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She looked back at Ellie, her face filled with annoyance. Lifting her foot, she kicked Ellie’s hand, watching as her eyelids fluttered open slightly.
"What happened now? Why aren’t you bitching loudly?" Olivia sneered. "You had plenty to say back there when you were trying to seduce my man and drag him to your bed."
Even through the pain, Ellie’s brows knitted together. Gritting her teeth, she managed to rasp out, "Where the hell… did you see me seducing your man? Are you blind?"
Olivia’s face turned red with rage. Even when injured, this bitch wouldn’t stop getting on her nerves.
"Grab her," she snapped at the men. "Throw her in the car and burn her. I don’t want even her remains to be found in this place!"
Darkness pressed against Ellie’s mind, her body losing its battle against consciousness.
‘Damn it, Ellie.’ She cursed herself, trying to fight the darkness. ‘You just couldn’t keep your smartass mouth shut for a minute. Now don’t sleep. Don’t sleep… don’t sleep—’
But the blackness consumed her, and she slumped into unconsciousness.
The men grabbed Ellie, dragging her into the driver’s seat of the car, securing her hands and legs in position. Stepping back with smirks, they reassured Olivia, "It’ll look like an accident, don’t worry. We just have to throw her in that ditch once the car is lit up."
They moved swiftly. The car door opened again, and a container of gasoline was pulled out. The acrid scent filled the air as they poured it around the vehicle.
“Step back,” one of the men ordered, pulling a lighter from his pocket. He flicked it open, ready to throw it—
Headlights flashed in the distance. A sudden burst of light flooded the scene.
"Shit! Someone’s coming!" one of the men hissed, urgency lacing his voice.
The man quickly tossed the lighter aside and rushed toward the trees. "Hide!" he snapped at Olivia, pulling her back.
"Just burn her first! What are you doing?" Olivia snapped.
“Madam, if I light this up now, that other car will catch fire too. You wanna explain to the cops why this ‘accident’ suddenly turned into a double murder?” he shot back, shoving her behind the trees.
"Grab this stupid woman!" the other man growled, clamping a hand over Olivia’s mouth before she could argue.
The approaching car skidded to a halt.
A man stepped out.
Sawyer.
Olivia’s blood ran cold.
She ducked further into the shadows, panic gripping her.
Sawyer rushed to the abandoned car, thinking it had been in an accident. He yanked open the driver’s side door—only to freeze.
“Ellie?”
His expression changed instantly. Panic surged through his body.
"Ellie?! Ellie!"
She didn’t respond. Blood seeped from a wound on her head, her body eerily still. A strong scent of gasoline filled his nose.
His chest clenched violently. “Fuck. Fuck. Fuck!”
Sawyer had never felt fear like this. He had dealt with high-stakes deals, life-or-death situations. But the last time he had been this terrified was when Olivia’s house caught fire with her inside it—when he thought he had lost her forever. And now, that same fear, that same suffocating tightness, was clawing at his chest.
He grabbed Ellie, lifting her out of the seat but the seatbelt was stuck.