Page 87 of Trusting Skulls

Ash squeezes my hand once before letting go with no emotion whatsoever on his face.

My legs shake as I make my way around the table. Graham pulls the chair out beside him. As soon as I’m seated, he pulls me close and runs his nose through my hair, inhaling loudly.

I lean away from him, but he doesn’t seem to take offense. He chuckles.

“So here’s the game.” He drapes an arm over my shoulders and focuses his attention on Ash. “I’m going to give you both a thirty-minute head start. If you somehow evade me and it falls dark, we pause the hunt until first light. Then, we begin again.”

Ash leans forward. “And what happens when you find us?”

I close my eyes because I know what happens.

“I’m going to fuck her in ways a young man like you can’t even comprehend.”

“And then you’ll let us go?”

Graham laughs, and I open my eyes.

“You’re not stupid, kid. She shouldn’t have gone to the police. If I’m going down, so is she, and because you were stupid enough to follow us, you will be joining us on the other side.”

His fingers trail over my breast, but Ash doesn’t lose focus.

“It wasn’t me,” I whimper. “I swear, I didn’t tell anyone.”

This makes Graham shrug. “I guess it doesn’t matter who it was. It will all be over soon.”

“Unless we escape.” Ash leans back in his chair and stretches.

“I’ve been hunting for years,” Graham tells him.

“Me too.”

Graham laughs. “Without your gun, you’re not the hunter. You’re the prey. But if you’re as good as you claim, maybe I should shorten your head start to fifteen minutes.”

Ash shrugs as if it makes no difference to him.

“I’ll make you a deal,” Graham says to me. “If you kiss me, I’ll let you have an hour head start. Ash here only needs fifteen minutes, but you …” His fingers wrap around the back of my neck. “You need more time, don’t you, sweetie?”

My eyes lock with Ash’s brown ones. “I’m … I’m okay,” I stutter, dropping my gaze to my lap. I can’t kiss him in front of Ash. No way.

Graham whistles. “Wow, she’s really into you, isn’t she? What about you, Ash? Do you want to make a deal?”

Ash’s chair creaks as he leans forward. “Let’s hear it.”

“You tell her to kiss me, and I’ll give you the fifteen minutes back.”

“Fifteen whole minutes,” Ash says, tapping his finger over his mouth as if he’s considering it. “I’ll kiss you for the fifteen, but her … she’s already said she’s not interested.”

This makes Graham mad. He grabs me and kisses me so hard, my teeth crack against his. I’m so humiliated that he’s doing this to me in front of Ash. I let out a loud cry, and push at his chest, fighting him. Something I’ve never done.

But Ash doesn’t move. He watches.

The minute Graham shoves me away, he barks out one word. “Go!”

Ash immediately jumps from his chair and pulls me outside with him. “Run that way, and don’t stop. I’ll be right behind you.”

I do as he says, stumbling through the brush. When I don’t hear him behind me, I begin to get nervous. What if he stayed behind to try and kill Graham? What if Graham kills him?

But I keep running. I trust Ash with my life.

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