Page 26 of Beyond the Blue Horizon
My guts a tangle of aggression as I thought of the monsters that lurked.
Ones that would do anything to uncover this place.
Twisted fiends I wouldn’t hesitate to put in the ground.
When I found nothing, I wound up on the back side of the property, landing myself at the two occupied cabins on the far east side.
My chest tightened, throat nearly closing off as I edged up to Unit A where Alicia and her daughter, Lucy, were staying.
My ear tuned to the sounds coming from inside.
It was just past ten, and I could only make out the faint drone of a television coming from inside, the same as normally echoed back each night at about this time.
They were safe inside.
Still, I eased all the way around it, keeping myself in the shadows as I ensured the area was uncompromised.
Satisfied, I started to head back for my cabin that I’d built on the far west side of the property, only I stalled out.
Unable to move.
A motherfucking hook in my back.
This interest that I couldn’t shake had me making a U and creeping back toward Unit B.
Creep.
A smirk threatened at the edge of my mouth.
She had no idea.
I stole around the perimeter.
The lights were off downstairs, though I could see a muted one glowing up high in the loft from above.
Couldn’t help from wondering what Piper was doing.
If she was curled up in the bed under the covers.
What she was wearing.
Or maybe she was soaking in the tub.
Fuck me.
That was not a direction a wise man would let their mind travel down.
But when it came to her, I wasn’t feeling sowise.
The woman had already caused me to break one of Sovereign Sanctum’s rules. One that could be bent. But I needed to remember the others.
I reined the errant thoughts and forced myself to shift gears and head back down the pathway.
I rechecked along the main part of the motel before I cut across the parking lot and headed to where my cabin was in a secluded spot tucked in the trees, my hands fucking frozen as I let myself in my place.
I flicked on the lights and the switch to the fireplace, letting the flames jump to life so I might be able to thaw out my ass.
I peeled off my leather jacket and tossed it to the rack, then I kicked out of my boots and socks.
