Page 73 of Royal
I need to talk.
I’m going out of my damn mind.
Fuck, man. I’m sorry.
I’m working this evening.
I could meet you tomorrow.
???
Yeah. Okay. Sounds good.
Whatever it is, we’ll talk it out.
Hang in there.
I blow out a breath and suddenly, all the energy drains from my body. The last thing I feel like doing is going for a run. I wet my lips, stripping out of my grass-stained T-shirt and jeans. Maybe a hot shower will help.
But it doesn’t. Ten minutes later, I step out of the steam-filled stall and wrap a towel around my waist. My chest is heavy with regret. I pull on a fresh pair of jeans and a shirt, not realizing until I have the shirt on that I’d picked out a Smashing Pumpkins concert T-shirt. One of Echo’s favorites.Fuck.Grumbling to myself, I head downstairs to get some food. It’s already dinnertime, but I haven’t eaten all fucking day.
In the kitchen, I slap together a ham and cheese sandwich, then stand at the counter, forcing it down. It may as well be tasteless because I have no interest in it at all. There’s too much rolling around in my mind. I have a single bite left to eat when Davis walks in.
A rumbling sound erupts from his chest, then he grunts, giving me a harsh glare. His eyes flick to the far side of the kitchen island, and he points to an envelope that I hadn’t noticed when I came in. He chuckles darkly. “Seems like you’re being summoned, jailbird. I wonder what he wants with you.”
I press my lips together, and it takes everything in me not to fire back at him. I just can’t deal with his ass right now. Rubbing a few fingers over my banged-up cheekbone as a reminder, I ignore Davis and snatch up the black envelope with my name on it and walk away, knowing he’s burning twin holes in the back of my skull.
Out on the front porch, I take a seat on the steps and let the envelope dangle from my fingers. Fuck me. I don’t want to open this fucking thing.
To be hearing so quickly from the Sin Keeper again is kinda fucked, especially since I haven’t had a chance to sort through the files I stole earlier this week. I don’t know why I suddenly seem to have all his fucking attention. Every time I look at my computer, I’m overwhelmed, knowingsomethingis there, just waiting for me to figure it out. It’d be helpful if I knew what the fuck I was looking for.
I shake my head, opening the envelope, not interested in allowing it to taunt me any longer.
I stare at the words on the card for ages, until they swim in front of my eyes. Whoever the Sin Keeper is knows way too fucking much about me. But also… he knows things about Echo that I clearly don’t, which pisses me off and shakes me to my core.
I’m on my feet and down the steps in a flash, jogging across the lawn to TZE. Pressing my lips together, I march up to their front door and knock without hesitation. Honestly, I’m too keyed up to worry about what anyone else thinks at the moment.
The door opens, and as is my luck, Cassie answers. There are several girls just behind her. If I’d had to guess, they may have been on their way out when I knocked.
Cassie immediately shakes her head. “She’s not here.”
I rub a hand over my jaw, eyeing her. She’s pissed. Definitely didn’t like that I wouldn’t hand over the bag last night. “You don’t know where she is, do you?”
“Look. After what you pulled last night, I’m not telling you anything. Get the fuck out of here with your entitlement and ego. Until Echo welcomes you through the front door, you have no business being here.” She’s fuming. “If you’ll excuse us, we were just leaving.”
Her brows raise when I don’t immediately move out of her way, and it’s really fucking clear I won’t be getting jack shit out of her. Frustrated, I nod, then step aside. Gripping the back of my neck, I watch Cassie as she locks the door behind them. She barely glances at me, shaking her head as she walks down the stairs. “Dick,” she mutters under her breath.
Great, so I’ve made an enemy of TZE’s president, and I still haven’t found Echo.Fuck.If she’s truly not here, I can only assume she went home, and maybe that shouldn’t surprise me. But what if Cassie is protecting her? I wouldn’t put it past her, based on the last twenty-four hours. Groaning, I jog down the stairs, and after I’m sure the TZE president and her girls are out of sight, head between the houses and take a peek inside Echo’s window. I press my lips together in dismay. Definitely not here.
Back at SIN, I run directly into Beckham as I burst through the door.
“Whoa.” He grips me by the biceps, stalling my forward motion. I immediately try to pull away, but he’s not having it. “Where’s the fucking fire?”
Exhaling hard, I hope he sees the urgency in my eyes and trusts me enough to know I’m not being fucking crazy. “I need to see Echo.”
He lets go of my arms and backs up a pace, carefully blowing out a stream of air from between pursed lips. He looks down for a few seconds before he peers at me again. “You’re serious.”
“Yes.” Staring boldly at him, I lift the card in my hand, knowing he’ll know exactly what it is.
