“What the hell are you doing, Liv?”
So much for in control John. “I need to use the restroom. Can you show me where it is?” That simple question calms him a little and he slides out and follows me down the hall. The walls in this place are as filthy as everything else and I feel as though I have walked right into the set of a horror film. I won’t be surprised if the cook comes at us with a hatchet, trying to chop us up into little pieces to feed us to the next guests. I have watched way too many scary movies but unfortunately for Ren, Tori and myself, our stories could be horror flicks all on their own.
I push open the bathroom door with my foot and see two stalls. John allows me privacy in the stall but not in the bathroom. It takes me a minute to line the seat with several rows of toilet paper although I plan to hover anyway.
“Liv, we don’t have all day. I have already had to stop several times and we are two hours behind schedule.”
I wash my hands and splash water on my face; then use the paper towels as a rubber glove of sorts to turn off the water and open the door. Not that it will do any good because I’m sure every surface in this place is infested.
“Quit acting like a snob, Liv. You are going to have to get used to getting your hands dirty. We live on a farm and you will have to help my mother out with her daily chores. Your mother is a snob and I refuse to let you turn out like her.”
Speaking of my mother puts a led weight in the pit of my stomach. I am in this mess because of her. Did she know that this was going to happen and she just went along with the plan? Did she know John was crazy and deliberately set me up? What would her betrayal get her? She hasn’t even spoken to me in years, so I highly doubt she even knows anything about my life after I left. Once we are settled back into our booth, I take a chance and ask John about her. “What connections do you have to my mother?”
“After my brother was killed, I went to Alabama to pick up all of his belongings and bring them home to my parents. I thought he was my last hope in claiming what’s mine until I went through his things. He had some information on your mother, address, and phone, etc., and I decided that she was my in. I figured if anyone had any influence over you, it would be her, so I paid her a visit but she didn’t even know of your location. I researched the police report and discovered that the FBI agents that assisted in your case were located in Boston, and since you were no longer in Atlanta, I decided to check there. I paid her to accompany me to Boston so she could help me win you back.”
Nausea instantly rises in my throat and I jump out of the booth to race to the bathroom. Before I reach the door, I am slammed into the wall by a hand at my throat cutting off my air supply. I grip his forearms to lessen the pressure but this only pisses him off more and his hand tightens. My vision is going blurry and my last thoughts are that I thank God that my son is with his father.
~Savage~
I am out of my ever livin’ mind. I haven’t heard from Jax so I have no idea if I’m still headed in the right direction or if they changed course. I have no service out here in the middle of nowhere so I can’t check my computer myself. My only option is to keep driving towards Lexington and pray that he calls me soon. I’m two and a half hours away and that is at a hundred mile an hour pace. Just then my cell rings and I almost run off the road trying to answer it. “Jax, what have you got?”
“We just landed in Lexington and have about a thirty-minute drive south to the family’s farm. Olivia’s car is located in Huntington, West Virginia and is about two hours away but hasn’t moved in the last five minutes since I first checked. That should give us an hour and a half to get in place and set up. Where are you?”
“I just passed Charleston, West Virginia so I’m only about forty minutes behind them. I don’t think I’ll be able to get in front of them before Kentucky and I don’t want Livvy to see me and give me away. The guy I saw two and a half years ago in Miami had a steroid use issue and his temper could turn volatile at any time. Plus, I don’t think he is playing with a full deck so you will have to take him by surprise. Especially when Livvy is out of reach, so she doesn’t get caught in the crossfire. If you have to act before I get there, take care of my girl, Jax.”
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