Chapter 76

It’s raining when we step to the front of the restaurant, and Edward snaps his fingers at the valet and then shoves his ticket at his chest, still pinning me close to his side. The valet sighs a little, clenching his jaw but seeming to resign himself to this kind of treatment. Edward doesn’t notice, even though the valet lets his eyes move to me before he walks away.

Subtly, a little desperate, I lock eyes with the valet and shake my head at him. He pauses, not knowing what I mean or how to react.

“A cab,” I mouth, not letting any sound cross my lips even as I lean against Edward, hoping he won’t notice. When the valet frowns a little, not understanding, I do it again, slower this time, hoping that he picks up on my message that I need a cab right now.

Maybe if one comes up, I can break away fast enough from Edward and jump in the back. Maybe I can –

“Get the fucking car,” Edward snaps at the valet, who has paused, and the valet looks at me once more with worried eyes before turning away from us, off to do his job.

I sigh, my teeth set in my anxiety, looking around for my next option, trying to figure out my plan. As we wait, Edward runs his hands all over me, murmuring a bunch of nonsense about what he’s going to do to me and how good he’s going to make me feel. I mostly ignore him, if I’m being honest – it’s all slurred gibberish anyway.

God, how is he even going to drive?

But there’s no time to think on it as Edward’s car pulls up at the front of the restaurant. To my shock and awe, a cab pulls up behind it.

Hope swells in me as the valet gets out of the car and walks slowly over to us, placing the keys into Edward’s hand. And then he gestures to the cab behind. “For the lady?” he says, hesitant.

Edward goes still, and then grabs the valet by the collar. I gasp, going pale. “What the fuck did you just say?”

The valet cringes, glancing over at me, not understanding. “I – I just thought –“

“You thought what!?” Edward seethes, the words coming between his angry teeth.

“N-nothing!” the valet protests, putting his hands up and squeezing his eyes shut, clearly scared for his life.

“That’s damn right you thought nothing,” Edward snaps, shoving the valet away. He stumbles over his own feet and then falls hard on his ass, giving a little cry. I watch, appalled, as Edward steps forward and spits on him – actually spits on the valet.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” the valet says, putting up his hands towards Edward even as he cringes away. “I misunderstood!”

“Damn right you misunderstood,” Edward says. Then his eyes snap to me. “Did you order a fucking cab!?”

“N-no!” I stumble out, horrified, desperate.

“Fucking bitch,” he murmurs, clearly not caring what my answer is, dragging me forward towards the car. As we go I glance back at the valet, who is looking at me with horror. I mouth “I’m so sorry” to him, but he just shakes his head, understanding.

Even as Edward yanks open the car door and shoves me towards the front seat, I spare a final glance at the valet, feeling at once so incredibly grateful that he tried to help and horrified that I got him hurt and spit on.

God, I’m so outmatched in this world – so incredibly underprepared for this. No wonder Christian wanted to keep me locked away.

Edward shoves me, hard, and I hit my head as I basically fall into the car. I shout a little in pain and protest, but Edward just slams my door, hard. I gasp, only pulling my fingers away from the edge just in time to not have them crushed.

I watch, honestly terrified, as Edward stalks around the front of the car and yanks open the driver’s-side door, throwing himself into the seat. He doesn’t look at me, just seethes, as he starts the car and puts it in gear.

“Did you ask the valet for a fucking cab!?” he snaps, not looking at me, his hands tight on the wheel.

“No!” I breathe, knowing that my only choice now is to lie.

“You’re mine now, Bambi,” he growls, turning his dangerous gaze on me. I shrink back in my seat, my eyes wide at the violent possession written all over him. “Do you get that?”

Slowly I nod because there’s no other answer. Not with him like this, all wasted and hopped up on coke and power.

“I’ll teach you well enough tonight,” he murmurs, livid, and then peels the car out of its spot so fast and hard that my body slams against the car door and I have to throw my hands out, grasping the expensive interior so I don’t go flying around or hit my head again.

Edward concentrates on the road, growling something under his breath, clearly enraged as he weaves in and out of traffic, driving in ridiculously fast bursts accompanied by screeching halts as he tries to, apparently, get us back to his apartment as fast as possible. My breath starts to come short, my pulse pounding, as I look frantically around, trying to peer through the rain-soaked windshield, trying to figure out if I’m going to die in a car crash, or because he’s going to hit me, or when he takes me up to his apartment and forces me to –

A horn screeches behind us and Edward curses, fluent and mad, as a blue car pulls in front of us and slams on its breaks. Edward spins our car, hitting the gas, seeking to get around it, but the blue car is faster, more agile. I watch with wide eyes, my hands still gripping the car’s interior, wondering if I’m going to be witness – or victim – to murder by road rage.

“This fucking bitch!” Edward shouts, leaning on his own horn, blaring it loud and long as he simultaneously tries to move around his new enemy, but the blue car blocks us at every turn.

I’m panting now as Edward screams at the windshield, gesturing towards the car in front of us, calling the driver of the blue car every horrible name under the sun. But the driver of the blue car is pissed too, continually getting in Edward’s way, leaving him absolutely no choice – either stay behind, or hit him.

And considering that Edward’s car cost more than my education, he’s not willing to do that.

“Fine!” Edward snaps, yanking his car to the right and pulling into the parking lot of an abandoned gas station. “You want to fucking dance, asshole!?” He slams the car into park just as the blue car pulls into the lot as well, clearly ready to face him, give him a piece of his mind.

I watch, agape, as Edward flips open the glove box in front of me and hauls out a gun – a fucking gun – and then hoists himself out of the car, shouting at whoever he sees in front of him. I spin my head forward, trying to peer through the windshield through the pounding train, trying to make out anything –

But then there’s just a bunch of shouting, and then two gun shots that make me jump and then go rigid in my seat. My hands fly to my mouth as I realize that – that someone probably just got shot –

And then there’s a clanking sound and a thud I don’t understand before everything goes quiet.

The world is quite suddenly so, so quiet – with nothing filling the air except the sound of the rain pounding against the windows, the roof of the car, and what I realize is the sound of my ragged, panting breathing.

Before, suddenly, the door behind me rips open.

And I scream.