Absolution: A Salvation Society Novel

by Leaona Luxx

  “Then we’re in agreement, we’re going to ask Scarlet and Emmie to be a family. Just as soon as I figure my shit out for good.”

  A few hours later, we park in our driveway. My chest tightens as I step out and stare at the place. This isn’t my home anymore, I don’t think it ever was, and even if I don’t regain all of my memory, I’m going to be okay.

  Doc follows me through the door, as I flip a light on. The first thing I lay my eyes on in the place is my dining room table. My half-finished puzzle reminding me of who I am and of what I have to lose.

  I pull my phone out and type out a text.

  Creed: We’re here.

  Crawford: Good to hear.

  Crawford: Thank you.

  Creed: I’ll let you know if I hear anything asap.

  Crawford: Sounds good.

  Crawford: I put in a few calls, nothing yet.

  Creed: Good deal.

  Creed: Thank you, Dad.

  Crawford: My pleasure.

  I hit the next number in the most recent. Two rings and I’m beginning to get a little nervous. By the third one, panic is setting in. Then, silence.

  “Hey, Creed.” Scarlet’s voice is raspy and sluggish. I glance at the clock on the wall, realizing my mistake.

  “I’m sorry, babe. I wasn’t thinking about the time, I’ll let you go back to sleep.”

  “No,” she clears her throat. “I need to hear your voice. Talk to me, please.”

  I kick my shoes off, working my way back through the house. I get Doc some freshwater and food, turning on her light and the one overhead off. “I prefer your moans over my voice.”

  “Me too.” She murmurs. “I miss you and your body heat.”

  “You put off some mighty fine body heat yourself, Scar.” I drag my shirt over my head, and unbutton my jeans, letting them fall to the floor.

  “Are you in bed yet?” She whispers.

  “I am now. How are you and Emmie?” My chest clinches with the thought of hurting or even scaring them.

  She moans, and I’m here for it. “We are both fine, just missing you.”

  “You keep making sounds like you did, and I’ll hurry back tonight.”

  “Perv.” She mutters. “I like it.”

  “I’m going to see the guys in the morning, and then to talk with Drew. I should be back by dinner.”

  “Sounds like a plan.” She sighs. “Are you going to tell me what’s going on?”

  “My nightmare, I remembered something. It may not amount to anything, but I’m going to follow it as far as I can.”

  “I hope you find it; I pray you find everything you want and need.” She’s groggy, and as much as I’d like to fill her in until I know for sure, it could be too dangerous.

  “As soon as I can tell you, I will.”

  She yawns, stumbling through her words. “Without a doubt.”

  “I’m gonna let you go, I’ll call as soon as I can.”

  “Please, be careful. I’ll be waiting.” Her words begin to fade.

  My breath hitches and I clutch my chest as it takes a beating from my heart. I have no idea if I’ve ever told anyone this before, but judging how my heart is reacting, I’d say that’s a hard no.

  “I love you, Scarlet. Kiss Emmie for me.” The silence on the other end drives me to the edge, my stomach flips, and I’m about to beg her to speak.

  “I love you too, Creed. I will promise.” Her voice has a lilt in it, and I feel like I could dance. But not like in a dorky way, totally in a bad-ass way.

  “Tomorrow.” I end the call before I jump in my SUV and race to her as fast as I can.

  I set my alarm and place the phone on my nightstand. Doc sneaks into the room, settling in on the foot of the bed as always. She slept in a chair the first night at Scarlet’s across from us, and then on the bed.

  Sleep is not my friend tonight; I toss and turn until daybreak. Once light shines through my window, I’m up and showering so that we can get on the road. Doc eats and is waiting by the door.

  The traffic is light for a Tuesday morning, which is fine by me. I’m pulling into Cole’s by eight and walking through the door. Jackson said he’d be here this week, but if he hasn’t gotten here, I’m hoping the others can help.

  “Hatch! How in the hell are you?” Mark greets me as I enter the building.

