Part 31 (2/2)
”Please, don't ever mention any feelings I had toward her ever again. I'm about to be sick as it is. I f.u.c.king chased a psychopath. I'm lucky she wasn't interested.”
”d.a.m.n straight you're lucky,” Shannon s.h.i.+vers out. ”She would have probably tried killing you, too.”
Ash whimpers lightly, but she clears her throat, trying her best to be strong.
”Is there anything else?” I ask, ready to dismiss the detective and hold my girl.
”Yes, actually. The lab confirmed that Dyllan Mathews was killed by the same gun that shot Ms. Branderwood.”
”Rene killed him?” Ash gasps. ”Why?”
”I don't know. From our observation, it seems he was desperate to get a hold of you in the weeks before his death. It's possible he spotted her following you. We found pictures of you in his storage facility. For some reason, he had it under a false name. When we found his keys, we tracked down where each one belonged. He was following you, too, but we never found any pictures of Rene.”
”Can I see these pictures?” I ask.
”I'm sorry, I thought it would be too much for Ms. Branderwood so I didn't bother to bring them. You're welcome to come down to the station tomorrow, if you like.”
I nod, not certain if it's worth my time now that this is over.
Russell walks in, ready to secure the perimeter as the detective starts walking toward the door.
”You should be able to relax for a while. We're still comparing the DNA results, but I'm sure Rene is your girl. I'll let you know when it's confirmed.”
I nod, and then I scoop Ash's trembling body into my arms.
”Tag, can you just hold me?” she whispers, her voice needy, making me feel like the most important man in the world.
”All night, baby,” I murmur. ”As long as you want me to.”
We head into the room, and she curls against me the moment we're in bed. Our celebration has ended, but so has our h.e.l.l.
Chapter Seventeen.
Misled As.h.i.+ara It feels like I'm moving, and I'm worried my abundant tears have forced me to feel seasick. I open my eyes and gasp loudly when I see and feel my hands bound.
”What the h.e.l.l?” I screech as I jump up in the back seat of a car.
”Just sit still, Ms. Branderwood, or your son dies,” a familiar, deep voice releases.
”Russell?” I gasp. ”What the f.u.c.k?”
Panic sets in. Why does he have me? My son? Where's Trip?
”We're going to meet someone, Ms. Branderwood. She has your child, and if you're wise, you'll let her do as she wants-if you want him to live.”
My heart races as a sick, sinking feeling attacks my stomach. I feel dizzy, nauseated, and so f.u.c.king terrified for my son.
We pull up to a stoplight, and a group of guys in a car look in at me. I want to scream, hold up my restrained hands, beg someone for help, but I know I can't, not without risking the life of my son.
We drive off, leaving my one chance of rescue behind.
”Why are you doing this?” I whimper. ”You're supposed to be protecting me - protecting Trip. He's just a baby.”
His cold stature doesn't waver as he looks ahead.
”If you do as you're told, your son will live.”
”But not me?” I ask, a knowing tone in my voice.
He doesn't say anything, but he answers me with his silence. This will be the last night I live.
The car slows to a stop on the quiet, private beach, and he hops out to drag me from the car. I don't fight him, scream, or make a move as we head down to the deserted section of the beach.
Only one house stands alone for several miles from what I can see. I've never even been here, and I have no idea where we are. I shouldn't have drank so much, and then I wouldn't have slept through my kidnapping.
”Is Tag alive?” I worry as the sudden realization he would have never let someone take me hits me.
”He's still asleep,” Russell's gruffly answers. ”I happen to be d.a.m.n good with stealth.”
He sounds proud of himself-too proud. I regret telling Tag to let the security slack with Rene supposedly dead. It's obvious now she's not, and the f.u.c.king detective was in on it all along.
He grips me by the hair when his rushed pace forces me to stumble, and I let out a painful yelp when he jerks me too hard. He shows no mercy, no remorse, as he continues to painfully drag me down to the water.
The silhouette of a woman comes into view just as he throws me down, making my knees burn and grind against the harsh grit of the unforgiving sand.
I stare at her - her dress whipping in the wind as she carries a bundle in her arms.
Trip.
He's too quiet, too wrapped. I get sick, worried, and dizzy as she nears. He doesn't like strangers, but he's not crying.
Then her face comes into view, and I turn pale as I stare up at her once she's just a few feet away from me.
”It's you,” I gasp in horror just before my breath intake grows panicked and shallow, forcing me to black out.
Tag My arm stretches out to pull Ash to me, but her side of the bed is empty. I rise up, wiping my sleepy eyes, to see the pitch black night still in play.
”Ash?” I murmur a little loud, but she doesn't answer.
I climb out of bed and check the bathroom to find it as dark and empty as her place on the bed.
<script>