Page 62 of Run For Me (Until You’re Mine Duet #1)

Chapter Sixty-Two

Sailor

“Come on, baby. Don’t worry. He won’t hurt you again.”

Jaxon’s words are so soft I hardly recognize them.

How can he be so sweet to me, so kind, when he’s capable of awful things? Things I’ve seen with my own eyes, felt with my own body.

Now I’m staring at a man who is hurt, and I know it’s at the hands of Jaxon. Yet… his voice is so soft when he talks to me.

“Come on,” he adds, this time even sweeter.

What happens if I piss him off? What happens if I do something wrong? What happens if I decide I don’t want this anymore? How will he react? Will he do this to me? Will he treat me the way he’s treated Mindy? What if he never lets me go at all?

He’s used possessive language from the very beginning, and it was thrilling at first. But now, after all this…

If I say no… what will he do?

If I deny him… what will happen?

The red flags are a mile long and as bright as can be. I’ve been staring at them, wishing for them, accepting them willingly. Now I’m starting to wonder if it was all a mistake.

Jaxon is dangerous, and maybe this game isn’t as fun as I thought it was. It’s serious, and it’s real. Life or death.

I don’t know much about what I want for my future, but what if he doesn’t allow me that? What if he locks me away and never lets me do anything?

He tugs on my hand, and I go with him, not willing to risk any of this now. Not here, not when I have nowhere to go or anyone to call for help. Hell, I don’t even know where I am.

We follow Mindy outside, through the overgrown grass and dirt. She resembles a zombie, walking without emotion. Like a robot. Jaxon verbally guides her to where the car is, and unlocks it, gesturing for her to get in. She slides into the back, and he helps me into the front.

She doesn’t ask where we’re going and neither do I.

What if I turn into her?

What if whatever this is with Jaxon ends so terribly that I’m on his bad side? It’s a scary, sobering thought.

Maybe I’m just panicking over the day.

He saved me.

But that’s the problem, isn’t it?

He saved me. He came for me. How many people did he hurt in the process? How many people will he hurt in the future? Will I be one of those people?

Before I know it, the car is moving. It’s silent, other than the low rumble of the engine and the cars we pass by. I don’t recognize a single thing, but Jaxon seems to know where we’re going. Mindy and I don’t say a word as we move down long, winding roads.

We eventually leave the cover of the trees.

The entire left side opens up to a beautiful ocean view, and I think we’re going in the wrong direction.

If the ocean is on our left, we’re not heading back home.

Unless that isn’t the ocean, but the Strait of Juan de Fuca, but that still doesn’t quite make sense.

Why are we near the water when we weren’t a short time ago?

Nothing about this tells me we’re going the right way, and that thought is terrifying.

Because this could still be a trick.

Both of them could be in on this. It could all be one big game to them. I want to look behind me to see Mindy’s expression, but that will be weird, so I keep staring forward as I consider my options. I finally come up with an idea.

I put my hand on Jaxon’s thigh. He smiles at me, and it causes my heart to skip a beat.

Why are all the dangerous men so beautiful?

His hand covers mine, linking his fingers through mine.

“Where are we going?” I ask.

“Somewhere quiet, so I can talk to Mindy,” he says.

It’s a weird answer that doesn’t make sense. I say nothing else. I don’t want to say something to anger him. It’s best to wait and see where we end up and go from there. For now, I focus on keeping my panic at bay. Panicking won’t help me.

Ten minutes later, Jaxon pulls into a small parking lot. The sun is going down, and I expect it to be the most beautiful sunset I’ve ever seen. I’ve never been this far west before, and I hate it has to happen on a day like today, when I can’t enjoy it.

Jaxon turns the car off, and we sit in silence for a few seconds before he says, “Wait here.” I watch him carefully. He leans in to kiss my cheek. “I’ll be right back.”

He gets out of the car before I can say anything, not that I know what I would say anyway. He pulls the back door open and yanks Mindy out by her arm. She cries out as I turn, ready to tell him to stop, but the words die on my tongue and I’m not sure why. Fear, maybe. I don’t know.

With his hand grasping her upper arm, he drags her across the road and toward the bluffs. There is a weathered wooden railing where you can stand to view the ocean. I can’t believe there’s no one here.

