Catching Smoke: Ch. 36
For some reason, Emmalee expected they’d be going back to New York.
So when the plane lands on unfamiliar territory, Emmalee’s nervousness increases.
“Where are we going?” she asks Colin.
He still hasn’t guaranteed her safety. He spend the entire plane ride looking just as nervous as she felt, gripping the armrest and clenching his jaw tightly.
“Work,” Colin says.
“Work?”
He doesn’t answer. He simply ushers her into the black car that is waiting outside the plane. The drive is silent. Emmalee tries to gauge their location from the view outside, but it’s too dark to see anything. She sighs and rests her head against the seat. She’s ready for all this uncertainty to be in her control again. She wants her life back. Is that really too much to ask for? She’s spent all this time without any trouble, and now…
The car lurches to a stop, and the car doors are yanked open as a bag is thrown over Emmalee’s head. She opens her mouth to scream when she hears Colin sigh beside her.
“Is this really necessary? You’re going to scare the newbie. I haven’t prepped her for this,” Colin says. “Stay calm, Emmalee. This is just standard protocol.”
Emmalee takes deep breaths to steady herself as her hands are handcuffed and she is pulled from the car, and carried into another one. She can’t see anything. The bag is pressing close to her face, too close, making it hard to breathe. She tries to wriggle her hands in the cuffs, but they don’t budge. She sinks into her new seat, and tries not to cry.
“What’s going on?” Emmalee asks.
“We’re being taken to headquarters. Everything is fine,” Colin answers.
He sounds close, and that comforts her slightly. But what if Colin is wrong? What if these aren’t the people he thinks they are? What if this is another trick of her father’s?
Emmalee doesn’t think she can wait to find out.
But she doesn’t have a choice.
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