Sinner’s Salvation

by Jessica Ames

  He takes my wrist gently. “We don’t have to. Not tonight.”

  I shake my head. “I need you.”

  “Baby—”

  “Please, Chris. Make me forget any of this crap is happening.”

  He lets out a sigh, brushing my hair from my face and says, “How can I deny you anything?”

  Then for the next hour, he helps me to forget everything but him and me.

  32

  Chris

  “So, what you’re saying is we’ve got bupkis?” I ask my brother, clutching the phone so hard, I’m worried I might break it. I’m on a three-way call with Curt and Brody, and it’s testing all my resolve.

  I know shouldn’t be pissed at either of them, but him and Brody telling me they have nothing is not helping my nerves.

  “I’m saying we need more time on the phone to trace the call.”

  “The last one was less than a minute, Chris. It’s not enough time. She needs to get him talking or keep him on the line for longer somehow,” Brody explains patiently.

  I growl under my breath. “I don’t want her talking to that asshole at all.”

  “I get that, but if we’re going to get the information, we need to catch him…”

  “Then she needs to get this fucker talking or not piss him off to the point he hangs up again. Great.” I scowl.

  “It’s not all bad. We’ve got an approximate location for this guy,” Brody tells me. “It’s always the same cell tower that gets pinged when the calls go through. Meaning your suspect either lives in the area or is hanging around the area.”

  I scrub at my forehead. “I don’t see how that helps us.”

  “Whoever is doing this is good at covering their tracks, Chris, but they’re not infallible. They’ll fuck up eventually,” Curt tries to assure me, but honestly, I don’t feel at all assured. I won’t until this guy is caught.

  “I don’t know if the ex has that much tech knowledge to cover his tracks.”

  “Find out.”

  “Yeah, I will. Thanks, Curt, thanks Brody.”

  “Any time,” Brody says and I hear the call disconnect, leaving just me and my brother still on the line.

  Curt sighs heavily. “Are you sure you don’t need me and the boys to come out to you?”

  I would love to have my brother here as backup, but I refuse to drag him into this anymore than I already have.

  “I’ve got my old team here. We’re good. Too many people and shit’ll get messy.”

  “Okay, kid. Just be careful, okay?”

  “Always.”

  I hang up, feeling no better about things. Despite understanding Bekah’s reasonings for keeping April here, in the line of fire, I can’t help but want to whisk her off somewhere safe. Using her to draw this asshole out feels wrong.

  But if it means they can catch this lunatic then I guess I can get on board with it—even if I don’t like it.

  Nova pops her head around the door. “Your interviewee is here.”

  I nod. I’m interviewing for the detailer job this week, and I have a backlog of jobs to do, which is keeping me busier than I would like. The boys are tailing April, which is the only reason I’m not freaking out. It means I’ve had to do some late nights, but Bekah is back on a day rotation, so at least April isn’t home alone.

  “Did she give you a portfolio?”

  She places a file on my desk. “I’ll let her know you’ll be out shortly.”

  “Thanks, Nova.”

  I open the file and look at the drawings and artwork, but my mind is still on my conversation with Curt. We’re no closer to finding this guy, despite what he thinks.

  The art is good—good enough for the bikes? I’m not sure. Shit, it shouldn’t be this hard to find a detailer.

  The interview doesn’t go well, and it puts me in a funk the rest of the day. I finish the jobs I need to and by eight-thirty p.m. I’ve had enough and am heading over to April’s place.

  As I pull in, I see Beanie’s parked car sitting further up the road. Knowing my brother-in-arms is here makes me feel better, but it doesn’t quash all my fears.

  I head up the path to the front door and knock. April takes a moment to open it, but when she does, my heart stops. She looks amazing. She’s in her yoga pants, which show off her ass really nicely, and she’s wearing one of my tees. I’m not going to lie, seeing her in my clothes makes me feel a little hot under the collar.

