panicked gasps.

On the drive back to the Count's mansion, I struggled to calm myself, and as I passed a liquor store along the way, the temptation to stop nearly overwhelmed me.

It was so hard to avert my eyes from the bottles I saw lined up through the window. I had to remind myself a dozen times just why I've decided to remain sober. Alcohol was never my drug of choice, but it could serve in a pinch, hit that spot I needed, and it was sure a hell of a lot easier to acquire than what I really wanted. But no. I couldn’t. I couldn’t fall down that rabbit hole again.

I pressed the gas and reached for my water bottle instead. I didn’t have time to get drunk, anyway. I had to concentrate on my plan, and I had only a month to make it all happen. The bastard.

Which meant I needed to keep my eyes peeled on how to get that key and the passcode. Then, I’d be free. Setting this up would make me right with that asshole and finally give me enough to get my brother out of there.

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