I keep trying to convince myself that Jack isn’t dead. As hard as I try, I can’t find a reason why they’d have his phone if he were still alive.
“Fuck,” I groan to myself as I sink down on the sofa. How the hell they got the upper hand on someone like him I don’tunderstand. Jack is a former marine and served two tours, facing much tougher enemies than these child abusers.
Jack is always three steps ahead, so it doesn’t make any sense whatsoever, and I fear I’ll never know how this happened. My biggest, and strangest, concern is telling Heather. I shouldn’t be dreading seeing the look of heartbreak in her eyes, but I am.
They all enter the room, Carter first, followed by Knox and Heather. I’m relieved that they’re fully dressed and ready to go.
Clearing my throat, I say, “I tried to check the cameras this morning that Jack set up, but they’ve all been disabled. Then I got these text messages from his number.”
They all take a seat on the couch, Knox next to me, with Heather in the middle of him and Carter. Immediately she places her hands under her thighs, no doubt easing Carter's mind.
I hand my phone to Knox, and he shows it to the other two. As I could’ve predicted, Heather falls apart.
Carter rubs her back and kisses her on the temple.
“If they’re gone, we will find them. There are not enough places in the entire world for them to hide from us.”
Seeing the pain in her face twists something inside of my chest.Why do I care?This woman is the enemy. I’m supposed to want her gone. Maybe it’s that damn picture that I see every time I close my eyes. I can’t stop imagining what happened to that little girl happening to Heather.
“We need to go take a look at their property, and verify that it’s vacant. I don’t know what we will find, we need to be prepared with weapons. Knox, grab your knives. Carter, get your knife and your bow.”
I glance at Heather and smirk.
“Get your crosses, Killer. If we find anyone, I know you’ll want to get your hands bloody. And my brother is right. We will find them.”
Her blue eyes connect with mine, and nearly knock the wind out of me.
“Thank you, Killian.”
Her voice is sweet and filled with sincerity I never would’ve expected. The way she stares at me with gratitude is unsettling. I don’t like it at all.
Clearing my throat, I say, “Let’s go.”
Carter gets up first.
“I’ll meet you outside.”
We don’t question him, knowing he is going to get his bow and other supplies.
After we all get up, I take a good look at Heather, and shake my head.
“Always with the purple boots.”
Her lips lift into a tiny grin as she places her hands on her hips.
“Everyone needs some color in their life, Killian. The boots say ‘while I do dark, terrible things, there’s still light there.’”
I shrug my shoulders and tease her.
“And here I thought it said ‘I’m Prince's number one fan.’”
She stares at me with pure confusion.
“Who’s Prince?”
It’s things like this that serve as a reminder of the life she has lived. Everybody knows who Prince is.
“Another story for another day, Killer.”
