by India Kells
A metallic clink sounded behind her, and Cleo turned but didn’t see anything. The street looked empty, but instinct churned in her belly. Usually, her instincts were on point, but maybe she was tired.
“Be careful on that bike at night. Cars can’t see you that well.”
“Well, even my bike is against me. Flat tire. I’m walking home. And if I’m lucky, the rain will hold off for a bit longer until I get home.”
A faint banging sound behind her made Cleo turn again, and this time, she noticed a fleeting shadow and cursed under her breath.
“What? What’s going on?”
Ignoring Emme’s outburst, Cleo reached into her bag to retrieve her mace. “I think I’m being followed.”
On the other end of the line, Cleo heard shuffling before her boss spoke again. “I’m sending you someone, leave your phone on, it helps with the tracker.”
“Emme, don’t. I’ll just wait until he gets closer and spray him.”
“Cleo, that won’t work if he has a gun. I’m sending someone. It’s not negotiable.”
The rain started to intensify and promised to be an intense downpour of biblical proportions. Accelerating, Cleo looked back and saw the person following her—a tall figure wearing a hoodie. That was so cliched, she would have laughed if she weren’t so pissed and more than a little scared. Keeping her head was her priority, so she crossed the empty street. Maybe her imagination was playing tricks on her. Perhaps he wouldn’t follow.
“Cleo, talk to me.”
She looked back again, and the hooded man was still following her. With the rain soaking through to her skin, her mace wouldn’t work. “I’m definitely being followed, and whoever is following me is getting closer. I may have to stop talking for a while. I’ll need my breath for running.”
Emme said something, but Cleo decided to pocket her phone and put her bag over her neck to free her hands. Whoever Emme had called may not arrive in time, so she was on her own. As always.
At this time of night, most of the stores and factories were closed, so she tried to bring up a map of the surroundings in her mind and debated whether to head toward a business that might still be open, or head toward the residential area.
A car passed by, but she didn’t have time to flag him down. She made another quick turn at the end of the street, and from the corner of her eye, saw that the man had picked up the pace, now almost jogging. He was massive, and she wondered if she had any chance of defending herself if he were to attack.
She started to run, hoping all those times she’d jogged in the last few years would now pay off. Grateful for her flats, Cleo started sprinting around the corner and darted between a couple of buildings hoping her memory served her well, and there was a bar and a convenience store a couple of streets down.
Lungs burning, she pushed her violet hair out of her face, trying to clear her vision from the rain. As she passed another building, Cleo caught sight of a bunch of metal rods beside a dumpster.
When she turned to head in that direction, a body rammed into her from behind, causing her to fly into the metal side of the dumpster.
Her shoulder and arm took the brunt of the impact, and her knees scraped along the pavement.
A shadow came over her and grabbed her by the vest, swinging her into the dumpster again.
Screaming even though nobody could hear her, Cleo tried to get her bearings, willing her body not to let fear consume her so she could reach the rods. Maybe then she’d have a chance to take the fucker down.
When her attacker reached down, she rolled out of his grasp, managing to kick his chin in the process. The angry growl from her assailant was definitely male.
Her hands reached blindly for anything she could get to throw at him. A piece of brick at first, followed by several blocks of wood that were too light to do much damage.
A cold hand captured her ankle and pulled before she could react. Her fingers scraped the pavement, but there was nothing to hang on to.
As he picked her up with his hand around her throat, Cleo tried to kick and punch, not wanting to believe it was the end.
Thank You
Thank you for reading Lethal Justice. If you enjoyed reading it as much as we enjoyed writing it, please consider leaving a review. Reviews can be as long or short as you wish and help other readers find new books.
If stalking an author is your thing, and we sure hope it is, then here are the links to our social media pages. If you prefer your stalking to be more intimate, then check the group Maddie’s Minxes or India’s FB page that will welcome you with open arms.
Once again thank you for reading this book, we look forward to sharing the next installment from the Alliance Agency with you.
MADDIE WADE:
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INDIA KELLS
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About the Authors
Maddie Wade
Maddie Wade is a married mum of three children. She was born and raised in Hereford. Maddie loves to spend time with her family and friends, eating out, going to the cinema, and generally just enjoying life. She is an avid reader and is never found without her kindle, or smartphone. Maddie is a huge advocate of all things martial arts and got her black belt at age 14 years. She has also studied Jujitsu and has encouraged her children to do the same.
Read more from Maddie Wade
http://www.maddiewadeauthor.co.uk
India Kells
India Kells is a romantic suspense and paranormal romance author from Montreal, Canada. Her idea of heaven is cozying up on her sofa during cold winter nights, reading lots and lots of books. Inside her wild imagination, she weaves stories filled with the adventures of kick-ass women and courageous alpha men. When India’s not writing about sexy thieves, dashing soldiers, and cunning villains, she’s traveling the world to find inspiration for her next stories. Human nature is her greatest muse!
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https://www.indiakells.com/