Page 28 of Golden Atonement

I could barely breathe, almost as if someone had their hand in my chest, squeezing my heart. The feeling was so intense it robbed me of every sane thought. The only other time I ever felt this was when...

Sitting up, I gasped, “Max.”

Jumping from my bed, I rushed over to the window and looked out into the dark night. I knew he wasn’t out there, but I had to make sure. My gut was never wrong where he was concerned. I knew what I was feeling had to do with him.

I wasn’t stupid. I knew he wouldn’t just walk away. Giving up wasn’t in his nature. Revenge, well, that was seared into his bones, the very life force he breathed.

He was hunting.

I knew it.

Something was wrong.

“Remi!” I heard Dakota shout seconds before he threw my door open and flipped on the lights. “We need to go!”

“Why?” I asked, moving toward him. “What happened?”

“It’s Angelica. She works for Petrovitch. He knows where you’re at. We need to go now. Your husband is on a killing spree.”

I grinned.

Of course he was.

The man was good at killing.

“Dakota!” someone shouted. “Where are you?”

“With Remi!” Dakota stepped outside my room, shouting back, “Get the kids, Arizona. I’ve got Remi.”

“Where are we taking them?”

“To Kansas!”

“Great,” the man groaned. “You better warn him, ‘cause if he shoots me, I’m shooting you!”

“He already knows, you whiner! Just get Jesse and Emma.”

Walking back into the room, I asked, “Your brother?”

“Not by choice” the man grumbled. “Look, Remi, I can fill you in when we’re on the road, but we really need to get moving. The longer we stay here, the more danger you are in.”

Shaking my head, I grinned. “That’s what none of you ever figured out. As long as he’s out there, I’m never in danger.”

The man stopped and took a good look at me but said nothing.

There was nothing for him to say.

I was right and he knew it.

Packing only what I needed, I handed my bag to him and looked around the room that was mine for a short time. I wouldn’t miss this place. This was never home. Only a stoppingpoint. I didn’t know what tomorrow held, but I was tired of the darkness.

I wanted the sun.

August 21, 2023

Reaper

I hated this motherfucking city. Everything about it was a fucking lie, right down to the fuckers who lived here.

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