  “I remembered something.”

  Quinn steps around the corner. “Come again?”

  “My dreams, the voices, the place I was in… I’ve finally put it together.” My excitement is palpable, and my anxiety is running high.

  “How can we help?” Mark turns to the main office for Quinn and me to follow.

  “I spoke to Jackson over the weekend- “

  A chair spins, revealing him. “Yes, you did.”

  “How are you? Thank you for your help.” I take his hand, shaking it.

  “Tell us everything, we need to know what you do remember and work our way from there.”

  I nod, taking a deep breath because once I say it out loud, I can never take it back. “When I was in that hole, I heard voices multiple times before losing consciousness.”

  “And now you remember who it was?” Quinn sits across from me.

  “No, not exactly. If I ever hear the voices again, I could definitely identify them. What I do know is that they were American.”

  Mark cuts his eyes at Jackson, the one man who truly understands what I’m saying and the ramifications it holds. Jackson lifts his finger, and Mark moves into action.

  “Creed, have you thought this completely through?” Jackson’s frown deepens.

  I nod, trotting my leg to release the tension building in my body. “Yes, and there’s no doubt the two I heard were Americans.”

  Quinn stands, whispering into Jackson’s ear and then turns to me. “Again, we need you to think clearly. You need to be absolutely positive about what you’re saying.”

  “The men who ambushed us and took me hostage were American. If my hunch is correct, they were also military.”

  “You’re talking about treason.” Quinn’s jaw begins to tick.

  “I know exactly what I’m saying, and the weight of my accusations hold.” My gut boils, and the anger rages through my veins. “I’m a SEAL, I would never disrespect my brothers with so little proof if I wasn’t sure.”

  “We need to trace all personnel at the time of the mission. Anyone associated with the team at the time, if there was a traitor, we have to find him.” Jackson’s orders are clear and direct. The team begins to move, and I can’t do anything but watch in awe.

  Five hours have passed, and I sit in the same place, listening to the audio of every sailor or soldier for the last ten years. I’ve combed through even more photos, dead and alive.

  “Nothing?” Jackson joins me. His face describes my mood at the moment, frustrated and tired.

  I shake my head, burying my hand in my hair, ready to pull it from its roots. “Not a damn thing!”

  Mark’s head hangs in disappointment. “They have to be here. What are we missing?”

  “My brain.”

  “Don’t do that, it’ll come to you and probably when you least expect.” Jackson lays his hand on my shoulder.

  I roll my shoulders, ready to get out of here and clear my head. “Shit. I have an appointment with Drew, I need to get going.”

  “I’m headed that way to visit Aaron, I’ll hitch a ride if you don’t mind.” Jackson stands, walking over to collect his cell.

  “Don’t worry, duckling, Quinn, and I will keep searching.” Mark slaps me on the back.

  “Thanks.” I wave as I head out with Jackson.

  Jackson climbs in the passenger door, buckling in right away. My body is wound so tight, that my grip on the steering wheel is turning my knuckles white. My stomach twists and turns, waiting for him to rip me open, so I can get to what matters here.

  “You’re killin’ me over here.”

  “Is that so?” Jackson smirks, hitting send on his
text.

  “Are you always working?” I side-eye him, waiting for him to just do it.

  He stares out the window, his patience must have scared the shit out of the enemy. “Working toward something is how one attains it.”

  “I often wonder if you work in your sleep, Mark is convinced of it.” I snicker.

  “He might be right because he also understands what it takes to get what you want.” He brushes off his pant leg. Or is he doing that to me? Cole is a literal mind fuck.

  “I get it, Cole. You’re trying to explain to me how to deal with something that lies deep within my psyche.”

  “More than that, Creed. I’m giving you a technique to find it.” Jackson looks over at me, making me uncomfortable.

  His words rattle around in my head for the rest of the ride. With so many things coming at me from every angle, I’m starting to think I may never get the answers I want.

