Page 120 of The Saviors: Part Two
“We’re not friends.”
Amber laughs, and it comes off slightly unhinged. Did she always sound like that? Did I ignore the warning signs all along? “No shit. It took you long enough to figure that out.”
“What do you want?”
“I want to gut you for taking Brady from me!” Is she serious?
“I’ll pass.” My finger hovers over the end call button when her screech stops me.
“Don’t be an idiot. I have a detonator in my hand. The whole compound is rigged to blow. But I’ll make you a deal.” I don’t even need to ask to know what she’s going to say. “Your life for theirs. And don’t even think about telling your little friends. If you do, I push the button, and your boys go boom.”
“You’re lying,” I whisper, my body starting to shake. The phone beeps in my ear, and I pull it back to see a text message. I swipe it open, and my entire world stops moving. It’s a video of the guys moving around the warehouse, a picture of explosives, and a detonator. How did she get live video from the compound? Did Holden and Nolan’s plan not work to loop it?
“Are you willing to call my bluff? Did you really think that Charlie didn’t have plans in place? I just sent you an address. Get off your fat ass and move. You have twenty minutes.” The line goes dead, and I jump to my feet, pacing and going over my options.
I could run into the house and tell Les. She would have us out of here in minutes to save my guys. But if Amber was telling the truth, then she had already planned for that to happen. My phone pings again, and it’s a close-up shot of a skull mask.Nolan.He’s the only one who was wearing one, and the other ones are pitch black. A text appears below it.
Unknown
Time’s ticking. Maybe we should video his head getting blown off.
Why are you doing this?
Twenty minutes. Tick tock.
I look at the address she sent, plug it into my phone, and realize it’s a twenty-minute drive from here. My heart starts beating out of my chest because I know exactly what I have to do. I scribble down the address, throw it on the bed, and take off like a bat out of hell toward the house. I go through the side door of the garage and, as quickly as possible, scan the thousands of keys hanging by the door. My eyes light on my Challenger keys, and I almost wilt with relief. This car I know how to drive. I run to it, smack the button on the wall for the garage door, and slide behind the wheel. I back out and head around the back of the house so I can hit the back road. My hands are sweating so badly that I almost miss several gears. I listen to my phone relaying the directions and wonder if the robot lady knows she’s leading me to my death. A hysterical laugh bubbles up my throat at that thought. I always said I’d do anything to protect my guys, even if that meant laying my life down for theirs.
I peek at the speedometer and realize I’m going over ninety miles per hour on a road I don’t know. If a car pulls out in front of me, I’m more than fucked. The picture of Nolan keeps rolling around in my head. He doesn’t even know that his life is in immediate danger. None of them do. We knew there was a chance Charlie would cut comms when he knew they were there, but they didn’t have a choice.
Nineteen minutes later, I’m roaring into the driveway of a rundown little house. My phone chimes and I see the unknown number pop up with a text message. I swipe it open.
Unknown
Come in through the front door.
I know there’s a Glock under my seat somewhere, but she’s going to be anticipating that. I wrack my brain for anything and jerk open the console. There, on top, is one of Sean’s knives that he left in there. I clip the sheath to the top of my shorts and pull my shirt over top of it. I have no damn clue what I’ll do with it, but it makes me feel better like he’s close to me. With nerves attacking me left and right, I push my door open and slowly walk up the steps. I push the door open and peek around the corner.
“Get in here!” Amber barks. “I don’t have time for your shit.” I walk in and gasp. She looks the worst I’ve ever seen her. Her hair is a knotted mess, and what looks like days-old makeup is smeared down her face, but that’s not the worst of it. It’s her eyes. The eyes that used to be filled with kindness are now filled with hatred. She gestures with a silver box in her hand. “Sit down.”
Giving her a wide berth, I sit on the broken-down couch, right on the edge. “Why are you doing this?”
“Shut up. Did you really think I’d put up with your shit willingly for two years? All the bitching and moaning I had to listen to?”
Keep her talking.
That thought floats through my head, and I have to choke off a sob because it sounded just like Axel. “I never did anything to you.”
“You didn’t have to. I gave my loyalty to Charlie years ago.”
“Why? He’s a monster, Amber.”
“He saved me!” she yells, taking a step toward me. “I was starving on the streets at eighteen, and he offered me a better life. All I had to do was work for him.”
“I don’t understand,” I say miserably.
“Since it’s your last day on earth, I’ll tell you a little story. When I ran away from home, I had nowhere to go. We weren’t given any skills as women, so I couldn’t even get a job. I was seconds away from throwing myself off a bridge when this man stopped me. He was tall, with dark hair, dark eyes, and gorgeous.” I have to stop myself from gagging that she thinks Charlie is anything but revolting. Amber starts pacing, and I watch her close for an opening. I can’t knock that detonator out of her hand, so I know my choices are limited. “He looked at me like no other man had looked at me before.”
“You were eighteen! He took advantage—”