  She gestures for me to come inside, and as soon as the door is closed, she pounces on me, devouring my mouth. I could get used to this.

  She’s soft, warm, and willing as she climbs me like a tree, trying to plunder my mouth deeper.

  When she finally seems to have had her fill of me, she pulls back and gulps air.

  “What was that for?” I ask, a little breathless myself.

  “I missed you.”

  This warms me to the soles of my feet. “Woman, I’ve been gone maybe ten hours.”

  “It was too long.” She takes my hand and leads me into the living room. Bekah is sprawled on the couch, some action looking moving playing on the TV.

  When I enter, she gives me a clipped ‘hey’, and I wonder if my being here constantly is getting on her last nerve. I am inadvertently invading her space, even though it is to keep her friend safe. But I understand how annoying it must be to have a near stranger constantly in your house—a near stranger who also brought a dog into the equation.

  Not that Thor’s not a good boy. He doesn’t move from where he’s lying when I enter, just gives me a side glance as if to let me know he knows I’m here.

  April’s smile makes me forget about grumpy housemates and dogs. I focus on her, sliding my hands to her hips. As I’m about to kiss her, my phone pings.

  I consider ignoring it, but I’m waiting on information from Curt or Brody, so with a murmured apology to April, I pull it out of my pocket and see five words I never want to see ever.

  SLIDER: Someone is moving around back.

  Shit. My heart gives a tremulous twitch, and I glance to the back door.

  “April, upstairs, now.”

  Her good mood dissipates fast. “Why? What’s going on?”

  “Slider’s seen someone hanging around the backyard. Upstairs, now.”

  Bekah comes off the couch, clutching her holster for her gun. I guess telling her to go upstairs is going to be a waste of time, but I try anyway.

  “You’ve got April.”

  She looks a little put out, so I add, “They get past me and Slider, April’s defenseless.”

  “Low, Bannerman,” she mutters, but she heads upstairs with her.

  I head out the front door and meet Slider on the front lawn. With a subtle nod, I indicate he should go left while I’ll go right.

  Sneaking along the side of the house, I peer through the gate to the backyard, trying to see if I can locate who caught Slider’s attention.

  I don’t have to look hard. There’s a figure, dressed all in black moving around. I can’t see the face, but the posture and frame suggests a male to me.

  Utilizing every piece of training the army gave me, I sneak up behind the bastard, and before he can react, my arm is around his throat and I’m choking him out.

  Slider comes out from hiding as I lower his body to the floor. I want to know who this fucker is. I want to know who the hell has been doing this and why.

  When I turn him onto his back, my blood chills.

  It’s fucking Milo.

  33

  April

  My heart is in my throat. Bekah ushers me upstairs to the bedroom. She doesn’t let Thor follow, closing the door between the hallway and living room behind him.

  “What about Thor?”

  “The dog can take care of himself. Besides, if this ass gets past Chris, it’ll be better to have the dog between us and the threat.”

  It makes sense, but I don’t like it.

  “The dog is for protection, April… he’s not a pet.”

  I wish I co
uld actually believe this. In the short time I’ve had Thor, I’ve come to love him, and hearing his little whimpers from the other side of the door breaks my heart.

  Bekah keeps me moving, though, and gets me into the bedroom. Then she closes the door behind us, her gun now out of its holster and in a ready position. I can barely draw breath, my fear is so great. I’m scared for Chris and Slider who are facing my stalker alone. I’m scared for Thor, and for me and Bekah too.

  “Should we call the police?” I ask her, as I sink onto the bed, my gut writhing.

  “No.” She goes to the window and peeks through the curtain then back to the door.

  “I think it would probably be a good idea to call the police.”

  I pull my phone out, and as I do, I hear Bekah say, “Put the phone down.”

  Slowly, I raise my gaze to my best friend and see she’s holding her gun on me.

  I swallow bile. What the hell is she doing?

  “Bekah?” my voice wobbles, and I hate that it does, but staring down the barrel of a gun has me a little freaked.

