The parking lot is bathed in a warm pink hue, making it easy to see the vehicles parked outside. A quick scan shows nothing but trucks and SUVs. I take a second look, out toward the road and beyond. I don’t see anything, which has me questioning if I’m just hearing things now.
Feeling irritated and overly warm, I open the window a crack so the cool breeze can waft in. I take a deep, cleansing breath. With a sigh, I head back to bed and crawl under the sheets, trying to slip back to sleep. But now that I’m awake, the pain has kicked in with a vengeance, making sleep impossible.
“Fuck my life.”
I get up and move to my bag, reaching for it with a groan. I search it for the painkillers and anti-nausea pills, popping a couple in my hand before throwing them back. I hobble to the bathroom where I drink a few mouthfuls of water directly from the faucet. I splash some on my face and stare at my reflection in the dim early morning light.
Not sure why I keep looking. Maybe I’m hoping for a miracle where I wake up and magically my injuries have all healed overnight.
I pee while I’m up and contemplate taking a shower. But the thought of how much energy it will take almost makes me whimper. Plus, I didn’t bring anything to cover my cast.
I wash my hands and make my way back to bed. I might not be able to sleep until the painkillers kick in, but that doesn’t stop me from resting. As much as it galls me to not be busy doingsomething, I’ll only make my recovery that much harder if I don’t respect my body’s limits now.
I lie there, listening to the faint hum of the AC, trying to get my thoughts in some kind of order so I can make a plan. It might help me stop feeling so out of control. First things first. I’m going to need more clothes and toiletries. I can get room service, so I don’t have to worry about food, and the motel also offers a laundry service, which I plan on utilizing.
Once I have the clothing issue taken care of, I need to look at all the paperwork Midas emailed me about Au. I’m not really sure of the legalities of handing someone a building free and clear. And I sure as heck don’t know how I feel about it. There is a vindictive part of me that thinks Midas deserves it for me to take it. If it wasn’t for him and his poking around, the club girl that was obsessed with him wouldn’t have tracked me down, attacked me, and burned my business and home to the ground.
If Kruger hadn’t found me…I shake off those thoughts, still not knowing why he was there in the first place. My anger snaps into gear whenever he’s around, so I forgot to ask. All I know is that Raven Souls has become a curse to me. Whenever I get involved with them, bad shit happens, and I just don’t think I can handle anything more.
If I keep Au, they’ll know exactly where to find me. Once upon a time, that would have been a comfort. Now it feels like an albatross around my neck.
What would happen if I tried to sell it? Would Midas want it back or demand the profits? I just don’t know. All the uncertainty is not helping my head, so I switch to something else, like my living arrangements. If I’ve learned any kind of lesson, it’s that I need to keep my home and workplace separate, so if I lose one, I still have the other. I think that’s why it hit me so hard this time. It wasn’t just a setback that I could come back from. It was yet again the annihilation of my life.
Thankfully, I was insured for both, and I paid for the premium insurance. Maybe in the back of my head I always knew this was going to happen. Either way, I’m thankful I’ll eventually have enough money to start over, with or without Au. But insurance companies are not known for hurrying themselves. As the painkillers kick in, I let my mind drift to what I want in a home. Something safe, something quiet. Something that’s just mine that nobody can take from me.
I wonder if a place like that even exists.
Chapter Six
KRUGER
By the timeI get back, the sun is rising and I’m fucked. I yawn as I pull up to the prospect, who is sitting on the ground next to his bike. He stands and stretches when he sees me approach.
“Any issues?”
“All quiet.”
“Alright, thanks.”
He nods, shoves his helmet on, and climbs back on his bike. I don’t bother putting mine away. I’ll pull it into the garage later.
I let myself in, hanging up my cut before locking up. I head to the kitchen and grab a glass of water, drinking it down before refilling it. Delphi’s painkillers will have worn off, so the pain will likely wake her. I open the kitchen drawer to grab them, but I frown when I see the bag is gone.
I look toward the stairs and curse. She must have already woken up in pain and come down to find them. She could have fallen and hurt herself, and I wouldn’t have even fucking known.
Leaving the glass where it is, I hurry upstairs, visions of her lying unconscious in the bathroom flashing in my head. I shove her door open, harder than necessary, and move to the bed. Ittakes me a second to realize she isn’t in it before I’m running to the bathroom.
I freeze when I find that empty, too. My fear of her falling turns into something else when I realize she’s gone. I check the closet and drawers. Most of her stuff is still here, but I think a few things are missing. I didn’t pay enough attention to what I was unpacking to be certain. I recheck the bathroom, looking for her toothbrush. When I see it’s not there, I know.
“Fuck!” I grip my hair before pulling out my cell and dialing Pig. He doesn’t have a Bluetooth helmet, so I leave a message that he won’t pick up until he pulls over. As it rings, I search the rest of the house, finding her bag gone from my office, too.
“All quiet?” I growl when the beep sounds for me to leave a message. “She’s fucking gone, you prick. If she’s hurt, I’ll gut you.” I hang up as I move through the rest of the house before dialing Havoc.
“What the fuck? Do you know what time it is?”
“She’s gone.”
“What?”
