“You stupid cow!” he bellowed, his face red with rage. He stormed over, grasping my arm with a vice-like grip, and dragged me across the floor in the direction of the kitchen.
I struggled to free myself, reaching up with my other hand to claw at his flesh, desperate to break his hold.
He roared, the sound splitting the air. My nails sank deeper into his skin. With a snarl, he let go of my wrist. I sprinted toward the front of the room, but Sal was faster. He caught my arm and yanked me around with a violent jerk. His hand lashed out, striking my face with such force it knocked me off my feet.
I flew backward and hit the floor hard, my body slamming into the side of the counter. The impact drove the breath from my lungs and left me stunned, pain exploding across my ribs.
He loomed over me, lip curling in revulsion. “You’re a wild animal,” he sneered. “I told Reggie he should’ve kept you caged.”
He grabbed a fistful of my hair, yanking me back toward the kitchen. My scalp screamed, pain shooting through my skull as he dragged me forward. Every step was a fresh stab, my body jerking helplessly behind him.
I silently begged Larry to appear and intervene, but he was nowhere to be found. He was probably indulging in one of his frequent smoke breaks, oblivious to my plight.
The kitchen doors swung open, and Sal hurled me into the walk-in freezer, slamming the door shut behind me. I stumbled, my breath catching as the cold air hit me like a physical blow, wrapping me in its suffocating grip. Panic surged as I banged on the solid door, screaming against the icy walls, but my cries were swallowed by the frigid silence.
Then I remembered the phone Zeke had given me. I fumbled beneath my shirt, fingers trembling as I reached for the small device tucked in my bra. My thumb hovered over his name—Zeke—before I jabbed the call button, hands shaking too much to keep it steady.
He answered almost immediately. “Bryn, is everything okay?”
My voice caught, barely a whisper. “They know, Zeke...Sal figured it out.”
“Where are you?” His tone was controlled and calm, but I could hear an edge of urgency beneath it.
“I’m...I’m at the diner,” I managed, my words trembling. “He...he has me locked in the freezer...in the—”
Zeke materialized right in front of me, cutting off my sentence. I jolted, a sharp gasp slipping out before I could stop it, his sudden presence startling me. But the surprise ebbed quickly, replaced by something steadier—him. A beacon of hope in the darkness.
When he looked at me, a flicker of something crossed his face, concern perhaps, but it vanished before I had time to register it. He reached out, his fingers gentle as he stroked my cheek where Sal’s blow had landed. Then, his expression shifted into pure, unadulterated anger.
He grabbed my shoulders and squeezed, his voice calm, almost soothing. “Everything is going to be okay.” But in the next instant, his face went blank, his eyes draining of all emotion.
He rose to his feet, his hands shooting up into the air, palms facing forward. The door, as if responding to some unseen signal, burst off its hinges, crashing against the wall opposite us with a deafening roar.
I froze, wide-eyed. I knew Zeke was powerful, but this…this was on another level. The force of it rippled through me, making my teeth chatter as the room vibrated around us. It was overwhelming, almost as if the very air itself bent to his will.
He extended his hand, and I grasped it gratefully, letting him pull me to my feet. As I stumbled out of the freezer, I was met with a surreal sight: Larry, frozen mid-pancake flip, spatula suspended in the air. His eyes were the only thing moving, darting back and forth between me and Zeke, a mix of shock and fear.
Zeke’s voice was smooth and steady as he addressed Larry. “You should head home.” He casually brushed a hand over his suit, the gesture dismissive, as if signaling that both the conversation and Larry were beneath his attention.
Larry didn’t need to be told twice. He nodded quickly, dropping the spatula with a clatter, and scurried out the back door, eager to escape.
Zeke’s focus was entirely on me as his eyes met mine, his hand reaching up to tuck a stray lock of hair behind my ear. “Just stay behind me,” he instructed.
With a swift, intimidating motion, he strode out of the kitchen and into the front of the diner, his long strides eating up the distance. I followed closely after him, my heart thundering in my throat.
We entered the dining area, and Sal was standing there, his back to us, frantically trying to reassemble the phone. Zeke’s voice cut through the air like a cold wind. “Salvador.”
The sound of his name froze him, his stare colliding with Zeke’s. “Ezekiel,” he said, features twisting into a snarl.
But despite the anger etched on his face, I could see the fear lurking in his gaze. He took a few steps back, his eyes darting between Zeke and me, as if searching for an escape route.
The air crackled with ominous energy, thick with anticipation. Zeke stood perfectly still, his gaze sharp as a blade, his blue eyes glowing with fierce intensity—twin flames of silent fire that seemed to sear the space between us.
The sky above darkened to an eerie, almost black hue. I could hear the distant rumble of thunder, and I saw streaks of lightning illuminate the clouds.
With a sudden, aggressive motion, Zeke thrust his hands skyward, and a primal scream of rage tore from his lips. The sound was unlike anything I’d ever heard, an elemental force so raw, it seemed to shake the very foundations of the diner. In an instant, every window shattered, sending glass flying in all directions.
Yet, amidst the chaos, something strange gripped my attention: despite the shards whirling around us, not a single one came my way. It was as if I were shielded, cocooned by Zeke’s power, protected from the razor-sharp edges that rained down like deadly hail.
