Less than Perfect by S. J. Evans (librera reader .TXT) 📖

took a sharp breath.
Before giving the officer a chance to speak, she hastily began, “Look, I know I was speeding, Officer, but I—”
She let out a high-pitched, shattering scream, catching a look at the man outside of her car. Everything crumbled around her; her voice was lost, heart pounding rapidly against her chest, as she misplaced her thoughts in a frenzy of reeling fear.
“Hello, Rachel,” Johnny’s cold, dark voice cooed, a smile at the edges of his lips. He leaned his head closer to Rachel’s, hands on the edge of the window. “Heading back to see Skye? What a coincidence; so am I.” He chuckled, playing with her thin, blonde curls, eyes firmly locked with hers.
She flinched, drawing away from Johnny’s cold hands. “You’ll never get her, Johnny!” she spat, rage boiling quickly. “Everyone’s looking for you. You’ll never get away with anything. You might as well give up.” She shuddered with fear and pent up anger. She hated Johnny, just as much as Skye. Stay strong, Rachel

, she told herself. Don’t let him get to you. Just roll up the window, now!

Listening to her own advice, she jolted into motion, attempting to roll up the window.
But Johnny was quicker than her, already a step ahead of her, and grabbed her wrist, jerking her closer to him. He laughed then, the sound sickly in her ears. “Oh but I think I will,” he drawled, breath brushing across Rachel’s cheeks. “I’ve got you now. That’s got to be worth something.”
At his words, she jerked, frantically reaching for an escape. She screamed, but knew it was only a feeble cry. No one was around to hear her. Johnny gripped her under one arm painfully, yanking her closer to him, as he fumbled with something in his hand. Before she could inflict any discomfort on him, something pierced her skin, clouding her vision with swarms of hazy colors and speckled blackness, her body gone slack at the liquid that coursed through her veins. Then, everything went dark.

New Beginnings

Stumbling down the hall, Victor following close in stride, Skye raced as best she could for the front door. She had to get out, had to find Jules, that was all that ran through her mind as she hightailed it down the staircase. But due to her shaky legs, she stumbled over the last step and collided with the floor, hands having broken the fall. She winced, dizzied by the sudden move in another direction.
Quickly, Victor was by her side, helping her up as she grimaced at the red of her hands. “You good?” He measured her state, looking her up and down.
She gulped air, brushed her sore hands against her jeans, and nodded. “Yeah,” she rasped. “I guess I’m just a little wobbly, that’s all. Let’s—keep going.”
“Here,” he instructed. Snaking his arm around her waist, he pulled her closer to him, the touch of their shoulders causing a sudden flood of chills along her core. “Let me guide. We’ll cover ground more quickly if you’re steady.”
She froze for a moment, close enough to feel the energy of his body radiating over hers, causing a feeling so powerful, so different

, she couldn’t help but cling to it. And despite the part of her that didn’t want to be close to him, she knew he was right—she was much too unsteady. So instead of arguing, she simply said, “Don’t let me fall.”
He smiled. “I won’t let you fall. I promise.”
Taking the lead, he led them out the front door, careful not to draw any attention to the both of them, and scurried down the front steps. “Where to?”
Taking a small step forward, she murmured, “Anywhere.” And then, muffling a sob, she curled over, grasping for something to hold her up. “I have to see him again, Vic. I need him.”
“Hey,” he whispered, pulling her into him. “You will, Skye. Whatever happened between you two hasn’t changed the way he feels about you. We’re going to find him, okay?”
“No

.” She shook her head against his chest. “What if we don’t

find him? What if things have

changed?” She cringed, tears falling freely from her eyes. “Or what if—he doesn’t want

me anymore?”
Wrapping his arms tightly, protectively around her, he hushed her, shaking his head. “No, Skye, don’t think like that. We will

find him. Nothing’s changed. He still wants you, just as much as you want him. I’m sure of it.” Carefully, he pulled her chin up, guiding her to look at him, and put up a small smile. “Everything is going to be okay. I promise.”
His bright eyes peered deeply into hers, gaze steady, unwavering, intense. For a moment all she could do was stare into his eyes, finding assurance in the cool pools of blue, drawn by a force too compelling to look away. But eventually, she gathered herself and managed to avert her gaze, biting her lip as her body reacted in ways she’d never imagined possible to their close contact.
Her breath hitched in her throat as she realized just how close

