Page 172 of California Wild

“I don’t know where you are. I don’t know if you’re okay. I don’t know if you’re hurt or if you’re just… gone. But I can’t do this. I can’t do this if it’s going to be like this.

I need you.

I don’t care what’s happening, I don’t care if you think it’s better to stay away—I need you.

I can’t do this alone.”

The line went dead.

Just like that.

She stared at the screen for a long time, the quiet in her apartment pressing in around her, heavier than ever.

She turned off the light.

Slipped under the covers.

Wrapped her arms around her belly like that would stop the ache.

And somewhere in her chest, the lullaby kept echoing.

A song for someone too small to hear.

And maybe—maybe—a prayer for someone who should’ve been here by now.

Chapter 26

The world tilted and spun, shadows swimming at the edges of Jesse’s vision.

Cold asphalt pressed against his cheek, gritty and damp. His breath came ragged, every inhale scraping like sandpaper against his ribs. The pain in his side throbbed sharp and deep, wet warmth soaking into his shirt.

He blinked hard, forcing his eyes to focus, but the black creeping in threatened to pull him under.

Fuck.

His fingers curled against the ground, pressing into something sticky. Blood. His blood.

The coppery scent mixed with the piss-stained alley air, the lingering reek of garbage and stale booze.

Memory hit in jagged flashes.

The junkie.

Strung out to hell, eyes wild, pupils blown wide. The kind of high that gave men superhuman strength and zero sense of consequence.

Jesse had been following leads, asking around about Kwilé, putting pieces together.

And this guy—this fucking ghost of a man, all bones and twitching muscle, had taken exception to that.

Or maybe he’d just seen an opportunity.

Jesse hadn’t even seen the knife until it was too late.

Rookie fucking mistake.

His jaw clenched as he slid a hand over his ribs, exhaling through his teeth when his fingers came back slick and red. Not too deep. Surface wound. It would bleed like a bitch, but it wasn’t fatal.

Not this time.

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