by Alexa Riley
“I love you,” she says, taking me by surprise. “You always took better care of me than Mom and Dad.” I’m taken aback by her words. My eyes water, the emotions of the day weighing heavy on me. “I know I can drive you crazy, I just—”
“I love you, too,” I tell her, cutting her off. Coming from a home where your parents are all about the free love, saying “I love you” to each other isn’t that big. “To be honest, I thought I drove you crazy, too. Especially when we were little,” I admit.
“Remember when Mom got those chickens?” Summer says with a small sad laugh.
“How could I forget? She kept them in the house.” I want to be mad remembering it, but looking back now, I’m about to laugh, too.
“You ran around like crazy trying to clean up after them.”
“God, that was a nightmare.” I couldn’t keep up with those chickens.
“A funny nightmare. You said you were going to cook them.” Her tone is accusatory.
“Sorry about that.” I shake my head. I wasn’t really going to cook them, I was just annoyed. I’d keep putting them outside, and my mom would keep letting them in. “You lost it when I tried to cook their eggs. You ran around screaming and crying, saying, ‘There are baby chickens in those!’”
We both smile for a moment. “Like the adult, you went outside and spent two days turning that old shed into a place for those chickens to stay.”
“I wasn’t going to let us all live in chicken shit,” I say, shrugging.
“Yeah.”
“You painted flowers and rainbows on the outside. You made it look pretty.”
“I should have helped you build it. Not sit outside and doodle when you were doing the hard work. Like always.”
“You were doing what you do, and I was doing what I do.” My own words hit me.
My sister and I are day and night, and there’s nothing wrong with that. We should accept each other, maybe even learn something from one another. Maybe I’ve been harder on her than I should have. We are both products of our raising. While I went one way, she went another, and I can see why someone would choose to go the way she did. It’s easier to fit in. To feel loved.
“If we get out of here—”
“When,” I correct her. I want her to stay positive. I don’t want her having a breakdown.
“When we get out of here, I want us to be closer. To not fight so much.”
“I want that, too,” I admit.
“I’m tired of bouncing around, and I don’t want to go back to Mom and Dad’s. I want a home.”
“Then you’ll stay here. We’ll come up with a plan for you.”
“See? You’re always looking out for me.” I hear her sniff. I’m guessing this has really shaken her up. Made her rethink some things.
“Try to get some sleep. When we get a little more light, I’m going to try to get us out of here.”
“I’ll try,” she says, and I start rubbing her arms again.
I keep looking up at the skylight. It’s too dark for me to see the latch. I wish the moon would at least come out so I’d have some kind of idea how to open it.
We have to get out of here. If something happens to me, I know Jordan won’t be able to take it. He’s lost enough in his life. He doesn’t need to lose more. A lump fills my throat. He’s probably losing his mind right now. I have a feeling if he gets me back in his arms, he’s never going to let me leave the house again. That thought makes me smile.
I never thought in all my life I would find someone like him. Someone who makes me feel like I’m coming home for the first time. Someone who takes care of me. We both have our odd habits, and we love those things about each other. He was made for me. I know it.
Time ticks by, and I don’t know how long we’ve been here, but it feels like an eternity. I let my time with Jordan run through my mind. The memories make me want to smile and cry all at once.
I must doze off at some point, because when I glance up again I can see a hint of light starting to show. We haven’t had anyone else come back to check on us, and the tray of gross food still sits by the door. I assumed it was probably drugged, and I’m not hungry enough to eat it yet.
“Summer,” I whisper, giving her a little nudge.
“Hmm,” she says, sitting up.
I point up to the skylight. “See that latch? We have to get up there.”
Her eyes widen as she wakes up and nods. “Okay.” She stands up. I see a little more fight in her eyes, and I think maybe our talk helped.
“Okay. We’re going to move that bed over here, and I’m going to stand on it, then lift you.”
“Maybe I should lift you. What if I can’t get the latch?”
“You’re smaller than me. It will be easier to pick you up. Plus, you do all that yoga stuff. You’ve got more muscle tone than me and can probably pull yourself up. No way can I do that.”
“Okay.” She walks over to the bed with me.
“We have to pick it up. We can’t drag it. It’ll be too loud on the concrete floor.”
She nods and goes to the other side of me, and I gesture for us to both lift. It’s heavy, but not impossible to move. We have to go slow, but soon we get it right under the latch.
“Now. When you get up there, slide it open, okay? And be as quiet as you can.”
“All right.”
I reach out and put my hand on her shoulder. “Summer, I want you to climb through and go. Do you understand me? I don’t think you’ll be able to pull me up, and we aren’t wasting time trying. I don’t know how much longer we’ll have before someone comes back.”
“I’m not leaving you.” Her eyes search mine and begin to fill with tears.
“Yes, you are. You’re going to run as fast as you can and you’re going to get help.”
“But—”
“You’re not leaving me. You’re saving us,” I tell her. Suddenly she’s grabbing me and pulling me into a tight hug. “You can do this. I know you can.”
She takes a deep breath and pulls back to look at me. “Okay, let’s do this.”
