Page 61 of Played

Riot leaned his head back. “Don’t worry about it. Laurel would have found out soon enough without you adding Archer to our team listing. Maybe a car would run her ass down and we’ll be rid of the bitch.”

Michael laughed and said, “I know a guy.” Although it shouldn’t have been funny they all laughed. Michael handed his to Riot. “Everything will be fine. Now call River.”

***

River smiled at the call coming in. “Hello.”

“Sweetheart.”

“Hey, lover.”

Riot smiled at the comment. He hadn’t heard it since… well since the day of his last race. It was good to hear. “Michael and Jason bailed me out.”

“How’s the hand?”

“Needs ice.” He heard what sounded like road noise. “Are you in a car?”

“Yes, sorry. I have you on Bluetooth.”

“Where are you headed?”

“You don’t want to know.”

“Leave Laurel alone.”

“Oh, I’m not going near her. I have a meeting tomorrow with the insurance office about my brother’s life insurance policy. The one that was paid out to… are you ready?”

“Who?” When he asked who, she told him.

“According to the internet, I inherited one million dollars from Cypress’s estate in the form of a life insurance policy.”

Riot sat up. Had he heard her right? She had inherited one million dollars from Cypress? How was that possible? He listened as River explained everything she and Mal had found—and not found—on Laurel Canyon. He agreed that things sounded weird. He decided that River didn’t need to go without representation. He turned and asked Jason to call the company’s lawyer to set up an appointment for River. He wanted her safe, and Lord knew Laurel was one crazy bitch. To do that, she needed to be where he was. “Come to the office first. And River you aren’t checking into any hotel. You’ll stay with me.”

“Okay, I’ll meet you at the office in a couple hours.” River bit her lip, thinking hard about asking Riot to move in with her. It would be difficult for him to be in Santa Maria for work. Blowing out a breath, she tried not to get flustered by everything. There wasn’t enough time for all that shit. Her gut told her there was a shit ton of crap to uncover about Laurel Canyon.

Riot hung up, listening to Jason talking to the lawyer from the front seat. “Riot, what is it that River needs counsel for?”

“Laurel pretended to be River and received Cypress’s life insurance.” Riot nodded as Jason and Michael whipped their heads around to look at him. He heard a united, “Fuck me,” from the front seat. He couldn’t agree more. How could someone get away with so many underhanded dealings without setting off someone’s Spidey sense? Closing his eyes, Riot tried to relax. River would be in his arms in a few short hours.

Fucking hell. There was no way he could relax while Laurel was out there causing trouble.

***

Twenty-two minutes out, River ran into heavy traffic. She turned up the radio so she could ward off the sleepy feeling. Shame on her for drinking wine all afternoon and jumping in the truck to drive down to Santa Maria. Creeping along, she could see brake lights far ahead. She kept checking her mirror, keeping an eye on the oncoming traffic. She slowed down and came to a stop.

She reached over she dragged her purse across the console to retrieve her phone to call Riot. Who knew how long she would be tied up in traffic. She turned down the radio and listened to the ringing, waiting for Riot to answer. The sound of blaring horns caught her attention. Looking up, she caught sight of a large truck coming straight at her very fast.

The larger truck slammed into her smaller vehicle. River screamed as her vehicle went flying across the freeway, only stopping as it collided into the railing. She slumped in the seat, wiping wetness from her face, her hand came away red.Blood.

River could hear Riot calling her name. She tried to call out to him, but she couldn’t see him. Smoke began filling the cab of the truck. She tried the seatbelt. Finding it stuck, she started to panic. Someone calling her to her from outside the truck window had her struggling to stay alert. Choking on the smoke, River yanked on the seatbelt again. She heard someone to her right and prayed someone was there to save her. Her truck door was pried open enough to cut the seatbelt and drag her out. That was the last thing she understood before she closed her eyes.

***

Helpless, he stood there with the phone so tight to his ear that it hurt. His heart felt like it broke when he heard River screaming as the sounds of crushing metal and shattering glass exploded in the background. Fucking helpless. Where in the hell on the highway was she? Her phone repeatedly went to voicemail.

“God damn it!” he screamed, standing in the middle of his office.

Everyone scattered, trying to call local police departments for information on accidents in the general area. Frustration ruled the entire atmosphere as nothing could be found out. How could there be no information? Jason snapped his fingers as he spoke rapidly into his phone. Riot could hear him asking for a follow-up call if any news came in.

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