Read Online A Blind Eye by Julie Daines - Free Book Online Page A

escalator, gesturing at Deepthroat to do the same.
    When the doors opened on the second floor, I bolted for the nearest store, dragging Scarlett behind me. It was a large bookstore that took up the entire corner of the mall. We crouched down between a rack of magazines and shelves of giant coffee-table books.
    â€œDid we lose them?” Her hand trembled as it clung to mine.
    â€œI don’t know.”
    Again, I wondered at the darkness she lived in. I shut my eyes for a second, trying to see the world from her point of view. When my lids closed, the objects that existed before still filled in the negative space. I could picture the cases of books and the plush reading chairs across the aisle.
    My phone rang again, and I opened my eyes. Now was not the time for a foray into the world of blindness. I yanked out my phone. Deepthroat. I punched the decline icon. He insulted my intelligence. Did they really think I’d answer it again? Or were they listening for a ring-tone? I flipped the switch to mute, and a second later, the phone vibrated. This time the number was different but still unrecognized.
    â€œThey keep calling, trying to find us.”
    â€œMaybe that means we lost them,” she said.
    I released my grip on Scarlett and stood up slowly, just until I could peek over the racks of periodicals. Deepthroat paced the wide hallway outside the store, peering off in the opposite direction. I couldn’t locate Connor.
    â€œThey’re waiting outside the store,” I whispered without turning around. “At least one is . . . not sure about the other.” I craned my neck to see around the edge of the dark walnut bookcases. Did they split up again?
    Scarlett gasped.
    I spun around. Connor had her. One hand covered her mouth and the other squeezed her waist.
    â€œOldest trick in the book,” he said. “Now, I’m taking the girl. You can let her go peacefully, or you can make a fuss and watch her die.”
    I thought I had a skewed sense of reality because of too much screen time, but this guy was off the charts. Was he really going to slit her throat right here in the middle of Barnes and Noble? Between Newsweek and Great Castles of Britain ?
    Scarlett fought his iron grip, but for him, it must have been like holding a cute, squirming kitten.
    Without a second thought, I reached down, picked up a coffee-table book, and rammed it into his face with all my strength. I aimed for his jaw, looking for payback, but I missed. The book struck him across the nose, and I heard a little crack. Even better. He released Scarlett and staggered back a few steps. I didn’t think he’d expected resistance.
    I glanced at the book in my hand and, for the first time in my life, gained an appreciation for modern art. I tossed the book on the ground, grabbed Scarlett, and practically carried her out of the store, dashing out the side entrance. I heard someone ask, “Are you okay?” I assumed she was speaking to Connor, but I didn’t turn around to find out.
    The tall man lurked by the front entrance, still trying to lure us into a false sense of security by pretending to watch the wrong way. We ran across the hall into a discount clothing store.
    This time, I wasn’t going to hide and wait. My car was parked in the garage around the corner and down the main hall. But we were so easy to spot. A tall kid running through the mall, towing a very petite girl with pink hair. Even with the hood on, the pink was like a signal flare.
    We moved to the back of the store and ended up by the dressing rooms. Some poor mom had abandoned her stroller there and hauled her kid in with her to try on clothes. It was one of those big, four-wheel-drive–type strollers.
    â€œI have an idea.” I yanked a blue casual dress shirt off a hanger and put it on over my T-shirt, tearing off the tags as discretely as possible. I tucked it in, hoping to look like a yuppie dad. I grabbed a baseball cap from