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𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐓𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐃 𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐆 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐌𝐄𝐑𝐂𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐒𝐒, the air thick with the kind of silence that made your skin crawl. The roads wound through the outskirts of the city, past streetlights that flickered like they were on the edge of burning out. The world felt hollow, empty, like it was holding its breath.
Gustav drove with one hand on the wheel, the other still gripping my thigh like he had any right to touch me. His fingers dug in, possessive, his breath uneven, like he was barely holding back.
"You have no idea how long I've been waiting for this. You were always my favourite." he muttered, his voice thick, disgusting.
I forced a small smile, my nails digging into my palm to keep my expression steady. "I bet."
He let out a low chuckle, his eyes flicking to me every few seconds like he needed to keep checking that I was real, that this was actually happening.
I hated men like him.
I hated that they thought they could take whatever they wanted. That they saw girls like me and thought easy prey. That they had never once considered that maybe, just maybe, we were the ones hunting them.
I could see the headlights of Rafe's car in the rearview mirror, trailing behind us at a safe distance. He was there. That was the only thing keeping my pulse from hammering out of my skin.
Gustav didn't take me to a hotel.
Of course he didn't.
Men like him didn't need a bed, didn't care about comfort or luxury when there was an opportunity to take something right now. He turned off the main road, down a dirt path that led toward the woods—somewhere quiet, hidden. The trees swallowed the road, branches casting jagged shadows across the windshield. The further we went, the more I felt my skin itch with the need to end this.
He finally pulled the car to a stop in a clearing, the engine humming before it cut off completely. The night felt louder without it, the cicadas screaming in the dark.
Gustav turned to me, eyes hungry.
"No one comes out here," he said, running a hand up my arm, gripping my chin between his fingers. "No one's gonna hear a thing."
Good.
It would be easier to kill him here than in a hotel.
I forced myself to play along, leaning into his touch, my fingers curling around the strap of my bag. He kissed along my jaw, his breath hot and stale against my skin. I turned my head slightly, just enough to reach into my purse. My fingers brushed over the gun.