Beyond them, the sky is bleeding into oranges and pinks. Colors I’ve never seen before, let alone in the sky. It’s beautiful. So beautiful.

My heart thunders in my chest as Jaxon and Mindy come back into view. Why is this the place he wanted to take her to talk? Why does he need to talk to her at all? Are they conspiring against me?

They stop by the railing, facing one another so I can see their side view. He’s angry as he speaks to her. She’s crying, wiping her eyes and shaking her head. Her arms go up, then fall to her sides. He shakes his head, then he’s pointing a finger in her face.

She cries harder.

Then it happens.

So quickly I can’t believe it.

He grabs her by the arms and shoves her over the railing. Her scream is so loud I hear it even from here. I jerk forward, as if I could reach out and save her. I couldn’t. I’m too far away, but my body responds just the same.

Now I’m frozen still, my gaze glued to him as he looks over the railing. My hands shake.

Jaxon turns back and walks confidently toward the car. My gaze goes to the key resting in the console. I should lock the door. I should leave. The keys are right there; I could take off and leave him here.

But he’ll find me. He knows where I live. He knows everything about me. This man is obsessed with me. He told me I’m his forever. And he just killed someone. He will find me. Jaxon will always find me. What have I gotten myself into?

The door opens and Jaxon gets into the car, pressing the button to start it.

“Why did you do that?” I ask, the words coming out in a terrified whisper.

Jaxon turns toward me, not an ounce of regret on his face. Not a bit of sadness or worry. Nothing. No regret, no concern. Absolutely nothing.

That’s the scariest thing of all.

“She was going to kill you.”

“But you saved me,” I say.

“Doesn’t matter.”

“Of course it matters, Jaxon. You could have called the police.”

He laughs. Throws his head back and laughs.

“The police?” He’s smiling as he turns toward me, but it’s not a happy smile. It’s bitter. “No. That never would have worked.”

“Why not?”

I flinch away when he shifts in his seat. His brow furrows and for a flash of a moment, he looks sad. Offended.

“Are you afraid of me?” he asks in a low voice.

I can’t tell if he’s upset about it or wants me to be.

“Sh-should I be?”

He grits his teeth and growls, “Of course not.”

“You just killed someone,” I whisper, wiping a tear from my eye.

“For you!” he shouts. “She was going to kill you.”

“But you saved me! Why didn’t you let her go? You… you could have—”

“You don’t get it, Sailor. And I’m sorry you don’t understand, but you just have to trust me.”

Jaxon reaches for the shifter, but I grab his wrist.

“Help me understand,” I plead. “Because I don’t, Jaxon. I don’t understand this at all, and I am scared.”

He blows out a sharp breath, shaking his head. I watch as his body visibly starts to relax. The tension leaves his shoulders, his breathing slows.

“This came from my mother,” he starts.

“This…”

“The kidnapping,” he says urgently. “Mindy was acting under her orders. My mother is… Fuck, you’re not going to believe me.”

“Just say it,” I whisper. “Please.”

If he can just explain, make this make sense, maybe this fear in my chest will back off. Maybe I’ll wake up from whatever nightmare this is, and things will go back to how they were.

“My mother runs an underground criminal organization.”

I blink. “What? She—what does that even mean?”

“She’s the kind of woman who smiles at fundraisers and has people killed by morning.

Cross her, and you vanish. No warnings, no second chances.

” He shakes his head, staring out the window as he continues.

“She’s been angry at me for years because I won’t fall in line. She thinks I’m wasting my bloodline.”

“Bloodline?” I echo.

“She wants me to take over. Groomed me for it since I was a kid, but I don’t want to do it.”

“Jaxon—”

“She is dangerous, Sailor.” His voice drops, the weight of those words landing hard. For the briefest second, there’s something raw in his eyes. Fear. “Mindy wouldn’t have stopped. That guy at the house won’t either. Not until they follow through on her orders.”

“You left him, though,” I say quietly. “Why didn’t you leave Mindy too?”

“I couldn’t.” His jaw tenses. “It’s not that simple.”

He throws the car into drive, making a sharp U-turn. My pulse quickens. The world tilts. My vision goes blurry.

A criminal empire. Murder. Bloodlines. What the hell did I get myself into?

It takes me twenty minutes to realize where we’re heading.

Back to the house.

And there’s only one reason for that.

To finish this.