I climb up on the bed, putting my feet on either side of the bed frame for support. She climbs up with me, and I hold my hands out like a cheerleader would to give a lift.
“I love you,” I tell her.
“I love you, too.”
She climbs up me, and I brace my legs, trying to be as sturdy as possible while on a cot. I can hear the bed groan under our weight. I close my eyes and give a small prayer, hoping like all hell this works.
She puts her foot in my hand and then steps up while I try to lift her. She puts her other foot on my shoulder and almost gets the other up to stand when the bed gives way. The frame snaps, and we both tumble down in a heap. I hit the dirty mattress that has fallen through the frame, and Summer lands on top of me, knocking the air out of my lungs.
I want to cry out, not just from the pain but from the fact that our last shred of hope has slipped away. It takes a moment before I can breathe normally again and my lungs aren’t burning from the pain.
“Are you okay?” Summer asks, hurrying to get off me.
I tell her I’m okay and start to get up when the door to the room flies open. Both of us jump, going to the far wall as fast as possible, trying to put some space between us and the man in the doorway.
It only takes me a second to get my bearings, but once again the air is knocked right out my lungs when I see who is standing in the doorway.
“Mr. Spencer?” I say, as if I almost can’t believe what I’m saying.
He reaches outside the door and flips a switch, and light floods the room. As he steps inside, my attention fixes on the open door. He must notice it, because he shuts it closed behind him immediately.
This guy has been into Osbourne Corporation more times than I can count. He used to be nice to
me, but as time went on, he got sleazier and more aggressive. Did he do all this? How could he possibly be involved?
A sick smile spreads on his face as he glances around the room and looks down at our untouched food.
“Is our food not good enough for you, little bird?” At the use of the name Jordan calls me, my stomach tightens. “Nothing is ever good enough for you, is it?”
“Why are you doing this? I brought the files. That’s what you wanted, wasn’t it? Let us go.” I stand a little straighter, trying to use the same voice I do when I’m at the office. I don’t know if that’s a good idea or not.
I’m not even sure what’s going on at this point. I thought this was about the Lannister project. I was sure I’d end up seeing Stein, not Spencer. Unless they’re in on this together. Now I’m worried who else might be in on this. How far through the company does this go?
“I think we both know there’s something else I’ve been wanting to get my hands on for a while.” At his words, I move to stand in front of my sister. I put my hands on my hips, not only trying to make myself feel bigger, but so he won’t notice that my hands are shaking.
“I’ll fight you,” I tell him. And I will. I won’t make it easy for him. My stomach turns, and I want to throw up. My skin is crawling. I still can’t believe this is even happening. How could I feel like my life was finally perfect and now it’s all falling apart? I only got a tiny taste of it.
He closes the distance between us. I look up at him, meeting his eyes. “I think I’ll like it when you fight me.” He gets right in front of me and lifts his hand, dragging a finger down my cheek. “It will be so much sweeter when I get you to break.”
I smack his hand away, and he smirks.
“You’ll have to fight both of us,” my sister says, trying to step around me, but I block her with my arm.
“Two for the price of one. It’s my lucky day.”
“Fuck you.” I reach up and smack him.
The smack echoes around the room, and my hand burns. When his face turns back to me, I see blood where my nails dug into his cheek. His face turns redder than I have ever seen. The deadly anger is clear in his expression. Yeah, I don’t think he likes the fight, after all. I brace myself when he strikes me back. I almost fall backwards, but my sister catches me.
“You fucking bitch!” he bellows and lunges for me.
The door to the room flies open, and Summer and I use the distraction to move farther away from Spencer.
“That’s enough.” This new man’s voice is deep and holds a tone of authority to it. Spencer stops immediately. I can tell he’s fighting his orders.
“I can’t have you messing her face up. We need her to be able to talk to that boyfriend of hers. Seems there are more problems.”
“What kind of problems?” Spencer doesn’t turn to look at the man. I glance over at the new guy. He’s in a dark suit and fills up a lot of space in the door. I can tell that much. But his face is hard to see because he’s not stepping into the room, and my eyes are still watering from the smack. My cheek throbs, and I want to hold it, but I want to have my hands ready in case Spencer comes at me again.
“Our guy is having problems getting some of the stuff removed from the Osbourne servers.”
“Fuck!” Spencer grunts. His eyes harden on me. He walks over to me, grabbing me by the hair and pulling it. My sister tries to grab for him, but Spencer pushes her, sending her to the floor. I reach up, gripping his hand, trying to weaken his grasp.
“You’re going to make a little call for us, aren’t you.” There’s no question to Spencer’s words.
“Yes,” I say instantly, trying to seem agreeable. I know that if I say no they’ll threaten Summer, and I can’t handle that right now.
“That’s a good girl.” He leans down close to me, and he licks my face from my chin to my forehead. I have to bite back a gag when I feel his erection digging into me. “As sweet as I thought you would be.” Then he lets me go, throwing me down to the floor next to Summer.
