Page 70 of The Hideout

“Already have.”

Juliet frowned. Was Henry talking about the information he’d already gathered and shared or was he holding something back for dramatic effect? “Talk to me, Henry.”

“Paige is staying at a three-star hotel in the very centre of the city. Maybe she wants to blend in, I don’t know.”

Juliet shot to her feet, taking her coat that hung over one of the barstools. “What hotel? And how the hell did you find her? I told her to only use cash.”

“She has a credit card in her maiden name. Clever if you ask me. It rarely has any activity on it, but she checked in two nights ago and is booked in for a total of four. It’s definitely her. Security camera picked her up going in.” If Paige had only been there for two nights, where the hell had she been before that? Jesus, this was too much for Juliet’s brain to take this morning.

“And coming out?”

Henry shook his head. “No sign of her coming out so far.”

Juliet placed a hand to her chest and closed her eyes, praying her emotions remained buried deep down. Paige was hiding, she was alone, and she was scared. Even if she didn’t want to be with Juliet anymore—and that was the impression Juliet was getting—she couldn’t leave her there. It didn’t matter that the last message she’d received was Paige telling Juliet she loved her. It didn’t matter that she saw a future with Paige. What mattered at the moment was that Juliet could push all of that to one side and be a friend…nothing more. It clearly wasn’t what Paige needed right now.

“I…need to close up. I know she doesn’t want to see me, but I can’t sit here knowing she’s out there alone.”

“Do you want me to go and get her?” Henry asked, genuine concern in his eyes. “I can leave now…”

“Thank you, but no. I should be the one who knocks on her hotel room door.”

Henry smiled. “I understand. If you need me, call me. I’ll follow you to a point so I’m close by.”

“Okay, thanks. I need to go home and change. Make myself look a little more professional.”

Henry frowned. “Professional? What for?”

“How else am I supposed to gain access to her hotel room number?”

Henry reached out and squeezed Juliet’s shoulder, smiling. “You’re a clever woman, Jules. It’s a pleasure working for you.”

* * *

With her knees pulled up to her chest, Paige sat in the corner of her hotel room. She’d spent the last three hours down here, perched under the window, just playing music on repeat through her earphones. While she listened to music, she wasn’t in her own head. While she wasn’t in her own head, she couldn’t miss Juliet.

Because she did. She missed Juliet more than she thought possible. When she lay in bed each night, she longed for those protective arms around her. When she sat staring at the wall every day, she prayed she could one day return to Liverpool. It felt like home. The people, the buildings, the happiness. Liverpool had it in bucketloads. It felt like her place to be. When she stood in front of the three graces, it took her breath away. Liverpool was where she wanted to be, but she didn’t know how to leave this room anymore. It had become her place of safety. Before she arrived here, everywhere else had felt too close to her old home.

James hadn’t contacted her. He would be out there keeping a watchful eye, no doubt about it. But Paige had to run on Saturday.

Once she’d come around, curled in a ball on the hallway floor, she quickly realised James had locked her in her house again. Paige had managed to break the double-glazed window in the back kitchen and climb out. She didn’t know how, it must have been the adrenaline that helped in some way, but she’d fled, and that was all she cared about. James hadn’t been home, he didn’t like to stick around when he’d beaten her in the past, but he remained cocky in his ability to restrain Paige. Or so he thought, anyway.

And now, here she sat. Alone, tired, and fed up with life. Just last night, she’d stared down at her screen, at Juliet’s number, and sobbed until she’d fallen asleep. But sleep hadn’t lasted very long. Another resident had been quite rowdy coming back to their room, and it had put the fear of God in Paige. She’d gone into such a deep sleep that the sound out in the corridor had scared the life out of her.

Her playlist switched to a new song, fresh tears falling down her thighs where her head rested on her knees. “All for You” by Cian Ducrot played through her earphones, his gravelly voice and heart-wrenching lyrics tearing Paige in two.

This song…could have been written for her. For Juliet. For the mess their relationship was in. Paige knew what she wanted in her heart, but Juliet didn’t need all of this. She was a mature, professional woman who’d once had one hell of a reputation throughout this country. Paige, battered and bruised, wasn’t worth a single thing in her life. Juliet would argue that wasn’t true, but Paige couldn’t put her through all of this. Nobody wanted to go through this.

Paige…didn’t want to be here anymore.

Not in this hotel room.

And not on this planet.

She swallowed, her ribs aching from her position, but refused to move. The same song started to play again, continuing to destroy Paige from the inside out.

But the sudden feeling of a presence in the room had Paige’s hair standing on the back of her neck. James…had found her.

This was it. He was going to end this once and for all. Paige rocked back and forth, her hands gripping her ankles. If she could will it all away, maybe James wouldn’t notice her. Maybe he’d see how worthless she was and realise the fight wasn’t worth scratching his knuckles for.

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