Page 6 of Outbreak

“Up you go,” I say, opening the passenger door, lifting her up onto the seat, and buckling her in. Her eyes flutter open and shut as she fights the drugs. Placing her arms in her lap, I grab the rope from my bag on the floor. When she wakes up, she’s going to lose her mind. This is more for her safety than my pleasure, though seeing my ropes wrapped against her pale white skin has me needing to adjust myself. Soon, I’ll have her tied up at the mercy of my cock. Very soon she will pay for her betrayal with tears streaking her perfect face.

Once her hands are secured, I loop a piece of rope through the knots at her wrists and attach it to the ‘oh shit’ handle on the dash. When I’m satisfied that Death won’t be able to dive out of my moving truck, I click the child lock just to be extra cautious, grab her phone from her pocket, and close her inside the cab.

With the space cutting off her addictive scent, I drag in a deep breath, gripping the bed of my truck. I’ve only been back in her presence for a few minutes, and already she’s invaded my whole body. I just want to bury my face in her neck and my cock deep inside her, marking her as mine. Becauseshe is mine. She always has been. She might have lost her senses and fucked up,but I can blame that on her young age and her history with shitty people.

She once told me her biggest fear. And like the shitty person I am, when she betrayed me, I made her biggest fear a reality to hurt her back. I left her behind and became a ghost in her life, watching her from the shadows and through a screen—never letting her know I was there. We both fucked up. But with everything going to shit in the world right now, none of that matters. She will pay for what she did, but she will do it at my side, where she belongs. We’ll move past this and be stronger together.

Pushing off the side of my truck, I round the back and double check I have everything. I don’t know if she noticed or not, but earlier today, when she was out with her friends, I snuck into her room and packed some essentials she’s going to need. Reaper said to meet him at the cabin, and I have plenty of supplies there but no clothes for her. We can find more along the way if we need to, but this should get us through.

I slip her phone into the side of my own bag before climbing into the driver seat and starting the engine. Normally, the drive to the cabin from here would take about ten hours, but with whole cities shutting down and the virus spreading quickly, we’re taking the long way around, sticking to back roads and staying off the beaten path. I want to keep as far away from the bulk of the population as possible until we know more about what’s going on. The news is reporting a deadly virus, but something about this just doesn’t add up with what I’ve witnessed. This feels different, and I have a dreaded feeling that we’ve only seen the beginning of what’s really going on.

I’m itching to take my mask off and breathe in some fresh air, but I’m a sadistic fuck who wants her fear before I reveal who I am. Death has always brought out my dark side. I would burn the world if anyone hurt her, but I want to hurt her too. I wanther tears on my tongue as I drive her over the edge of oblivion over and over until she’s begging me to stop. Even then, I’ll make her give me one more.

Fighting the urge to take her is hard, but I drag my gaze away from her and focus on getting us out of these woods. We won’t have to stop for fuel for a while; I filled up just outside of Lake Charles. The virus has already spread to this area, and pretty soon, it’s going to be impossible to find supplies and fuel. From New Orleans to here, whole cities were already taken over by the military and pretty much shut down. No supplies going in or out. Hopefully we have better luck in the smaller, less populated areas. If not, this trip could take us days, not hours.

The truck bounces over the uneven terrain of the woods I parked in before smoothing out when we hit the pavement behind the college. From here, I can see people gathered around the buildings, panicked and upset. This college won’t last another couple of days with how fast people are falling to the virus. As far as they’ve determined, it’s not airborne, so that’s a plus. The rumors have been all over the place, with some people reporting crazy ass stories of people eating each other and their loved ones dying and coming back to life only to try to kill them.

Who knows what’s actually true and what’s something cooked up by some cracked-out idiots looking for clout on social media? The only thing I know to trust is my gut; it hasn’t let me down yet. And my gut is telling me to take my girl and get the fuck out of dodge for a while.

About an hour into the drive, I spot a little gas station that’s still open. We’re out in the middle of bum fuck Lousiana, so maybe this part of the state hasn’t been effected yet. My tires crunch the loose gravel as I swerve into the parking lot and park at the open pump. I’ve still got three-quarters of a tank, but I’m anticipating fuel being hard to come by. I can top it off and see if they sell gas cans inside and get a little extra, just in case.

Glancing over at Death, she’s still out from the drugs I gave her. She’s barely moved at all from the position I put her in, but it won’t be long before she starts waking up. I didn’t give her a high dose, just enough to knock her out for a little while. Turning the engine off, I take my keys with me and slide out of the truck, quietly shutting the door behind me. I slide my mask off, putting it in my back pocket, and head into the store.

