by Cynthia Eden
Victoria shook her head. “I don’t know.” She nodded. “But we’ll find him, Sarah. You can count on it. We’ll find him.”
Sarah looked at the chaos around her. So many cops. So much fire.
The house Jax had loved was gone. Nearly obliterated. But he wasn’t dead. He was still alive.
“I’m coming, Jax,” Sarah whispered. She wasn’t going to just let him vanish. She’d tear this city apart if she had to do it, but Sarah would find him.
BY NOW, SARAH would know that Jax was gone.
She’d be looking for her lover. Worried. Afraid.
In the hours to come, her fear would just get worse. Fear was such a powerful weapon. He knew that. Murphy had taught him that.
Jax was out cold. Maybe he’d hit him too hard with the gun, but he didn’t really care. The guy would die in the end, so it didn’t matter if he’d cracked Jax’s skull or not. He just needed him alive long enough to speak a few words.
Molly had been good bait.
Jax was even better.
He’d bound the guy’s hands behind him. Tied his legs to the chair. They were in an old empty house, a house that sat alone on a dead-end street. Once upon a time, the place had probably been nice—now it was just crumbling ruins. Why the hell Jax bought places like that he didn’t know. But at least Jax’s property had sure made things easier for him . . .
In this area, there was no one to watch. No one to hear the screams. And before he was done, there would be plenty of screams.
Jax groaned.
Ah, so he was coming around. Good. It was almost time to make a little phone call. He’d already taken Jax’s phone. Soon, they’d be contacting sweet Sarah. Inviting her to join their little party.
And when Sarah got there, that was when the real fun would begin.
“F-Fucking . . . bastard,” Jax muttered.
He took his knife and sliced down Jax’s arm, cutting right through the tattoos.
Jax’s eyes opened. They were bleary, but rage was already starting to burn there.
“Guess what happens next?” he asked Jax.
Jax didn’t answer. The guy just glared at him.
“It’s your turn to die . . .”
Chapter 16
THE POLICE STATION WAS A FRENZY OF ACTIVITY. When three officers were killed and another was sent to intensive care, the brothers-in-blue went into serious attack mode. They were combing the streets then. Talking to witnesses. Flashing photos of Jax to the media.
Sarah and Emma were at the station, trying to keep tabs on all the chaos so they could catch any leads that the police might get.
Gabe was in the captain’s office, making deals, as usual, to keep LOST fully in the loop.
Dean was at the hospital, waiting for Brent to get out of surgery so that he could find out what else the guy might know. Brent was their best bet right then. Their main chance of getting a lead on the bastard who’d taken Jax.
“He’s alive, right, Sarah?”
She turned at Emma’s soft question.
“The guy wouldn’t take him to just . . . just kill him right away. Jax is still alive.” But her words sounded more like a question than anything else.
Sarah nodded. “He’s alive.” And she was going to find him. She wouldn’t give up on Jax. Because he wouldn’t give up on her.
I love you.
Her gaze slid around the station. So much chaos. Tips were coming in, but, so far, those tips weren’t panning out at all.
“Your father didn’t know who we’re after?” Emma asked her.
Sarah’s lips thinned. “All my father wanted to do was tell me to get the hell away from Jax. He thought Jax was the threat.”
“Jax isn’t!” Emma’s denial was immediate. “I know his past is dark. He’s done things that crossed the line, but I swear, he’s good inside, Sarah. He’s—”
“You don’t have to convince me,” Sarah told her softly. “I know exactly what he is.”
Emma swallowed. Her arms wrapped around her stomach.
“And we’re going to find him, Emma. We are.” If she said those words enough, Sarah knew they had to be true. She knew—
My father wanted me away from Jax. He wanted me to stay with LOST. He’d been intent on driving Sarah away from Jax. But if Jax wasn’t the threat, and if her father had known that . . .
Then my dad thought the killer was coming for Jax. He thought I could be in danger, just because I was near him.
“Emma, you didn’t know about Jax’s childhood, did you?”
Emma shook her head. “Not until Dean told me. Jax was always so private. He never talked about what his life was like when he was a kid. Jax didn’t share his secrets with anyone.”
