Page 18 of The Hunted
Breathe, Alvarez, breathe.
He repeated to himself. His hands continued to shake until he balled them into tight fists at his side. The sound of childlike laughter had him snapping his eyes open and looking around again. He didn’t see any kids close by, but the laughter had gotten louder.
Was it all in his head?
“There’s nothing else here that we found yet. We have our K-9 unit here and other officers canvasing the area but….” The officer was looking at him like he was losing his mind. He wasn’t entirely sure that he wasn’t. He felt off, like he was in a locked room, so close to opening the door, but something was blocking his reach.
“The vic has 160 carved on her left forearm underneath a little unicorn tattoo.” The officer continued, and Santino looked down at the white sheet. He could feel the memory just on the outskirts of his mind, but he couldn’t reach out and grab it. If he did, he had a funny feeling he’d figure out a vital piece to the puzzle in front of him and maybe even the Reaper.
“Alvarez!” Martin’s voice sounded like nails on a chalkboard. He thought for sure he’d have enough time here before Martin showed up and blustered about.
Santino rubbed a spot in the middle of his head. He could feel a headache brewing. “Are you okay? I figured you guys see more dead bodies than we do.” The officer’s voice held a hint of concern, and it grated on his nerves right along with Martin barking unnecessary orders.
“You sure flew out of the office.” Martin’s hand came down on Santino’s shoulder like an avalanche. “What was the rush? Not like she’s going anywhere.”
“Funny,” Santino gritted out and shook himself out of Martin’s hold. “Figured you’d be too busy talking to witnesses to bother coming down to look at this. So I figured I’d get a head start.”
He turned to face Martin. They were standing mere inches from each other, and while it wasn’t professional by any means, he wanted him to take a swing. He needed the excuse to lash out on the bastard, and at least if he swung first, self-defense went a long way.
The muscle in Martin’s jaw ticked and he sucked his teeth. “We’re back to that?” His voice was low, but he seemed to puff up as if he had any chance of surviving a fight with Alvarez. “If you need your dick sucked, stop picking a fight with me. I’m not gonna bend you over, sweetheart. Call that chick from the gym. Give her some pretty words to make her think she’s important and seal the deal. Pussy will make you feel better.”
Martin’s smile was so smug it was almost painful not to take the man down a peg. He was such a waste of space. If they didn’t physically come to blows soon, he was going to kill him. Though, he kind of hoped the Reaper found a way to get to him. It would save Alvarez the trouble and the supplies.
The sound of dogs barking got everyone’s attention. The sounds of shouts had the local police moving, and Alvarez was eager to get right behind them, but Martin kept him where he was. “Pull out your phone and let me see you text her.” He stood with his arms crossed, thinking he was some immovable object.
“Do you care about your job? We’re at an active scene and you’re telling me to text some girl I just met?” He’d be shocked if it weren’t par for the course with Martin.
“Maybe it will clear your head enough so you can stop acting like a dickwad and be able to focus on the case.” Martin leveled a look of triumph at him, and this time Santino balled his hand into a fist, intent on punching him in the neck.
It wasn’t that Martin was right, it was just that he wasn’t wrong either. He felt something for Silva, and every time he felt off or that gnawing sensation in his gut got overwhelming, it was her eyes he saw in his mind. There was no better way to figure out what he felt than by actually interacting with her.
Santino let out a breath and unclenched his fist. He shoved his hand into his pant pocket, pulling out his phone. “I can walk and type at the same time. Let’s go.”
He quickly pulled up Silva’s name and typed a quick message:
Santino: Hi, it’s Santino Alvarez. We met when you tried to pickpocket me after you ran into me. I do believe we need to schedule a sparring session.
He flashed the message toward Martin who chuckled but didn’t say anything more. They both rushed behind the police officers who were deep into the foliage. The sound of dogs barking had Alvarez’s feet moving at a quick pace, doing his best to give the dogs a wide berth. They never liked him and made sure he knew it too.
Santino stopped short when he saw a partially burned body tied to one of the trees. “Holy shit,” the words fell from his lips, as he got closer. He already knew who it was, but he needed to be sure.
“Is that Marcus Holding?”
ChapterNine
Silva eyed her cell phone, wondering if it was too late to text Santino back. She chewed on her thumb, contemplating the pros and cons of texting him. It was silly, really, when she looked at it logically. She wasn’t expected to and wasn’t sitting by her phone waiting for him to hit her up. So why would it matter when she responded?
Because you like him.
She scoffed at the thought. Though when she looked up at the sound of the café door opening, hoping it was Santino, she knew she couldn’t deny that she was fond of him.
And maybe, just maybe, she was sporting a little crush.
A super microscopic crush.
It wasn’t even that serious.
“I think I want to fuck you.”
