I stare at my parents’ lifeless bodies, a million emotions running through me. Anger and hatred burn the most, making my blood boil. I can’t stand here another second, so I shove past Ryder, shrugging off his hand as he tries to grab my arm. I bee-line for the stairs and skip the steps two at a time, not turning back until I reach the door and see Ryder on my heels.
A cold chill runs down my spine, but something else fills my veins. Thrill?Make chase.Why am I like this? My heart beating in my throat, I look around frantically, calculating the best path to take. The good thing about growing up here is that I know every good hiding spot.
“Don’t think about it, Kelsey.”
The way he says my name makes me weak in the knees. I know. I know. I’m twisted as fuck for having these thoughts after what I just walked into. I blame it on my trauma. Altering my brain in ways I can’t explain. There’s only one thing I can do as Ryder closes in on me. Run!
I run until my lungs are cold and I feel they may burst. My chest aches with each breath. I run through neighboring yards and pass familiar faces sitting on their patios, enjoying their night by a warm fire with wine in their hands. They have absolutely no idea what’s happened in the house behind them. They watch me with worry in their eyes. I don’t have time to stop and explain, nor do I care what they think anyway. I just keep running as fast as I can.
Despite the chill in the fall air, perspiration coats mybody. I look over my shoulder, stumbling over my feet, but I catch myself before face-planting the cold ground. I learned my lesson the last time I did that. My pace slows when I don’t seehimbehind me. My feet stomp the ground as I come to a stop, and I prop my hands on my knees, gasping for air. Every inhale holds an icy ache in my lungs, making me wheeze. I don’t seehimanywhere. My breath stalls at the crunch of leaves sounding far too close.
My eyes widen when I catch a brief glimpse of his tatted hand poking around a tree. He steps around it, situating his sleeve at his wrist.
“You can run, baby, but I will always find you.”
I take slow steps backwards, watching behind me, staying aware of my surroundings. This time, I take my chances running into the woods. There’s far better hiding options in here, especially with the sun setting.
Engines roar through the neighborhood.RAGE has arrived.I take a steadying breath and slow my pace. If I’m going to hide, I can’t be breathing like a bulldog. I hunch down behind a cut tree trunk, too afraid to go any deeper in the woods. I’ll admit I’m a huge chicken when it comes to the dark, but that just adds to the thrill of this.
Crispy fall leaves crunch in the distance, but they fade away after a few steps. Maybe it was a deer or a rabbit. I take quiet, shallow breaths, but my heart is still beating rapidly in my chest. The sun has quickly set, blacking out everything around me. Owls hoot from the trees, and the moon shines overhead, casting an eerie glow. If only the moon were fuller, I wouldn’t be so blinded.
I squeeze my legs together, trying to ignore the aching nerve between them. A hot flush runs up my neck to my cheeks, making them burn. Why am I like this? My parents were just brutally murdered, and here I am egging my…My whateverheis on for the thrill of it. Will he punish me once he captures me? The thought makes that aching nerve pulse, and I already feel on the edge.
Warm air tickles the back of my ear, raising the fine hairs along my neck. I suck my lips between my teeth, biting them hard enough that I might draw blood. My breath lodges in my throat, refusing to go anywhere, and I’m frozen to this tree like a rabbit who’s just come face to face with its killer.
“You can’t escape me.” The smoky whisper forces a squeak from my constricted throat.
“I almost did,” I retort breathlessly.
He stalks around the large tree trunk, as dark as the shadows in his usual all-black attire. I can’t see him, but I feel him. He’s closing in on me, his breath warming my lips and making them tingle, anticipating their touch.
“I think you liked the chase. Didn’t you?”
I could lie, but what’s the point when he can read me like an open book? Instead, I stay silent, looking up at him, where I know his green eyes are staring back at me just as intently.Touch me. Fuck me. I need you to make me forget.That plea sounds all too familiar, but under different circumstances with a different man that I can’t let my mind wander to. I don’t want to think of him in that nature anyway. He’s become my best friend, and that was a choiceI should have never made. Guilt tries to invade my mind, but I shake it from my head altogether.
“Are you needy for me, baby?” I can’t see it, but I know he’s got that devilish grin across his face. The one that drives me crazy.
Again.
I remain silent.
He trails kisses along my neck, and I can’t help the moan that escapes. He chuckles darkly, the sound rough like gravel.
“As much as I’d love to throw you up against this tree and fuck you senseless,” He whispers, and the thought makes me shiver. “We have to get back to the house. The team has arrived.”
24
RYDER
It’s been a hell of a week. I sit here at my desk, staring at the ticking clock above the glass door, lost in thought about the unfortunate events two weeks ago. I take full responsibility for the murder of Kelsey’s parents. If only I had questioned Kelsey harder about Lilith. Sure, I knew her dad ran his own organization years ago when Kelsey was little, but how was I supposed to know there was anagreementbetween the two?
We found the letters in the safe behind their family picture, but Kelsey has been hesitant about opening them. Some of the letters date from thirteen years ago. The thing is, they’re all written by her father. She and her father had the closest bond, according to Kelsey. Not that her mom didn’t love her, they just didn’t share the same interests.
I thought the brutal murder of her parents would hit her harder than it did, but either she’s learned to mask her emotions exceptionally well or she just really is that strong.The mechanics of my brain are different. I don’t feel emotions the way others do, so I did some research on grief. According to Google, grief has stages, and if I am correct, Kelsey is in the denial stage. If it does hit her, I’ll be right behind her to pick up the pieces.
For now, I have shit I have to do, starting with calling in the team. Teegan came to me the day we found Kelsey’s parents with news on our potential leak. Unfortunately, I had to shove that situation to the side to handle cleanup and governor bullshit. I had to assure him this was all isolated and there was no concern to the general public before he resolved everything legally.
My cleanup crew had it all spotless less than twelve hours later, while Hayden took their bodies to be cremated at a funeral home we trust. The seventy-something-year-old man is always willing to do shit for us on the low for a few extra grand. One thing I’ve learned in this business is you can get away with a lot if you offer the right price.
