Page 107 of Love Bleeds Red
“We must have missed him,” Leon says. He drops his other hand from where it was lingering on his gun. “Fuck.”
“He’s playing with us,” I say. “I can just picture his face.”
Leon sighs deeply and brings my hand up to his lips, planting a quick kiss. “Let’s get out of this place.”
Thank God.
The longer I spend in here, the more I replay every feeling from that day. The fear but more than that, the humiliation and shame.
On our way back to the bike I ask, “Do you think he stopped here to pick something up?”
“Yeah, most likely. Although, I have no idea what.” We reach the bike and he holds out my helmet. “I know it’s difficult, butwhen you were there with him, did he say what the visit was for? Or anything that would show what he used that townhouse for?”
I hesitate, holding the helmet against my chest. “I was locked in that bedroom for most of the time.”
His face falls. “Fuck, I’m sorry for asking.”
“No, it’s okay. Let me think.” As much as I hate replaying the memories, I need something. All I remember is Sir saying he wanted to show me off. That I should consider it homework. But from what it seemed, the home didn’t just belong to him. Something about the comfortability of the other men. They didn’t seem like guests, more like they owned the place too. “I’d bet he had something incriminating there. Maybe paperwork, or files. It seemed to me like it was a neutral place where they talked business.”
The final word comes out bitter.Business.God, I hate them.
“In this nice neighborhood?” Leon says. “So fucked up.”
“You don’t know the worst of it.”
I can tell he’s trying to work out exactly what to say to me to make me feel better, although words aren’t what I need. Not yet at least. I need to be doing something. To feel like I’m helping, even if it’s in the smallest way.
His phone buzzes with a text and he looks away to read it.
“It’s Falin. She said it took her a while but she tracked the plate number again. Heading northwest.” A cloud moves to cover the sun and his eyes seem to darken. “Toward the estate.”
I had a feeling it would come to this. The words that spill out of me probably sound desperate or hurt, but I guess that’s because I’m both of those things. All this time, I’ve been trying to understand the motives of these terrible men. It’s like some part of my brain won’t accept that they’re just doing this because they can. “What does he want?”
Leon takes the helmet and sets it on the bike seat to free my hands. Then he holds them, so gently, as he looks me in the eyes. The gesture is like a living, breathing anti-anxiety medicine.
“I can’t begin to understand the mind of monsters,” he says quietly, not breaking eye contact. “But I know this is about punishing me. For taking you away from him. For destroying his home. For making him look weak. For screwing up his plans.” His jaw clenches. “He’s using my mum to get to me, and he’s using that place to get to you.”
“What will happen when we get there? What will he do?”
“Nothing good,” Leon answers. “I should bring you home. You shouldn’t go back there.”
I close my eyes for a second and remember Polly bleeding out in those woods. He’s right, I shouldn’t go back there. In fact, my skin crawls thinking about crossing those iron gates again. But when I open them again, I know I’d never leave Leon’s side.
“I know,” I say, reaching for my helmet. “But I’m going to anyway.”
Leon stares at me for a long moment, war brewing behind his eyes. “You’re sure?”
I climb onto the bike, waiting for him to join me. “I’m done letting people fuck with me and my family. She’s your family, which makes her mine.”
He nods, climbs on, and starts the engine. Before pulling away he types on his phone.
“What are you doing?”
“Telling the others where we’re headed and to meet us there.” He puts the phone away and revs the engine. “I won’t be stupid this time. But I also won’t wait for them.”
As we merge into traffic, heading toward the countryside, I wrap my arms tighter around Leon’s waist. The sun is already low in the sky, peeking behind buildings. We should reach the estate by nightfall.
And when I cross those iron gates illuminated by the moonlight for the second time, I’ll be going by choice, ready to face that psycho asshole and anyone standing with him.
