Let Me Out (For Me, #1)

by Nichole Severn

  He hoped she would recognize the words and move on, but when Adelaide didn’t move, Marcus gave up. Relaxing back into bed, he reached over to turn off the bedside lamp as an afterthought, but couldn’t shake the weight of being watched.

  Sometime in the middle of the night he noticed his bed was no longer indented at the end and felt comforted the psycho had wandered back to her own room, accompanied by slight disappointment.

  Chapter Ten

  Marcus woke to the first lights of day shining directly in his eyes. He looked for a sign Adelaide had, in fact, snuck into his room the night before to stare at him but couldn’t find the evidence. Shrugging it off as exhaustion and anxiety, he ignored the need to shave as he padded toward the bathroom and into the large shower.

  The hot water hit his skin in a searing wave, but soon the burning sensation evaporated and Marcus enjoyed the next twenty minutes uninterrupted. Plans for the day formed in his mind but only one stood out: breakfast. His stomach growled at the thought and he pushed himself out from under the water and onto the cold plain tile.

  He found himself wandering the main hall five minutes later, giving himself a personal tour before hitting the kitchen. He studied the furniture lining the hallway, the pictures hanging on the walls, and wondered if Adelaide had picked any of it out.

  The thought stopped him in his tracks, leaving him confused. Where the hell had that come from? She had nothing to do with his investigation and no place in his mind at a time like this. He turned in search of the kitchen. Food would distract him, and right now he needed a lot of it.

  The kitchen could have easily been the largest room in the entire house, with the exception of the training room. Well over twelve hundred square feet, it’d been decorated with pale beige tile on the floor and dark cherrywood for cabinets. Two sets of refrigerators lined one wall, leaving an open space of fifteen feet between them and the large island in the middle. Two sinks lined the other wall with the same color wood underneath. The countertops gleamed with black marble and Marcus could almost see his reflection on the surface.

  He opened one of the refrigerators. The white shelves had been lined with eggs, fruit, butter containers and everything else supplying a normal household fridge, but none of it would satisfy his appetite. Closing the door, he stepped to the next one.

  This one held all kinds of meat, package after package stacked on top of each other. Marcus spotted the bacon, his stomach growling again. “Bacon it is,” he said aloud and grabbed the package, closing the door behind him. Now, he thought. If I were a pan, where would I hide in this monstrosity?

  A laugh interrupted his search and Marcus turned, frozen like a deer in headlights. “Ridiculous, isn’t it?” Taigen walked in a few steps, opened a cabinet and reached inside. “Pan?” He offered the handle to him.

  “Thanks.” Marcus paused at the stove. Too many settings and knobs confounded him. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” He sighed, heaving the pan on top of a single burner.

  “Ridiculous,” Banvard repeated. He leaned against a counter, arms folded over his chest.

  “Want some?”

  “Nah.” Taigen patted his stomach. “Already ate.”

  He glanced at the clock hanging on the wall. “It’s five in the morning,” he said. “How long have you been awake?” Unwrapping the packaging around the bacon, he picked out five pieces and dropped them into the pan. The smell of meat overrode any other thoughts he had.

  “Strict schedule.” Banvard didn’t expand.

  They watched the bacon cook in silence, and a few minutes later Marcus removed the pan from the burner. He ate the slices of meat directly from the hot surface, uninterested in searching for a plate.

  “Come on.” Taigen slapped him on the shoulder. “We’ve got work to do.”

  Marcus shoved the rest of the bacon in hastily, burning the roof of his mouth as he followed Taigen to the training room. “What kind of work are we talking about?”

  His question went unanswered. Their arrival turned a few heads, but as they moved toward the mats Marcus only had eyes for the couple sparring on the right. Both wore helmets, gloves and protective devices around their knees and elbows, but he recognized them immediately. He watched Wren attack as Adelaide countered, then attacked. Her hits landed with precision, causing Christian’s helmet to fly across the mat. Watching her, Marcus knew why Wren had selected her as his bodyguard: unparalleled skills.

