Page 6 of Darkest Retribution

“Same as yesterday.”

“Nothing out of the ordinary or suspicious?”

“I’d call if there was. You know I would.”

As soon as Blaze was discharged from the hospital, we shipped him and Brooke off to a resort down south. That way, Blaze can recover in peace, and we know both of them will be safe.

There are only two people who know where they are: me and Alexander Hendricks—my best friend and Brooke’s older brother.

“Look, Dom, I get that you’re worried David will come after us. But I think he’s got his hands full staying one step ahead of the FBI.”

“Can’t hurt to be careful.” I keep my tone even, almost uninterested. Blaze knows how much I care about him, but he has no idea how much the past few weeks have shaken me. And it needs to stay that way—I want him focused on healing.

“You’ll be the first person I call if David shows up. I promise,” Blaze says. “Hey, aren’t you supposed to be taking the weekend off? Relax, Dom.”

I fucking can’t.

“Yeah, I will. Just wanted to check in on you first. You two don’t need anything?”

“We’re fine. More than fine. Being here with Brooke is... well, it’s paradise.”

“Good. Enjoy it.”

“Iwould, if my brother would stop calling me every ten seconds.”

“Fuck you. Don’t do anything stupid.”

“Bye, Dom.”

After hanging up, I take a cold shower. It does little to clear my head, but at least I’m not drenched in sweat.

I flop onto my bed with a grunt. It’s rare that I feel stuck in life. Hell, I haven’t felt this frustrated since high school. All I wanted was to be living in my future—off at college, free from any parental supervision, getting my first taste of freedom. And now I find myself yearning for something similar. Freedom, but this time from a person instead of my childhood.

David fucking Albright.

He first walked into our lives when Brooke started dating him a couple years ago. He’s been nothing but trouble since—especially for Brooke. And goddammit, the woman deserves a break from assholes like him.

It looks like she’s finally getting it, at least. But we can’t guarantee her safety until David is dead. And the night he almost killed Blaze, he disappeared. No one’s seen him since.

“Fuck,” I groan.

I get up, throw on some clothes, and grab my keys. If I can’t relax, I might as well do something productive.

On the drive to work, I keep the radio off. There are too many thoughts running through my head, but trying to distract myself from them sounds too exhausting.

What if we never find David?

What if David finds Brooke and Blaze?

What if Jade and I got together?

Goddammit.

When I finally pull into the parking garage at Grayson Security, I’m so tense my head is starting to ache. I barely even notice Alex’s sleek gray car as I storm inside.

I head toward the back of the building, to the smaller conference room that we’ve dedicated to finding David. When I walk in, I find Alex standing by the table, thumbing through a stack of papers. There’s an open laptop next to him.

I frown at the boxes piled high on the floor. We’ve gone through everything, but it still needs a second look.

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