  “Get up.” She indicates with the gun, so I stand, but my confusion is turning into fear as I realize she’s not playing. This, whatever this is, is serious.

  “What are you—?”

  “Quiet.”

  I silence, mostly because I have no idea what she’s going to do next. Does Chris know what’s happening inside? Was the intruder alert a false alarm?

  “Put these on.” She hands me her police issue handcuffs. I stare at them dangling from her finger and raise my eyes to hers.

  “Why?”

  “Put them on, April, or I’ll shoot you, and after I do that, I’ll hunt down your precious boyfriend and put a bullet in him, too.”

  I snap the metal bracelet around one wrist, then the other. She grabs my now bound hands and pushes the handcuffs closed more, until they pinch at the bony protrusions on each wrist.

  Then she tugs me toward the door.

  “We’re going to walk out of the front door and to my car. You make a sound and I’ll shoot you. Understand?”

  I nod, even though I really do not understand any of this.

  Slowly, we head down the stairs. I have to grip the railing with my cuffed hands because my legs are shaking so much. I know Chris is close by, but I keep my mouth shut, fear of her carrying out her threat to shoot him rendering me unable to call for help.

  She grabs my bicep roughly as we approach the front door, and she opens it a crack and glances out. Thor barks through the closed door, losing his mind at being separated from me, and I wish I was closer so I could let him out, but Bekah is nearer and she has a gun.

  Clearly, there’s nothing going on out there, as she pulls it open further.

  Then, I’m being tugged toward her car.

  My heart is pounding fiercely in my chest as I’m pushed into the passenger seat and ordered to stay. I should run, but where the hell would I run to before she puts a bullet in my back? And I’m starting to realize that a woman I considered almost a sister would do it without thought or remorse. I have no idea what is going on here, but I know I’m in serious trouble.

  Bekah climbs in the driver’s seat and in a move that has my stomach flipping. She starts the car, then swings it out of the driveway and onto the road. When she hits the gas hard, the car bolts up the road.

  For a few moments, I just sit, unable to comprehend what is going on, and stare out the windshield. My hands feel clammy, as does the back of my neck, and my chest is rising and falling so fast, I feel a little light-headed.

  “It was you all along…” I say softly. “You sent the flowers, broke into the house to leave the keys. You sent the photographs and letter.”

  “For years, I’ve been the one who was there for you, not Chris. Yet you chose him over me.” I jolt at this admission.

  “I didn’t choose anyone.”

  She snorts. “I thought when you left that piece of shit, Milo, that things would change. I thought living with me would give you the chance to see you didn’t need anyone but me. But then you pined over that stupid asshole for years. I thought I was getting through to you, telling you to move on, forget about Chris, but then you came home and told me you had a date. I was pissed as hell. I sent the flowers hoping you’d realize he wasn’t right for you, that I was. I hoped you’d stop pushing me away and pushing me out.”

  Her words floor me.

  “Why wouldn’t you just tell me how you felt?”

  “I tried. I tried a hundred times, but you never listened.”

  I blink. “Fudging hell, Bekah, I had no clue you felt any of this.”

  “Because you didn’t open your eyes. You were too blinded by him.”

  I was blinded by Chris. She could never have broken through that barrier he had around me. I love him. I always have. I feel this might not be the best time to confess my undying feelings for Chris, though, so instead, I say, “I had no idea.”

  “You didn’t want to know. I thought maybe after the key incident you’d come to me, but you didn’t. You went to him. He was all you needed.”

  “I need you both, but in different ways, Bek. You’re my best friend. How could I not need you?”

  This is the wrong thing to say because she swerves the car to the side violently, and I have to brace against the dashboard to keep in my seat.

  “You never could see beyond him.”

  Maybe I have been a little blinded to Chris, but he’s slowly and surely becoming my everything. I get the feeling that the kiss we had when he arrived was the last kiss I’ll ever have from him. Bekah is spiraling and that worries me.