He’d shared them with Sarah.
Look at this all again. You’re missing something. Think!
“If Jax were going to tell someone, who would it be?” Sarah asked. “His closest friend? Who’s that, Emma? Who is it?”
“Carlos,” Emma whispered. “They’ve been tight for years. Ever since Jax found Carlos in an alley. Two jerks were cutting him, holding him down, and Jax stopped them.”
Carlos. “Where is Carlos now?” Because he wasn’t being her shadow any longer. Actually, she hadn’t seen Carlos since she’d returned to New Orleans.
But, before then, the guy had been her guard. Hanging in the shadows, watching her, watching the LOST agents . . . he would have been aware of every move that they made.
“It’s night now, so he’s probably at the bar. He may not even know that Jax is missing.”
If he’d turned on a TV or radio, he’d know. Sarah nodded. “I need to speak with him. Now.”
Emma’s face tightened. “Carlos isn’t involved.”
Maybe. Maybe not.
“Molly said a blond man lured her away. Carlos isn’t blond, and the guy’s scar is pretty hard to miss. If she’d seen him, Molly would have—”
“We don’t know that the killer is working alone.” Because she’d seen partnerships in the past. And when those partnerships were formed, they were the deadliest combination she’d ever witnessed. “I need to see him.”
Emma stepped closer. “I’m coming with you.”
She’d been hoping Emma would say that. Emma knew the city better than anyone else in LOST, and she was well-acquainted with the darkness that surrounded Jax’s life.
Emma pulled out her phone. “I’ll tell Dean where we’re headed. Viki and Wade can take over here.”
Sarah sucked in a deep breath. She could feel her control fraying. She’d always tried to be so careful on her cases. She’d played by the rules. Done everything right.
Only now, everything was horribly wrong. Jax was gone. He could be hurt, dying, and she had to find him.
Sarah knew it was time for her to let go. To stop holding back. It was time for the world to see her as she truly was.
Time for the bastard who’d taken Jax to realize . . . Sarah was her father’s daughter.
And she had a monster inside, too.
Sarah slipped away while Emma made her phone call. She’d been watching the detectives, and she’d seen one guy put his gun in his desk. The guy hadn’t even bothered to lock that desk drawer. Sarah took the gun and slipped it under the hem of her shirt.
I’m coming, Jax. Wait for me.
SHADE WAS PACKED. Men and women were drinking, dancing, and damn near fucking in the middle of the bar. Voices filled the air and Sarah had to shove gyrating bodies out of her way. She didn’t see Carlos. Not—
“There!” Emma grabbed her arm. “He just slipped behind the bar.”
Sarah pushed toward the bar, and there was Carlos. He was smiling. He had a tequila bottle in one hand and a glass in the other.
Smiling.
Sarah could feel heat spreading up the sides of her face. She stalked toward that bar. “Carlos!”
His head whipped toward her. His smile dipped.
She put her hands on the bar. The people around her were too
damn loud. “Where is he?”
Carlos glanced at the folks shoving against the bar. Then he motioned toward Sarah and Emma. He gave a quick curl of his finger as he headed away from the bar and toward the door marked PRIVATE.
The door opened. Carlos walked inside, strolling slowly. “Look . . .” It was quieter in there, so she could hear him easily. “Jax told me to pull the guard on you. I get that you two are done, but you need to let go—”
She wasn’t letting go of anything. Sarah grabbed him by the shirtfront and pushed him against the nearest wall.
Carlos blinked at her.
“Jax is missing, my control is gone, so don’t even think of feeding me bullshit.”
Emma shut the door behind them, then she took up a position right next to Sarah.
“Missing?” Carlos’s scar twisted even more as his brows shot up. “What the hell are you talking about?” His gaze jumped from Sarah to Emma. “Em?”
“His house is ashes,” Sarah told him. She was screaming on the inside, but when she spoke, her voice was flat. Almost calm. Such a lie. “Three cops were killed there and Jax was taken. Then I come in here and find you having a good old time with your tequila in his bar—”
“My bar!” Carlos snapped. “Jax gave it to me. Signed it over right before he flew off with you . . . said he was looking to make some changes.”