“We’ll be back,” he says turning to leave but stopping at the door. “Don’t worry, though, Jay, we’ll still get to have our fun soon enough.” He reaches down and adjusts his crotch before turning and shutting the door. The lock clicks into place, and I finally let the tears come.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Jordan
My fist goes through the Sheetrock, and I welcome the burn on my knuckles. I pull back and do it again, the pain in my hand nothing compared to the pain in my chest.
“You going to let him keep doing that?” Ryan says behind me.
“It’s either that or someone’s face. Just let him get it out,” Paige sighs, and I go back to beating up the wall.
It’s been almost twenty-four hours. Miles wanted to call in the cops and report her missing, but Ryan and Paige talked him out of it. They explained that this is something we want to take care of in-house, and that means we can handle it how we want to when we find her. And find the bastard that took her.
I’ve been up all night, and I think most everyone else has been, too. Miles finally left with Mallory at some point in the night, and the rest of the team has been sleeping in shifts. I’ve done all I can do, and so far, nothing has popped up. I’ve caught a trace of someone trying to break into our system to wipe the servers, but both times they’ve slipped past me. That was the first time I punched the wall. After that, I just needed to do it every few minutes to give myself some kind of release. I’ve almost destroyed one whole side of the department, but nobody tries to stop me.
My scans finished an hour ago, and I couldn’t cross-reference any location where they might be holding Jay with our files here. I was able to find all the dirty shit Miles was looking for, so at least my time wasn’t totally wasted. There were all kinds of illegal deals slipped into this contract that was set to make Stein a ton of money. I don’t know what kind of shit he got himself wrapped up in, but now that the deal hasn’t gone through, he owes a lot of people.
My stomach churns, and I turn around, putting my back to the decimated wall. I slide down it until my ass hits the carpet, and then I put my head in my hands.
All I keep thinking about is Jay alone somewhere. Scared. Hurt. Dead? A bubble of panic rises in my throat, and I have to hold it down. I can’t think like that. It’s not hopeless. Not yet.
I take a breath and start with what we know. The Lannister deal was set up so that an international company could funnel illegal ammunition through Osbourne Corporation undetected. Stein took a huge payment up front and blew through the money without having the deal secured. Jay got suspicious, and when she started poking around, Stein skipped out of work to avoid getting caught. Then he tried to slide the deal to Miles on the side so that it would get signed without a fuss. If Jay hadn’t caught it, no one would have known. Stein wrote the deal himself, and he didn’t have anyone else checking his work. No one other than my little bird.
I rub my eyes, exhaustion hitting me. I want to close my eyes, but I know if I do I’ll be missing out on time I could be using to figure this out. What more can I do? There’s got to be something.
When Jay caught the discrepancies, she kept hounding Stein. When he dodged her, I went after him and got it. When I showed up at his home, he was reluctant to give me all the paperwork, and I know it’s because it wasn’t wiped of all the illegal information. He must have handed it over thinking I was just a hired hand, and then Jay would turn it over to Miles. Miles even said he called to let him know it was all set and just to sign them. What Stein didn’t count on was Jay. She’s like a dog with a bone, and she won’t let it go until she’s good and ready. The part that scares me the most is that if Stein is looking for revenge, Jay is the one he would go after. If he’s got her, then all I can do is pray we get to her before he reacts.
Summer had to be collateral damage. She was the bait to get Jay t
o come home, and she couldn’t be left behind. If she’s able to identify the person who took her, then she may not make it out alive. And the same goes for my Jay.
For a moment, a flash of her face drifts through my mind. Her smile as she’s laid out on my bed, her hair a mess of waves around her. Her chocolate eyes looking straight to my soul. The ache in my chest burns like there’s a knife inside, twisting in my heart. I don’t know how much longer this can go on. She has to stay alive. She has to. There’s no other choice.
I try to think of all the times I held her in my arms. I lean my head back and close my eyes, remembering the feel of her fingertips against my chest. I think about the curve of her hip as she lies on her side and tells me about all the places in the world she wants to see. I think about the sounds of her breathing as I wrap my body around hers and keep her safe. The memory of her legs wrapped around my waist as I sink deep into her body and make sweet love to her.
* * *
I’m jolted awake when my phone vibrates in my pocket. I look around, disoriented, and blink a few times. I must have fallen asleep. I reach down and grab my phone, almost dropping it as I slide the bar across the screen to answer it.
“Jay! Is it you, Jay?” My heart pounds in my throat, and I hear a throat clear.
“Jordan, it’s Pop.”
I sink against the wall as hope leaves me cold and alone. “Hey, Pop.”
I called him late last night and told him Jay went missing. He took it almost as hard as I did, and we stayed on the phone for a while and he listened to me cry. As soon as I hear his voice now, I feel like doing that all over again.
“Listen, Jordan, I’ve been racking my brain all night.”
“Me too, Pop. Thanks—”
“No. I’m trying to tell you I remember something.” His voice is stern, and I sit up a little.
“What?” I can’t understand what he means, but it could be lack of sleep.
“Last night I remembered something about my accident. It wasn’t an accident. Someone was there.”