She held her breath and waited. There was no point in trying to see through the darkness. Her eyes wouldn’t help her now. Instead, she focused on the room layout that was etched in her memory.
Should she try to get out through the one window that wasn’t boarded up? It was a long drop to the ground, but it might be worth breaking a leg or worse in order to escape from the intruder.
Heart pounding with fear, she decided there wasn’t enough time to get out through the window. Inching along the wall toward the doorway of her bedroom, she mentally prepared herself for the worst. Where was Finn? She never should have refused his offer to sleep on the sofa. Her heightened senses made it easy to track the sound of the intruder moving up the stairs to the second floor.
Maybe she should have grabbed her phone instead, but it was too late now.
Dear Lord, help me! Keep me safe in Your care!
The scent of sweat made her wrinkle her nose. She lifted the lamp over her head. When she thought the stinky guy was in the doorway, she brought the lamp down hard against him.
Stinky made a grunting noise, but her aim must have been off, because he didn’t go down. The lamp did, though, crashing against the hardwood floor and breaking into pieces. She heard him fumbling in the darkness and made a break for it.
She darted for the opposite side of the room to the window that wasn’t boarded up. As she yanked the sash upward, the stinky guy grabbed her roughly from behind, turning and shoving her hard up against the wall.
“No! Let me go!” She screamed and struggled against him, kicking and punching, hoping and praying someone might hear the scuffle. If not her roommates, who were still at the hotel, then maybe a neighbor? Someone out with their dog? Anyone?
Stinky leaned his forearm against her throat, pressing hard. She grabbed at it with both hands, desperate to free herself, realizing in some dim recess of her mind that it was the same arm she’d scratched with her keys the day he stole Cocoa. It was no use. His strength was enough to silence her screams, making her gasp for air.
“Where’s the package?” The hint of Southern twang in his tone was more pronounced with his anger.
Eva tried to answer, but nothing emerged from her throat other than a croak. She could feel herself growing dizzy and knew if he didn’t move his arm she’d black out.
The stinky guy must have realized she couldn’t breathe and eased back some of the pressure. She drew in a deep ragged breath, sucking in desperately needed oxygen into her lungs.
“I don’t know where my sister hid the package,” she finally managed. “I looked through the entire house twice without finding anything other than five hundred dollars. Is that what you’re looking for? Money?”
“Five hundred is nothing,” he sneered. “The drug package your sister stole from us is worth over fifty grand.”
Fifty thousand dollars? Oh, Malina, what did you do? What were you thinking?
“Why did my sister have the package in the first place?” she asked.
“You didn’t know that your sweet sister was one of our best drug couriers?”
Drug courier? Malina? No! When? How? Her silent questions tumbled through her mind like a kaleidoscope, creating a new picture at every turn.
His tone grew sinister. “Until she double-crossed us. We sent her a message, sideswiping her with the truck. Killing her wasn’t part of the plan. We’d wanted to get the package back before eliminating her for good.”
Nausea churned in her gut as she realized Malina’s death was a direct result of stealing drugs. No doubt, these stupid men had no idea that her sister was going blind and wouldn’t have seen the truck swerving toward her until it was too late. Her sister’s death wasn’t an accident—it was murder.
Swallowing hard, Eva focused on how to keep him talking. Finding a way to get him out of the house was her best opportunity to escape.
“I have a key to the training center,” she offered. “I’ll help you search for the package. I know every nook and cranny in the place.”
He was silent for a moment as if considering her offer. Then he slapped her across the face. The unanticipated blow shocked her. Sharp pain radiated through her jaw, and tears sprang to her eyes.