Page 96 of Erik's Redemption
Brigid’s drunk rambling came back to her…about doing something stupid. When Hannah had pushed about it the next day, her friend had refused to tell her what it was.
This…thiswas the stupid thing.
“She did,” James said, as if reading her thoughts. “I’ve thought long and hard about how to make you pay for what you did to me. Youdestroyedmy life!”
“No, James,youdestroyed it. By getting into drugs. By stealing something that wasn’t yours.”
“It all would have worked out if you hadn’t ruined everything.”
“James—”
“You can’t talk your way out of this one, Hannah.” He took a step forward, the gun never wavering.
“The police will find you and arrest you again.”
“I’m not going back there. I’m not wasting my life rotting in a goddamn cell.”
“How will you disappear without money?” Hannah whispered. “If Brigid bailed you out, she can’t have much left.”
The smile that crept across his face made bile crawl up her throat. “That’s where you come in. This is kind of a two-birds-with-one-stone thing. I get money so I can disappear. And I get my revenge on you at the same time.”
Her breath stuttered. “How?”
“I’ve made some new…connections. There are people who are willing to pay a pretty penny for a woman who looks like you.”
Her skin became clammy, little black dots dancing in her vision. “No…”
“If you scream or call for help, I shoot Brigid. Got it?”
Hannah had to remind herself to breathe. To suck in one shallow breath after the next.
James pulled a phone from his pocket, then hit something on the screen before pressing it to his ear. “I’ve got her.”
Hannah scrambled for a way out of this. She couldn’t do anything in here, not when James clearly had no problem shooting Brigid. But when they left, she could fight. Shewouldfight. She’d do whatever was necessary to get away.
James hung up, an evil smile playing on his face. “They’re in the alley behind the building, ready to pick you up.” He reached into a huge black bag by the door and pulled out masking tape. “Now, I’m gonna tape your mouth, hands, and feet—and carry you out of the building in that bag.”
“No!” The word was out of her mouth before she could stop it.
“Yes. And remember, make a sound and I kill her.”
“You’re a monster.”
“Maybe.” He grinned again. “She was so excited to have me back…as if I’d completely forget that she helped you set me up,” James said, walking toward her. “But then I guess she saw the red flags. I stole some of her money. Got a bit angry once or twice and may have hit her.”
Fury raced through Hannah’s veins. “That was you?”
“Yep. She kicked me out after that. Changed the locks. It was naive of her to think I wouldn’t be back. She was part of my downfall, so it’s only fair she helps me rise again.”
The asshole! God, she wished she had a gun right now.
He cocked his head, his expression almost one of excitement. “You should have seen the fear on her face when she found me in her apartment today.”
“Did youeverlove her?” Hannah whispered, terrified for her friend.
“When you’ve been through what I have, you learn there are things a lot stronger than love. Like survival instincts. When it comes down to it, we all do whatever it takes to survive. Now, masking tape? Or should I knock you out?”
“James—”
