Page 24 of Tempting Fate

A replica of the look that plagued me after Slash, Sander, and I found Lily being brutalised by Alex. Back then, it was a constant companion. A heavy weight that anchored me in rage, grief, fear, and guilt. So much fucking guilt. Three days of anger. Seventy-two hours of uncertainty and self-recrimination, that lifted the moment the doctors told us she was going to survive.

It never fully disappeared.

Failure of that proportion never does.

But I had no plans for it to be reborn.

I tried my hardest to keep her safe.

I failed.

Again.

Something crashes in the background of the call. Slash grumbles under his breath, then remarks, “I tell ya, I’m about ready to knock him the fuck out, just to get some peace.”

“What’s his game? Why isn’t he out lookin’ for her? Why is he tryin’ to stop Cub workin’ his magic?”

My best friend grunts. “Brother, he’s fuckin’ cooked. Literally put a barstool into the wall when we returned from the cop shop without you, then sat his fat arse on the floor and refused to answer us when we asked for his orders. Dad’s been directin’ things in your absence, and it was only when Cub picked up a signal a second ago that Brutus was suddenly interested in lookin’ for Cherub.”

“Gonna put my fist through his?—”

“Hold that thought, brother.” Slash cuts me off. “Cub’s onto somethin’… gonna call you right back once he’s confirmed it.”

The call is disconnected before I can reply. I stalk back into the living room and toss my handgun onto the coffee table. With the burner clutched to my chest, I collapse onto the couch and stare at the blank TV screen. The oppressive silence expands. It weighs me down. Makes me think about the last time I failed to put Lily’s safety above my ego.

It’s a harsh truth, but this could’ve been avoided if I’d manned the fuck up and told her Alex was getting out early.

At the start, I was going to tell her.

Then I talked myself out of it.

She is doing well. He isn’t on her mind all the time. I could tell that the years had exorcised the poison he’d filled her head with, and that Lily was finally seeing herself the way the rest of us see her. Strong. Capable. Full of promise. Deserving of the best the world has to offer.

So, I’d chickened out. Told myself that keeping her in the dark would preserve the light in her eyes. Fooled myself into believing that he wouldn’t come straight for her the moment he didn’t have bars and fences separating them. Allowed myself to grow too confident in the MC’s ability to protect her.

“Fuck.” I throw my head back and blink away the burn that’s building behind my eyes. “Fuck the Kingsleys to hell.”

Once I have myself under better control, I scoop up the T-shirt she was wearing this morning and hold it to my nose. It smells like me and my sweet thing combined. I’m not affected by scents in the same way Lily is, but the truth is that I spend an inordinate amount of time sniffing her things when she’s not around. Despite the bad situation we’re in, a small laugh rumbles through my chest.

She’d kill me if she caught me.

My humour dies when I remember that Lily isn’t simply at work, hanging out with Slash, or partying with Nadia.

She’s been taken.

By the animal who almost killed her five and a half years ago.

The burner erupts. I drop the T-shirt onto my lap and answer the call on the second ring. “Please tell me, you’ve got somethin’…”

“Some sort of signal blocker is in play, but I’ve found the tracker signal and triangulated the location best I can,” Cub tells me in a rush. “Fuckin’ weird, it looks like she’s in a building across the park.”

“You’re positive?”

“Hundred percent.”

“Then point me toward this house. I’m in the mood to kick down some doors.”

I spring to my feet, jam my gun down the back of my jeans, and stalk toward the front door. My head is clear. My body vibrates with rage that’s about to find an outlet. Focused on the task ahead of me. Determined to get my woman back before Alex hurts her any worse than he already has. My fingers graze the doorknob when Cub takes the wind right out of my sails.

---