  His suspect didn’t look twice at his lost protection, keeping his stance for another attack, keeping himself ready.

  Marcus watched in amazement.

  Christian struck, using his left hand to block as his right hand swung forward. The quickness of Adelaide’s moves, like a dancer, amazed him and he unconsciously drew closer, getting pulled into the fight.

  She blocked Christian’s right, held his left hand and shoved him off with her foot. He stumbled, but Adelaide wasn’t finished. A leg swung high above the mat, catching Christian in the cheek, and she swung a follow-up kick in the exact spot. He fell to the floor. Down for the count.

  “Bet he wishes he had a helmet now,” Marcus joked.

  Taigen laughed. “Wanna try?”

  Marcus looked to his new informant then back to the mat. “You mean against her?” His chuckle carried across the room.

  “Why not?” Banvard asked, moving toward the duo as he kept his voice low. “If you want to beat Wren, you have to beat Adelaide first.”

  He followed but didn’t respond. He watched Taigen gather the same protective gear the fighters wore and reached for them when offered. One piece after another, he strapped the gear on, ending with a helmet.

  “Hey, boss,” Banvard yelled.

  Both Christian and Adelaide turned their heads at the interruption.

  “This one wants a chance.” He pointed a hitchhiker’s thumb in Marcus’s direction.

  Wren looked to Adelaide in confirmation, receiving the barest of head nods. “All right.” He walked to the edge of the mat, stopping in front of Marcus. “It’s your funeral.”

  Marcus met her in the middle of the mat, unable to see farther than a few inches to his left or right from the helmet. Placing himself in front of her, he took a deep breath and waited.

  Nothing happened.

  Two full minutes passed before anyone spoke.

  “Are you going to hit her or just stand there?” Wren asked, and Marcus realized Adelaide would not attack first without a command.

  Licking dry lips, he swung his right fist, but she ducked quickly. He righted himself, slightly off balance, and tried again, countering with a punch from the left.

  Adelaide was too fast, pushing her own fist into his face.

  Holy shit, he thought, reaching for his jaw. She has an arm. He readied himself to attack again, but she moved first, catching him in the ribs.

  She positioned herself behind him, placing both hands on his shoulders, and shoved her knee into his back.

  Marcus heard something crack but didn’t have time to react before her hands dug into the back of his neck and her knee met his face.

  The world went black.

  * * *

  For the second time that day, Marcus woke to light shining in his eyes, but this time it wasn’t the sun. A small penlight came into view after a few seconds then darted away.

  “He’s fine,” Taigen said, a smile spread across his face. “For a minute there I thought we needed a coffin.”

  Marcus’s head pounded. “What happened?” Moving his tongue around his mouth, he found all of his teeth intact.

  “Geez, Adie. Did you have to hit him so hard?” Taigen asked, keeping his eyes on him. “Dude, you got your ass kicked by a girl. How’s that feel?”

  A sharp pain burned through his left side and he flinched from the pressure.

  “Yep.” Banvard glanced up. “Broken.”

  “Well, Marcus,” Wren said and moved into view, “you lasted longer than most.” His blue eyes blazed through a brown curtain of ha
ir as he stared down at him.

  Marcus lay on the mat. He pushed his arms against it, trying to raise himself, when the entire room started to tilt. “That’s not good.” Both Taigen and Wren chuckled as he let himself fall back to the floor.

  “Not good for anybody.” Taigen offered his hand.

  “Adie,” Wren said. “Help him back to his room.” There wasn’t an answer as Marcus stared up at the ceiling, but Wren’s voice continued through gritted teeth. “Then you shouldn’t have knocked him out.”

  * * *

  Adelaide sat on the end of his bed for the second night in a row, trying not to wake him. The previous night played in her mind as she stared at his peaceful face. Marcus shouldn’t have woken up, but now there wasn’t a chance of being caught. Unconscious, he looked at peace, no nightmares to wake him in the middle of the night.

