“No one.”
He slapped me again, sending lightning across my face.
“I’m not lying!”
“There’s a pretty steep fall behind me, and I’d rather not break your wings, little bird.”
“I’m not working with anyone!”
He grabbed my shirt and turned me around. “Do I look stupid to you?” He shoved me, and I almost lost my footing. Before I could say anything, he shoved me again, then kept shoving until the ledge was right behind me. “Stop! I don’t know anything!”
He grabbed my shirt again, and there wasn’t enough light for me to see his face—just the white glow of his teeth as he smiled. “I wonder if you can fly.”
“It was a mistake, okay? A stupid fucking mistake.”
“People pay for stupid mistakes.”
“They said I was protected! The deal was—”
“Shh, don’t yell. We’re just chatting, right?” Still gripping my shirt, he leaned me back enough to feel unstable, as if I could plunge into the dark at any second.
“You shouldn't go around throwing crazy accusations. You know that, right?”
I could hear my shirt beginning to tear as the back of my feet were past the ledge. “I'm falling!”
“You seem pretty stable to me, but I could be wrong. We’ll find out soon.”
Through the thumping of my heart, I heard a car’s engine getting close. The man turned his head toward the sound. “Company?”
He didn’t know I was working with the police, and I had to keep it that way. “A friend of mine is coming to dinner.”
The car lights shone through the darkness, but it was at least a minute away from reaching us. The man pulled me forward and let go of my shirt. I hurried away from the ledge and leaned against my car.
“I hope we understand each other. Remember, if you want peace, you need to play your part.”
A cold shiver ran down my spine. I had heard those exact same words when they let me go, which meant he knew exactly who I was. I watched him running toward the woods and disappearing into the shadows.
Finally feeling safe, I slid to the ground with my back against the car, breathing heavily as sweat drenched my skin. Hayden’s car entered my line of sight. He noticed me on the ground and stopped with a screech. Seconds later, he crouched next to me. “What happened? Is that blood on your shirt?”
“It’s paint. I’ll tell you everything inside.”
He held my chin. “Were you attacked?”
“Yes, but he left.”
He rose to his feet, his gun out in a heartbeat.
“He’s gone, Hayden. Let’s go inside.”
He scanned the woods a few seconds more before helping me up. Inside the house, I turned on the lights, expecting to seedestruction, but everything was in order. I slumped on my couch as Hayden went to put a bag of food in the kitchen. He returned with a glass of water. I took it and drank, trying to stop my hands from shaking.
“Get yourself something to drink,” I said.
“You’ve got wine?”
“Yes.”
The familiar sound of him opening and closing my cabinets relaxed me. He returned with two glasses of wine and sat next to me. I leaned my head back, my legs crossed on the couch.