  Jackson and I walk together to Aaron’s room, Drew’s office is just around the corner from it. Jackson remains quiet, and his words sit heavy on me. The responsibility of it weights like concrete on my chest.

  “We’ll keep looking, Creed. Don’t give up, you’re closer than you’ve ever been before.” Jackson offers his hand, I take it. A man can never have too many friends, especially ones like Jackson Cole.

  Working toward something is what got me here and to Scarlet. Had I given up, I wouldn’t be here or with her. If I hadn’t been so determined to make it out of imprisonment, I might have died there.

  “How are you doing, Aaron?” Jackson’s voice carries out into the hallway.

  “No one cares if I’m dead or alive.” Aaron’s response, though cold to some, rings in my ears, burning me with the truth that I’ve run from for so long.

  I fall against the wall, steadying myself as best I can. Those words continue to fight through the fog and darkness of my mind. They’re searching for something; I can’t make out what they’re telling me.

  “He’s a SEAL, he has value. Less if he’s dead, so keep him alive.”

  There. A memory buried so deep, I dig and claw for it. I struggle to breathe as I dive into my mind’s eye, dragging this moment into the light. I’ve fought hell, only to be tied to the underbelly for years.

  “That voice.” My head spins, tossing me to the floor. I lose my hearing, as if I’m underwater, and all of the words are muffled. I lay my hands over my ears as a train whistle blows behind them.

  Someone touches my shoulder; I look up to find Drew with Jackson by my side. I’m deafened by the voices screaming louder at me than those standing next to me.

  “Creed!” Drew shakes me, trying to jar me from this state of numbness.

  I crumple further, lying on the floor as I did in the cell, I was kept in. Jackson and Drew take on the features and sounds of my captors. There, in my mind's eye and the third level of hell, I focus on my surroundings.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Creed

  The room tilts and spins, tossing me around like a rag doll. I claw at my throat as my airway is cut off, and I struggle from it. My pulse races, feeling as if it’s going to burst through my temple.

  I clench my jaw, fighting the fog as best I can. My vision blurs, and I lose my focus. I reach out, needing to ground myself, but nothing helps. The lights are so bright, I shield myself from them.

  Tremors roll through my body and my muscle tension. I cringe with every kick and hit I take from my time there, remembering them as if it’s in real-time. I struggle to say the words that will free me.

  “Aaron and Riggins,” I mumble, seeing them clearly in my mind. “There. Aaron and Riggins.”

  Drew waves a nurse over, she preps my arm as Drew checks the needle in his hand. I shake my head, but I feel as though I’m still in the cell from hell. My mouth is dry again, I attempt to lick my lips and croak the words once again.

  “Aaron and Riggins, they were there. It was them. Their voices. Killed everyone.” Jackson’s hand grips Drew’s arm, stopping him short of sticking me. He leans in, listening carefully and asks me to repeat my words.

  “Repeat it, Hatch.”

  “Aaron and Riggins, they were there. It was them. Their voices. Killed everyone.” The light above me moves like a camera flash, flickering in succession to my memories.

  There, I find all of my answers. As my world spins out of control, I find myself right in the middle, where I’ve always been. Anger and hate blooms in the pit of my stomach, boiling over and rushing through my veins.

  I gasp as if I’ve been holding my breath. Or that I’m being held under the ocean, and the waves have carried me to shore. My hearing begins to slowly return, and I watch the flurry of activity around me.

  “I’m okay,” I mutter, steadying myself as I rise from the floor. “It’s fine. I’m good!”

  Drew takes my arm. “Let’s get you into my office.”

  “No!” I growl, jerking away from him. I stalk toward Aaron’s room. “I want him!”

  Jackson steps in front of me, holding his hands up. “Come on, Hatch. You need to let Drew check you out, and then you can get a turn at Aaron.”

  “You’re just saying that until the others get here.”

  “I’m saying it because you’re pale and need to regain your strength.” He glares at me until I turn and storm down the hall.

  Drew holds his door open for us. “Here, Creed.”

