Page 98 of Honey Bee Hearts

God, I feel so stupid. They’d all known. They were all in on it. Nothing was true. How can I trust them not to change their minds and just kill me instead of going through all this trouble? Do I think them capable of killing me even?

“I can’t stay here,” I whisper out loud, looking around the cabin. But how can I go? I don’t have a car. They’d see a ride share pull up. They won’t let me leave if they know I’m leaving.

My mind flickers to Kate and Naomi. They’re just over at Steele Mountain. Circle Bee butts up against their ranch. It’s still really far away. It would take me at least a few hours of walking to reach the edge of Steele Mountain, but I can do it. I can either hitchhike on the road or just walk the entire way. If I leave at night, no one will even know I’ve left until morning. That’s plenty of time to get out of here. Maybe I can cut across the pastures and shave off some time even.

I look around the cabin and wince. I won’t be able to take everything. I’ll have to pick the most important pieces, which means the sewing machine and the urn. Any more than that and it’ll slow me down too much.

The breath I let out is shaky. The thought of leaving kills me, but if I stay, they might kill me. Especially if I can’t separate the men from the crime.

Slowly, I pack up the sewing machine and stare at the little cabin that quickly became home. Part of me, when I leave, will always yearn for this place. Part of me will stay here forever.

And I’ll have to be okay with that.

Chapter 53

Gunnar

My nerves are getting the better of me. I can’t stop pacing, can’t stop worrying, can’t stop desperately looking toward the little cabin with lights shining from the windows. The curtains are drawn, and she hasn’t come out. I’d tried taking food to her, but she hadn’t answered the door, so I’d left it. It still sits on the porch, untouched.

“She wouldn’t talk to me,” I rasp, running a hand through my hair.

“Do you blame her?” Trent asks, watching me as I pace back and forth. “We put her in danger.”

Of the four of us, he’s the calmest, as if he knows she was always going to leave, as if he wanted her to. I understand why he feels like that. He never wanted to grow attached in the first place, and of the four of us, he’s the one most ready to admit that he’s no good for her. But I could be good. I could be anything if given the chance. I really fucking want that chance.

“It’s a risk to let her leave,” Colt growls, his face pinched with agitation at my frantic pacing.

I whirl on him, anger white hot behind my eyes. “Youput her in danger. This is allyourfault!”

Colt grins. “So what if I did? Someone had to take action.”

“You asshole!” I snarl, rushing forward. Before I can think better of it, I swing, clocking the smug bastard across the jaw. He doesn’t try to stop the hit. His head snaps to the side, his hair falling across his face. Slowly, he turns to look back at me, his jaw flexing.

“Do it again,” he threatens. “I dare you.”

“Enough,” Rhett snarls. He’s sitting at the desk, his eyes frantically running over paperwork. Since he’d talked to Fable, he’s been here, trying to find a way to make enough money to buy our way out of two gangs’ pockets. There’s been no success. “What’s done is done. We deal with it now.”

But my anxiety threatens to overtake me. I’ve managed to keep Callie safe all this time. It should have been easy to do the same with Fable. We could have been better. We could have done this, and Colt went and fucked it all up.

Why does this not feel right? Why is my heart in my throat?

“Tell her you love her and maybe she’ll stay,” Colt spits at me, his fingers coming up to touch his jaw where a bruise is already forming.

“Shut up,” I tell him, frustrated with him. We’ve been friends since we were kids, but dammit if I don’t dislike the fucker right this moment. He’s always done what he thought was best, but he’s gone too far this time.

“Maybe I should tell her then,” he replies with a shrug. “Someone should.” He looks around at all our silent faces and shakes his head. “Idiots. I’m clearly the only one willing to do any work to keep our girl here.”

I bristle. “She doesn’t belong to us.”

“Like hell she doesn’t,” Colt snarls, getting in my face. “That woman might as well have the Circle Bee logo branded into her ass! She belongs to us.”

“I won’t be her cage!”

His lips curl up. “But I will!” he snarls. “I don’t mind being her fucking cage as long as it means she’s here.” He slams his fist against the wall beside him. “I love her! Don’t you?”

I swallow, my chest tight. “Yes,” I admit.

“Then fucking fight for her!” he yells. “Fucking fight! Do something for once in your fucking life! Doesn’t she at least deserve that?”

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