Page 99 of Right Number, Wrong Man
My face heats. “I’ll make him pay, Spitfire. When I’m done with this bastard, he’ll regret the goddamn day he drew his first breath. He wants to play the monster, but he’s got no idea what a real monster can do… and I’ll be the one to show him.”
37
COLT
Cody takesa lukewarm beer from the six pack on the scratched coffee table and sits on the tattered sofa. He lets out a huff as he twists off the cap and takes a deep gulp. “Been a while since I had to move a body on the down-low. Maybe I’m gettin’ too old for this shit.”
I laugh and grab a beer, too. “You’re forty-two, man. You got some good years left in you and you pulled off tonight like a pro. Didn’t expect anything less, though.”
He hums, looking at Dad’s ancient hunting trophies hung on the cabin walls. “Yeah, nobody stuffs a guy in a bag and tosses him in the trunk like me.” He winks. “I dunno. Might be time to retire from active service.”
“Retire? You’d die of boredom.”
“It’s not like I’d be sitting at home reading the obituaries in the newspaper. I’m notthatold. But I’mtoo oldto get used to some cocky whippersnapper as my new partner.”
“Why would you get a new part—” My thoughts freeze. “I told you I’m coming back in a few weeks!”
His smile softens. “That’s what you said, but your eyestell a different story. I’ve seen how you look at Hailey, seen what you’re doing for her.” He takes a long drink, gesturing to the basement door.
A crack runs through my chest. “You read me too well, asshole,” I mumble.
Sometimes, my best friend knows me better than I know myself. It’s annoying, but until he said it, I didn’t realize that my mind was already made up.
When I adopted Gracie, I mentioned to Hailey that I might consider staying, but in truth, I know for sure that I can’t leave.
Cody laughs. “I ain’t trying to make you feel bad. I’m happy for you! ‘Scuse me getting all soppy, but I’ve been worried about you. You’ve always been too much of a lone wolf, keepin’ your distance from everybody but me.”
I scoff, smirking. “Not by choice. After I joined the squad, you just wouldn’t leave me the fuck alone. You kept saying that us Southern guys gotta stick together, but when that didn’t pan out, I remember how you tried bonding with me over prisoner interrogations for the first time.”
“Worked like a charm, didn’t it? And it only took six months until you smiled at one of my jokes!”
I chuckle. “You told the guy to consider the upcoming torture session a very aggressive form of group therapy.”
“It was funny!” Cody shrugs. “Listen, you got a good thing here with Hailey. You told me the whole backstory you guys have, but I don’t think she hates you. Not anymore, at least. If I were you, I’d wanna stay, too.”
My lips press into a hard line, emotions clogging my throat. “I needed to hear that. Thanks, Cody. For the past decade serving with you. For your friendship. For tonight. And for this talk. For everything.”
“Goddamn it, Colt! You’re making this sound like a fuckin’ goodbye! Ain’t nobody dying! All I’m telling you isto get laid and make a life with Hailey.” He snickers, draining the bottle before putting it on the table and taking another.
Figuring things out with Hailey ain’t as easy as he makes it sound—not with my secret identity as Jax. I’m tangled in a web of lies and I have no clue how to escape, but I can’t walk away from her again.
I’ll work out the details later. For now, I’m going with the flow and I still have a job to do.
“Who knows,” Cody interrupts my thoughts. “Next year when my contract is up, I might become a businessman. I heard there’s tons of cash in private security."
“Office cost is affordable out here,” I suggest.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
I drink my beer before discarding the bottle on the table and rolling up my sleeves. “Time to get to work.” I drop my phone on the sofa next to him. “Do me a favor and tell me if Hailey calls, alright? I get no reception in the basement. Did you check Justin’s bag while I was downstairs preparing?”
“No, I thought you’d wanna do the honors because he threatened your girl.”
I grab Justin’s backpack from under the table and sort through it, taking out something heavy wrapped in cloth. It turns out to be a jar filled with liquid—and eyes.
Cody grimaces. “Sick fuck.”
I slosh the liquid around like a snow globe, shaking my head. “We’re doing the world a favor tonight.”
