Page 68 of Dealing Dirty
I follow the dark figure as he scoops Hazel up and over his shoulder as if she were a sack of potatoes. My lips shut, feeling gummy and unnaturally dense.
Hazel’s head bobs against the man’s back, and I’m screaming internally to get up and help her.
“Hey there, beautiful.”
Now I know I’m going to be sick. A voice I’d hoped to never hear again brushes against my ear as Alfonzo drags me upright and rubs his nose in my hair. He takes a deep, lung-filling breath.
“Stop playing around and get her in the trunk, Alfonzo. You’ve done what you needed to do, and we have our orders.” This comes from Ethan, who’s disappeared to the driver’s seat.
“Our orders were forher,” Alfonzo retorts.
Confused, I attempt to move my mouth. Which ‘her’ did they come for, and why? But the only sound I manage is a weak moan.
“Just get her in the trunk and come on!”
I’m fading fast.
What did they do with my friend?
Derrick!I want to scream for him, bursting with terror as I’m lifted over Alfonzo’s shoulder. I swear I feel hot tears tracking down my cheeks.
I may never see Derrick or Cassidy again.
Oh my God. What have I done?
The world around me is one massive haze, but still, I fight to remain conscious.
“Be a good girl and get in the trunk.” His hot breath fans over my face as he lowers me off his shoulder.
I can’t—Iwon’t—go out without a fight. Summoning every last ounce of energy I have left, I force my fist closed and throw a lazy right hook toward his face.
“You stupid bitch,” he growls, shaking my shoulders with enough force that my teeth chatter.
“Alfonzo!”
Watching my weakened form crumple into the trunk, he leans in. “You’re going to regret that soon enough.”
There’s a heavyclick, and then I’m encased in pitch-black silence. Hazel’s breath fans lightly over my bare ankle, and I nearly sob, thankful that we’re somehow still together.
I’m going to get us out of this,I mentally assure her, and then my thoughts become as empty as my aching heart.
Chapter Nineteen
Juliana
“How much did you give them?”
Gruff voices stir me from a quiet slumber.
“Don’t worry, they’ll be out for at least another hour or so.” That man… he sounds familiar.
“Whatever. Let’s hurry up and get them inside before they wake up. I don’t want to risk them screaming and us getting our asses chewed.”
Rough carpet scratches my cheek as I twist around. A wash of dread sluices my veins. I don’t remember falling asleep, but I’ve clearly been stuffed into the back of a trunk.
Head aching and stomach rolling, I struggle to lie back. Every muscle strains as if I’m wading through sand. A soft, yet solid object presses against my backside, and like a nightmare, the memory of Alfonzo and Ethan manhandling me and Hazel floods my throbbing mind.
Those bastards!
