Page 51 of Haunted

“Oh my God, really?” I exclaimed around a mouthful of food, glancing at the man in question. He gave me a sad smile and nodded; his lack of enthusiasm turning my stomach. Something wasn't right and by the sudden shift in the air, I knew I wasn’t the only one who’d picked up on it.

“Whatotherfiles?” Keaton’s tone was harsh, brutal even. So unlike the man I’d fallen for.

Ignoring Keaton, Duncan lowered his gargantuan frame in front of me. The hard set of his eyes softened as he looked directly into mine and spoke.

“You were very smart to record on your phone that night, Henley. Smart and brave.”

Oh no! The attack on campus.

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Keaton bristled behind me, becoming increasingly agitated.

“Stand down, Agent Clarke,” Waverly ordered, but I could barely hear her over the rapid-fire memories shooting through my brain.

The disgusting words Chase rattled off played on repeat, as did the images of him dragging me off into the woods where he’d planned to rape me.

Duncan continued, oblivious to the raging storm tearing me apart inside.

“The night Chase McArthur attacked Henley on campus, she somehow had the wherewithal to record the entire incident on her phone.”

“Holy shit,” Lanie breathed.

“So, what? We’ve got him for another assault and battery?” Koen questioned.

I stiffened, knowing what was coming next. I’d told Keaton enough that he got the gist of what went down, but if Nelson had truly been able to recover the entire recording,he’d know…they’d all know how close I’d come to being destroyed.

Waverly cleared her throat. “We’ve got him on attempted rape.”

My eyes began to drift shut, unable to witness the pity I knew I’d find on each of their faces. However, they sprang back open when I heard Keaton growl, “I’m going to kill that motherfucker with my bare hands,” as he stormed from the room. Three seconds later, the front door opened, then slammed closed, rattling the windows to the point I feared they’d break.

No one moved except me. I was in a panic. Jumping from my seat, I moved to follow him, to stop him from acting out on his rage, but Waverly stepped in my path.

“Give him a few minutes to calm down, Henley.”

“I don’t think we have a few minutes. If he gets behind the wheel of his car in the state he’s in…” I couldn’t finish my sentence.

“He’s not going anywhere.” Duncan held up two small metal objects between his fingers. They had spiral ridges on one end and what looked like a plastic shell on the other. “I yanked the spark plugs out of his car before we came in.”

Apparently, I was the only one who didn’t have a clue what he was talking about because everyone else snickered. Thankfully, Lanie took pity on me and explained that spark plugs are what ignited the engine, hence the name.

“I know you may feel helpless right now, but the best thing you can do for Keaton is to let him work through the anger.” Waverly ushered me back to my seat.

“She’s right.” Lanie joined me. “You have to understand. Keaton may have known deep down what happened to you in those woods, but to get confirmation of hisworst fear is fucking him up. He’s protective to a fault and coupled with the attack this evening, he’s blaming himself for not being there for you.”

“What? That’s crazy. I need to set him straight.”

“You can’t,” Duncan sighed. “But I can.”

10CHASING RAINBOWS

Keaton

“Fuck! Fuck! Motherfucking, cocksucker!”

Slamming my hands against the steering wheel of my SUV in time with every expletive wouldn’t get the engine to start, but it was the only outlet available to relieve the ravenous rage roaring through my system. Knowing it was bad, then finding out there was proof it was worse…Fuck! And I hadn’t even listened to the recording yet.

I’d witnessed countless acts of violence and depravity during my time with the FBI, yet somehow this felt more egregious, more…personal. In my mind, very little separated Chase McArthur’s crimes from those of my father. Both were narcissistic pricks who thought they could get away with anything because of the size of their bank account. Well, I took down one and it would be my absolute pleasure to bury the other so far underground, the devil himself would have trouble finding him.

Bang!

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