  She wanted him to call out in his sleep, to calm the monster in her head with his voice, but disappointment pulled her down.

  You’ll never get rid of me, it said, lying across the bed without indenting the soft fabric. Not like that, anyway.

  Marcus’s chest rose and fell steadily. The bandages wrapped around his middle stood out in the dark, lit by the incoming moonlight. Her gaze locked on them. The mere sight of him made her heartbeat slow, but his voice had a much more pleasing and instant effect.

  She’d never met anyone like him but all of her research had run into a dead end. Only his name, age and time in the Marines had been reported in his file, and suspicion flared hot at the back of her mind. If Marcus’s claim of being ATF was true, she hadn’t found proof.

  What is it you think will happen? the delusion asked. That he will follow you wherever you choose to go after this is over? That he will always be there for you? Her monster laughed, its hysterical tone taking over Adelaide’s every thought. You’re running away from one man to be bound to another? You’re smarter than that, my love. At least you used to be.

  Adelaide kept her gaze on the stranger, ignoring any movement or conversation with her monster. She’d been told for a decade her recurring hallucination wasn’t real. Only the sedative made her overlook the images she’d created with her mind.

  And Marcus.

  But you know something they don’t know, it said, pushing itself from the bed. Her delusion circled around her, trailing its fingertips across her back.

  A shiver started from her head and shot down to her toes. Adelaide closed her eyes, searching for the strength she needed in order to control herself.

  You know that with every drop of blood, every murder on your hands, it whispered, coming to a stop directly in front of Adelaide, that I am getting stronger.

  * * *

  His body ached from head to toe. Marcus tried to sit up but had to rest between attempts. He hadn’t woken up in the middle of the night, telling him just how much he’d been put through.

  Staggering to the kitchen after his usual morning routine, he rounded the corner and froze, unsure how to proceed when he saw Adelaide sitting at the breakfast bar.

  She sipped coffee from a black mug, her expression blank and uninterested. Her eyes hadn’t even moved in his direction and Marcus had to wonder if she’d noticed him at all.

  Slowly, he pushed himself to the refrigerator, his muscles tightening with every chance they got as he pulled out a package of sausage. He kept his attention on Adelaide as he moved about, sliding his gaze to her when he could. “You want some sausage?”

  She didn’t respond, just as he’d expected, but he felt compelled to break the awkward silence. In fact, she’d never spoken to him. He’d never heard her voice before.

  The smell of sausage brought Taigen to the party, smiling. “Sausage today?” He glanced at Adelaide as he came in, speaking to her from the other side of the breakfast bar. “You eat?”

  She stared at her brother for a moment, annoyance clear in her eyes.

  Taigen walked to the fridge and removed a variety of fruit. Bringing them over to the bar, he started cutting, giving his sister half of everything and keeping the rest for himself.

  She stared at the food for a few minutes as Taigen began to eat his share, then set down her coffee mug, tentatively reaching forward to grab a piece of apple.

  Pushing pieces of banana toward her, her brother watched as she reached for those as well and took a bite.

  “Do you want some sausage?” Marcus offered a piece straight from the pan.

  “She doesn’t eat meat,” Taigen explained, still watching his sister eat as he chewed his own food.

  Marcus put the sausage back into the pan. “Sorry, just thought—”

  “No worries.” He turned away from the breakfast bar, slapping Marcus on the back. “No way you could’ve known.” He glanced back at his sister. “She’s not much of a talker.”

  Adelaide stared at them for a moment, her face expressionless, then rose, leaving behind the pieces of fruit and the kitchen without a backward glance.

  “Was it something I said?” Marcus asked, staring after her.

  “Nah.” Her twin waved a hand in her direction. “She’s always that way.” He shoved the rest of the fruit into his mouth, smiling.

  “Does she ever talk?”

  Taigen’s eyes remained steady, but sad. “No, she doesn’t talk.”

