A long<b>, </b>heavy silence filled the car. The heat made the alt inside feel stifling.
Seam hugged at his tie and cracked the window. A burst of enid air rushed in, Instantly clearing the stuffiness.
Charlotte hesitated before speaking. “About what my <b>dad </b>said earlier, you –
Before she could finish, Sean suddenly mmed down on the gas. The car
car shot forwand, Jerking her body toward the dashboard. Her words caught in her throat, she quickly buckled her seatbelt in silence.
Sean was clearly driving with emotion, and the car was moving fast.
Charlotte sat in the passenger seat, tense and nervous the whole time.
In the car behind them, one of the bodyguards jolted upright. “Crap! Where’d Mr. Jasper’s car go? I blinked and it disappeared”
The other bodyguard in the passenger seat broke into a cold sweat. “Seriously? You lost them?
The driver mmed his fist against the steering wheel. “Mr. Jasper drove way too fast. That’s a Bugatti <b>La </b>Voiture Noire. This junkwe’re driving doesn’t stand <b>a </b>chance. What now?*
The other bodyguard scrambled for his phone. “I’ll call <b>and </b><b>ask </b>where they went.”
Meanwhile, the ck Bugatti tore down the road, city lights and buildings blurring past. The roar of the engine drowned out the faint vibration of Sean’s phone. Charlotte clutched her seatbelt, pale and on edge. “Sean, slow down<b>!</b>‘
Sean kept his eyes fixed on the road, his jaw clenched tight. The <b>sharp </b>lines of his profile were tense, making it <b>clear </b>he was in a foul mood
He didn’t respond, his <b>expression </b>still cold–but the car began to slow down.
Charlotte gradually rxed<b>, </b>her body no longer as rigid. She nced our the window
The buildings and scenery around them were unfamiliar. This wasn’t the road back to Seaside Garden, nor was it the way to the Jasper estate. “Where are we going?”
Sean’s voice was low and clipped. “Seaside Garden’s no longer safe. You can’t go back there for now. I’m taking you to a private estate on the outskirts Stay there until I finish dealing with this.”
“Not <b>too </b>far. Someone will meet us <b>up </b>ahead. You’ll switch cars and go with them. They’re trained bodyguards. You’ll be safe.”
“What about you?” Charlotte asked immediately,
“Don’t worry about me.”
They drove on. The tall buildings faded into distant memory, reced by smaller homes and open bountryside, wild greenery lined both <b>sides </b>of the <b>road</b>, peaceful
and lush.
“We’re almost there. You’ll get out soon, just follow their instructions.”
Charlotte nced back. “Where are the other bodyguards? 1 <b>thought </b>you said I should never <b>go </b>anywhere without protection.”
Sean’s voice <b>deepened</b>. “I noticed someone talling us after we left the hospital. i sped up to lose them. The bodyguards mist’ve lost track of us then.”
Charlotte’s chest tightened. “Will you be in danger going back?”
Just then, Sean’s phone buzzed again. With the car now slowed, he answered.
sit, where are you and Miss illey?” the bodyguard’s voice came through, tight and urgent. “We lost you.”
A loud bang out himott.
Andet struck the side of the car.
Charlotte pasped <b>as </b>a ck Aston Martin appeared in the rearviewminuc
fran yanked the wheel hard, <b>nainly </b>dodging another slot ained at the thes<b>. </b>The bullet hit the body of the car instead. <b>Luckily</b>, the tibe wasn’t hit.
Charlotte let out a startled cry as the Bugatti’s tires <b>squealed </b>across the pavement
Sean Drached
across and shoved her down into the seat. “Get down, Lottle)”
Just sale ducked, another bullet whitzzed past, smashing into the windshield.
If Sean had been a second slower, it would have gone through her head.
It sliced past the passenger seat and punched through the windshield. A neat hole appeared, spider–web cracks radiating around it.
Cold air howled through the opening, filling the car with a sharp, biting wind.