Page 156 of Lust & Lies

He’d called me Noelani. Not Noah. Not Noe. I smiled as I stared at the closed door. I looked pretty to Aiden.

“Did I look like a girl?” I asked, nervous.

“You always look like a girl,” he told me.

He was lying. But it made me happy. Aiden Park always found a way to make me happy. One day, when I was free to be who I wanted to be, I would tell him that I liked him. More than liked him. Would he say it back?

Did Aiden Park like me, too?

CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

NOELANI

THE PAIN IN MY SIDEjerked me back into reality. But I won’t lie, the ache from that memory of the past was almost worse than the agony my body was experiencing in the present. The Aiden from that memory was the one I loved.

He was the one who’d kneeled with me in the past and gave me forehead kisses in the present. Could it really be a misunderstanding that forced us apart? I couldn’t put it past Grandpa Park and my sister to have done something cruel to bring us to where we are today.

If only I could remember everything at once and not these heartbreaking fragments. Muffled voices forced my mind back to my current situation. I hadn’t been out for long. I awakened in time to realize I was being shoved into the back seat of a car.

I couldn’t let them take me. I had to make it to Gertrude. They pushed me into the car, then slammed the door. I lay there, staring at the back of the front seats. This was so much like the night my sister and her boyfriend drugged and kidnapped me, taking me to Aiden.

But we’d crashed, and I’d ended up hurt with my memory gone. Who knew what would happen if I let these bastards takeme? I’d had enough of living my life according to someone else’s plan.

I was done being taken here and there against my will. And to make matters worse, one of these bastards had stomped on my stomach.Oh, hell no!Because of these fuckers, my side was bleeding, my head was throbbing, and every part of me ached.

My killer instincts had been dormant. But they’d awakened something dark in me. Something cold. Something disturbing. Something vicious. Something that was determined to survive at all costs.

I watched them climb into the front seats, confident that they’d completed their mission. A mission wasn’t complete until your target was no longer breathing. And I would continue to fight as long as there was air in my lungs.

Since I had no weapons, I would have to fight with my hands.Oh, wait.There was the knife in my boot. If I could... just... reach... it. Pain shot through my side as I brought my knee up while inching my hand down.

Almost got it. You can do this, Noe. You can... do... this. Got it!

But damn, if it hurt that bad just to reach for the blade, how was I going to fight my way out of this situation? The driver turned to look into the back seat. Closing my eyes, I forced myself to stay as still as I could, pretending to be out cold.

Before closing my eyes, I noticed that both drivers had on masks like mine, except theirs were black.Definitely Watchdogs.

“Sothisis the legendary Mist?” the driver sneered. “She didn’t put up much of a fight. Shit, this bitch didn’t fight back at all. Her reputation must be fake. Mr. Park and the Leader kept warning us to be careful of her. But she was probably my easiest capture.”

“Just keep your guard up,” the guy in the passenger seat said as the driver started the car. “I’ve worked with her before. She’s not to be underestimated.”

“Oh, right. You’re a member of her team,” the driver mused.

A member of my own team wanted me dead?You disloyal prick!

“Shut up!” the disloyal prick snapped.

“What? She’s unconscious.”

“Just be careful of what you say,” the guy in the passenger seat told him. “Plus, she isn’t herself right now. She seemed disoriented or something. Trust me, you don’t want to meet her when she’s herself.”

“If you say so,” the driver drawled, sounding unconvinced.

“Just drive. We need to get her to the spot Viper designated as soon as possible.”

“We’ll be there in no time,” the driver stated as he drove off, gravel crunching under the tires. “Plus, Viper and the Leader are at the Orchard now, looking for Mist. We’ll tell the Leader we lost Mist in the woods. He’ll believe she escaped. And the search for Mr. Park’s favorite Watchdog will continue.”

The Leader.