  He stabbed another piece of sausage before he asked his next question, talking around a mouthful of food. “She’s mute then?”

  “She just doesn’t talk.” His eyes grew distant, the smile on his face fading, but it found its way back. “Ready for your training today?”

  Marcus popped two links of sausage into his mouth before he answered, nodding after Adelaide. “I want to try her again.”

  “You can’t be serious.” Banvard leaned against the counter, folding his arms over his chest. It seemed to be the most comfortable position for him. “She almost killed you yesterday and you want to go through that again?”

  “Like you said, if I beat her, I can beat Wren.” He cracked his neck, rolling his shoulders to loosen up. “I can beat her.”

  Taigen laughed. “You just keep telling yourself that. Maybe after years of training like she’s had.”

  “I’ve had years of training.”

  He shrugged his shoulders. “I won’t stop you, but if you hurt my sister, the deal’s off.”

  They left the kitchen together, starting for the training room.

  Marcus didn’t bother studying the furniture or decorations along the way as he had the day before. Determination pounded against every aching muscle in his body. Today he would beat Christian’s best bodyguard. With her out of the picture, a clear shot at the man who’d killed Scott seemed possible.

  Stepping into the training room once again, he found Wren and Adelaide sparring on the mats again.

  “My turn,” he yelled, pulling on the protective gear.

  Christian gave Adelaide another questioning gaze and Marcus smiled as she nodded in confirmation.

  “Let’s try this again.” Excitement trickled down his spine, but the broken ribs left him breathless.

  Taigen and Wren waited on the sidelines, smiling. They weren’t the only ones interested to see how this match would end.

  He waited, determined not to be caught off guard again. She’d have to make the first move.

  Circling each other, they stayed relaxed like the professionals they’d been trained as. Minutes seemed like hours as they moved and the expression on her face told Marcus she realized he wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice.

  She struck, lunging for his knees.

  He moved just in time and watched Adelaide reevaluate. “You’re fast,” he complimented. “But you’re not the best.”

  She caught him in the kidneys, forcing pain through his entire torso. The broken rib from the day before pushed the breath from his lungs and brought him to his knees.

  Adelaide’s foot slammed into his jaw, finishing him off for a second time.

  * * *

&nbs
p; She stood no more than two feet away from Marcus, staring down at him on the mat. Adelaide felt sick to her stomach, waiting for the room to stop spinning, but kept her eyes on his even breathing.

  “You should be more careful with him, Adie,” Christian said, coming at her from behind. His hands gripped her shoulders, trailing his fingertips across her collarbone. “He’s going to be of great value to us down the road.”

  She closed her eyes, trying to control the murderous thoughts bombarding her mind at Christian’s touch, but they broke through.

  She imagined the knife would slide across his throat easily, her hands steady. Blood would drip off the blade, the taste of the crimson liquid salty on her tongue.

  Mmmm. Her monster licked a clean line up his neck from its tiptoes. I liked that one. Let’s do that.

  Adelaide only nodded in agreement to Christian’s statement, coming back to reality for a short moment. She should be more careful with Marcus. Any one of her fantasies of murder could include him without a second thought, and she planned to keep him around.

  Her eyes darted to Marcus, ensuring he’d stayed in one piece. It’d been hard to keep herself under control, from spilling blood, but she’d controlled her dark side. She’d kept him alive. Adelaide’s thoughts went back to Christian’s last statement and she turned in his arms to decipher what he’d meant.

  His hands moved to her biceps, his deep blue gaze steady with hers. “Don’t worry, Adelaide. I know how much he means to you.” His words sneered in sarcasm, his eyes glittering with a mischievous shimmer. “But I have other plans for him.”

  * * *

  When he woke up in his bed, Marcus already knew what had happened.

  She’d won.

  “You got to stop doing this, man. She’s going to kill you.” Taigen leaned over him, wrapping a heating pad around his torso and waiting for Marcus to stop throwing up.

  “I can w—” Another round of vomiting cut him off.