She leans into the counter. “Yes. I just want him to be happy.”
“Me too.” I reach for my wallet. “Now, seriously, what do I owe you?”
“Seriously, not hurting my brother is the only payment I need.”
Joy and excitement underfoot, I float across the street and breeze home, texting Ben on the way.
And then the bubble around me bursts, and I’m not floating anymore. I’m fading, falling…and I surrender to the darkness, because I’m not strong enough to fight it.
You’llsee.
Ben
I’m early, but I know once I see her, we’re not going to make our reservation. I promised myself I’d try to keep my hands off her until later, but I don’t see that happening.
Wipe my palms on my pants and open the back door. When I look up the staircase, I feel it in my gut. Something is terribly wrong.
“Annie!” I reach the landing and put my boot to the door. It splinters open, and what I see turns my stomach, fills me with fury, and, for the first time in about five years, withfear.
She’s sitting on the floor, and aside from a faint red mark on her forehead, she appears uninjured. Everything else in sight, though, is annihilated and ripped to shreds. “What the fuck?” Every fiber of my being becomes possessed with rage like never before. I crouch down in front of her and will never forget the look on her face. “Annie, sweetheart.”
“It was like this when I got home.” She’s looking right at me, but the Annie I know is gone. “It wasn’t Vito, was it?”
My eyes sweep her space and shake my head when I see whore on the tall mirror drilled into the brick wall. No. It wasn’t Vito. I knew it. I fucking knew it.
Everyone told me she was safe, but they were wrong.
And now she’s injured. Again.
“How bad are you hurt?” I bring my hand up to the bump on her forehead, but she swats my arm away, and Joan Wick hisses and darts off.
“I’m fine.”
God-fucking-dammit. “I’m gonna take care of this. I promise.”
“They found me.”
This is because of me, this is my fault. “You’re safe.”
“No, I’m not. They found me.”
I clench my jaw, so motherfucking pissed at myself. “I don’t know who did this, but I’m going to find out.” Although I have a pretty good fucking idea. “Let’s get you out of here so I can get started on that, okay?”
“Whatever.”
I lift her into my arms, and she’s like a rag doll. “Hold on.”
She puts her arms around my neck and buries her face in my throat. I take another look around and shut the door so Joan Wick doesn’t get out, then carry Annie down the stairs.
We’re in and out of the Explorer in minutes. She doesn’t argue with me about walking on her own and lets me carry her to my apartment. I lay her on my couch, and she doesn’t fight to sit up or insist she’s fine. She doesn’t push me away when I set an ice pack on her head, either.
“I need to make a couple of calls.”
“Fine.”
My first one is to Parker. He answers on the first ring. “Wha—”
“Park.” Even I can hear the ire in that one syllable.
