Page 71 of Burn

“No,” Bones said. “But we have a job that’s been waiting on us. We can’t do anything about her problemsyet. We can’t let her make it worse for her or for us. So she can stay up there for the time being. Get your food, we need to brief on the factories.”

Chapter

Twenty-Six

GRACE

Despite the speed at which Bones ascended the stairs and the firmness in his grip, he didn’t just toss me down onto the floor or the bed. He set me down, made sure I was steady on my feet and then straightened.

They were all so damn tall and with no heels, I had to settle for craning my head back to look up at him. Curling my fingers into my palms, I relied on the bite of my nails to keep me from trying to slug him.

Particularly because I wasn’t sure that I would be able to do an open palmed strike. The man staring down at me wasn’t furious. If anything, he was positively glacial. The hardness in his eyes contrasted with the indifference his expression seemed to suggest.

“You need to calm down,” he informed me in clipped tones. “There is a restroom, a bed, and a television. In due time, we’ll find you books if you require those instead. For now, I suggest you take the time to rest. When you are prepared to be more rational, we can discuss what is next.”

When I was prepared to be more…

I swore, I could feel the steam building up like I was about to turn into some cartoon character and blow my stack. Not thatBones seemed to notice, he pivoted and stalked out, closing the door behind him. The decisive slide of a lock with the clicking of tumblers echoed through the room.

Not quite believing it, I walked slowly over to the door to test it. I took careful steps, not trusting my shaky legs. The door handle turned, but the door itself didn’t budge. The presence of a deadbolt on an interior door didn’t bode well at all. They were prepared to lock people in?

What had I said to Voodoo?“So you guys are just my latest captors?”

His response?

“In a manner of speaking, I suppose we are. I don’t see you as a prisoner, however. You are a client, we take protection seriously. The question you have to ask yourself is how hard do you want to make all of this?”

“Really fucking hard,” I muttered. When I hadclientsI worked for them. Locking me in a room didn’t suggest they were working for me at all.

I rubbed a hand against my breast bone and paced over to sit on the edge of the bed. My stomach was a little sore where his shoulder had dug into my abdomen

Bruises seemed to litter my skin and I ached everywhere. The sharpness of the pain between my shoulder blades seemed the loudest and demanded the most attention.

The utter silence in the room grated on me. The focus to get where we needed to be, while also surviving the trip to get here, had kept me going from the moment they loaded us onto that bus.

It had been bait and switch all the way. First, Am didn’t show up at the girls’ weekend, but I got grabbed right next to her placebeforeI got up there to see if she was home.

Then, waking up in that place with the guy who was ready to rape me. Only he got beaten and then I was handed off toanother. I sucked it up, focused on doing what I needed to survive.

If that meant sucking some dick, I’d suck it. All I found was that I traded one nightmare for another. The assault on the warehouse we’d been at followed by the violence of those taking the place. My would-be keeper abandoned me when panic cemented my feet to the floor.

Running my fingers through my hair, I tested the still tender spot on the back of my skull. It was where I’d hit the wall. The last thing I remembered before I woke up in the truck. That was twice I’d been knocked out? Three times? I’d lost track.

With the exception of a brief discussion with the doctor at the clinic and a morning after pill, I hadn’t worried about anything else. I’d be home soon, see my own doctors, and find my sister.

Amorette was the most important piece. Calling her, making sure she was all right. If she wasn’t? I needed to know that too. Trusting them with the fact I spoke English was probably my first mistake. Goblin made me trust Alphabet, and by extension Lunchbox.

Dogs were amazing and good judges of characters. Or at least, I’d told myself that. Once we got to Manhattan and I was back in my place, the exhaustion hit. Not that I was given any time to decide on what to do. Men broke into my place and if not for Lunchbox and Alphabet, I’d have been right back…

Where? The people who put me in the truck? The people in the warehouse? Somewhere else? I’d definitely traded one set of captors for another, but I’d wanted to believe that the guys were really on my side. Why else keep taking out all the people who came after me?

The world swayed and I buried my face in my hands. Almost as soon as I reached up and bent, the pain in my upper back seemed to scream. Straightening, I stared at the mirror. In the low light of the bedroom, I looked like a pale ghost, a remnantabandoned here and separated from my twin forever. The idea of existing in that world shredded me.

“Giving up? That’s not you.” Amorette leaned in the door frame.

“Who said I was giving up?” I glanced at her in the mirror. I’d been standing in front of the full length mirror with a pair of dresses I was deciding on.

The look in her eyes didn’t fool me. Yes, she was worried about me, but she still wanted me to call the cops. She perched on the edge of my bed. “You sounded pretty defeated when you came.” And she was here to give me a pep talk.

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