by Lexi Hart
Well, that’s just great. He left me looking like a fool, and he took my phone with him? I spit out the words. “My entire life is on that thing.”
Jed looks like he’s ready to try to comfort me. “We’ll get you another phone, and I checked in with Jemma before I came to get you. Your Dad is doing good.”
I bury my face in my hands. “This isn’t happening.”
Jed doesn’t say anything. I hate that I’m so vulnerable. Hate that I’m so emotional. My whole body feels raw. Like someone took a brush and scrubbed my skin. Hunter killed a man. For me.
I don’t know how to process this. I don’t know if I should feel sad a man is dead or relieved because it might make things easier for me. Should I be disgusted? Guilty? I don’t feel anything but betrayed.
I pull my hands away from my face and sniff as I look at Jed. “Can I call him?”
His face darkens. “Even if he did still have your phone, what purpose will it serve talking to him?”
He’s right. I know he is. Besides which, Hunter probably tossed my phone the second he could. “Can you walk me inside? I want to call Jemma.”
Jed’s smile is far too eager given what I’ve been through and why I’m inviting him inside.
He opens the door and steps around his truck to open my door like we're on a date.
I ignore him, frowning as I drag my legs up the stairs and unlock the door.
I stagger inside, Jed on my heels, and head for the sofa. I sink into it, staring into space as Jed wanders into the kitchen. I have no idea what he’s doing, just that I know he’s invading my space again. Only this time, as much as I hate to admit it, I do feel safer having him around.
The only problem is that he won’t stay here for long. Just like he always did, even when I needed him, he’ll run off and be saving someone else leaving me to cope on my own.
I lean back into the sofa, trying not to cry as I think about Hunter and what’s he’s done for me. What Jed would never even consider doing.
When Jed hands me a cup of something hot, I have to chase away all thoughts of Hunter. Instead, I peer across at Jed as he takes a seat at my desk. “What is this?”
He pulls out his phone and dials before answering me. “Lemon, honey, and vodka since you didn’t have whiskey.”
Whiskey.
I sigh, too tired to protest it’s early and keep drinking it until a slow burn fills my aching body. My limbs are leaden as I pull myself off the sofa and head towards the bathroom.
When I return, I hear Jed on the phone and am so shocked at what I’m hearing; I gape at him. “Yeah, that’s what I was thinking. I’ll stay with her as long as I need to.”
His eyes lock on to mine as he sips his own mug. “Yeah. He’d been in her truck; registration was in the glove box. Let me know if he starts talking. I need to know if he contacted Eddie.”
He ends the call, his expression serious as he scratches his chin. “You’re staying here as long as you need to?”
Jed nods slowly. “I’ll stay here until I know for sure Bobby Falcone isn’t looking for you. We don’t know whether his father told him he was in Haven Springs.”
If the seriousness hadn’t hit me before now, it slams into me with the force of a hurricane.
Heat rushes to my cheeks. I open my mouth and close it again, nausea swelling in my stomach until I’m retching and running towards the bathroom.
I heave over the toilet bowl until my eyes are watering and Jed is beside me, holding my hair back. “Shit. Nat. Look it’s just a precaution. We don’t know Waters told Eddie anything about you and Hunter. And even if he knows and told his son, the longer I stay around, the less likely Falcone Junior is to even think about getting to you.”
I rock back so I’m sitting on my heels staring at him. My bottom lip starts to wobble as I try to stand.
Jed helps me to the basin where I rinse my mouth out and splash water on my face. I stare in the mirror, appalled at the bruising around my face, my hair hanging lank and the bloodless thin lips staring back at me.
“I’m going to take a shower,” I mutter to myself.
Jed doesn’t move for far too long. I can feel his eyes on me as if he’s waiting for an invitation.
When I take a step back from him, he blows out a breath and runs his hand over his face. “I’ll be in the living room.”
