Steve smiled. “I have plenty of evidence after today.”

“You won’t live to see the sun rise,” Bill shot back. “So there goes your evidence.”

“Did you know they have surveillance cameras in the apartment complex?” Steve tilted his head, playing his hand outright and Jennifer blinked.

She didn’t even know they had surveillance cameras. That would place Bill at the apartment when Tracy died and show him abducting her. Under the tape, her lips spread into a smile. The bastard wouldn’t get away with this.

Bill sat back. “Bullshit,” he said without conviction.

Steve shrugged. “Think what you want. It is what it is.”

This time no one met his gaze when he looked around. He sat back against the opposite side of the van, silently assessing Steve. “Did you know he was a cop?” he asked her after a few minutes.

Jennifer didn’t acknowledge his question. She didn’t even look in his direction.

Bill grabbed her by the front of the shirt and hauled her across the van. “Did you know?” he asked when her face was directly in front of him.

She narrowed her eyes, meeting his angry glare.

“Leave her alone. She didn’t know at first either,” Steve answered.

“Did Tracy?” Bill asked Jennifer.

She shook her head and Steve voiced her answer.

“No. She was just as clueless as you were.”

“I wasn’t talking to you.” Bill glared over at Steve and then focused his attention back at her. “You realize Tracy is dead because of you?”

“Bastard!” she hissed behind the tape. Her eyes filled with tears because at some level she knew he spoke the truth.

“I told her I planned to fuck you,” he said. “You should have seen how angry she got.” He grabbed her breast through the shirt, squeezing.

Pain flared as he squeezed and twisted her nipple and she tried to yank away but couldn’t. Bill grabbed her by the hair and let go of the shirt, moving his free hand up her leg. “It was funny,” he said, slamming his fist into her stomach. “She knew you wouldn’t let me touch you willingly.” His hand went between her legs, entering her roughly. “Why is that?”

“Get your hands off her!” Steve yelled in vain.

“Fuck off,” Bill shot over at Steve.

Each painful blow brought her closer to the edge of fury and when he looked away, she took the opportunity to slam her head into his already-broken nose.

“You bitch,” he yelled and slammed her down on the floor of the van, forcing his way between her legs.

Between Steve’s curses and Bill’s mutterings, Jennifer felt the van swerve to the right. In the chaos, she heard Jake yell, “Clean—he wants her clean!” But Bill’s relentless thrusts tore her insides, forcing her breath through her nose and muffled screams from under the tape.

Charlie and Joe hauled him off her.

“Fucking bitch!” he yelled and scuttled away, zipping his jeans back up.

Jennifer rolled onto her side and looked at Steve, tears blurring her vision, mixing with the wetness streaking his face and he tilted his head. “I’m so sorry, baby,” he whispered, and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. When he opened his eyes, he glanced at Joe. “She’s having tough time breathing. Can you at least take the tape off her mouth?”

Joe looked in the rearview mirror at Jake.

“It doesn’t matter. No one will hear her scream where we’re going.” He gave Joe a nod and he reached forward, ripping the tape from her mouth.

Jennifer gasped, taking great quantity of oxygen in with each draw of breath, Sobs mingled with each wheeze.

“You’ll be dead before the sun comes up,” Bill growled.

Jennifer turned her head away. Sobs ripped through her. She believed Bill—they would not see the sunrise, and he was right.

Chapter 41

The van pulled off the smooth road onto a divot-filled dirt road, stopping a few hundred yards in. Steve traded a glance with Jennifer and the group shuffled out the side of the van, leaving only Jake, Bill and Joe in the back with them.

“Wait up, Stan,” Bill called and shot a glare at Steve. “We’re going to need you to stay with us.”

Steve almost laughed at the nervous twitch those words caused in the lanky sophomore. He moved his gaze back to Bill. “Where’d everyone go?”

“To the camp site,” he said and a smirk appeared. “We have to get her to Black Cove.”

Before Steve could process the significance of the location, Bill grabbed Jennifer and held the dagger to her throat. “Cut his legs loose,” he said to Joe and then turned his gaze to Steve. “If you so much as flinch, I’ll kill her.”

Joe flipped open a switchblade and cut the rope around Steve’s feet.

Standing, he let out a hiss of pain, almost falling back down as his legs cramped. Slowly straightening, he flexed one foot and then the other, stretching the tight muscles in his calves and glaring at Bill. His mind swarmed with escape scenarios. The odds were more favorable with four of them, especially since the drugs had long since filtered through his system. The only problem was the knife against Jennifer’s throat. His gaze locked on hers for the briefest instant before Jake grabbed her arm, pulling her away from Bill and the blade in one smooth move.

Steve got a glimpse of the gun tucked neatly in the back of Jake’s waistband and a flicker of hope flared. One bullet—that’s all he would need to stop this madness.

Jake led the way, dragging Jennifer over the tree roots and sharp underbrush, ignoring her wincing complaints until she stopped and tried to yank away. Bill stepped to intervene, but Jake was quicker and flipped her over his shoulder, carrying her like a sack of concrete.

Even though he was sandwiched between Joe and Stan, Steve used her abrupt diversion to slide the key to his handcuffs out of his pocket, palming it before their attention returned to him. When the line moved forward, Steve said, “At least tell me why.”

“It’s been here since the dawn of time,” Jake began.

Steve snorted. “What the fuck are you talking about?” he asked, certain they only knew half of the information he uncovered just by Jake’s comment.

“The thing you saw in the crypt.”

Steve was quiet for a few paces, sliding the key into the locking mechanism. “You don’t know shit,” he said, turning the key as he spoke to cover up the slight click of the cuffs’ release.

Joe glanced back at Steve. “We know it requires a sacrifice each year in order to keep it within the confines of Black Cove.”

“What a crock of shit,” Steve said. He thought of the little girl found in the woods almost a half mile away from the area they were heading.

Bill spun around. He grabbed Steve by the throat, pulling him close.

“Chill, Bill. He’ll find out soon enough,” Stan said from behind Steve.

Bill let him go and turned back, passing Joe and continuing behind Jake.

Steve didn’t follow immediately. He waited until both Bill and Joe were at least ten paces ahead and then took a couple steps and stumbled, falling on his hands and knees. “Shit,” he mumbled and shuffled to his feet, keeping an eye on Joe as he slid the knife out of his boot, palming it on the inside of his wrist, out of sight. Joe turned away from Steve, following Bill and Jake, chuckling. When Stan pushed him forward, Steve spun, twisting the blade in his grip and burying it through Stan’s larynx and ripping through flesh and arteries in a violent tug. With his free hand, he covered Stan’s mouth, quieting the gurgle. The gaping wound drenched Steve with blood, and he watched the shock in Stan’s eyes transition to death. A quick glance over his shoulder revealed only darkness on the path before him, the curve hiding their presence. He laid Stan carefully on the ground, hurrying to catch up. Stumbling down the path in the direction they’d disappeared, he made enough noise to sound like two people.