| Was that a footstep by the door? Or just my imagination? How long had this
silent standoff lasted? I couldn't guess how many seconds or minutes had passedelanie knew that the stalling would soon be at an endShe wanted me to clench
the rock tighter
But I would give flight a chance firstI would not be an effective fighter, even if I could bring
myself to tryKyle was probably twice my weight, and he had a much longer reach
I raised the hand with the pebbles and aimed them toward the back passage to the latrine
Maybe I could make him think that I was going to hide and hope for rescueI threw the handful
of small stones and shied away from the noise when they clattered against the rock wall
The breath at the door again, the sound of a light footfall headed toward my decoyI edged as
quietly along the wall as I could
What if there are two?
I don't know
I was almost to the exitIf I could just make the tunnel, I thought I could outrun himI was
lighter and fast
I heard a footstep, very clearly this time, disrupting the stream in fake chanel handbag the back of the room
A gigantic splash shattered the tense standoffWater pelted my skin, making me gaspIt
spattered against the wall in a wave of wet sound
He's coming through the pool! Run!
I hesitated just a second too longBig fingers clutched at my calf, my ankleI yanked against
the pull, lurching forwardI stumbled, and the momentum that threw me down to the floor
made his fingers slipI kicked it off, leaving it in his hand
I was down, but he was down, tooIt gave me enough time to scramble forward, ripping my
knees against the rough stone
Kyle grunted, and his hand clutched at my naked heelThere was nothing to catch hold of; I
slid free againI wrenched myself forward, pulling to my feet with my head still down, every
second in danger of falling again because my body was moving almost parallel to the floorI
kept my balance through sheer force of will
There was no one elseNo one to catch me at the exit to the outer roomI sprinted forward,
hope and adrenaline surging in my veinsI burst into the river room at full speed, fendi spy bags my only
thought to reach the tunnelI could hear Kyle's heavy breath close behind but not close enough
With each step, I pushed harder against the ground, throwing myself ahead of him
Pain lanced through my leg, crumpling it
Over the babble of the river, I heard two heavy stones hit the ground and roll?the one I'd been
clutching and the one he'd thrown to cripple meMy leg twisted under me, spinning me
backward to the ground, and in the same second he was on top of me
His weight knocked my head against the rock in a ringing blow and pinned me flat against the
floor
Scream!
The air blew out of me in a siren of sound that surprised us allMy wordless shriek was more
than I'd hoped for?surely someone would hear itPlease let that someone be JebPlease let him
have the gun
?Uhng!? Kyle protestedHis hand was big enough to cover most of my faceHis palm mashed
against my mouth, cutting off my scream
He rolled then, and the motion so took me by surprise that I had no time to try to find an
advantage in itHe pulled me swiftly over rolex gmt and under and over his bodyI was dizzy and
confused, my head still spinning, but I understood as soon as my face hit the water
His hand locked on the back of my neck, forcing my face into the shallow stream of cooler
water that wound its way into the bathing poolIt was too late to hold my breathI'd already
inhaled a mouthful of water
My body panicked when the water hit my lungsIts flailing was stronger than he'd expected
My limbs all jerked and thrashed in different directions, and his grip on my neck slippedHe
tried to get a better hold, and some instinct made me pull myself into him rather than away, as
he was expectingI only pulled half a foot closer to him, but that got my chin out of the stream,
and enough of my mouth to choke some of the water back out and drag in a breath
He fought to push me back into the stream, but I wriggled and wedged myself under him so
that his own weight was working against his goalI was still reacting to the water in my lungs,
coughing and spasming out of control
?Enough!? Kyle growled
He fake cartier watch pulled himself off me, and I tried to drag myself away
?Oh, no, youdon't! ? he spit through his teeth
It was over, and I knew it
There was something wrong with my injured legIt felt numb, and I couldn't make it do what I
wantedI could only push myself along the floor with my arms and my good legI was coughing
too hard to do even that wellToo hard to scream again
Kyle grabbed my wrist and yanked me up from the floorThe weight of my body made my leg
buckle, and I slumped into him
He got both my wrists in one hand and wrapped the other arm around my waistHe pulled me
off the floor and into his side, like an awkward bag of flourI twisted, and my good leg kicked
against the empty air
?Let's get this over with
He jumped over the smaller stream with a bound and carried me toward the closest sinkhole
The steam from the hot spring washed my face
He was going to throw me into the dark, hot hole and let the boiling water pull me into the
ground as it burned me
?No, no!? I shouted, my voice too hoarse and low to carry
I writhed gucci shoulder bags frantic |
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