Page 51 of Bound to a Killer

This is the moment I’ve been hoping for.

I almost can’t believe it, except when I glance out the window again, scanning, I don’t see him. It’s too dark. Most of what I make out is the glistening sheen coating the concrete from the flickering street lights nearby.

The market’s not even a hundred feet away.

This is my chance. I need to move before it’s gone.

Jerking my head back to my thighs, I don’t waste another second twisting my wrists into a spiral motion until I can get my hands through the ropes.

The friction leaves a harsh imprint, but it’s worth it once I’ve gotten myself free.

I must have hissed at the burn during the process because Frankie snaps her head back in a startle. Her eyes narrow on my hands.

“What are you doing?” she asks.

I don’t answer.

Her next string of words drifts away, replaced by the blood thundering in my ears, the adrenaline spiking through me as I toss the ropes aside.

I’m too close to screw this up again.

I can taste it in the sweat lining the corners of my lips as I go to wet them, feel it in the way my heartbeat slams against my ribs, and see it in the soft blue light ahead. Freedom. Just a few feet away.

I hold my breath, trapping the air in my lungs, then sling my ropes aside and jam the lock open. The car horn blares, the sharp noise propelling me to action as I wrench the door open and run.

My heart jackhammers in my chest, lungs burning from the freezing air as I sprint across the waterlogged pavement.

My feet pound against the wet ground. Wet puddles splash against my shins, but I don’t let it slow me down. But then thehorn cuts off. The sudden quiet is almost more unnerving than the loud noise.

Stupidly, and without thinking it through, I glance over my shoulder, my eyes bouncing around in the dark until they land on him. He’s close.

I feel a wave of sickness hit me, and then before I know it, I trip, skittering close to the ground but somehow catching the fall at the last second. Shooting pain breaks out in my knee, but I quickly pick my pace back up, wincing through the rest of the distance. I’m not going to make it into the shop in time.

Unable to accept defeat, I frantically search for help around me. Only a handful of cars are within reach, sparsely spread out, but only one has its taillights on. It’s not too far. I can make it.

Resisting the urge to look back again, I force my way through the breeze blasting against me until I’m an arm’s length from the bumper.

I instantly collapse against the trunk, wheezing as I wrap an arm around my ribcage. God, it hurts.

“Help,” I gasp, my voice small. I’m too breathless to make it louder than a whisper. Using what’s left of my strength, I bang against the smooth metal, then drag myself around to the front.

There’s a sudden click before the window winds down halfway. “Are you okay?” the guy behind the wheel asks. His tawny mop of curls and lanky frame make him look young, maybe teenaged.

His brows knit together as his gaze trails down my body, deepening his frown once he reaches my bare feet. My toes curl inward, stinging as they go numb.

My chest heaves, struggling to catch my breath, a hand still pressed to my ribcage. “Please…I need…”

Help.

I’m wheezing, the word lodged in my throat.

His eyes shift away from me, his pupils dilating, and I know what’s behind me. I didn’t need to look.

“Do you need something?” the driver asks, his chin raised, though his voice cracks at the end.

“Sorry, it’s my sister,” Ledger’s voice vibrates from behind me.

My breath shallows, muscles locking into place.