As terrified as I was of this woman, I couldn’t bring myself to give her what she wanted. Something inside me didn’t want to betray him. I had no idea why. “I don’t…know…who you’re talking about…” I choked out my words.
She tilted her head to one side. “Fine. Then I guess I have no more use for you.” She raised her free hand to snap her fingers.
From the corner of my eye, I saw something fly toward the back of her head. The woman fell over, blood gushing from her skull.
Jack stood there holding a two-by-four. “We must go now.” He grabbed my hand and yanked hard, dragging me out into the pouring rain. I felt like my head was about to explode from the pressure.
“Who was that?” I asked as we got to my car.
“No clue.” Jack got behind the wheel this time.
“Will the people in there be okay?”
“No clue.”
“I should call for help.” I dug out my phone and dialed 9-1-1. The line was busy. I’d have to keep trying.
“Do whatever you like, but we cannot stay.” He started the engine.
“Do you know how to drive?”
“We are about to find out.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
I eventually got through to 9-1-1 and reported a “medical emergency” in progress at the station. As for us, it turned out that Jack did know how to operate a vehicle, but whatever else he knew, he kept it to himself.
Oddly, though, I believed him when he said he hadn’t recognized the blonde woman. But she sure as hell knew him. She also has his same bag of evil tricks.
“No. Not the same,” Jack said, his shockingly blue eyes glued to the road. “She was something entirely different.”
“Different how?”
“I cannot explain.”
“Can’t or won’t?” I asked.
He ignored me.
I ground out a frustrated groan. Whoever this man was, being anywhere near him was getting increasingly dangerous. People were after him. And how had that woman known where to look? How did she know I was connected to him when I walked into the station? The only answer was that she had read my thoughts. Just as he’d been doing all along—something I wasn’t ready to accept but couldn’t ignore any longer. Mind reading? Seriously?
“It’s real, isn’t it? This is really happening,” I muttered, looking out the window at the fallen trees littering the side of the road.
Again, he didn’t reply, but after a long moment of silence, he asked, “Why did you attempt to shelter your thoughts from her? Why not simply tell her I was outside?”
I didn’t have an answer other than, “She seemed more dangerous than you.”
“Doubtful.”
I shook my head. “You’re not making a very good case for yourself.”
“I am not here to win you over.”
No. I suppose not. But then I realized something: That woman back there knew who he was. She had the answers he was looking for.
“Why didn’t you…?” My voice faded. “Never mind.” Whatever reasons he had for not trying to grab her or get inside her head, he wasn’t going to tell me. I was just grateful he’d saved me for a second time.
“A very wise choice, Jeni.”
“Please stop listening in.”
“Why would I do that?” he said.
“Because my thoughts are private.”
He let out an arrogant chuckle. Just then, the rain started coming down in sheets instead of buckets, and the car began hydroplaning, forcing him to take his foot off the gas to keep us on the pavement. “We will stop at your motel to allow this storm to pass. Then we will continue north.”
“North?”
“Yes. We will need access to a functioning airport.”
“Where are we going?” I asked but had no intention of traveling anywhere with this man, which he probably knew.
Like usual, Jack was tight lipped. In contrast, I’d never felt more talkative in my life. Something had happened back there to pull me out of my shell, and for the first time ever, I felt alive. Still, that didn’t mean I wanted anything to do with the man behind the wheel.
“Well,” I said, “I’ll give you my money and a credit card. I’ll buy you a ticket to anywhere you like, but I’m not going with you.”
“Yes. You will.”
“Look, Jack or whateverthehell your name really is, my father is ill, and he depends on me for money. Now, thanks to you, my job is fucked, which means he’s fucked.” Not like I could go back to work if that woman might be looking for me.
“She will find out where you live, too. Then what?”
I turned to fully face him while he kept his eyes on the road. “What are you trying to say?”
“I am saying that she very likely ascertained your full name while digging around inside your head, which means she will discover where you reside and be paying you a visit in a day or two. I am guessing she is the sort of woman who will have no qualms about harming whoever answers the door, including your father.” He paused. “Of course, I could be persuaded to ensure he is protected.”