Page 30 of Her Outlaw Prisoner
None of that means shit anymore.
Not if Eleanor’s in danger.
I’ve finally found the one good thing in this damn world after my sister’s death, and I’m not about to lose her.
I pull the burner from beneath the loose tile in the back wall and dial a familiar number.
He picks up on the first ring.
“Boss?” Theo’s voice is casual, but I can hear the edge beneath it. He’s been waiting for this call.
“She’s gone.”
A beat of silence.
“Your girl?”
“Didn’t show up today. She’s never late. Something’s off.”
Another pause, then a rustle of movement on his end. “Alright. I’ll pull her stepbrother’s last known address and get my guys on a sweep.”
I glance down at the thin bandage on my knuckles—the same one she wrapped around my hands with so much care on one of my trips to the infirmary. My heart constricts painfully as her smiling face flashes in my head.
I can’t bear the thought of never seeing her again. I’d lose it for real this time…
“I don’t care about any complications. I’m ready now.”
Theo exhales. “It’s messy timing, but I can get cameras patched for the next thirty. If you’re doing this, you better move now.”
“I’m not leaving her out there alone.”
I hang up and slide the burner back into hiding.
Then I move.
The rest happens in a blur, exactly as I’ve planned for so long. Silent signals. A guard “distracted” at the gate. A hallway clearedat the exact right time. The side panel behind the laundry chute opens just long enough for me to slip through.
Theo is waiting behind the wheel of a matte-black Charger, the engine rumbling low like it’s just as pissed off as I am. Theo’s face is tense, but he’s determined and alert. I don’t say a word as I climb in. He tosses me a hoodie and some dark jeans. I change in the back seat as he barrels down the road, cutting corners like we’ve got hell itself chasing us.
“She’s at the old house,” he says, eyes locked on the road. “Same one she grew up in. Bastard must’ve dragged her back there. It’s a two-hour drive.”
I clench my fists. This man is the reason Eleanor flinches at sudden movement. The reason she’s always looking over her shoulder. He’s a monster who made her believe she wasn’t worth fighting for.
And he’s about to learn the hard way what happens to people who fuck with something that’s mine.
We finally pull up to an old Victorian at the edge of the woods, its roof sagging like a tired sigh. The yard is dead, overgrown. Windows dark.
I’m out before the engine dies.
Theo steps out behind me, checking the piece holstered at his hip. “Want me inside?”
“Not yet. Keep the car running. Be ready.”
He nods once, and I head for the side door.
It’s unlocked.
Of course it is. The kind of man Daryl is? He doesn’t think anyone’s ever coming for her. Doesn’t think anyone would burn the world down for her.
