Page 46 of Ozzie

“Don’t worry. He’ll be fine,” John says as he stands and walks toward us.

I jump up, still holding the phone. “Please hurry. JohnWilliams broke into our house, and he’s trying to kidnap me,” I yell as I run for the door.

John’s footsteps are right behind me. I make it outside just as he grabs me around the waist. Immediately, I throw my elbows back into his stomach, which has to hurt after Durango’s punches. His grip loosens, and I spin around, trying to get out of his reach. He trips, taking us both to the ground. I use my good leg to kick him while trying to get up so I can run. But he blocks the move and punches me right where he had shot me.

I scream. No one is outside due to this storm. I try to kick him again, but he’s still holding that leg. He scoops me up and runs. His hands are holding my wrists together, so I can’t use my arms. And he’s managed to get pressure on my sore leg.

He stops and sets me down. This is my chance. But as I move to try to take him down, he punches me. It doesn’t knock me out, but things are spinning and he’s able to get me in the back seat of his car.

Click. Click.I shake my head and focus on my wrists. They are now bound by handcuffs. He places handcuffs around my ankles too.

“Look, I don’t want to do this, but you left me no choice.” He grabs something from the passenger seat, and as he holds it up, the streetlight catches on it. Another needle. I squirm.

“No! I don’t need that. I’ll be quiet, I promise.”

Sirens grow louder, and if I can fight him off a little longer, they’ll find us like this.

“Sorry, but I need this.”

I squirm and fight, but he grabs my leg and stabs me. The car door closes. Then the driver’s door opens. The sirens are loud. So close. He pulls out onto the road.

“Sleep, Piper. We have a long drive ahead of us.”

My eyes grow heavy. I try to fight it. I really do, but I can’t.

CHAPTER 14

Ozzie

“What’s going on?”I ask as I move to the front window with Lightning.

We’re both squatting and the lights are off, so no one should be able to see us.

“Right there,” he points. “Two men.”

They make their way up the road on foot, both in hats and heavy coats. As they draw closer, I scan around them but see no others.

“If they don’t cross the road on that corner, we need to wake Harding,” Lightning says.

The corner is up a short distance from our building, but there is nothing else on this side of the road, so if they don’t cross, it’s likely they are headed here.

Due to the snow, they walk slowly. Never once do theyglance in our direction. But it’s odd that we’ve seen no one all day and now this.

The two men laugh, and as they reach the corner, they turn and walk away from us. I breathe a sigh of relief. Then, they walk to one of the businesses and unlock the door before going inside.

I fall back on my rear, relieved. The rest of our shift together is uneventful, and when it’s time, I wake Harding, and she takes my place.

I close my eyes for what feels like a minute before Lightning is waking me and it’s light outside.

“Already?” I say as I stand up and stretch.

“It goes fast,” he says. “Those two men left shortly after you went to sleep, and we never saw any others.”

“How much longer?” JB asks. “I’m bored out of my mind.”

Leave it to him to complain about boredom when we were actively trying to keep him alive.

Harding stands from her perch at the back window. “My contact says he will arrive earlier than expected. He’ll be here in two hours, give or take.”

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