Page 41 of Killing Emma

“We flew here,” I answer. “I kept you sedated. I hadn’t intended to bring you here. I was planning to take care of you in Georgia.”

“Great,” she mutters, dropping my hand to pet my dog. I feel a pang of jealousy at the softness she greets him with. She drops to a knee and coos over him, and he eats it up, happy to see her. “Why do you have a dog? Just to chase your prisoners?”

“He did come in handy when you bolted,” I say flatly as she stands straight again. “And he’ll make sure you don’t make it very far if you try it again. But no, I… I didn’t really want him. He was a gift. Like you.”

She looks up at me.

And then laughs.

It fills the air around us, permeating the loneliness that this place has always held for me—loneliness that I didn’t even know existed until she set foot here. I swallow the way it draws out the little boy in me. She’s seen a vulnerable side of me that no one else ever has. And she has no idea.

“I need shoes,” she stops, glancing down at her feet.

“I’ll get you some tomorrow.”

“Seems like a waste of money,” she retorts, raising a brow. “But I guess you can give them to Goodwill once I’m six feet under.” The way she candidly speaks of her demise is borderline mesmerizing, as though it’s nothing to fear. But maybe it isn’t in her eyes.

“If I can figure out how to keep it from happening…” I can’t believe the words I’m saying as they leave my lips. “I’ll do my best.”

“Really?” There’s no hope in her tone. Merely a question as to whether I’m being truthful.

“Yeah.”

She stares out across the yard, her eyes scanning the trees before making their way back to me. “What will you do?”

The question is one I don’t have an answer for. I don’t even have a fucking plan. There’s a lot working against me. There’s Manny. There’s whoever put the hit on Emma. There’s the Big Man—whoever the fuck sits behind the computer and orders the hits—including those on me. I know whoever he is, he hates me.

And then there’s Henry. He’s the only one I’d have on my side if I chose to get around killing her.

“Luca?” Her voice comes out weaker than before. “You don’t know what you’re going to do, do you?”

I consider lying to her, but I can’t bring myself to do that. “No, I don’t.”

She nods—and then takes off running.

At first I’m confused, thinking she’s making a break for it, but then I see her grabbing the tennis ball from the corner of the yard.

What the hell is she doing?

“Major, go get it!” she calls out, and my dog takes off excitedly as she hurls the thing as hard as she can. She bursts into laughter as Major latches onto the ball, and his momentum sends him rolling. He hops up unscathed and sprints back to her.

I don’t know why I’m in awe of the fiery redhead, but I see a glimpse of a woman that I never did when she was locked away in her house. Could she be… fun? She giggles like a kid as he brings her the ball and they repeat the whole thing over again. It’s so innocent, simple, and yet I’m captivated by her ability to put aside the unknown and enjoy the moment.

“Why are you staring at me?” She raises her brow at me, catching my gaze. “It’s unbecoming to gawk, you know.”

“Who are you?” I can’t help but laugh as her eyes dance over me.

“Emma Marie Nightingale,” she answers, giving me a goofy as fuck curtsy. “But you already know that.”

I feel fucking giddy at the way she’s acting, shaking my head as I join her and Major on the other side of the yard. I soak in the moment with her, hanging onto it and committing it to my memory. However, I know this won’t last—this moment will pass, just like all the others between us already have.

Not to mention, I can feel the storm brewing deep inside of me. Emma has brought out something in me that I didn’t know existed until I met her. But no one can change who I am. The demons inside of me are banging against their cages, desperate to wreak havoc. It’s only a matter of time before the bastards get their release.

But I have a feeling it won’t be on Emma…

Just whoever put her here.

And I have no idea what hell will come with it.

---