What If You & Me (Say Everything #2) - Roni Loren Page 0,109
them become fuel. Anger was so much more productive than fear. Her teeth clenched.
No way was she getting taken out by this guy.
“Open your door,” he said, shuffling them both forward. “We need to have a private conversation.”
Never let them take you to a second location.
The words echoed through her head. They were from an old Oprah show she’d once overheard her mom watching. The words had stuck with her, and she’d talked about them on the podcast. She didn’t know if inside her house qualified as an official second location, but there was not a chance in hell she was letting him in without a fight.
She stalled, jiggling her keys in her left hand like she was trying to maneuver them as she quickly ran through what she knew, her mind grasping at information. He had one hand holding her arm behind her back, the other over her mouth. Which meant he had no weapon—at least not actively in his hand. He was bigger than she was, so in a fight, she was at a disadvantage. Her best shot was a distraction and then either getting loose enough to get away and run to the neighbor’s house or at least get her mouth free so she could scream bloody murder.
“Put the key in the fucking lock,” he said, squeezing her jaw so hard it made her eyes water.
She nodded like she was the scared little girl he thought she was. But as she did it, she was getting her keys between her knuckles again. She lifted her left hand with the little range of motion she had as if she was going to reach for the lock, but then she quickly swung her hand back the other way and stabbed him as hard as she could in his thigh.
“Fuck!”
It wasn’t enough to truly injure him, but it was close enough to his crotch that the element of surprise had him angling back to protect himself, and his grip loosened. She wrenched away and screamed like she’d never screamed before. Her arm came free from his grip, and she bolted toward the stairs. But before she could get there, he grabbed her hair and viciously yanked her backward. She fell and landed hard on her ass. Pain shot up her spine, and her scalp burned like it’d been lit on fire.
He called her a slew of names and tugged her hair again, but she was already scrambling, her hands searching. When they found what she was looking for, she didn’t think, just turned and aimed. The hiss of the pepper spray was like a prayer going up. The high-pitched scream that followed was the prayer answered.
Her attacker released her hair to grab for his face, and the stinging burn of the pepper spray made them both cough. But Andi hadn’t taken a direct hit, so she scrabbled backward like a crab toward the stairs, kicking off her shoes. Once she was out of his arm’s reach, she got to her feet and ran down the stairs, screaming the whole way. Her phone was in her purse, which was somewhere on the porch, and she’d dropped her keys in the fray, but she’d bang on every neighbor’s door until someone answered.
However, right before she reached the edge of the front yard, headlights blinded her. She put up her hands to shield her eyes, but then started waving both arms when it registered that this could be someone to help. The vehicle screeched to a halt in the street, and the door swung open.
When her vision adjusted and she recognized the truck, relief rushed over her like a tidal wave. Oh God, oh God. Thank you, God.
Hill climbed out with the headlights still on blast. “Andi!”
She ran toward him, the warm pavement rough against her feet. “Get in the truck! Someone’s on the porch. He attacked me.”
Horror filled Hill’s face as he took in the sight of her. He grabbed her, pulling her to him. “Jesus Christ. Tell me you’re okay.”
The feel of his arms around her was the sweetest relief, but they weren’t out of danger. “I’m okay. In the truck. Get in the truck.”
“Right.” Hill herded her over to the passenger side and got her into the seat.
“I got him…with the pepper spray,” she said, her words coming in gasps. “Need to call…police.”
Hill pulled his phone from his pocket and punched in 911. “Talk to them. I’m not going to let him get away.”