  “I’m going to tear them apart!” I growl with Jackson hot on my heels.

  Drew walks around me, pitting one on each side of me. “Can you slow down and explain to us what you saw.”

  “Aaron was talking to Riggins.” My body quakes as rage rocks me. “I should’ve known, Riggins was so fucking pissed that day. He didn’t even want to be there!”

  “What did they talk about?” Jackson leans against the door. I’m not an idiot, it’s so I can’t bolt down the hall and beat Aaron until he talks.

  “Me!” I pound my chest. “My worth, dead versus alive.”

  Drew comes a little closer, his voice lowers. “Was Aaron working with Riggins or the other way around?”

  “I-I think Aaron was a passer-by, not working in conjunction with Riggins and his men. Aaron wasn’t present for every conversation.” I run my hands through my hair as I consider pulling it out by the fistfuls.

  A knock at the door puts us all on edge, Jackson steps back and allows it to open. Mark and Quinn rush in, loaded down with files. Jackson helps to clear the table, laying them out in order.

  “Riggins was never found. He’s been on the radar from the beginning, but there was no proof he was involved.” Mark’s words are short and menacing.

  Quinn holds out another folder for me. “Aaron was in the city at the same time you were, but his dealings were with one man only. It wasn’t Riggins.”

  “Agreed, he was only there the one time. I have no recollection of the other men. I can’t even tell you what they looked like.”

  “So, let’s go with what we do know.” Jackson rubs his chin, wheels turning. “Aaron was in the same city, and he did see Creed. Riggins was working with others, possibly Americans, and his body was never recovered.”

  “Riggins is the prime suspect; Aaron may know something, but is it worth trying to get it out of him?” Quinn adds.

  Drew steps up. “I can try hypnosis.”

  “We have no other choice. Do it.” Mark interjects. “We have people on the ground there, I’ll put the word out now that we know who we’re looking for, it should be easier to get some intel on him.”

  My phone buzzes in my pocket, I pull it free, and a flood of memories hit me. I stumble back, knocked off balance by the details of my life flashing like a strobe light in my head.

  Drew catches me, helping me to a chair. “What are you remembering?”

  “Not a memory,” I choke on the pieces of my life coming at me like rising bile. “events over the past two years, facts I had misplaced.”

  “Facts? Like what?” Quinn stands to
my side, everyone staring at me, and all I want to do is shout at them, scream at the top of my lungs for nothing, and everything.

  I lace my fingers when my hands begin to tremble. “I hate this. All of it. This is exactly why I didn’t want to remember.”

  “Creed, is this about Riggins or something else?” Drew sits in front of me, making me face all of my demons. Even those I’m still not ready to see.

  My eyes dart around the room, plotting my escape once this is done. I swallow hard, readying for a fight. “Who knew?”

  “Knew what? About your injury or the mission?” Drew’s brows knit.

  My jaw ticks as I grind the words from my mouth. “I want to know how many of you knew Riggins was unaccounted for?”

  “Everyone.” Jackson steps forward, realization written on his face. My body quakes uncontrollably, and I jump from my seat, flipping it over.

  “I can’t believe this!” My hands knot in my hair. “Who decided on this?”

  “Slow down. We’re not understanding what’s happening.” Drew stands, moving his chair from my line of pacing.

  I whirl around, glowering at Jackson. “You seem to be the only one wanting to tell me the truth. Just say it.”

  “We all knew Riggins was unaccounted for, but you were in no shape to hear it. All of the doctors and command made the decision for the rest of us.”

  “You all knew?”

  “Yes, we all fucking knew. What did you want? To be told and possibly blow the only chance you had or any of us of finding the truth?” Jackson’s eyes darken, his nostrils flare. Jackson’s angry, I get it. But he thinks he’s angry, he ain’t seen shit!

  “Who had the right to decide for me? Who among you would’ve chosen this? My brothers! My brothers!” My back bows, fury rages through me as I pound on my chest. I’m utterly vexed at their reasoning.