I scowl at his back as he leaves the room and closes the door. I should be nicer to him; he is offering to protect me. Police protection. That’s why he’s here. My ex-husband has been assigned to watch me. If it weren’t so tragic and ironic I now have his undying attention but don’t want it; I’d probably laugh.
I run the shower so Jed won’t hear me crying and scrub my body until my skin is tingling. By the time I’m dry and wrapped in my robe, Jed has made himself far too comfortable considering. He’s eating cookies, dropping crumbs on the floor and using my laptop without bothering to ask permission.
I head to my bedroom and pull out a pair of sweats and a t-shirt, then slink back into the living room, frowning at Jed as he kicks off his shoes.
He ends his call and spins in my office chair and gives me a smile he usually reserves for grandmas and little kids, and probably, victims. “Feeling better?” he asks in a gentle tone.
I groan. A victim. That’s what I am to him now. That’s why I’m getting all this attention. I narrow my eyes at him. “Did you volunteer for this? Did you volunteer to come get me?”
He cocks his head. “I didn’t exactly have a choice. But yeah, if you must know, I pushed to be the one to watch you. That recording you sent me with Waters might earn me a promotion.”
A promotion? My life is in danger, and he’s using it as leverage? I knew he was career minded when I married him, but this is an all-time low.
I drop back into the sofa and try to find something positive to focus on. “Can I use your phone to call Jemma?”
He nods and tosses his phone onto the couch. It’s so old; it doesn’t have Bluetooth, WIFI or GPS like most phones do now.
I find Jemma’s number under Brett’s and chew my lip as I wait for either of them to pick up. Jemma is almost breathless when she comes on the line. “Nat? You are not going to believe this!”
She’s close to squealing, so I have to hold the phone away from my ear. “Is Dad okay?”
Jemma mumbles incoherently. “He’s fine! It’s Mom. She’s here in the hospital! She came back!”
TUESDAY 6.34PM
Hunter
I know I shouldn’t be looking at her phone. It’s pointless and stupid, but it’s the closest thing to contact I’ll have with her, so I sit down on the bench inside the bus station and switch it on.
She doesn’t use a thumbprint for security, which makes me shake my head. Either she’s too trusting, or she doesn’t give a shit. Whatever her reason, it means I can take a peep inside her life way too easy.
It’s a risk, considering she has GPS the feds can track, but in five minutes I’ll be on a bus, and her phone will be on its way back to her.
I open her email and find her address quickly. She’s ordered some nail polish which should be arriving in the next couple days. I scribble on the FedEx bag sitting on the bench; then in case anyone is looking at her mail, I write the name and address of the beauty shop she bought from on the back.
I close her email and stare at the screen fighting the crazy impulse to call Jed, to see if I can say goodbye to her.
I scroll down and find the last call I placed to him. It’s about a million kinds of crazy to even contemplate trying to speak to her. There is no way in hell dipshit would let me talk to her. And what am I supposed to say anyway? Sorry I fucked up your entire life?
My fingers are hovering over the call button when the phone buzzes in my hand. I curse and fumble to switch it off when I see the number is unlisted.
Curiosity overrides my hesitance, so I answer and press the phone against my ear. I recognize the voice instantly. “You must have some snatch to me
ss Sloan up the way you did. Maybe I’ll come by that one bedroom you got on Cranston Street and see what all the fuss is about.”
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
The phone goes dead before I can say a word.
I stare at the screen, heart thrashing about in my chest as my thoughts spin around in my head. I should have left the damn phone in the valley so Jed would know they have her number and address.
Heat is blazing through my veins as I sit and hold the phone in my hand as the first, second, and final call to board comes blaring through the sound system.
I get off the seat and stand paralyzed with indecision as my hands start to shake so badly, I have to jam them along with Natalie’s phone in my pockets.
This isn’t over for her. Not by a long shot. Adrenaline is surging around me as I think about Jed being with her, watching over her
But is his presence enough to deter them? The federal agent probably won’t be there yet, and even if she goes to a safe house, what if she has a handler as corrupt as Waters?
