Page 56 of Final Exit

“Nope,” Jace said. “I gave Bailey a GPS locator. We’ve been tracking you two for days, finally decided it was time to make our move.”

Bailey whirled around. “You’re lying.”

“Did you really think I’d carry a pathetic little Derringer Cobra as my backup gun?”

She sucked in a breath. “You bastard. You tricked me.”

“Eight minutes out,” Devlin announced. “This is your mission, Jace. You’re the boss on this one. Make the call.”

“Do it.”

Bailey whirled toward Kade just as Mason jammed a hypodermic needle into the side of his neck.

Chapter Fifteen

Tuesday, 7:45 a.m.

Kade forced his bleary eyes open, blinking against the sunlight streaming through a window high above him. Once again he was lying on a bed, his mind a jumble of foggy, confusing images.

He raised his hands to rub his eyes but stopped when the chains connected to the handcuffs on his wrists pulled him up short. Another chain ran down his chest and connected to cuffs at his ankles. All that was missing was an orange jumpsuit and he’d be ready for transport to a maximum-security prison.

“Morning.”

He sat up and whirled around in one swift motion, ready to attack, then stopped. A sense of déjà vu swept over him. Once again he was in an unfamiliar bedroom, with Bailey watching him from the doorway. Only, this time, he was trussed up like an animal. And he didn’t know whether her being here was a good thing or a bad thing. Was she friend, or foe? Regardless of which side she fell on, he couldn’t help the rush of relief that swept through him seeing that she was okay.

She was wearing a short leather skirt and some kind of leather vest top with a zipper up the front. And damned if his heart didn’t skip a beat at the sight of her. He glanced down at his own sorry self, wishing he could shower and change clothes. And shave. The stubble on his face was driving him crazy.

He shook his head. Obviously whatever Mason had injected him with at EXIT was making him loopy. He didn’t give a damn what he was wearing. What mattered was figuring out how to get out of here. Whether that was with or without Bailey, remained to be seen.

“I’m so sorry.” She motioned toward the cuffs and chains. “That’s Mason’s doing. He and Devlin co-lead this group. Surprisingly, Devlin seems more reasonable than Mason and didn’t want you restrained. But Mason disagreed. Jace didn’t weigh in at all on the subject. And yet, Devlin and Mason have made it clear that this assignment, or mission, is Jace’s to lead. I think they take turns maybe? But then when it comes to a really important decision, Devlin and Mason step in. I don’t know. I can’t figure these people out.”

She raked her hands through her hair. “I’m out of my element here, Kade. I’m not sure what to do. I’ve tried to reason with them, but I’m outnumbered. They grilled me about you. At first I didn’t tell them anything. But when I realized they thought you were the one behind the murders, I had to defend you. I told them what you told me, and how you tried to save Hawke. But I don’t know if it made a difference. And, Kade, I promise you I didn’t know about the tracker in the gun that Jace gave me. It never even occurred to me that he might do something like that. They act like they’re my friends and yet they’ve taken my weapons. It’s all a crazy mess and I’m trying to—”

He drew a deep breath and let her ramble on. Listening to her nervous chatter was just what he’d needed. A sense of calm settled over him and the fog of confusion lifted from his mind. Bailey was okay, and she hadn’t gone to the dark side. Knowingthatgave him the peace he’d needed in order to focus.

When she finally paused for breath, he said, “Bailey. Relax. I know that none of this is your fault.”

She blinked. “You do?”

He tugged on the chains, wincing when the strain made a muscle twinge in his bad leg.

She rushed forward, worry lines creasing her brow. “It’s your leg, isn’t it? Do you need some pain pills? This hiding place of theirs seems to have every kind of supply imaginable. I’m sure I can get you something to help—”

He kissed her. He wanted nothing more than to pull her onto the bed and deepen the kiss, explore that maddening zipper between her breasts, slide his hand beneath that sexy little skirt. But this wasn’t the time or the place. It nearly killed him, but he pulled back and let her go.

“I’m okay, Bailey,” he assured her, smiling at the slightly dazed look in her eyes. He loved that this beautiful, intelligent, ball-buster of a woman could fluster so easily whenever he touched her.

“What about you?” he asked. “You seem okay. They haven’t hurt you, have they?” Just the idea that they might have mistreated her had his fists tightening at his sides.

“No, no one has done anything to me. Are you sure your leg—”

“I’m sure. I don’t suppose you have an extra key lying around somewhere to take these chains off?”

“Not yet. But I’ll get you free somehow. I’m still working on the ‘how’ part. There are only five of them here right now, but there were a lot more earlier. The men you saw last night—Mason, Devlin, Jace, and Austin—plus a new guy, Terrance. You remember they call themselves the Equalizers?”

He nodded. “I’m not sure what that means, though.”

She frowned. “From what I understand, most of them are former Enforcers. Their goal seems to be the same goal that you have—to bring EXIT down and ensure the program isn’t reinstated.” She fingered the chains between his wrists, her jaw tightening. “But obviously we have a difference of opinion about how to make that happen. We’ve got to make sure they realize that you’re not behind the killings.”

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