The Recluse
Page 21
“You do?” Austin asked incredulously, taken aback.
“Absolutely. That’s part of why you’re here, actually.” Damion leaned forward, “your brother is still alive.”
There was a pause as a thousand different emotions passed through Austin’s eyes, “he’s alive?”
“Yes, Austin, he’s alive.”
“Why didn’t he come for me?” Austin asked, tone hurt as he fell back into his chair again.
Damion leaned back again, himself, “he was trying to make sure you stayed safe.”
Austin’s eyes narrowed, “safe from you, you mean.”
Damion was intrigued, he couldn’t help it. It was only because of Montoya that he was having this conversation in the first place. No one knew he was here but her and Jackson. “Yeah, how did you know who I was by the way?”
Austin smirked, “a little birdy told me.”
Both of Damion’s eyebrows rose at that, but Austin didn’t say more. Damion twirled his pencil as he studied the youth in front of him. I think I’m gonna like this kid.
…
Detective Jackson smiled as Nikki released her mom and dad. They were holding her together in a bear hug. Nikki cried, as she told her parents everything that had happened. Jackson let her, standing near the door to give them privacy. Her dad pulled him aside, thanking him profusely. The detective could see how relieved he was to have his daughter back, and back to normal, despite the obvious grief and trauma. Jackson had nodded, supplementing what Nikki had already told them.
“I can’t believe that teacher of yours, and that doctor,” her mom sniffled, brushing the hair from her daughter’s face.
Her dad nodded, looking to Jackson here. The detective stepped forward, “Lovinski is presumed dead, but we don’t know for sure, as there was never a body found. We have confiscated all of his personal belongings from his home and the school, however.” Writing the warrant for all of that had taken far more time than Jackson would ever admit. “Dr Lars Heek has been arrested for falsifying information, illegally obtaining and giving drugs to a minor, and as an accomplice to kidnapping. Once we got to him, he pretty much admitted to everything. I think his conscience got to him before we did.”
Nikki’s parents nodded, not even bothering to move from the floor, “what do we do now, detective?” her mom asked, still stroking Nikki’s tear-streaked face. Nikki held her mom tighter.
“Now, I suggest that Nikki seek a real therapist. The trauma all of this has caused will be pretty severe. I know a very good one who, I think, would fit your daughter perfectly.” Jackson shrugged, smiling, “of course, that decision is up to you as a family. I can only make recommendations.”
Nikki’s dad stood, his eyes turning suspicious, “Dr. Heek said he worked with the NYPD, what makes this one different?”
“The fact that Lars Heek is a proven liar, and I happen to know this therapist very well. I will vouch for her every day until my last breath,” Jackson said without a missing a beat.
“Who is it?” Nikki’s mom asked, voice curious.
Jackson’s smile returned, “my wife. Dr Sabrina Jackson.”
…
Rei yawned as she glanced out the plane window. They were on a one-way flight to the middle east after a pit-stop in Europe, where Eli had created them whole new identities. She smiled at him. It’d taken him very little time to take over all the terminals in the JFK airport without anyone knowing. He’d then changed their tickets remotely, before creating complete chaos throughout the airport. He’d shut down multiple computers nearby, using what he’d called a botnet. No one knew what’d happened to cause such a delay, but plenty of people were upset by it. The airport had all but shut down for hours because of him.
It was just enough to cause the little bit of chaos they’d needed. It’d provided just enough cover for them to sneak past their shadows and slip into a terminal with a flight leaving that very instant. They had been a last minute board and no one questioned them. No one had even known he’d been in and out of JFK’s network. Just as it should be, he’d said.
The best part was that even though multiple computers had been affected, as soon as Eli left, everything returned to normal. No doubt they’d chalked it up to a major glitch in the system. “Where are we going?” she whispered to Eli now and he smirked.
“Tel-Aviv,” he replied, his fingers grazing the laptop’s keys before closing it up. He shifted to face her, his eyes glowing mischievously. “There might be a new plan involved with sneaking us into Israel...” he whispered teasingly. They had their new passports and everything was set, but she was intrigued by his light tone. It had been about a week since leaving New York, and Rei had never seen Eli so light, as if a great weight had lifted from him.
Rei laughed as Eli tugged on a strand of her hair in a gentle way, “Oh really?”
He smiled, reaching across the seat to take her hand, “it involves forgetting your passport.” He watched her as he brought her hand to his mouth, placing a kiss there.
“Does it now?”
“How is your acting?” he asked softly, leaning closer to her teasingly.
Her face softened, “hey Eli?” He raised an eyebrow in response, “I think I want you to kiss me now.”
Eli’s face lit up and he smirked, before lacing his other hand into her hair, pulling her closer, “I think I would like that as well.”
…
Nikki Wilkins watched the shadows, she couldn’t help it. It was as if they were alive. She couldn’t get him out of her mind. The big bad wolf, she’d come to call him. She’d tried, but she could hear his voice even now. She shook her head.
She liked Detective Jackson, so she guessed she’d probably like his wife. They’d all agreed Nikki should at least meet the woman. With the whisper of his voice in her mind, Nikki agreed. Jackson told her that if she felt uncomfortable in any way, let them know, they wouldn’t be offended.
When Jackson drove her home, he’d explained to her that Damion, who she knew tried to protect her as best he could, was trying to become a better person. If he could do it, so could she. Jackson told her what Damion had done. How in the end, he’d chosen to come back, not just for Rei, but Nikki as well. The detective seemed to think that redemption was possible for the hacker; had even taken Damion in, giving him a spare room he had over his garage. When Nikki had last seen Damion, he’d been working on finding a boy younger than her. Someone, he’d said, important to Eli.
Eli, she remembered with fondness. He’d pulled her out of the darkness with his kind golden eyes, bringing her back to herself. Damion nodded when she told him this, saying that was one of many reasons he wanted to find this boy. He said he owed Eli at least that. Jackson told her, on the ride over, that once the boy was found, Jackson would adopt him if Austin would let him, just as he had with Damion.
“Why?” Nikki had asked, “why adopt someone you don’t even know?”
Jackson grinned in that kind way of his, “everyone deserves a chance to be loved, don’t you think, Nicole?”
Nikki smiled at the memory, laying on her back in her bed. Her parents were right next door. Worried as they were, they’d assured her they would be checking in on her periodically. If she needed them, she only had to call out and they would come running. She was happy to be home, in her one-story house. It wasn’t the best-built house, but it wasn’t the worst one. Her eyes fluttered closed.
Nicole Wilkins…
Nikki’s eyes shot open, and she sat up with a start, searching the room. She knew that voice, its smooth layers bouncing around in her head. She grabbed her hair, covering her ears. She heard him anyway, his voice layered with a cold amusement. Would she ever be rid of it? The voice answered for her.
Nicole Wilkins, you are mine.
To be continued in…
The Widower
Acknowledgements
As always, I had a great team. Thank you to my experts, Tessa, Justin and Shaira, for making this book more accurate to re
ality. Thank you to Jenny and Maria for helping me clean up my sentences and punctuation.
I couldn’t have made this book so beautiful without you! Of course, thank you also to the extremely talented Covers by Juan for making my beautiful covers!
And you, my readers, thank you for reading my work of art. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it!