Page 38 of Ravage
This time, when I shove at his chest, he steps back and drops his arms to his sides. I take a lungful of air and then shiver at losing his body heat. His face is solemn rather than angry at being called out in his lie.
“I didn’t want to leave you there. I’ve spent all these years searching for you. I didn’t stop.”
“I don’t believe you!” I yell. My body quivers in anger that he would play such a dirty trick on me. I wish they would forgive me and things could go back to the way it was, but I can’t let myself hope. It’s over between all of us. I’m trying to accept that. Why is he making this harder?
Why?!
He just nods and offers me a sad smile. It’s full of pain and regret, and my heart breaks a little. “I know. I’ll do whatever it takes to prove myself to you, I swear. Just watch me.”
Jackson turns and moves to the window, stopping with one foot on the ledge. “Take care of your side, or I’ll be back to do it for you,” he says calmly, then slips out into the night before I can tell him not to bother with his promise.
There’s no way he can fix what’s already broken.
Chapter twelve
Raegan
The exhaustion and hangover means I sleep in past my alarm the next day. It’s a race to the address the paramedic gave us, and I’ve just given the guys ample opportunity to scope it out first.
I pray they’re just as tired from whatever clean-up they did at the guy’s apartment, but considering Jackson visited me last night, it's unlikely. The silver lining is that I should miss them completely, at least. I could use a break from running into them. I’d love to never run into them while I’m here, but again, I have to be realistic.
The address takes me to an abandoned auto repair shop.
It’s not what I expected for a drop off point for kidnapped kids, but I guess that’s the point.
When I peek through the garage door windows, the shop area is empty. No cars, no tools, nothing. The office door doesn’t have a window, and the blinds are down, but there’s no sound coming from inside, and it’s the middle of the afternoon on a weekday.
I check the area one more time and then pull my lock picking kit out and get to work. It’s an easy lock, so I’m in within the minute and slip inside before anyone can see me.
The desk is bare, as is the rest of the office. I check the filing cabinet and drawers just in case, but the guys wiped it clean, if there even was anything here. It could have been empty already, which is why it was chosen as a drop off location. But I’ll never know if it was or if something valuable was here because I’m sure the guys made it here first.
Well, fuck.
A dead end.
All because I couldn’t get my shit together last night and get enough sleep to wake up early.
No, I should have come here straight away after leaving the paramedic’s apartment while they were still cleaning up.
Ugh. That’s exactly what I should have done.
I’ve never had to race someone to my next lead before. Now, I need to find something to get me back on track.
I slam the open drawer closed with a huff. Something blue tumbles to the ground, and I bend down to pick it up. Just as my hand closes around the small paper—a sticky note, I think—a gunshot fires from behind me.
My heart jumps into my throat and then slams back into my chest as I wait for the inevitable pain of wherever I’ve been shot.
“I guess it comes down to me to take out the traitor, huh?”
Cold dread slips through my veins and locks my body in place. I can barely breathe.
Even though it’s been years, even though his voice is drenched with malice and disgust, I still recognize it. It’s a mockery of the voice I was once so familiar with. The voice that laughed with me and soothed away my troubles. I’d heard him say nasty things to others before, but always as a defense for his family. Never toward me.
“She can make whatever sound she wants. If anyone else dares to say or do anything, we’ll take care of it.”
After I had to tell them I killed his sister, Dane never spoke to me again.
Until now.
