She raises her hands up in mock surrender. “Alright, fine. I won’t be pressing further. Just know, it won’t end like you want it to. The sooner you try getting clean, the bigger the chances are of you not having any long-term consequences.”
“I will,” I mutter. “I really will. But not now. I can’t do it now, because it’ll take away attention from dealing with Paul.”
“I wouldn’t recommend doing it now, either. Now, take a break, then we’ll start again.”
I blink. “I’m allowed to take a break?”
Kaya lifts a brow. “Do you want me to give you new exercises to do?”
“No, ma’am,” I shake my head. “I’ll take a break.”
“Perfect, in the meantime, I’ll go deal with my stalker.”
“Oh, I completely forgot about that,” I frown. “Are you okay?”
“Perfect. This is just a game the two of us are playing. It’s the classic game of cat and mouse.”
“Who’s the cat, then?”
Kaya smirks. “I guess we’ll never know.”
Her cryptic response leaves me with more questions than answers. However, I don’t get the chance to pry further, as Kaya exits the room, closing the door behind her.
I’ve been staying with her for the past few weeks, and it’s not in her main residency. For whatever reason, she keeps thatlocation a secret. This is a small house that she converted into something akin the base Arlo has. The main area is everything — her surveillance room, gym, kitchen and a small living room. There are two small bedrooms, and a bathroom, and that’s about it. It’s small, but for this? It’s perfect.
Now that I’m all alone with my thoughts, I hate it. No matter what I do to occupy my mind, it always circles back to Arlo. From what Kaya’s told me, he’s been doing as well as expected. He continues letting the Ghost roam the streets of New York, wreaking havoc wherever he goes. All that’s left is a trail of bodies in his wake, and everyone knows who the culprit is.
My Arlo.
Kaya’s in contact with Cove, and although it’s minimal and I wish I knew more, it has to be enough for now. Arlo has been pouring his entire soul into tracking down Theodosia and Raven, which I will forever be grateful for. Even when we’re apart, he’s doing things with my best interest at heart because no matter how far we’re from each other, the red string that runs between us will not snap. The bond, and the love we share is too great for it to end suddenly.
“My Arlo,” I mutter, lying down on the mat, staring at the ceiling. My thoughts are overwhelmed with Arlo, all the things we’ve done together, and how far we’ve come. I still remember seeing the Ghost for the first time.
It was back in Long Grove, and I was riding the bus home from the diner. Fuck, that seems like a lifetime ago, when in reality, it’s been only a year. He whisked me away from the pretend-life I had created as Amy Marshall, and brought Blair Hawke back to life. I still remember so vividly how he brought me to his penthouse, and how he was playing the piano for me. Tears swell in my eyes when the memories flood my mind. WhenI close my eyes, all I see is his smile, telling me everything will be okay because it has to be. At the end of the day, we have each other. He’s my biggest weakness, and proudest strength. He made me into a fearless woman, someone who is no longer scared of the monsters that hurt her.
The nightmares are there, but as soon as Simmons dies, they’ll disappear. He’ll die soon. I will not stop until he’s dead, until he can no longer hurt me.
Kaya returns, and there’s a bright smile on her face. Quite frankly, it’s terrifying. It’s wide, and there’s a glint in her eyes that’s making me uneasy. I sit up straight, staring as she’s approaching me.
“What is it?”
“Guess who was just spotted?”
My eyes widen. “Paul?”
“Not just yet, but,” she grins. “Someone equally as good.”
“Raven.”
“Bingo.”
“Fuck,” I scramble to my feet. “What do we do now?”
“Now, you should probably check your phone.”
Without questioning her, I run toward the kitchen area. My phone is charging, and as always, on silent. Is it the smartest choice given the things we’re dealing with? No, but I also cannot handle the constant noise coming from the irritating device, hence it’s always on silent.
It’s a text message.
