it wasn’t going to start creaking, he took another step. Terror coursed through his body while all his senses seemed to sharpen, becoming almost raw. Would the next step spell his doom? Would it creak and draw attention to his escape?
By the time he reached the top of the stairs, he was panting almost as if he had run a marathon. Sweat was pooling at the small of his back, and he had to raise an arm to wipe some of it off his brows.
It seemed to take hours for him to climb upstairs, even if maybe only a minute or two had passed. He paused at the door, taking a deep breath before pushing it open.
Inching forward one painfully slow step at a time, he left the dingy basement behind. His eyes quickly darted left and right, but no one was in sight.
The house seemed old or at least neglected, because upstairs the place didn’t appear to be in any better shape than the cellar was, and since he had no idea which way to go for the main door, he simply headed toward the window at the end of the hallway.
Normally, he would never consider a window to be his way out, but he wasn’t about to run around looking for a door if it could mean being captured again.
It was because his eyes were trained on his goal that he didn’t hear a man approaching him from behind, and when a sharp pain in his forearm caused him to drop his lucky stick, it was already too late to make a run for it.
He yelped in pain as he was grabbed by strong arms that dragged his hands behind his back, pulling him into a secure hold. Cold, unyielding steel was pressed against his throat. He ceased to struggle, going limp.
“You’ve got spirit.” The man’s voice had him shuddering. It carried an appreciative tone, promising things to come he surely wouldn’t like. “I can see why your boyfriend would want you back. You must be excellent in the sack.”
“But he isn’t my real boyfriend” was on the tip of Jayden’s tongue. How he managed not to blurt out the words, sentencing himself to doom, he didn’t know. If it became known he was no one to Matt, then his life would be forfeit. At this point, staying alive was the only thing that mattered. Blood trickled down his throat from his savaged lip, but he didn’t stop. The pain got him to stay focused on something apart from the nearly mind-numbing terror threatening to paralyze his body once more.
Suddenly, the window he had been running toward exploded into tiny pieces and the room filled with smoke. He coughed, resuming his struggles to get free, and maybe he got in a lucky kick or maybe there was another reason for it, but the man who had been holding the knife to his throat let go of him. Jayden took his chance, dashing to the right.
Something loud and sharp whizzed past him, and when his brain finally connected the dots, he nearly fainted out of fear. He was caught up in a real-life gun battle. He needed to find a place to hide, and he needed to find it yesterday. While staying as low as he could, he crawled on all fours along the hallway.
He lost all track of time; screams and more gunfire were all around him, and it felt as if he had been dropped in a war zone, so when he managed to get through the front door, he more or less fell down the steps.
He blinked in surprise before scrambling to his feet. He was getting ready to make a mad dash for freedom when he collided with a firm body.
“Quiet, get down—”
Jayden went limp, allowing himself to be dragged forward. He would recognize Matt’s voice anywhere, even if common sense told him he couldn’t be here. Had he started to imagine things? Was his mind finally boggling under the strain of constant fear? A familiar scent assaulted his nostrils, and when he dared to actually look, his breath hitched and he nearly forgot to breathe altogether. Matt was here. He had come for him! But how had the blond playboy managed to find him? Why was he carrying a gun?
Nothing made any sense, but Jayden was too exhausted to worry
By the time he reached the top of the stairs, he was panting almost as if he had run a marathon. Sweat was pooling at the small of his back, and he had to raise an arm to wipe some of it off his brows.
It seemed to take hours for him to climb upstairs, even if maybe only a minute or two had passed. He paused at the door, taking a deep breath before pushing it open.
Inching forward one painfully slow step at a time, he left the dingy basement behind. His eyes quickly darted left and right, but no one was in sight.
The house seemed old or at least neglected, because upstairs the place didn’t appear to be in any better shape than the cellar was, and since he had no idea which way to go for the main door, he simply headed toward the window at the end of the hallway.
Normally, he would never consider a window to be his way out, but he wasn’t about to run around looking for a door if it could mean being captured again.
It was because his eyes were trained on his goal that he didn’t hear a man approaching him from behind, and when a sharp pain in his forearm caused him to drop his lucky stick, it was already too late to make a run for it.
He yelped in pain as he was grabbed by strong arms that dragged his hands behind his back, pulling him into a secure hold. Cold, unyielding steel was pressed against his throat. He ceased to struggle, going limp.
“You’ve got spirit.” The man’s voice had him shuddering. It carried an appreciative tone, promising things to come he surely wouldn’t like. “I can see why your boyfriend would want you back. You must be excellent in the sack.”
“But he isn’t my real boyfriend” was on the tip of Jayden’s tongue. How he managed not to blurt out the words, sentencing himself to doom, he didn’t know. If it became known he was no one to Matt, then his life would be forfeit. At this point, staying alive was the only thing that mattered. Blood trickled down his throat from his savaged lip, but he didn’t stop. The pain got him to stay focused on something apart from the nearly mind-numbing terror threatening to paralyze his body once more.
Suddenly, the window he had been running toward exploded into tiny pieces and the room filled with smoke. He coughed, resuming his struggles to get free, and maybe he got in a lucky kick or maybe there was another reason for it, but the man who had been holding the knife to his throat let go of him. Jayden took his chance, dashing to the right.
Something loud and sharp whizzed past him, and when his brain finally connected the dots, he nearly fainted out of fear. He was caught up in a real-life gun battle. He needed to find a place to hide, and he needed to find it yesterday. While staying as low as he could, he crawled on all fours along the hallway.
He lost all track of time; screams and more gunfire were all around him, and it felt as if he had been dropped in a war zone, so when he managed to get through the front door, he more or less fell down the steps.
He blinked in surprise before scrambling to his feet. He was getting ready to make a mad dash for freedom when he collided with a firm body.
“Quiet, get down—”
Jayden went limp, allowing himself to be dragged forward. He would recognize Matt’s voice anywhere, even if common sense told him he couldn’t be here. Had he started to imagine things? Was his mind finally boggling under the strain of constant fear? A familiar scent assaulted his nostrils, and when he dared to actually look, his breath hitched and he nearly forgot to breathe altogether. Matt was here. He had come for him! But how had the blond playboy managed to find him? Why was he carrying a gun?
Nothing made any sense, but Jayden was too exhausted to worry
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