Page 37 of Reign

Dree walked toward the passenger-side door and reached for the handle. “Nice to know that you’re on a first-name basis with all the other royal people in the world.”

Maxence opened the driver’s side door. “And you will be, too, soon enough.”

“Okay, that’s just weird.” Dree flipped up the handle and eased the passenger door open as wide as she could, but that van was parked so close. She didn’t want to ding their paint.

She was just turning sideways to shimmy her way into their SUV when the van’s sliding door squealed open, the wheels grating on the metal track.

Hands clamped her shoulders, yanking her backward.

Dree was off balance and flailing. Rather than fight her backward motion, she let her knees go limp and dropped straight down between the vehicles.

“No! Stop! Fire!”Her scream abraded her throat.“Stop it—let me go!”

Her butt and spine scraped the van’s frame as she fell. The sky poured blood.

Maxence landed beside her. He must’ve vaulted across the hood.

His arms strained, throwing punches. His face was a screaming rictus of fury.

Dree struggled as the guy grabbed at her, scratching,howling.

Grunts.

An arm grabbed around her head, dropping stinky flesh over her view of the SUV in front of her.

Shouts.

The van’s engine roared beside her head. A wave of heat and the stink of exhaust enveloped her.

Some guy jerked her hair.

Rage flashed through her.“Asshole!”She reached behind her head and dug her acrylic-manicured fingernails into the tendons of his wrist. He screeched something in another language and let go.

A sickly wet smack crunched behind her.

A man wailed, a hoarse and horrible sound.

She clawed at the hands holding her and sank her teeth into somebody’s hairy forearm, tasting coppery blood.

Screams.

The arm jerked away. She spat the blood at the asphalt.

Their SUV was right there,so close.

Thuds and a grunt that sounded like Maxence.

She writhed and twisted the guy’s wrist that held her.

A shout.

—Falling!

Dree slammed against the door of their SUV and curled and rolled, asphalt scraping her cheeks and the backs of her hands. She scrambled underneath their vehicle.Smell of oil. Stink of gas.

Reaching, she slapped Maxence’s ankle.

His brown dress shoes stumbled backward, away from the van’s open door. Angry shouts mixed with the male screams and groans.