One Big Mistake - Jennifer Youngblood Page 0,55
to do something to warn him, but what?
Shoving his gun in his pants waistband, Edison picked up the unconscious man and placed him into a chair. Bitsie handed him a roll of duct tape. Quickly, he taped the man’s hands and feet to the chair. The man’s chin was lobbed onto his chest, preventing Hartley from seeing his face. Edison tore off a strip of tape and lifted the man’s face to place the strip over his mouth.
Hartley’s insides froze when she recognized the man. Knox Romeo!
Edison turned to Hartley. When he stepped up to her, she instinctively shrank into herself for protection. “Don’t worry, pretty girl,” he taunted as he touched her hair. “This will be over soon. It’s a shame.” He twisted her hair around his finger as he tsked his tongue. “Think of all the fun we could’ve had together,” he mused.
“Cut the crap, Eddie!” Bitsie snarled.
Edison laughed. “Just having a bit of fun.” He released Hartley’s hair and gave her a pat on the cheek. “I can’t wait to see how this plays out.” His voice hardened. “Time for Ramsey to learn how it feels to have everything ripped away. Only this time, the deal is sweetened. We got Ramsey’s old man too. See you soon,” he chimed as he and Bitsie left the room.
Rage was boiling inside Hartley, crowding out her fear. Had the infernal tape been removed from her mouth, Hartley would have hurled insults at Edison Duffey and Bitsie Post. She looked at Knox. He was out. She wished she could yell at him to wake up.
Her heart pounded furiously with the knowledge that every passing minute was precious. As soon as Ramsey arrived, Edison and Bitsie would kill her and Knox, probably in front of Ramsey’s eyes. Revulsion welled inside her. This was a horrible nightmare.
Knox groaned and moved his chin a fraction. A sliver of determination cut through her despair. She had to make some noise. Maybe if she could wake Knox up, the two of them could figure out how to get loose. She began rocking from side to side. Knox moved his head. She rocked harder. A startled gasp rose in her throat when her chair toppled over sideways. The impact of the fall shot pain through her body. At the same moment, she heard a crack. Crap! Had she been too loud? Would the noise send Edison and Bitsie rushing back into the room? She remained motionless, praying that they hadn’t heard anything. Seconds, minutes ticked by. She glanced at the door, hoping against hope that it would remain closed.
When no one came, she started twisting her hands against the tape. The arm of the chair moved. A burst of exhilaration shot through her. The arm was loose! Exerting all the force she could, she worked it back and forth. A second later, it broke free from the base. The chair arm was dangling beneath her arm. No matter. She used her free hand to remove the tape from her other hand. Working as fast as she could, she finally got herself free. She ripped the duct tape from her mouth, gulping in a large scoop of air. Her lungs relished in the sensation. She rubbed her sore wrists as she glanced around. Her eyes had adjusted to the darkness, making it a little easier to see, but not much. Hartley felt impending doom closing in. There wasn’t a second to spare, she went to Knox and began shaking him.
“Wake up,” she urged in a low tone. “Knox!” she hissed.
He opened his eyes as his body flinched. His eyes darted around the room before coming into focus. She placed a finger to her lips. “I’m going to remove the duct tape from your mouth, but you have to be quiet, or they’ll hear you. We’ve got to find a way out of this place.”
He nodded as she removed the tape from his mouth.
He pushed out a heavy breath. “So they got you too,” he said regretfully.
“Yes,” she whispered. She went to work unwinding the tape from his hands.
“Wait,” he commanded in an urgent whisper.
She went stone still, sweat beads popping over the bridge of her nose. Had Knox heard something? Were Edison and Bitsie on their way back?
“Get the gun first, before you get me loose. That way you’ll have it … in case.” He glanced at the door.
“Gun?” she asked dubiously. “I don’t understand.” She pulled at the tape over his hand, unwinding it.
“Ramsey keeps it in