Page 102 of GAF Factor

He started pushing her away, but I grabbed his jacket, stopping him. “Wait, I found this on her neck.” I handed him the patch. “I don’t know if you can identify the drug from this.”

He stared at it for a moment, then nodded and reluctantly took it. I didn’t know what that meant, if he was just placating me or if he already knew what the drug was.

“Hey,” IRIS said, clasping me on the shoulder. “She’ll be alright. She has to be.”

“I will be okay.”

“I know you will.”

I never wanted to hear those fucking words out of her mouth ever again. She shouldn’t have to recover and get better—to struggle through the crap in life to be okay.

“It wasn’t your job to protect me. It wasn’t anyone’s.”

“Sweetheart, protecting you isn’t a job. It never was.”

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, squeezing my fists closed.

“Come over.”

“I’m here, gorgeous.”

My nostrils flared as anger swept over me.

Someone tried to take her from me. I hadn’t had her more than a few days and I was already losing her. My head swam with rage. I couldn’t control it. The more I tried, the worse it got.

I turned on my heel and snagged the keys out of IRIS’s hand.

“Where are you going?”

“To find Mitch.”

“But…Isla needs you!”

I yanked the door open, but IRIS, was there, trying to close the door.

“Think about this, man. Isla needs you.”

“Get the fuck out of my way.”

“IKE—”

“Do not make me tell you again,” I hissed in a low voice.

This time, he nodded and stepped back. “You’ll regret not being there when she wakes up.”

I was used to regrets. But one thing I knew I would never regret was taking out the man who tried to kill the woman I loved.

Snow fell at a steady pace,making it difficult to see more than a few feet in front of you. It was perfect for what I had in mind, and unfortunate for Mitch. He would have nowhere to run. No idea what was coming for him.

Standing in the back alley of the club, I waited for the door to open. It didn’t take long for the garbage to be taken out, and once it was, I caught the door and stepped inside, slipping into the shadows of the club. Music no longer pumped through the club, and the lights had gone from strobing to a low amber glow. Most everyone was done for the night, with the exception of the bartender and Mitch. He was still in his office.

It took another half hour before I was alone with Mitch. He sat in his office, doing paperwork as he smoked a joint. That fed into my plans perfectly. I walked calmly over to the front doorand propped one of them open, then to the bar where I poured myself a drink and left it on the counter in plain sight.

Picking the music was the easy part. Getting it to play over the sound system was more difficult since I didn’t know what the fuck I was doing. The mournful melody played throughout the club, bringing a smile to my face. It wouldn’t be long before he would hear it and come looking for me.

I stepped back into the shadows. Sure enough, a few minutes later, I watched as he strode into the main part of the club. I saw the moment he realized the front door was wide open, he saw the drink left on the counter, and knew someone was in the building.

Fear.

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