What?
“I thought that meant he was going to try and live on the right side of the law. For you.” Fear flashed in his eyes. “But he’s . . . gone?”
“You haven’t watched the news,” Emma muttered. “You should really turn on a TV sometimes.”
“I never watched the damn news!” Carlos shouted. “When? When was he taken?”
“Two hours ago.” Hours that were eating at Sarah’s soul.
“No.” Carlos jerked away from her. “Liar. You’re lying!”
Emma was right beside Sarah. “Two hours ago,” she said.
Carlos pulled out his phone. “He texted me!”
Sarah snatched that phone from his hand. Her fingers slid over the screen as she pulled up the texts and sure enough, there was a note from Jax.
It’s Jax. Pull off detail on Sarah. We’re done.
Goose bumps rose on her arms. She shook her head. “This isn’t Jax’s number.”
“The guy keeps burner phones. With our lives, it pays to have a few of those.” He shrugged, but his eyes were darting nervously between her and Emma. “I didn’t . . . didn’t even question him.”
You should have. “Jax and I aren’t done.” Her chin lifted. “That text came in an hour ago.”
She heard Emma’s hard inhale.
“He wants me unprotected,” Sarah said. “The perp wants to make sure that no one follows me . . .”
So he’d texted Carlos. Gotten the guy to back off. “But I’ve got you,” Sarah whispered. She called Gabe. He answered on the second ring. “I have a number I need you to monitor. If we can find this phone, then we can find Jax.”
JAX JERKED AGAINST the ropes that bound him. They were cutting into his wrists, slicing his skin. He could feel the blood dripping down his hands. The bastard had tied him up tight.
The dead bastard.
Or, rather, the man who was supposed to be dead.
“You can pull against those ropes all night long,” Mitch Fontaine told him with a cold smile. “It won’t do you any good. You’re not going anywhere.”
“How the fuck are you still alive?” Jax demanded. The guy’s neck had broken. He’d been dead.
“I guess it takes a lot to kill me.” Mitch strolled toward him. Moving like he didn’t have a care in the world and taking his sweet-ass time. The knife in his hand glinted. “Let’s see how much it takes to kill you.” Then he drove the knife into Jax’s side. The burn of that blade was white-hot as it sliced into him. And it went deep, shoving until the hilt hit him. “This is the start,” Mitch said, “of the payback I owe you.”
Jax slammed his head into the guy’s chest, and Mitch stumbled back. He yanked the knife out of Jax as he fell back.
“You going to kill me?” Jax locked his jaw against the pain and snapped, “Then do it!”
Mitch shook his head. Mitch . . . Mitch. The bastard even looked the same. Same dirty blond hair. Same eyes—eyes that were darker than Jax’s. He and Mitch kind of looked alike—that was why everyone had believed that Mitch was Jax’s father. But he wasn’t!
Mitch’s hair was longer and stubble covered his jaw, but it was as if all of those years hadn’t passed. Jax was staring at the man who’d made his life hell.
The man who wanted to slice him apart.
“You and that bitch dumped my body. You left me in that stinking field to rot.”
“You were my first dead body,” Jax muttered as he bled out. “Sorry if I didn’t do shit right.”
Mitch laughed. Laughed. “Here’s a tip. Make the fuck sure the victim is dead!”
Charlene had been the one who told Jax that he was dead. She was the one who said they had to leave his body out there. Then get away, get out of town as fast as they could. She’d . . . “She knew,” Jax realized. “Charlene knew you weren’t dead!” And she’d wanted Jax to get away from him because she’d been afraid that Jax would kill Mitch.
A muscle jerked in Mitch’s jaw. “After all I did for her . . . she left me in that field and chose you.”
He yanked harder at the ropes. He shoved against the chair.
“She thought that was her chance to be free.” Mitch raised the knife. Stared at the blood that dripped off the blade. “It took me some time, because the two of you had fucked me up so bad . . . had to stay in a hospital for months after that farmer pulled me out of his field, but, eventually, I found her.”