  She slams the steering wheel hard to the left, and I have no idea how we don’t skid around the corner.

  “Where are you taking me?”

  “I didn’t plan this. It was just… good timing. Getting you alone has been difficult with his friends watching you. This isn’t how it’s supposed to happen.”

  “How was it supposed to happen?”

  “Stop asking questions. You’re making my head hurt.”

  I swallow the rest of my questions. The last thing I want to do is push her over the edge.

  Hopefully, by now Chris knows I’m missing, and it’s not going to take a genius to work out who took me.

  All I can do is hope he gets to me in time, before Bekah does something she can’t take back—like put a bullet in me.

  34

  Chris

  Milo squeals under me. I don’t stop pressing my knees into his back, but I do take a little weight off him. It’s not enough to let him up, but it is enough to allow him to draw breath.

  Not that he deserves it. Not for what he’s done to April.

  “Get off me!” he yells.

  “Why are you sneaking around April’s yard?” I demand, not doing as he asks.

  “I wasn’t sneaking.”

  “Something wrong with the front door?” Slider drawls beside me.

  “Okay, I was sneaking a little,” he snaps out. “Can you let me up so we can talk about this like rational adults?”

  “No,” I tell him. “Start talking.”

  “I was… I wanted to… I don’t think you’re right for my April.”

  I glance at Slider, my brow arching. “You don’t think I’m right? And pal, she hasn’t been ‘your’ anything for a long time now.”

  “You don’t think I know that? I know she’s moved on, but I just wanted to make sure she was… safe. I still care about her.”

  “You chose to do that by stalking her?” Slider asks.

  “Stalking her? Wait, what? Sneaking around the backyard is hardly stalking. Jesus, you’re dramatic.”

  “I was referring to the flowers, breaking into the house to leave the keys, and the dropped calls, asshole.”

  “What? I didn’t do any of that shit.”

  “Yeah, tell it to the cops.”

  Slider tosses me plastic cuffs, which I use to secure Milo’s wrists before pulling him to his fee
t. He weaves a little, but I keep a tight grip on his bicep to keep him upright. Not that I care if this shithead hits the deck, but he can’t talk to the police if his jaw is in pieces.

  “Seriously, I have no idea what you’re talking about. I love April. That’s never going to change, but I wouldn’t terrorize her.”

  I ignore him and tug him into the house. The dog is in the living room, barking and scratching at the door, but there’s no sign of April. I push Milo onto the couch and give Slider a look that says keep him here.

  He steps up to Milo, and I scratch Thor’s ears as I approach, my stomach starting to churn. As soon as I open the door, Thor rushes up the stairs. I’m a little more cautious as I move toward them. “April, you can come down.”

  There’s no movement other than the dog, who seems to be sniffing around. I frown and start to climb the steps, and when I push into her room, I find it empty, but her phone is on the bed.

  I pick up her handset and see she started to dial 9-1-1, but it looks like the call wasn’t connected. Where the fuck is she?

  An uneasy feeling is settling in the pit of my stomach as I cross the hallway and bang my fist off Bekah’s door. There’s no answer, so I push into the room and find it empty. I move to the closet and check that, but neither woman is hiding in there.

  As I’m about to turn away, something catches my eye. I push the clothes aside and I’m greeted with a smiling photograph of April. In fact, there’s at least a hundred printed photographs here.

  All of April.

  A lot are taken seemingly without her being aware, but there are others that are from events like Christmas. It’s like a shrine.

  My heart rate starts to pick up speed, my unease moving into outright panic.

  I let the clothes fall back into place and quickly check the bathroom. She’s not there either, then I take the stairs two at a time.

  When I come back into the living room, Slider must see something in my face, because he immediately asks, “What’s wrong?”

  I don’t answer him. I grab Milo by the front of his shirt and haul him to his feet, so his face is inches from mine. I see the fear flash in his eyes.