Page 79 of Decoding Morse

I thanked her and stepped back out.

“I’m checking the cameras,” Tap said in my ear.

A spot of crimson on the floor in the doorway caught my attention. I crouched to examine it. Wet blood. Not too outlandish considering where we were, but more scattered droplets and a smear led to a door with a glowing red EXIT sign above it. The stairwell. Careful not to disturb any potential evidence, I hurriedly made my way to the door and elbowed it open. It swung halfway and slammed into something solid.

Are those legs? And boots?

“What the fuck?”

“Talk to me, Morse,” Tap said. “Details, not emotions.”

Hoping like hell I was wrong, I slid through the opening. Rabbit was lying on his side in the stairwell. A pancake-sized pool of blood stained the concrete around his head. Dropping to my knees, I put my fingers on his carotid.

“Rabbit’s unconscious in the fifth-floor stairwell on the east side of the building. Next to the women’s room. He’s bleeding from the back of his head, but it doesn’t look life-threatening. His pulse is steady. Rabbit.” I gave him a gentle slap on the cheek. “Brother, wake up. Fuck. He’s unresponsive.” I stood and looked around. “No sign of Amelia.”

“Hound’s calling the hospital,” Tap said. “Find her. We’ll make sure Rabbit’s taken care of.”

I headed down the stairs. “If Eric took her, he might still be in the parking garage.”

We had to catch them in time. Eric Landry needed Amelia dead, and I might as well dig her grave now if he gets away. No. That was unacceptable. Panic flooded my veins, spurring my steps. Phone to my ear, I raced down the stairs.

I’d just hit the ground floor and turned toward the front of the building when Tap said, “Backside. They’re waiting on the curb.”

I spun around. The back exit was just across the hall.

“Get out there, Morse. A car’s pulling up.”

I sprinted for the door, shoving it open just in time to hear Amelia scream.

22

Amelia

“I’M DISAPPOINTED IN him, too, but make no mistake about it, Morse is one of the good guys,” Rabbit said, marching beside me toward the bathroom.

He was right, but I couldn’t resist the urge to point out the obvious. “And yet, he’s been lying to me.”

“Not lying. He’s too smart to lie.”

“Lying by omission is still lying.”

He dipped his head in agreement. “True. But you don’t have the complete picture. He’s…” He stopped in front of the bathroom door and turned to face me. “Morse has been holed up in the surveillance room for a long-ass time, watching over everyone he cares about. But you… you got him out of there. He’s spent more time out of the club this past week than he has the entire time I’ve known him.”

That was… interesting.

“Ain’t a damn one of us normal, but he’s trying. For you. You’ve got every right to give him hell, and I’ll be disappointed if you don’t, but that man would do anything for you.”

Rabbit’s truth bombs didn’t fall on deaf ears, but I wasn’t ready to talk about Morse yet. His betrayal still stung. I’d forgive him eventually—I’d never been good at holding a grudge—but I had the right to stew in my anger for a while.

I dipped into the bathroom before Rabbit could say more. Taking my sweet time, I used the facilities and washed up, wincing at the haggard woman staring back at me in the mirror. I desperately needed a makeover and a good night’s sleep, but the best I could do was splash cold water on my face.

It was time to push my personal bullshit to the side and rally. Carol needed me. With a brief pep talk in the mirror, I headed for the door, but Rabbit was nowhere in sight when I stepped into the hall. Confused, I crept out, peering toward the waiting room and wondering if he’d headed back without me. I didn’t think he’d do that, but it was the only answer that made sense. Before I could retrace our steps, a door to my right opened with a click.

Eric Landry stepped out of the stairwell. He met my startled gaze and smiled like we were old friends. “Hi. Amelia, right?”

He recognized me?

Confused, I gave the asshole a curt nod, but I refused to hold my tongue. “Eric. Nice of you to finally visit your mom in the hospital.”

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