Page 154 of Kiss of Deceit

Silence fell over the cabin as we waited for a response. My pulse thrashed as I thought of Dani. I hoped she got away from Miles. There was a moment of static before words came over the device.

“Want to play with me?”

The sickly-sweet voice was higher than usual, but there was no denying it was Dani. My heart skipped a beat, relief stabbing me. If she answered, that meant she wasn’t trapped with Miles.

Leo’s face turned a shade darker as he pressed the button to speak again. “Where the hell is my son?”

Her answer was instant. “I’ll tell you when you let Kole go.”

Leo lowered the walkie-talkie, running a hand over his head. “No, no, no.” His voice rose with each word. “This is not how it’s supposed to fucking go.”

I tensed when his glare flicked to me. He opened his mouth only to close it again, turning his attention back to the walkie-talkie.

“Make her tell us where Miles is,” Hallie cried out, her voice shrill. “If she hurt him?—”

“Shut up,” Leo snapped, his nostrils flaring. “Shut the fuck up so I can figure this out.”

“Are you scared to play with me?” Dani’s taunting voice filled the cabin again. “Is the big bad monster really a coward?”

Rage lined Leo’s face as he stared at the walkie-talkie before speaking into it again. “My son better be alive for Kole’s sake.”

This time Dani didn’t reply. I wrinkled my nose, the smell of smoke invading my nose. Leo and Hallie noticed the same time I did. Hallie was already hysterical, pointing to the growing smoke in the back of the cabin. Leo was frozen, trying to figure out what to do.

Soon, flames licked up the walls, the smoke becoming thick. I coughed, my eyes burning as I sucked in shallow breaths.

“We can’t leave the cabin,” Hallie screamed. “That’s what she wants.”

“Then stay and burn,” he retorted, storming toward me. “She won’t touch me if he’s in the way.”

He grabbed my good arm, yanking me off the chair. My body screamed in agony as he pulled me through the door. The frigid wind whipped around us as he put me in front of him, resting the knife on my throat.

“I know you’re out here,” he yelled, anger shaking his voice. “Come out now or I kill him.”

Hallie came stumbling out of the burning cabin, the gun still in her hand. Light snow was falling, and my hoodie was nothingagainst the cold. But Leo and Hallie weren’t dressed for this weather either.

“The monster is hiding.” Dani’s voice was muffled since the walkie-talkie was in Leo’s pocket. “I was right about you being a coward. You stalked me for years, never having the courage to face me.”

“Is that what you think?” Leo roared, spinning us around as he searched the dark forest. “Show your face.”

Suddenly, Hallie let out a piercing scream. There was a loud thud, and Leo whipped us around. Hallie was on the snow-covered ground, curled in a ball. Blood was slowly dripping from her hands as she held her thigh. My mouth dropped in shock when I spotted the hilt of a knife protruding from her leg.

“Stop screaming,” Leo hissed, reaching down and grabbing her discarded gun. He pocketed the knife before putting the muzzle to the side of my head. “I can’t hear anything.”

“It hurts,” she sobbed. “What if I bleed out?”

“If you don’t shut up, I’ll bleed you out myself.” His threat cut her cries to whimpers. He raised his voice. “I’ll kill him if you don’t come out.”

Hallie screamed again, choking out pained cries. “My back. Help me please.”

Leo slowly circled around her, and my eyes dropped to the blade buried deep in her lower back. I was whipped around when he turned to face the direction the knife most likely came from.

“You kill him and there will be nothing stopping me from aiming at you next time.”

My heart lurched. This time her voice came from the trees ahead of us, not the walkie-talkie.

“Is knife throwing all you have?” Leo called out mockingly. “Your skills will have to be better than that if you want me.”

The howling wind and Hallie’s sobs made it impossible to hear anything quiet. I scanned the pine trees, not seeing any movement. Leo tightened his hold on me, digging the gun into the side of my temple as he attempted to hide most of his body from where he believed she was.