Page 43 of Burning Truths

“You’re staying right here.” Havoc points to Haven.

Her mouth opens to speak but Ally steps up beside her putting a hand on her arm.

“I’ll stay out here with you. The less people walking through the building the less likely they are to be found.” She says.

“Oh we want to be found.” Oakley giggles, twisting the tip of a blade into the edge of her finger.

This woman looks like she’s about to start whistling a tune.Psycho.

“Keep this one under control.” I wave to Havoc and the other one, “name?” I ask.

“Silas.” He responds.

Oakley pushes on her toes and kisses him on the chin giving Havoc a wink.

“Stop the weird shit and focus. West, you split up with Havoc and Silas. Oakley you’re with me.”

Both men start to speak, but Oakley steps forward, “This is going to be fun.” She rubs her hands together with the knife in the center.

“Is she always like this?” Ally whispers but Oakley hears it anyway.

“Yep.” She smiles with her teeth, but it looks more like a snarl.

Ally steps back and takes Haven with her, “Well be in the SUV.” She says, looking at me.

Tossing her the keys I nod giving her the one and only chance she’ll get to prove we can trust her. West and the guys are talking off the side when another car’s headlights slowly pull up before shutting off. We duck down trying to get a good view of the vehicle, but they park behind an old dumpster. The sound of a door opening, shoes meeting rocks, the door shutting. Footsteps come closer. Standing, I look over the hood of my car to see a face I wasn’t expecting walking next to G.

“What the fuck were you thinking?” I snap.

Storming towards them G holds his hands up in surrender, “Man, do you really think I could keep him away?” He says. “We don’t have time for this shit. Let’s go.”

Walking past them all, I’m done waiting to have my hands on her soft skin. We make our way through the brush and weeds to a door on the backside of the building. West and the others slowly head towards the front, but G sticks with me and Oakley. Reaching for the door I twist the handle slowly making sure to not make a sound.

“It’s unlocked. Cocky fucker.” Oakley says.

The door opens to a room shrouded in darkness with only a small light coming from a door at the end of the hallway. Pulling out my phone for a flashlight I use it to navigate the open space.

“Fuck.” G grunts.

Looking over at him, my eyes follow his line of sight. Lifting my phone to shine in his direction I finally see what he does. A single chair in a large square room with only one way out down a long hallway. The doors are wide open but it’s the chair in the center of the room that has my stomach churning. A thud hasme and G spinning the other direction. My light hits Oakleys face with a slight blush creeping up her cheeks.

“Ooops.” She whispers.

Her foot bumps into a chair against the wall where a table is pressed against the window giving the appearance that someone sat here to look out the window. The curtains are pulled back letting in the last bit of remaining light outside.

“He’s been breaking her.” Oakley says her voice is grim.

Walking towards the open door that leads to the hallway where the light is coming from I ignore her comment.

“Ryker, you don’t know what we’ll find. You need to prepare yourself for her-”

Twisting around I step into her face, “Don’t finish that fucking sentence or you’ll lose your tongue.”

Sticking her tongue out in mock she wiggles it at me, “I’d love to see you try.”

Pulling in a deep breath, I continue towards the doorway at the end of the long hall. My phone light hits the door shining against the dark green paint. A few steps into the hall and a foul smell hits me making me double over. Using the front of my shirt to cover my face I look back at the others before continuing forward again.

"It’s behind this door.” G says.

---