My stomach twists as images in my head appear. Him with Naomi in bed. Him telling her he loves her. Him taking care of her wounds.
No. He wouldn’t do that. He told me he loves me, and I told him everything.
I groan. No, I’m not accepting this. There has to be an explanation.
I get dressed, and, ignoring my aching ribs, I get on my bike and drive to the location where his phone is. I park on the road and enter the hotel. My eyes narrow at the place. According to their site, this is a two-star hotel, but I don’t think it even has one star. Gabriel would never be in a place like this willingly.
I reach the lady at reception. “Hi. I’m looking for someone.” I pull my phone out and show her one of Gabriel’s photos.
She looks from me to photo. “I haven’t seen him.” She inspects my face. “Is that his handy-work?” Suspicion creeps inside me at the thought of Gabriel being with Naomi.
I shake my head. “We got in an accident last night. Me and my friend Naomi.” I swipe to photo of her I found on the internet and show it to her. “She left the hospital before me. Her phone broke, so I can’t reach her.” I smile. “Is she here?”
The woman looks at me suspiciously but shrugs. “Looks like you’ve got it as bad as she does. She's in room 465.”
“Thank you.”
I get the elevator to the fourth floor, every second fueling the fire in my chest. When I reach the room, I place my ear against the door. I don’t know what I expected to hear. When I don’t hear anything, I knock and wait.
Footsteps approach, and I brace myself for what’s coming next. The door swings open. Naomi stands there in a flimsy nightgown. A smirk appears on her bruised face that she’s tried to cover with makeup. I ignore her and push her aside as I storm inside.
My eyes hit the bed, and my blood turns to ice. “I told you yesterday, you're nothing.” She sneers behind me. “You will never have what we had. He came running to me, you know. “
“I don’t believe you,” I bite out, moving straight for the bed.
“What are you doing? Leave him.” She grabs my wrist in panic.
I rip my hand free and drop to Gabriel’s side, fingers gripping his shoulder. “Gabriel?” I shake him harder. “Can you hear me?” Nothing.
I whip around, fury detonating in my veins. “What have you done to him?”
She shrugs. “He’s just tired. We didn’t sleep all night… and all through the morning.” She watches me with satisfaction as I shake him again. “We used to get like this all the time when we were together.”
I step into her space, my voice a blade. “No, he’s been drugged. What have you given him?”
“I didn’t give him anything,” she snaps. “He’s with me because he loves me and not you. He is going to be mine again. After you're gone, he’s going to be mine.”
A dark laugh slips from me. “I’m not going anywhere. If you think this pathetic stunt of yours will work on me, you’re not just delusional, you’re stupid.”
“You will go.” She hisses. “Maybe not willingly, but you will, and sooner than you think.”
My eyes narrow, heat boiling behind them. “What are you talking about?”
Her smile sharpens into something vicious. “You’ll find out before you even know it.”
I let my guard down. I was so focused on Gabriel that I let my guard down.
A hand wraps over my mouth, and the prick of a needle explodes in my neck. All I can see is Naomi’s smirk as I go down into darkness.
thirty-five
Gabriel
Pain explodes in my head, and I groan. I try to open my eyes, but they’re too heavy. A hand brushes my naked chest up and down. Valentina. I smile, enjoying the feel of her. She tucks her head under my chin, and I inhale, expecting the smell of sweet cherries. Instead, I inhale a flowery scent I had forgotten all about.
My eyes snap open. Ignoring the pain of sudden light exposure, I turn to the woman at my side.
Naomi.
