Page 90 of Hide and Seek
“Why?” I cry. “Why did you kill him? Why did you kill my Laith?”
“Focus, kitten,” he demands. “Picture his face. Picture his words. Tell me who he is. What does he look like? Do you know his name? Met him before? Come on, kitten. You can do this. Tell me what you know.”
I think back to the moment outside my car, my hand snapping out and hitting his throat, and I replay it over and over, trying to pull the images together inside my brain. Why was I so scared? Why was I rushing to get in the car? There’s an uneasiness there, the same feeling I sometimes get at work when . . . fuck.
The janitor. Vincent’s replacement.
“Work,” I say. “Guy from work.”
“Good girl,” he rumbles. “What guy? Do you know his name?”
“Janitor,” I finally say, picturing it so clearly now, every moment his fist slammed into my face, every moment he spat on me, kicked and belittled me. He stole my car and left me for dead, allowing his friends to tear into my flesh like they deserved it, like my life meant nothing.
Fresh tears well in my eyes, and I feel my eyelids growing heavy again.
“That’s a good kitten,” the familiar voice says. “You’re going to be alright now.”
“Kill him,” I murmur as my body gives up the fight, knowing he will do whatever it takes to make this right. “Kill him just like you’ll do to me.”
And in that very same breath, darkness crashes over me like a tsunami, claiming everything in its path.
31
KNIGHT
After getting back to the station from a call, the boys and I collapse on the benches in the locker room. It was a rough one, and while we always come out with a successful job, that doesn’t mean that it didn’t push us to our limits.
We’re all fucking wrecked, but this right here is exactly why we do the job. The challenge keeps us going, the adrenaline, and the knowledge that what we do saves lives.
Diesel sits forward, his elbows braced on his knees as Ace leans back against his locker. They were talking about heading out after this, but from the look on their faces, they clearly just want to go home and crash. Hell, so do I. But knowing that Harper is waiting for me in my bed sends fire blasting through my veins.
Things are changing, but I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t nervous. A part of me wonders if she’s clinging to me because I can offer her a safety net against her stalker. I love that shefeels safe with me, that it’s my home she runs to when her world is going up in flames. I just need to know that her feelings for me are genuine, and that after this stalker bullshit is done and dusted, she’s still going to feel the same.
After finding just a shred of energy, I go to get up from the bench when an incoming call draws all of my attention, and I let out a heavy groan, too fucking tired to be dealing with some other bullshit.
Digging into my locker, I find my phone, and a stupid smile pulls at my lips when I see Harper’s name across the screen. I haven’t had a chance to check over my surveillance camera yet, but as far as I know, she’s still at my place. Though I guess I can’t assume she hasn’t gone out. She’s used to the night shift, so there’s a good chance she’s just starting to plan what her evening will look like. If she is still in my bed, she probably wants to know that I’ll be on my way home to her soon—unless this is another call to say that she’s been tied up and fucked raw by another man in my bed.
Fuck. That one made my heart sink.
Accepting the call, I lift it to my ear, waiting to hear her soft tone coming down the line, only it’s not hers I hear; it’s a man. “Hey, is this Knight?”
“Uhh, yeah? Who the fuck is this? Where’s Harper?”
Unease rips through me, and I’m immediately on edge. Why the hell does some random guy have her phone?
“I’m uhhh, I’m a friend,” he says, trying to rush through his response as though it’s somehow not important. “Look, Harper’s in the hospital. She—”
“What?” I demand, my hand already launching back into my locker and grabbing my shit.
“Yeah. I’m with her now. They’re taking her into emergency surgery, and while she’s worked with all the people here foryears and knows them well, I figured it was you she’d want here when she wakes up.”
How the fuck does this guy know what the hell my girl would want?
I shake my head. This bastard has skipped right over seasons three, four, and five, and skipped right to the end, not giving me a single detail. “Why the fuck is she in the hospital?” I spit, hurrying out of the locker room. Both Diesel and Ace jump to their feet, looking at me as though they’re waiting for a threat. “What happened?”
My heart pounds with fear in a way that I’ve never felt before, not even while on the job, and fuck, I feel sick.
“I can’t be too sure,” he tells me, still not having explained who the fuck he is to Harper and why he has her phone. “From the type of injuries she had, I can only assume that she was jumped. I got a call from some guy telling me she’d been hurt and was left in an alley. I went and got her and she didn’t look good. She’d been hurt badly. I got her in the car and brought her straight here, but . . . fuck. I don’t know. She was saying some weird shit.”
