Page 74 of Absolution

Working toward something is what got me here and to Scarlet. Had I given up, I wouldn’t be here or with her. If I hadn’t been so determined to make it out of imprisonment, I might have died there.

“How are you doing, Aaron?” Jackson’s voice carries out into the hallway.

“No one cares if I’m dead or alive.” Aaron’s response, though cold to some, rings in my ears, burning me with the truth that I’ve run from for so long.

I fall against the wall, steadying myself as best I can. Those words continue to fight through the fog and darkness of my mind. They’re searching for something; I can’t make out what they’re telling me.

“He’s a SEAL, he has value. Less if he’s dead, so keep him alive.”

There. A memory buried so deep, I dig and claw for it. I struggle to breathe as I dive into my mind’s eye, dragging this moment into the light. I’ve fought hell, only to be tied to the underbelly for years.

“That voice.” My head spins, tossing me to the floor. I lose my hearing, as if I’m underwater, and all of the words are muffled. I lay my hands over my ears as a train whistle blows behind them.

Someone touches my shoulder; I look up to find Drew with Jackson by my side. I’m deafened by the voices screaming louder at me than those standing next to me.

“Creed!” Drew shakes me, trying to jar me from this state of numbness.

I crumple further, lying on the floor as I did in the cell, I was kept in. Jackson and Drew take on the features and sounds of my captors. There, in my mind's eye and the third level of hell, I focus on my surroundings.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Creed

The room tilts and spins, tossing me around like a rag doll. I claw at my throat as my airway is cut off, and I struggle from it. My pulse races, feeling as if it’s going to burst through my temple.

I clench my jaw, fighting the fog as best I can. My vision blurs, and I lose my focus. I reach out, needing to ground myself, but nothing helps. The lights are so bright, I shield myself from them.

Tremors roll through my body and my muscle tension. I cringe with every kick and hit I take from my time there, remembering them as if it’s in real-time. I struggle to say the words that will free me.

“Aaron and Riggins,” I mumble, seeing them clearly in my mind. “There. Aaron and Riggins.”

Drew waves a nurse over, she preps my arm as Drew checks the needle in his hand. I shake my head, but I feel as though I’m still in the cell from hell. My mouth is dry again, I attempt to lick my lips and croak the words once again.

“Aaron and Riggins, they were there. It was them. Their voices. Killed everyone.” Jackson’s hand grips Drew’s arm, stopping him short of sticking me. He leans in, listening carefully and asks me to repeat my words.

“Repeat it, Hatch.”

“Aaron and Riggins, they were there. It was them. Their voices. Killed everyone.” The light above me moves like a camera flash, flickering in succession to my memories.

There, I find all of my answers. As my world spins out of control, I find myself right in the middle, where I’ve always been. Anger and hate blooms in the pit of my stomach, boiling over and rushing through my veins.

I gasp as if I’ve been holding my breath. Or that I’m being held under the ocean, and the waves have carried me to shore. My hearing begins to slowly return, and I watch the flurry of activity around me.

“I’m okay,” I mutter, steadying myself as I rise from the floor. “It’s fine. I’m good!”

Drew takes my arm. “Let’s get you into my office.”

“No!” I growl, jerking away from him. I stalk toward Aaron’s room. “I want him!”

Jackson steps in front of me, holding his hands up. “Come on, Hatch. You need to let Drew check you out, and then you can get a turn at Aaron.”

“You’re just saying that until the others get here.”

“I’m saying it because you’re pale and need to regain your strength.” He glares at me until I turn and storm down the hall.

Drew holds his door open for us. “Here, Creed.”

“I’m going to tear them apart!” I growl with Jackson hot on my heels.