My jaw clenches as I watch the last passengers scramble on the bus. I could walk away; I could pretend this isn’t chewing me up inside. I should get on the bus. I should let Jed and his buddies do their jobs.
I shouldn’t even be thinking about risking going anywhere near Natalie. I show up in the city, someone is going to notice.
I press Jed’s number and jam the phone against my ear, tapping my foot as it switches to voice mail immediately.
The bus driver leans out the door and yells at me. “Hey knucklehead, I ain’t holding this any longer. You on or you off?”
I work my jaw, fists balling at my sides as he glares daggers at me. Seconds tick by as every possible scenario runs through my head.
I spin on my heel and head out of the bus station to the sound of the bus driver cussing me out.
Chapter 12.
Natalie
Wednesday 1.26am
Given the sleeping pill I took, I should be fast asleep. But I’ve never been able to sleep when I’m stressed, so I’m wide awake and staring at the ceiling.
Through the paper-thin wall, I can hear Jed snoring in the living room. It should give me a measure of comfort knowing he’s close. Instead, it just adds to the feeling of hopelessness.
I exhale slowly trying to sort through my feelings, pulling them out one by one until I can make sense of what’s happening. Mom is back. But Hunter is gone. Is that the way the universe works? For every absence, that space is filled in a person’s life again?
I roll over and stare at the cream walls, wishing I was staring at the mountains still.
Dad doesn’t know about the fire yet. I don’t have the heart to tell him. Not when Mom has walked back into our lives again. I don’t know what she thinks is going to happen. She’s been gone for ten years, how can she possibly expect us to just accept that?
Jemma is deliriously happy. She thinks it’s a good thing. But she’s always had a selective memory, always seen what she wanted to see.
I give up trying to sleep and throw the covers off me. Normally I’d switch on the lights and make some tea, but with Jed sleeping, that’s not an option.
It’s astounding how he can sleep. But he always could. Through terror alerts, after arguments, after a buddy of his got shot, he’d never have any trouble falling asleep.
I release a sigh as I walk as softly as I can towards my desk.
He doesn’t want me to use the internet, and I’m not dumb enough to, but I can start to write the story I promised Geoff. Even if it never gets printed, I need to do something to stop from going crazy.
I keep my eyes on Jed as I unplug my laptop and tuck it under my arm. I’m walking back to my bedroom when his phone vibrates on the coffee table.
I frown at him, wondering if I should answer since he’s oblivious. I sigh and pad to the coffee table and pick it up, ready to wake him up.
My eyes go wide as I see my name on the screen. My heart starts hammering in my chest, palms sweating. I flick a look at Jed and back away until I’m in my room. I close the door and sit on my bed in the dark and exhale slowly as I press the talk button.
I press it to my ear and nearly cry when I hear Hunter’s agitated voice on the other end. “Where the fuck have you been? I’ve been trying to get hold of you.”
I choke on a sob and squeeze my eyes shut. “Hunter. It’s me.”
There’s silence, the sound of a car horn tooting, then a rush of air. “Where’s Jed?”
A strangled laugh escapes. “That’s what you want to say to me? How about sorry for lying and leaving you.”
“Natalie...where’s Jed?”
I flick a look at my bedroom door and huff out a breath. “He’s asleep.”
Hunter growls down the line. “He’s asleep? Useless sack of shit. Natalie, go wake him up and put him on the line.”
I press the phone tighter against my ear as I ease to the door. “Did you—”
He cuts me off. “Yeah, I did. And if it means keeping you safe; I’d do it again.”
I hear him breathing down the phone. “Just listen to Jed, do what he says. You need to stick close to him, okay?”
I nod as tears spill down my cheeks. I don’t trust my voice, but I have to know. “Are you going to be okay?”
He barks a laugh. “You’re worried about me again? Damn, honey.”
The way he calls me honey after admitting he murdered a man, does little to settle my conflicting feelings towards him.
Back in the living room, Jed finally sits up, gun in hand. “Who are you talking to?”
