Page 82 of Trail to Trouble

Death would set her free. Her secrets would haunt her no more.

She opened her eyes and met Sebastián’s gaze.

“Two...”

She straightened her spine. She was ready.

“We got it!” one of Sebastián’s thugs yelled as he stepped through the doorway of the abandoned warehouse.

He waved a cell phone in the air. Her phone. At first, she was mad she’d forgotten to take it on her run after work, but at two miles into the four-mile loop, it was of no use to worry about it. Rarely was a moment she didn’t have her phone on her, but the events of the day had her so out of sorts she couldn’t think clearly and forgot to grab it. Turns out, forgetting it was a good thing, since Sebastián nabbed her from the path. His not having access to her phone would ensure he wouldn’t find out that she’d just texted Hannah. Knowing one day she’d probably need the number, she was glad she’d programmed it into her phone.

Her heart sank, and a lump the size of a golf ball lodged in her throat as she stared at her phone in Sebastián’s hand. Programming the number in the phone hadn’t been such a good idea.

An evil smirk rose on Sebastián’s face, and his irises turned as black as his pupils.

Sebastián stepped around her and grabbed one of her bound hands, pried open her fingers from her balled fists, then pressed her thumb to the screen of the phone to unlock it.

He moved back to her sightline and studied her phone as he tapped the screen.

His hands stopped moving. The evil laugh that echoed in the nearly empty room caused the eeriest of sensations to snake up her spine.

“Excellent work, Ramon,” Sebastián said as he glanced at his thug.

He spun the phone around for her to see. The text to Hannah was on full display.

Bianca’s mouth went dry.

“It looks like you are no longer needed, sweet pea. Where were we?” he asked as he yanked his pistol from his waistband.

She squeezed her eyes shut and braced herself.

“Oh, I remember.”

Oh God.

“One.”

ChapterTwenty-Two

Katrina’s pulsepounded so loudly she couldn’t hear herself think.

“We need to call the police,” Hunter said.

“I know, but what are they going to do? It’s not like they’ll give me a bodyguard or something, and even so, Sebastián’s resources are unlimited with his family business. I had no clue Bianca knew where I was. I’m worried about her. For her to send that message means she knows something, and she’s probably in trouble.”

She shook her head as if that would help her put her incoherent thoughts in order.

“What are you thinking?”

“I keep wondering what she meant when she said this was all her fault. What was? The fact that Sebastián knows where I work. How would she know that? I’ve been so careful not to make contact with people from my prior life. And how long has she had my contact information? And why hasn’t she reached out before this? None of this makes sense.”

Hunter reached down and gripped her hands.

“We’ll figure this out. I will not let anything happen to you. I will protect you at any cost. You know that, right?”

Of course she did. He’d proven that years ago.

“That’s what I’m afraid of. You nearly lost your life once already just from being in the wrong place at the wrong time.”