Page 92
Jasper is talking to the driver, but he stops to look at me. He goes from being observant but at ease, to alert. His hand goes to his service weapon as he follows my line of sight.
But there’s nothing to see. No car obviously following us or sneaking in and out of traffic to keep up with us when Jasper tells the driver to speed up.
My hand is trembling as I lift it from the back seat so I can turn around. Marco isn’t following us. Maybe he wasn’t outside the studio either.
“We’re almost at the hotel.” Jasper goes back to his more relaxed state.
I’m fine. We’re fine. It probably wasn’t Marco. Just someone who resembled him. Or PTSD from the night he tried to take me. I should call Dr. Applegate when I get in, even though our session isn’t for a couple of days.
The rest of the ride is uneventful, and by the time we get out in front of the hotel, I’ve managed to relax. Mostly. It wasn’t him. It just wasn’t. It couldn’t have been.
Jasper walks a step behind and to the side as we enter the lobby. There’s a small group near the elevator. About fifteen people or so.
And another twenty milling around the lobby. It’s a popular hotel, so that’s probably not surprising, but that edginess I was feeling in the car ramps back up.
Jasper moves one step ahead of me. I can trust him to protect me.
And then the matrix glitches. Every single one of those people looks at me at the same time. The hotel staff, noticing something is happening, match my hurried search. The urge to run is so strong I can hardly keep from doing so.
My hand is grabbed from behind. I will never forget the way he smells. Like expensive cologne, and underneath the rot of a monster. Like the nightmare he made me live under his father’s roof.
Acid rises in my throat. The back of my neck creeps.
“You think I can’t get to you. I can get to you, Jailbait.”
I scream.
In the split second that follows Jasper has assessed the situation, positioned himself in front of me and pulled his service weapon on Marco’s retreating back.
Someone shrieks. “He’s got a gun.”
Pandemonium breaks out as everyone realizes that Jasper has his firearm out. Fifty people duck, weave, and run for shelter.
Marco pulls something from the top of his head down over his face, securing the elastic string at the back of his head. He turns and locks eyes with me through the holes in the mask.
Jasper backs me into the elevator, using his body as cover. Using the weapon in his hand that he has no intention of firing to keep our path clear.
When I look again Marco is gone.
Jasper presses the button. The doors close.
Did that seriously just happen? Was Marco really in the hotel we’re staying in? Did I actually see him when we left the studio? Is it even possible for him to be there and here too?
“The police will be called.” Jasper holsters his weapon. “They’ll want to speak to both of us.”
“O-okay.” I clutch my purse tightly.
He scans me from head to toe, looking for any sign that I’ve been physically hurt. “Talk me through it like I’m not your bodyguard.”
I take a shaky breath. “Okay.”
“Who was the man that approached you?”
He’s seen the photos that were shown to all the security staff, but I do what he asked and pretend I’m talking to a detective instead of a familiar face. “Y-yes. Marco.”
“He tried to kidnap you previously. But this time he didn’t. What did he want? What did he do?”
“He grabbed my hand.” I can still feel his disgusting hand on me. I wipe my clammy palm on my skirt. Then again. And again. “And he told me... he can get to me.”