Hunter grunts down the phone. “Sounds like dipshit is awake. Put him on.”
I hold my breath as Jed pulls himself to standing, looking furious with me as he gestures to his phone. There’s no way he’ll let me answer the phone again after this, so I steal my last chance.
I turn away as my voice comes out raw and throaty. “I don’t regret anything, Hunter. I just wanted you to know that.”
I don’t have time to hear his reply before Jed wrenches the phone away from my ear. “You are this dumb? You call my—”
Hunter’s voice is so loud I hear every word as he cuts Jed off. “You’re fucking sleeping? What the hell kind of protection—"
Jed spins around so his back is to me and stalks away into the bathroom so I can’t hear his reply. I glare as I catch snatches of conversation, getting even more frustrated at being treated like an imbecile and not being included in what is probably pertinent information.
When he returns a few minutes later, his expression has switched from angry to his impassive cop mask. He eyes me as he dials another number. “Pack a bag. I’m calling my contact. We’ll be leaving for the safe house sooner than I thought.”
My skin breaks out in goose bumps. “What? I thought you said here was safe for now?”
His expression is deadly serious. “Falcone Junior called your phone. He knows where you live. Could be they’re just trying to scare you. But if he thinks you know the location of the money Hunter stole—"
I shake my head. “But there isn’t any money. I heard Hunter tell his handler myself.”
Jed snorts, and half rolls his eyes. “There’s money. Stacks of it. And since Hunter Sloan and Robert Falcone were the only two people who had access to it, and since Bobby is looking for Hunter, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out why.”
I have no time to think on whether that might be true when Jed grabs my elbow and steers me back into my bedroom where my suitcase is waiting. “Finish packing, just the essentials. Medicine, stuff like that. But no electronics and no contact with anyone.”
“No contact? Not even with Dad?”
Jed’s face contorts into a grimace. “I’m sorry. But especially not your Dad. He’s an easy enough target as it is. They bug his phone, or Jemma’s and they find you...”
He doesn’t need to finish. I know what he’s saying. I know what this means.
Tears brew in my eyes as I stumble aroun
d my room, Jed standing guard at the door as I try to think of what I can’t live without.
I won’t be able to see Mom and find out why she’s here again. I won’t be able to see Dad or explain in person. Is this what I have to look forward to? A future where I’m always looking over my shoulder, wondering when someone will show up and torture me for money that may not even exist?
This is exactly what Hunter was trying to prevent happening to me. But this is so much worse than I imagined.
Not only is Hunter gone, but now I can’t see Dad or Jemma or have anything resembling a normal life.
I start to sob, shoulders shaking as I crumple onto my bed. I brought this all on myself. I willingly went back to Hunter when I knew he was a criminal.
Jed was right. I made my bed, and now I have to lie in it.
HUNTER
4.34am
I inch closer, keeping to the shadows as I keep my eyes on the man watching Natalie’s apartment.
My fists are clenching at my sides as I think about the threat any number of Bobby Falcone’s men would take great pleasure in carrying out.
He couldn’t have known it was me on the other end of the phone. If he did, he’d probably have gone into more detail about what he intended to do to Natalie.
It’s just as well the little shit didn’t. I’m wild enough as it is.
I’ve managed to slip under law enforcement radar by doing pretty much what no one expected. I came back to the one place I said I wouldn’t.
It’s reckless. It’s worse than stupid. But since the guy who swore black and blue he’d protect Natalie then fell asleep and didn’t answer his phone, I don’t really see I have a choice.
All I have to do is wait for the Feds to arrive then I can slip away, and know for sure Natalie, the woman crazy enough to give a shit about me, is as okay as she can be.
I hang back, watching the thug as he blatantly smokes a cigarette in the street, highlighting exactly how close an eye they are keeping on her.
Minutes tick by as cold bites into my cheeks. I shift my weight and rub my hands together to keep the blood circulating in case I need to act in a hurry.
