Then he and his two colleagues jumped into the Hummer and sped off.
When Oliver looked back at Ursula, he noticed her pleading look. Her brown eyes looked like saucers, a rim of wetness around them. He shut the passenger door without a word and averted his gaze.
Oliver got into the driver’s seat and pulled the door shut. Without looking at Ursula, he turned the key in the ignition and put the car in drive. Then he turned the van around and watched how the building disappeared from the rear-view mirror when he turned at the next intersection.
He headed toward the freeway that led to the airport which was located a half hour south of San Francisco. Traffic was light.
“Please don’t do this,” she pleaded, her voice sounding choked up.
He kept his eyes on the road, afraid that he would falter if he looked at her. “I have no choice.”
Without Scanguards’ backing, he couldn’t do anything else for her. His trust in her was shaken. He’d actually believed her when she’d told him about her imprisonment, even more so when he’d seen her break after hearing the news that her parents believed her to be dead. What a fool he’d been to allow a pretty woman to cloud his judgment.
“You always have a choice,” she claimed. “You just don’t want to believe me.”
He spun his head to stare at her. “I did believe you! But you lied to me and my colleagues. You led us around by our noses.” And me by my dick, he should have added. “I’m afraid, I’m all done with believing in lies for tonight.”
“They’re not lies!” she cried out, glaring back at him.
God, how her cheeks flared with anger, and how beautiful it made her look. And her lips, so plump and inviting despite the lies that rolled over them.
Oliver trained his look back on the freeway. “I even gave you the benefit of the doubt when you didn’t want to tell me how you really escaped. I did everything to convince my colleagues to check out your claims. I stuck my neck out for you!”
“Please, don’t give up on me. There are other lives at stake. The other girls—”
“There are no other girls!” he cut her off, gripping the steering wheel more tightly. “You’ve made it all up. And I don’t even want to know anymore why.” Because he didn’t want to hear any more lies. Not out of that pretty mouth she’d kissed him with. Oh damn, why could he not forget that? Would this image haunt him forever?
“You’re the only one who can help us. I would have gone to the police if I believed that they had a chance to defeat those vampires. But they’ll just be slaughtered. You and your colleagues, you’re the only ones who can do this. I need you.”
His heart clenched. She needed him. It was an admission that would have made him rejoice only hours earlier, but after seeing the empty building that she claimed had been her prison, the words made him almost nauseous.
“I don’t care anymore,” he replied, the words cutting deep into his own heart.
“What do I have to do for you to help me?”
He ran his hand through his hair. “You want me to help you?”
“Yes.”
He tossed an angry glare at her. “Then give me something . . . just one piece of information that will help me believe you. Something, so I know you’re telling me the truth.” He kept his eyes on her and noticed her pull in a breath. Her eyelids lowered, and he saw the apprehension in her eyes, the hesitation that made her remain silent.
Disappointed, he tore his gaze away from her. “I knew it. You’ve never had any intention of telling me the truth.” He shook his head and gave a bitter laugh. “How stupid I’ve been. To think that I actually liked you. And not just because I wanted to sleep with you.”
“And now, you don’t want that anymore?” Her voice was suddenly calm and sounded almost resigned.
“No,” he lied. Because if he touched her now, he would never be able to wipe her memory and put her on that plane.
“Liar,” she said softly.
“I don’t care what you believe.”
From the corner of his eye, he saw her nod. “Fine. I’ll tell you everything. But only you. None of your colleagues can ever find out. If you don’t believe me after that, then put me on a plane home. But if you believe me, then