Page 122 of Protecting Peyton

Had he seen me? I clamped my hand over my mouth to quiet my breathing.

A second later, his voice answered my question. “Do you see her?” Baldy’s yell was clearly muffled by the mask.

“No, but she’s got to be here,” a second muffled male voice answered.

They were after me.

I crawled along the wall of the house, making myself as small as possible, my mind going a million miles a minute into more than one bad place about the outcome if they found me.

Patting my pocket, I confirmed what I already knew. Like a fool, I’d left my phone charging on the kitchen counter. I had no way to call for help, no way to reach my man.

Jordy’s gun had been out on the coffee table. Maybe I could get to it. Lifting up, I peeked over the edge.

I saw the gun on the corner of the coffee table, under a magazine. What I also saw before ducking down was the second man, just as big as the first, but with long hair instead of bald. Getting past these goons and to the gun would be just as impossible as getting to my phone in the kitchen.

My self-defense training was maybe good enough to get out of one guy’s grasp, if I surprised him when he grabbed me, but certainly not two.

Why did they have gas masks on? Did that have to do with why the guys had collapsed?

My God. What if they were hurt?

“What about these guys?” Baldy asked.

“Leave them,” Long Hair answered. “We only get paid to bring her in. Check the other rooms.”Hired bad guys.Buzzcut and Shorty, now these two.

“What if one of ’em wakes up?”

“The gas knocks ‘em out for at least five minutes. If he wakes up early, you can shoot him.”

Crap, crap, crap.I couldn’t let that happen. Standing, I yelled, “Assholes!”

As soon as Baldy saw me through the window, I ran for the side of the house and as fast as I could around the corner. The drugstore would be safe. I only had to make it there and call for help.

Heavy footsteps sounded behind me, but I didn’t dare look back.

The gate was unlocked, so I swung it open, then slammed it behind me and knocked over the trash can to block it. So far, I was keeping ahead of Baldy. Only a few more yards to the sidewalk and I could run down the street toward the drugstore.

“There you are,” Long Hair said as he stepped around the corner and blocked my way.

“Please don’t hurt me,” I cried in my most helpless voice as I slumped my shoulders and slowed down.

Long Hair smirked and grabbed my arm.

Eyes, throat, nose, balls, knees.I exploded upward and punched him as hard as I could in the throat.

He gurgled, grasped his throat, and stumbled backward, letting go of my arm.

I ran for the sidewalk, but stepped on something sharp and hopped for two steps.

“Bitch.” A strong hand grabbed my ankle, and I went down hard. Pain radiated from my knee all the way to my hip.

Long Hair pulled me toward him.

I pulled up my free foot and mentally repeated the target list as Long Hair pulled me toward him.Eyes, throat, nose, balls, and knees.With a swift kick, I jammed my heel into his nose. A lady shouldn’t have liked the crunching sound of his nose breaking, but I was no lady today.

Long Hair let me go with a scream, and I scrambled away as Baldy rounded the back corner of the house.

He pulled off his gas mask and lumbered toward us, more elephant than cheetah.