Page 133 of The Reluctant Hero

I’m too busy being disappointed to care. He should have hit her at leastonce. I made sure he was the target for the phone call with the IT tech. Anyone could see the guy has anger issues.

“She found out about us.”

“So?” I ask with a smirk.

“She has pictures!”

My heart drops.

“What did you say?” I grit out, leaning forward with intensity.

“And not just of me, apparently. Why is that, Justin? Beth and Jessie want to know, too.”

Fuck.Fuck!

I hang up, my hands shaking violently.

“You fuckingbitch!”

My yell echoes around me before I reach out and knock everything off my desk. The lamp breaks, glass shatters. The useless prop of a photo taken at our tiny wedding drops. When I sneer at it, I’m pissed even more. It didn’t break, and Amanda’s smile seems mocking with knowledge.

Whatever that guard or Matthias put her through isn’t going to be enough. I need her fuckingsufferingfor this. I want her begging on her knees in front of me. I look down at the phone still clutched in my hand and call the only person who can get it done.

30

Doubt

Amanda

Sunday dawns with no word from the guys. I try calling again and get the same results: voicemail for Ace and nothing for Mikael’s phone.

What to do. I can’t sit here for much longer doing nothing. I haven’t eaten, and I’m not hungry in the least. I don’t even look at the kitchen. It makes my stomach turn, and that doom feeling starts up. Like the fridge is going to fall on me or something.

Instead of floundering around like a useless lump I decide to do my own PI work. I know which property the golf course is supposed to be on. Maybe I can poke around and see if there’s any building going on?

I don’t know. I’m bored and restless, and no one is capable of picking up a phone. I try again, just in case. Nothing.

I shower, dress, and leave the apartment. When I open the door, a flutter of red paper greets me. I frown as I pull it down.

An eviction notice. I have to leave immediately. Yeah, right. The company logo at the bottom is Matthias LLC this time. As a threat, this one lacks something. Namely authenticity. I can’t wait to show this to Ace. He will lose it for sure. I fold it up and put it in my back pocket for later.

I catch a ride out to the site and continue calling the guys randomly. What the hell are they doing? Can’t they see this is important?

Oh shit. What if Gabriel told them I slept with him? Did he rate my performance as a zero of ten stars and they’re backtracking? God, the timing sucks on this. Just my luck. I’m ready to start a group chat so they both suffer at the same time. They can shut me out as a romantic partner, but this is important.

I refuse to listen to that ache in my chest every time I pick up the phone. It’s blending with the doom feeling until I can’t tell which one is more annoying.

“Are you sure this is the place?” The driver asks, pulling my attention off the phone.

I look out at the bland, sandy stretch with a frown.

“Yeah,” I mutter. That feeling of slow-building doom starts getting more intense, matching the rhythm of my heart.

That clinches it. I don’t have a damn superpower to sense danger. There’s nothing out here but sand and a few hills. Maybe I’m having a stroke. That sounds more like my luck.

“Would you mind waiting?”

“I can’t,” he tells me curiously. “I’ve got another pickup scheduled. I can swing back by, though.”

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