Page 44 of Cry, Little Dove

“I didn’tsneakanywhere. She dropped in while you were showering, and I didn’t want her to barge into the bedroom when you might step outta the bathroom buck naked at any point. If I meant to hide, I would’ve locked the door and kept my voice down.”

Relief whirls through me, making me lightheaded.

“Fair points… all of them, unfortunately.” I blow out a breath. “How did you know I was gone and where I was? The land around the house is gigantic.”

He shrugs. “On the first day when you were knocked out, I put a hidden tracking app on your phone and paired it with my own. I get a notification as soon as you leave a 300 yard range from my device.”

For fuck’s sake. Of course, a control freak like Cain would put a tracker on me, but I can’t be angry. In fact, I feel like a real asshole for my behavior.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions,” I mumble.

Cain smiles sweetly. Too sweetly. “It’s alright. You’re gonna pay for your disobedience.”

“I willwhat?”

He raises the gun and steps back, pointing it at the middle of my forehead. “I told you that disobedience has consequences, darlin’. You wanted to run from me…” A click sounds as he cocks the hammer, and I choke on air. “Now you’ll get your wish. You better run fast because when I catch you—and Iwillcatch you—I’m gonna fuck your tight cunt with this revolver until you’ve learned your lesson, little dove.”

A shot rings out and an explosion of tree bark flies past my face. My knees knock as I stumble backward.

“Next time I won’t miss,” Cain says, his warning tone making my pussy tingle. The heat in his eyes sends a shot of liquid fire through my chest like the cheap whisky we shared in the motel.

Why does he have to be extra hot when he threatens me?

My delayed survival instincts kick in. I twist, tripping over a root, and break into a sprint. Where to I don’t know, just far away from the angry killer pointing a revolver at me…

A revolver he threatened to fuck me with.

Arms raised to shield my face, I veer into the nearest line of trees and flee through the woods. Twigs catch on my hair and my roots sting, but I don’t care.

Run, my brain screams.Run. Run. Run.

Something thorny rips the side of my pants while I push through the underbrush, and I cry out when a bullet whizzes past my head and impacts in a trunk nearby. Over my shoulder, I see Cain’s huge frame bulldozing through the thicket. He’s fucking unstoppable and right behind me.

How is a man of his stature this fast?

I slow down to duck under a low-hanging branch. Cain swipes at the back of my hoodie, and I yelp, dropping to my knees. I’m sure he could catch me. Instead, he mocks me with dark laughter, the sound creeping over my skin like icy fingers.

“You belong to me, little dove!” he shouts, amusement thick in his tone as I jump up and keep running. “I’ll track you down to the end of the world if I have to, but you’ll never get away from me. I’ll find you anywhere, from Texas to the depths of hell!”

I try to focus on my cramping leg muscles and my pounding heart, not the dampness between my legs. This is a matter of life and death, and I should be scared out of my mind. A part of meisterrified, but another…

I’m not actually getting turned on by my handsome kidnapper chasing me through the forest like prey, right?

It seems like I’ve been running for hours, but realistically, it can’t have been more than ten minutes. The burning in my lungs forces me to stop, and I crouch in the underbrush.

I can’t see Cain anymore. Did I lose him? After I left my bag where he found me sitting in the grass, he can’t use my phone to track me again.

Trees with lush green crowns whisper in the wind, and I lean into the faint breeze, inhaling the earthy scent of the forest. Before my involuntary road trip, I never left Kansas. Traveling was too expensive. I didn’t know how beautiful Texas is. It’s easy to fall in love with the gorgeous land surrounding the ranch house. Those colorful sunsets, the large meadows with vibrant bluebonnets, and the glittering river.

My gasps slow, my shaking legs thankful for the break. The calm nature quietens my thundering pulse and I pick up a new sound.

Rushing water.

I follow the noise, keeping my head low until I step out into a clearing. An instant smile cuts across my face.

Towering cypress trees with knotted trunks form a living roof. Streaks of sunlight filter through the canopy, reflecting off sapphire water dropping from a steep cliff into a lake. Ferns and moss grow like a tapestry over the light brown, jagged rock face. They look soft, and I imagine running my fingers across the tiny leaves.

It’s a lovely spot, ideal for a picnic by the lake, eating cheese and fruit and drinking a glass of wine. Then a naked swim after, jumping from one of the branches above the water. A tire swing would be fun, too.

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