Page 77 of Always Watching

He slaps me again, his face contorted in anger. “You wanted me to spell it out for you? I was around all the time, constantly listening to you bitch and cry about shit that didn’t matter. I was patient. I wasright there. You should have known.”

With rough hands, he grips me by the throat and by my hair and pulls me to my feet. “Please, Olly. Don’t do this. We’re friends.”

“I don’t want to be just your friend, Ranen. But you’ll see.” He tosses me across his bed where I slam against the wall. I try to get to my feet to run away, but Olly grabs me by the back of my shirt and puts his gun to my temple. “No running. We’re going to go to my secret spot and we’ll be together. I’ll make you see; we’re perfect for each other.”

Silent tears leak down my face as I’m pushed to his garage.

My mind is racing, trying to figure out how to get out of this. But there’s nothing. I already know Olly is capable of hurting me… Am I willing to see if he’s capable of doing far worse than hitting me?

No, I can’t. I can’t leave North alone because I’m not being smart. There has to be a way out of this, but nothing ispresenting itself. But I won’t leave North alone. I’m not done loving him yet.

Olly pushes me over to his work bench. “Grab that duct tape and put it around your ankles, then zip tie your wrists.”

My lip trembles when I look over at him. “Olly, please—”

“Fucking do it!” he shouts, shaking his gun at me.

My trembling hands grab the tape and do what he says. It’s hard to get the zip tie around my wrists, but I accomplish it.

Once I’m basically immobilized, Olly tucks his gun into his waistband and checks that the zip ties hold.

“You planned this?” I ask as he puts the tape down and picks up a length of rope.

“Of course I did, Ranen. You wouldn’t have come on your own. This was the only way.” He looks at me, like a familiar stranger. “But don’t worry, Pooh Bear. You’ll realize, just as I have.”

Bile rises when he calls me Pooh Bear. Where the fuck did he get that nickname? It makes me think of Mr. Barlowe.

Fuck, Mr. Barlowe. North killed an innocent man. He wasn’t the man who was after me.

Before I can beg more, Olly rips off a piece of tape and slaps it over my mouth, cutting off my words. Then he puts a bag over my head.

I lose it then, twisting and trying to hit him or knee him anywhere. I scream behind the duct tape, my breathing coming in short, hard bursts.

It’s hard for Olly to keep a hold of me, and we both tumble to the ground. With my feet taped together, it’s easy for me to lift them and slam them into any part of his body I can. When I hear his sharp release of breath, I know I hit his stomach.

While he’s incapacitated, I turn to my belly and try to wiggle away. It’s hard, and before long I’m breathing heavily, but I don’t give up. I’m not sure how I’ll get away, but I have to try.

I don’t get far before rough hands grab my ankles and pull me across the floor. I’m turned onto my back and Olly’s weight settles on my chest, trapping my zip-tied hands.

Something hard hits me on the temple and my vision slowly dims as the fight leaves me. Then I see nothing more.

Chapter 26

North

Fuck, I hate whenRanen is out with Olly.

I’m not unreasonable… and even if itwasunreasonable, Ranen is dating a psychopath who likes to kill people because he’s bored.

The fact that I’m jealous of the time he spends with his friend but don’tdoanything about it should get me a gold fucking medal.

I haven’t even thought about killing Olly.

Much.

Maybe a few times.

It doesn’t matter, though. I’ve beenmostlynormal about his friendship, and that has to count for something.

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