I RUBBED SWEATY palms down jeans that I have become too familiar with wearing and glanced around nervously. I wasn’t in Six Forks yet, and already, I was ready to turn and flee to safety.
My uneasiness wasn’t a surprise. I made many trips just like this. Always on the third Saturday, every other month, but this trip felt different. It might have been the way my heart pounded and my skin heated to an unbearable temperature, but it was definitely everything to do with the feeling of being watched. It followed me from the airport all the way to the bus that I boarded not five minutes ago.
My backpack with only a change of clothes and toiletries was my only source of comfort. I dug inside and retrieved the pack of gum I purchased before the plane ride and popped one in my mouth before clutching my bag tighter.
The bus was nearly empty with only five passengers including myself. I glanced around and found no reason to be suspicious of any of them. There were two men seated at the very back. One appeared to be sleeping while the other read. A woman and her son sat three rows in front of them and an elderly woman sat across the aisle. I shook the feelings off and realized I was being silly.
The bus ride to Six Forks was part of the routine when I came home. I was no longer running, but I took precautions to ensure I never came face to face with anyone. My mother and stepfather were the only people I allowed to remain in my presence because they were the least close to me.
The knife in my heart twisted at the reminder that I had not seen my brother’s face in four years. Buddy loved me too much and he would have never allowed me to run. He probably would have succeeded in talking me out of it and for that, I was left only with the option to love him from afar.
Buddy had just started his junior year at Reno, studying mechanical engineering. Sadly, my only source of news came from my mother and adoptive father. My mother, unfortunately, was only concerned with who he might be dating and my adoptive was a man of few words. His personality took a nosedive with the use of his legs, leaving him bound to a wheelchair.
The bus ride was short, and as usual, I expected my mother to be waiting, but just as I stepped off the bus, my phone vibrated in my backpack. Annoyed, I angrily fished it and out and read the message I knew it would be.
She was running late.
I didn’t understand how she could be late when I arrived at the same time each trip. I knew it wasn’t because of my adoptive father. If anything had been wrong, she wouldn’t have come at all. My mother worshiped my adoptive father because he was hers, and if that meant putting him before her children, then so be it.
I approached the empty bench, sat down on the cold wood, and huddled into myself for warmth. I usually enjoyed the fall season and the cool air it brought, but the paranoia made the air seem all the colder.
A yawn and sniffle escaped me when I heard what sounded like my name in the wind. I turned toward the voice and found two men approaching. The instinct to flee brought me to my feet, but once I stood, I couldn’t move.
“Willow Waters?” the closest one asked again. I looked between the men with unfamiliar faces and felt the cold chill of suspicion suck the heat from my body.
“Nope. Name’s Darcy.” I retreated with quick backward steps all the while keeping wary eyes locked with their harder, meaner gazes. The moment they stepped forward, I knew they didn’t believe me. I never saw the van until it was in front of me. When the door slid open, I knew the two men were merely a distraction from the real danger.
The opening revealed a stunningly beautiful woman with dark hair that traveled down her slender back. Her large brown eyes and sensual lips were as intimidating as the hard men who surrounded her from her perch on the bench. She sat as if it were a throne, the van her castle, and I were the lowly peasant prisoner.
“I have a job for you. One that will pay well.”