Page 36 of Until I Found You
“Obviously.”
He chuckles to himself as his eyes rake over my body. His obvious perusal of my body makes me feel disgusting, dirty.
“Good.” He smiles again. “You can give him a message for me then. You tell him if I catch his boys following me again, I’ll see to putting him six feet under next to that cousin of his. You hear me?”
My throat goes dry as the words hit my ears. He smiles again, spitting on the ground as bile rises up my throat.
I don’t doubt for a second after we saw him at Brodie’s, Graham did some digging into Krate. We all see his name in the paper. It’s no secret the trouble he’s been getting himself into.
“Alright.” My voice cracks. “I’ll tell him.”
I’m about to ask him to leave when a large black diesel truck pulls up behind him, parking next to me. I don’t recognize the vehicle at first, but I relax a bit when I spot Maverick walk around the back stopping next to me.
“Everything alright here?”
He must feel how uncomfortable I am. I’m practically pleading with him to help me, to get me out of here and away from him.
“We’re good. Nothing for you to be poking your nose into,” Krate says, but I pick up his double meaning. Something tells me he’s aware Maverick’s one of the guys who’s following him, but if he does, he doesn’t say anything.
“You two have a good night,” Krate says, a sarcastic smile lines his mouth as he turns to climb back in his car. “You remember what I said, Halle.”
He winks at me, just before rolling the window back up. The tint is so dark once it’s all the way up, I’m left staring at my scared reflection alongside Maverick’s stone-cold face next to me.
We both watch as he slowly drives to the back of the parking lot, disappearing down the alley.
“You okay? What’d he say to you?” Maverick questions, looking me over. There’s an edge of concern laced in his tone.
He moves to take a step closer to me, catching me off guard, so I take a step back pressing me against my car door.
“Whoa, Halle. It’s okay. It’s just me.”
“He just said…” I stutter, running my hand over my forehead. I feel light-headed and dizzy. Like all the adrenaline is now hitting me and I need to sit down. “He said he knows Graham has been poking around in his business, having people follow him or something. He said he wants him to back off or he’ll…”
I can’t even finish my sentence. The words are caught in my throat, unable to come out.
“Or he’ll what, Halle? What’d he say?”
Maverick reaches out, rubbing his hand over my shoulder in an attempt to reassure me. “He’s not going to hurt you, okay? That much I can promise you. I just need you to tell me what he said.”
“He said if he doesn’t back off, he’ll put him six feet under next to Gage.”
Tears trail down my face, and I don’t even bother to wipe them away. I know he understands the weight of those words. Anger transforms the look on his face, as he clenches his jaw.
“Mother-fucker,” he growls, gritting his teeth.
“Whatever you guys are up to, please stop. It’s not worth it. It’s not worth making him mad or risking your lives. I’ve lost Graham once, I don’t want to think about losing him forever.”
I get choked up saying that last word. Shouldering past Maverick, I cover my mouth trying to get my emotions in check. I just want to get in and out of the store, then go home. I focus on the sound of my sandals against the cement ignoring him calling out my name to try and stop me.
Right now, I just want to drown my problems in a glass of wine and forget everything.
