As I stepped out of the holding room, Steve’s desperate shouts were still ringing in my ears. Jace wasn’t wrong—Steve’s emotions were a mess. One second he was frantic, the next totally defeated. But his last words stuck with me the most: “Rea, I can’t stay here. I’m innocent.”
It broke my heart.
The moment I stepped outside, Jace was already heading my way. He took one look at me and reached out, steadying me. “You look pale. Did Steve say something?”
Thinking about Steve’s warning, I said, “Let’s get in the car. I’ll explain on the way.”
Steve had told me to leave as soon as possible, and I got why—Quartz Cue probably had eyes on us. I was scared someone would see me, and I’d be next in line for trouble.
Jace rushed me into the car, handing me a bottle of water. “Take a second.”
I ignored the water and said, “Steve says he’s being framed.” I ran through everything Steve had told me, ending with, “He said these people are ruthless. We might not be safe here either—”
Before I could finish, headlights suddenly blazed through the windshield, blinding us. The car swerved hard, and the driver cursed under his breath.
Jace already had a tight grip on me, his eyes darting around, checking our surroundings.
I wasn’t dumb—I knew this wasn’t just some random car acting up. But I didn’t think they’d move this fast. I’d barely stepped away from Steve, and already, they were coming for us.
Whoever they were, they wanted to shut us down, make sure we didn’t dig deeper into Steve’s story.
“What do we do?” I blurted, panic creeping in as my hand instinctively gripped Jace’s arm.
He didn’t answer. Instead, he barked orders at the driver, “Four cars—front, back, sides. Get us out. Now.”
“On it, Mr. Johnston. You two in the back—buckle up and hold tight,” the driver responded.
Jace clicked my seatbelt into place just as the car jerked hard, sending my head spinning.
I clenched my teeth, fighting the wave of fear clawing at me. Before I could even get a breath, Jace pulled me into his arms, shielding me from the chaos.
“Don’t look. It’ll be over soon,” he whispered, but I wasn’t buying it.
This wasn’t some scare tactic. They weren’t messing around—they wanted us gone.
I couldn’t see anything with Jace covering me, but I could feel it all—the car swerving, the sharp turns, and the sickening crunch of metal every time we got rammed.
Jace held me tight, his grip like steel, but I could feel the tension in his body: He was staying calm, directing the driver, but I could sense it—he was on edge.
Then—Bang! Bang! Two hard crashes and the car lurched to a sudden stop.
“Reverse! Now!” Jace yelled at the driver.
The car jerked backward, but the damage was too much. I could feel every hit rattling through my body, making my stomach twist. I gagged, barely keeping it together.
Before I could even catch my breath—another brutal impact. The car spun out, and suddenly, everything tilted.
We were rolling!
I knew it instantly, but there was nothing I could do. I had no clue where we were headed—down a hill, into a ditch, maybe even water? It didn’t matter. All I could do was squeeze my eyes shut and brace for the worst.
Bang! Bang!