THE WIFE HE WON’T CLAIM

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Emerald’s POV

“Shh… shh.”

The barrel was cold against the back of my head.

The man in my backseat wore a black mask. Only his eyes showed flat and amused. He leaned forward until his breath hit my ear.

“Emerald London Raymond,” he said slowly. “Secret wife of Jayden Raymond. Nice to finally meet you, little princess.”

His hand patted my head like I was a child.

My hands were shaking so badly I could barely grip the wheel.

“Drive,” he said. “Nice and easy. Out of the parking lot. Don’t do anything stupid.”

I put the car in drive. My foot slipped twice on the pedal before I found it.

The parking lot lights faded behind us as I pulled onto the dark highway. Only streetlights passed overhead flash, dark, flash, dark.

I should have listened to Jayden. I should have let Liam drive me home.

“There’s a lot you don’t know about your husband,” the man said behind me. His voice was conversational, like we were on a date.

“Want me to tell you?”

I didn’t answer. I reached back blindly and grabbed for his mask.

He caught my wrist mid-air and twisted hard. Pain shot up my arm and the car swerved. He grabbed the wheel with his other hand and righted us.

Then he hit me.

The back of his hand connected with my cheek. My head snapped sideways. My mouth filled with the sharp, metallic taste of blood.

“I didn’t know you were this feisty, princess,” he said, stroking the spot he’d just hit. “I’ll call your husband now. And drive properly this time.”

He dialed and put the phone on speaker. It rang. And rang. And rang.

Please pick up. Please.

“Hello?” Jayden’s voice finally came through the line, cold and impatient.

The kidnapper didn’t speak at first.

Jayden’s tone sharpened. “If you have something to say, say it. I’m about to hang up.”

The man smiled behind the mask. “Jayden Raymond…”

“Who the hell are you?” Jayden asked.

“Your biggest nightmare.”

Jayden let out a tired sigh. “Is this supposed to be a scam call? Listen, I don’t have time for this nonsense. I’m hanging up.”

The gun pressed harder against my skull.

“Will you still hang up,” the man said, “knowing I have your biggest weakness right here with me?”

Silence.

Then Jayden’s voice, flat. “And how exactly do you know my biggest weakness, stranger?”

“The one you kept hidden from the world, your wife, Emerald.”

I held my breath. My knuckles were white on the wheel.

“I guess you’re just another fool sent to threaten me,” Jayden said. “You failed. Badly.”

“You f*****g asshole!” the man snapped. “I have your wife Emerald with me right now. I will kill her if you don’t cooperate!”

“Kill her.”

The words landed so cleanly I thought I’d misheard them.

My heart didn’t speed up. It stopped. A full, actual pause in my chest, then a hard slam back into rhythm that hurt.

“What?” the man said, stunned.

“I dare you,” Jayden said without hesitation. “If she’s really with you, kill her and stop wasting my time.”

The line went dead.

The man stared at the phone. Then at me. Then he slammed his fist against the backseat.

“Damn it!” he growled. “I really didn’t want to kill you, princess.”

He pressed the gun against my cheek. The metal was freezing. “But your f*****g husband thinks this is a joke.”

His hand tightened.

At that moment, I knew I had to do something, anything, to save myself.

I slammed my foot on the accelerator.

The engine screamed.

“You crazy b***h!” he screamed, lunging forward, trying to grab the wheel.

His elbow hit my jaw. The car jerked left, headlights swinging wildly across the trees. Then right. The seatbelt cut into my chest so hard I couldn’t breathe.

Glass exploded.

Cold air rushed in. The world turned upside down.

Metal screamed. My head hit the window. Once. Twice.

Then stillness.

The smell of spilled fuel and burnt rubber filled the air. I was hanging upside down, held by the seatbelt, blood dripping from my lip onto the ceiling which was now the floor.

My body ached everywhere, but I could move. I was alive.

I turned my head slowly.

The kidnapper was slumped in the backseat, unconscious, blood dripping from a gash on his head. The gun lay on the roof beside him.

I didn’t care.

I fumbled for the seatbelt release, wincing as my ribs protested, when my phone started ringing from inside my bag on the passenger seat.

The screen lit up in the dark.

Jayden.