Dying to Run Read Online Free PDF

fu-u-un.” Ramirez gestured to Damon with his hand and gave me a nasty wink. “Lock her up. We’ll play with her after Nathan gets here.”
    I shrunk away from his lewdness, my brain spinning with questions. Jesse had tricked my dad into coming here? He wouldn’t do that, would he? Jesse knew as well as I did that the second my dad appeared they’d kill him.
    Damon stepped in front of Jesse and me. “Give her to me,” he demanded.
    Jesse pulled me closer into the cocoon of his thick arms. “You aren’t touching her.”
    Damon laughed. “I’ll do whatever I want to her.”
    Jesse looked past Damon to Ramirez. “You can’t be stupid enough to trust Damon with her.”
    Ramirez slowly opened the drawer of an ornate cabinet, pulled out a shiny pistol, and pointed it in my direction. Damon scampered away. Jesse turned, shielding me with his broad back.
    “Don’t think I won’t kill both of you, Jesse. I wanted to wait for Nathan, but I’ll get rid of both of you now if that’s what you want.”  
    “Just because he wants the girl doesn’t mean he’s in league with Nathan,” Panetti said again.
    “We’ll see,” Ramirez said lazily. “All right, Jesse, how about a truce, I won’t kill her until Nathan comes, if you let her go with Carlos now. You aren’t going to be able to save her if you’re dead.”
    A muscle worked furiously in Jesse’s jaw. Ramirez watched him for an answer. Jesse swallowed twice and finally gave Ramirez a jerky nod. Ramirez gestured to Foul Breath who’d been lingering next to the door. “Carlos. Go lock her up.”
    “I’ll come for you,” Jesse whispered in my ear before Foul Breath tugged me from his arms. Jesse glared at Carlos. “You do anything to her— anything —I will kill you.”
    Carlos gripped my arm lightly and nodded to Jesse.
    Ramirez turned the gun on Jesse. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”
    I screamed and ran back to Jesse’s side. Ramirez couldn’t kill Jesse. He couldn’t. Carlos wrapped his arms around me from behind, picking me up and dragging me away.
    Jesse’s eyes flickered to me before he straightened and faced Ramirez. “I can promise every one of you the same thing—hurt her and you will die.” 
    “Jesse,” I yelled. “Don’t.”
    Several of the men watched Jesse warily; I could sense they believed him.
    Carlos shoved me out the door. I could hear Jesse and Damon yelling, Panetti begging Jesse to calm down, then begging Ramirez not to shoot his son. Carlos held my arms tight to my side as he marched me past the men in the kitchen.
    “Let me have her,” one of them yelled out.
    “Yeah,” a couple of others agreed.
    I hid behind Carlos, not that he was much protection, but at least he had Jesse’s threat lingering in his mind.
    “No,” Carlos barked. “Bossman want her.”
    They all sank back into their chairs and watched as Carlos pulled me away. He rushed me down two hallways and a long flight of steps to the dank basement. I strained to hear a gunshot. The shouts from the living room had faded away. Maybe, maybe Jesse would be okay. I prayed hard, but had little faith either of us would make it out of this house alive.
    “Boss’s son like you.” Carlos held me sickeningly close as he tugged me through several hallways to a dank corner of the basement. “Very good for you or . . .” He cackled. “Very bad.” He opened the door of a small room. Standing in the doorframe he couldn’t seem to wipe the crap-eating grin off his face. “Women like Jesse. Big, smart doctor. He use women and throw away. You same.”
    His breath was awful as he leered at me. “Jesse bad, you come to me.” He ran a hand down my arm. “Carlos save you from bossman. Carlos good to beauty.”
    I pulled away. “Thanks, I’ll remember that.”
    Though his English wasn’t perfect, he seemed to understand sarcasm. His eyes narrowed and he threw me onto the soft bed. After one more scowl at me, he slammed the door and locked it from