The attendant is a little young thing, late teens or early 20’s. Her long, bright green hair is shaved on the sides, ears gauged, and tattoos climb up the low-cut shirt she has on displaying her small chest. She side-eyes me as I step into the store, heading to the back to look for a gas can. She looks like the ‘fuck around and find out’ type you’d find out here in the woods that would sooner shoot you than greet you, but I ignore her. She probably saw my masked face when I got out and assumed I was going to rob the place.My bad.

Grabbing the last can on the shelf, I head to the drink cooler to grab some energy drinks for the road. I spot Death’s favorite snack on the way back to the front—sour gummy worms. Even with my arms full, I take every bag they have. Anytime something was wrong with her, I would bring her gummy worms, and all would be right in the world again. I have a feeling I’m going to need them when she wakes up.

CHAPTER 6

Rue

The second my eyes try to flutter open, I know something is wrong. My brain feels cloudy, heavy with fog weighing me down, making it hard to take in my surroundings.

Where am I?

What the fuck happened?

I try to sift through my memories, but it’s all a blur at the moment. My arms ache, and when I try to stretch them, I can’t pick them up.

“What the fuck?” I mumble to myself, peeling my sandpaper eyelids open, squinting at the ropes twisting around my arms, securing my wrists together. There’s a piece of rope attached that leads to—a dash? I’m in a vehicle. Trying to sit up, my eyes dart around me. I’m alone—in a truck? It’s parked in front of gas pumps. My eyes shift to the building beside me. The windows are blocked out with ad posters, so I have no idea who’s inside. Or who took me.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I try to force my memories to the surface. The party with Noah and Mel. Finding Josh. The guy in a mask—oh hell no!That motherfucker!He fucking drugged me? Tied me up in his truck, and what? Left me at a goddamn gas station in the middle of nowhere?

I think the fuck not!

My fingers immediately find my blade. Thank fuck it’s still strapped to my thigh. The asshole must not have noticed it. Small mercies and all that. It takes a few tries to get it out of its sheath with my hands bound together, but once it’s out, I make quick work of freeing myself from the ropes and disconnecting the tether to the dash. I’m not sticking around for this fucker to come back. I’ve been on the receiving end of enough evil men to know nothing good comes to those who sit by and hope for the best. I’m getting the fuck out of here right now.

Reaching for the door handle, I curse a colorful string of explicits when the door won’t open. Even after unlocking it, it won’t budge. Leaning over to the drive side, I try that door, and to my surprise, it opens right up. I’m up and over the center console in a hot second, slamming the door open and bolting around the gas pumps. Once I’m in the open, I spin around in a circle, quickly scanning the area for the best route.

We’re literally in the middle of nowhere.

I don’t recognize anything around me, which isn’t a shocker. There’s a field across the street and woods surrounding the gas station on the sides. Hauling in a deep breath, I shake my head to clear the haze that’s making me dizzy and try to figure out what the fuck to do. The woods will provide more coverage to hide should the asshole try to find me. I’m betting he will most definitely look for me. He went through a lot of trouble taking me, and since he drugged me, I’d venture to say this was a planned kidnapping.

I have no idea who the guy is. His face has been covered by a black mask. A shiver runs down my spine when I picture it. I remember in the middle of my panic attack, he picked me up from my hiding spot, and his energy immediately calmed me. At least until I opened my eyes. The distorted white skull printed on his mask obscured his face completely. Those dark, shadowedeyes staring into my soul sent icy tendrils of fear skittering across my skin. I don’t particularly want to admit it, but as much as it scared me, it turned me on too. I’m just choosing to ignore the fact that I have a traitorous pussy who doesn't know what’s good for her—or me, for that matter. She has a mind of her own, and she appreciates a sexy masked man growling at her more than I care to acknowledge—since I’m literally running from him right now.

I shove little traitors' demands deep down and pick up the pace. Twigs and leaves crunch beneath my boots as I race through the woods. I didn’t see anyone coming out of the gas station when I disappeared into the woods beside it, so I just have to hope he picked any other direction than this one to look for me.

I’m so busy trying to calm my racing heart and ragged breaths that I barely have time to register the heavy footfalls as they quickly gain on me. He doesn’t shout for me, but I know it’s him—I can feel him. There’s something about him I can’t put my finger on. I have to fight every cell in my body not to stop in my tracks and wait for him.

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