Jax struggled even harder. “No!” He shook his head. “No, you—”
“I didn’t realize how much I liked killing back then. I mean, I was mostly worried about getting caught. So I just made it look like she’d killed herself. Shoved those pills right down her throat. Made her choke on them.” He smiled. “Then I watched her. I watched all that life bleed right out of her eyes, and I finally understood just why he’d done it.”
“You killed Charlene!”
He shrugged. “I’ve killed a lot of people. More than him . . . and I haven’t been caught.”
“Who are you talking about?” Mitch was insane!
“You know, he laughed at me the first time we met. He brought Charlene and your bratty ass to me. Told me I had to take care of you or he’d come back to slice me apart, just like he’d done to your dad.” His eyes turned to slits. “Who the hell was he to talk to me like that?”
Murphy.
“I ran because hell was breaking lose in that city. Took you and Charlene, but you two never appreciated a damn thing I’d done.”
No, they hadn’t appreciated the beatings or the drugs or the shit.
“Then I realized . . . he wasn’t coming after me. I could do anything I wanted.”
And Jax remembered that Mitch had become even more violent. That last night . . . when I pushed him down the stairs, he was about to kill Charlene.
“But you thought you were the one in charge. You shoved me down those stairs. I was in a hospital for all those long months! Trapped in that damn bed! Barely able to move!” Spittle flew from his mouth. “When I got out, I killed that bitch. Then I was gonna kill you but . . .” He shook his head. “I wound up in fucking jail . . . got sent—” Mitch broke off, his lips clamping together.
But the way the guy was raging . . . Jax could put the pieces together, and as he did, shock rolled through him. “You were at the same prison with Murphy.” Sonofabitch. Fate could sure be a twisted bitch.
All that time, he’d thought Mitch was long gone, but the guy had been alive. Alive—and what? Getting kill lessons from Murphy the Monster?
After Charlene had died, Jax had left town—moving again—and he’d never looked back. Jax had been on the streets, moving fast an
d just trying to stay alive. He’d wound up in New Orleans. He’d never even thought about searching for Mitch. Why would he? The guy had been a dead man.
“When they locked me up, that bastard recognized me. The guards were all scared of him. Let the fool do whatever the hell he wanted.” Mitch yanked up his shirt. Jax saw the slashes across his skin. “He used his shiv on me within forty-eight hours of my check-in. But he didn’t want to kill me. That wasn’t what he did. He just wanted to make me beg. To show me that he had the power.”
Fuck, fuck, fuck!
“I know about the power rush that comes from death. I felt that power when I took Charlene’s life . . . and after a while, after all of his twisted torture games, Murphy realized we were more alike than he’d thought. He told me things . . . showed me so much . . .” His words trailed away. “I survived by playing him. Then one day, I was free and he was still rotting on the inside.”
“That’s when you came down here.”
“I was just gonna kill you, then I saw Sarah. Beautiful Sarah.” His hand slid over the scars on his chest. “I couldn’t think of a more fitting payback for Murphy.”
Jax shook his head. No. “You aren’t killing her.”
“You aren’t going to be able to stop me.” Mitch smiled and lifted the phone to his ear. He hummed then, a light tune . . .
A tune that Jax had heard Sarah hum, when they’d been in that little motel near the prison.
“Hello, Sarah . . .” Mitch murmured into the phone as he kept his eyes on Jax. “Are you ready to come and find your lover?”
“I’M READY,” SARAH said. She was more than ready. Gabe could track the phone, just like he’d done before, and they’d have—
“You’re not tracing the call this time. I learn from my mistakes.”
She wasn’t so sure he did. “Proof of life,” Sarah demanded.
He laughed. “Screw that. You know you want him either way.”
“Sarah!”
She tensed. She’d heard Jax’s shout. Heard it so clearly.
“Stay away, Sarah! He wasn’t dead! Stay—”
“Come find him,” the bastard taunted. The line went dead.
Sarah looked up. Emma was on the phone with Gabe. They’d been waiting for this, hoping to get the lock when the call came through.