they both really were, one of his hands on her face while the other held her upright by the waist, sending flutters in her stomach. Her knees went weak as she saw the way he was looking at her, undeniable affection in his gaze. Along with feeling slightly unnerved by it, she felt comfort, warming her insides. She tried to shake the feelings, but couldn’t. He was too close, his presence too strong, to shake the heat of his gaze.
Using what little strength she had under the pressure of the swirling world around her, she stepped back away from him, holding her arms as shivers sliced her skin. “Maybe you’re right.” Her voice was weaker, shakier than she’d wanted it to be, and she tested it again. “We should probably go.”
He stared at her, brows creased in concentration, before his face softened again, and a small smile crawled up his lips. “We should.”
Taking a long, shaky breath, she turned away from him and took a few wobbly steps forward. Her legs protested to keep her steady as she walked, but she didn’t stop. She kept her objective in mind, longing for Jules, back beside her, holding her in warmth and security again. She wasn’t sure she was comfortable with the strange feelings Victor stirred inside her, and the sooner she was with Jules, the better.
Before long Victor was walking in stride with her again, quiet and thoughtful, as they wandered the streets, searching for the boy who’d left them.

JOHNNY, WORKING with haste, made sure that the bonds at Rachel’s hands and feet were secure; binding her to an old wooden chair he’d taken from the dining table at Bryan’s old house. It was perfect, he thought, hiding in an abandoned house no one would think to look in. And even better, he would finally have his Princess with him, soon. Just thinking about it gave him chills of anxiety. He knew he had to play it smart and safe, have patience, but he was almost too eager to wait.
Once satisfied with his work, he stepped back and leaned against a nearby wall, wiping sweat from his brow. The air in the house was musty and humid, a stench crawling into his nostrils. He didn’t mind the smell though, as long as it meant he would soon have what he wanted.
Skye

.
All he needed to do was wait for the perfect time to send her a safe

message of how things were going to work. With Rachel in his possession, he knew he would have her wrapped around his finger. He was aware of the fact that she would do anything to save her best friend, just like she’d done for her mother.
He knew she would run all the way from her house, late at night, when no one was watching, if it meant saving her friend’s life in the end. She wouldn’t fail her, or him.
It was turning out to be the perfect little game—his own dark, twisted game—and as long as he played it safe, planned things carefully, and waited for the right time, his pawn would finally be in his hands again, under his absolute control.
“She’ll be yours soon, Johnny,” he whispered to himself. “Only this time, no one will be able take her away—no one

. She’ll forever be yours.”
His dark, menacing laughter echoed in the otherwise silent house, contaminating the air.

“WAIT,” SKYE ORDERED breathlessly, stumbling over her own footing. “I need to catch my breath.”
Complying with her request, Victor stopped in his tracks, assisting her as she moved to sit down on the lush, green grass of the local park. “Would you like to go back to the house and wait for him to show? He will eventually, Skye, I assure you.”
She swallowed and closed her eyes, pulling her knees close to her chest as she tried to catch her fleeting breath. They’d been jogging all around town looking for Jules, though without any luck, and she was beginning to feel the heaviness of longing she carried in her heart. Along with the growing need for his company, she was beginning to crash under the pressure of their race around town.
But despite all of her weakness, she gathered enough courage to brush off Victor’s offer by saying, “No. I’d like to keep looking.”
He nodded dismissively. “Very well, then.”
Unsure of what to say, she took long, calming breaths and tried to shut out the world around her so that she could think about Jules. She needed to understand why he’d left her and kept her in the dark about his past. Although, she didn’t have enough clues to understand; he was the only one who could help her understand.
Pulling her from her thoughts, Victor spoke up. “Do you want to talk about what happened? I mean—maybe I can help. I’m a good listener.” He smiled in the slightest. “But of course, I understand if you’d rather not talk about it and I’d never want to pressure you. It’s completely up to you.”
She flinched at the sincerity in his voice, the way it was so sweet and caring to her. It reminded her of Jules. Tears burned in the back of her throat, heart clenching at the slideshow that displayed Jules’s pain on repeat of the