Page 87 of Diamond in the Rough

Amber jumped in the front seat, and Zoe got in the back. She sniffed the air, then did a double take when she saw Maddox and flung herself into the door.

“That fire at GalleyHead!” She flashed a glance to Amber. “You didn’t say he was here. You didn’t say he’d escaped.”

“I forgot to mention it…,” Amber murmured.

“Look, this isn’t important right now. Where’s Jake?” Maddox asked.

Zoe bit her lip. “Gone.”

Maddox clutched his chest. He didn’t think the pain in his head could be matched, but his heart compressed hard enough to make him reconsider. Dark spots pulsed in his vision, and he blinked them away. “Did they take him?”

“No, I don’t think so. I think he just left. I called Sam, but he hadn’t seen him, said he’d check at his flat, but he wasn’t there.”

“Where would he go…,” Maddox whispered. “Why would he go…”

“I said I’d discharge him tomorrow. He was gonna stay with Sam while he recovered.”

“How bad is he?”

“He needs rest.”

Maddox snorted. “He’s not one for rest.”

“But he needs it. I’m serious, Maddox.”

“Then I’ve got to hurry up and find him.”

“He was desperate to see you.”

Maddox growled, “That isn’t helping.”

“I’m only telling you what was going through his head.”

“He knows he couldn’t visit me in prison. He’s not at his flat, not at Sam’s. He can’t go to Carl, or Stationery Corner, or…”

Maddox’s mouth dropped open, and he balled his shirt into his fist. The ache in his chest was too intense. He drooped forward and scrunched his face.

“What is it? Are you all right?” Zoe asked.

Maddox shook his head. He wasn’t all right—he was very fucking not all right. He could barely talk, but managed to lift his head and croak out the words, “My apartment.”

“Your apartment,” Zoe said. “That doesn’t seem like a bad place to go, almost sensible…”

“Fucking hell,” Amber hissed. “It couldn’t have been him, could it?”

“Boss?” Tom said from the front. “What do you want me to do?”

“Go back there.”

“I’ll be going then—”

Zoe reached for the handle, but Maddox leaned over and stopped her. “I need you to help me.”

“I’m done helping you. I can’t be involved in any of this. Our debt’s been settled.”

“I know it has, but please, Zoe…”

“What do you want me to do?”

---