Let Me Out (For Me, #1)

by Nichole Severn

  Marcus racked his brain for a response. He didn’t have a girlfriend. He didn’t even have a pet. What kind of business would couples argue about? “Ah.” His eyes darted toward Taigen again, searching for an answer.

  Banvard only waited patiently for him to figure this one out on his own.

  “We had a fight.” His no-brainer response wouldn’t cut it. He had to make Wren believe him. He was a cop. Why couldn’t he lie like one? “She left me.”

  “I see,” Wren answered, turning back toward his own woman.

  “Is she okay?” Marcus asked, unsure whether to go on.

  Christian pulled Adelaide into his arms, lifting her enough to transfer her body to Taigen. “Take her home. Two doses should do it.”

  Taigen backed toward the door slowly, Adelaide limp in his arms, and shot a hard stare toward Marcus. Something in his eyes gave him an uneasy feeling but he couldn’t pin it down.

  Walking back toward his desk, Wren pressed a button on the desk phone, speaking into it. “Anna, get me a cold press.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Who was on the stretcher?” Marcus asked, sitting hesitantly.

  Taking his seat at the desk, Christian steepled his fingers in front of him. “Harlow’s bodyguard. He didn’t last five seconds against her.” He rubbed his eyes with one hand, a loud exhale audible to Marcus.

  “What happened?”

  “It doesn’t matter,” he breathed. “All that matters is that she knows Harlow is alive. I’ll have to keep a closer eye on her.” Wren paused, leaning completely back into his leather chair as he lowered his hands into his lap. “I don’t have the strength to control her anymore.”

  “You’re as good a fighter as she is,” Marcus stated. “What’s the problem?” The situation didn’t seem complicated.

  “I’m better, but I don’t mean physically, Marcus,” Christian said and smirked. “It took me ten years to learn how to talk to her, to read her expressions, to control her, but today . . .” He exhaled again. “I wasn’t prepared today.”

  As the silence settled, the atmosphere grew uncomfortable. A side of Wren Marcus had never seen before made it impossible for him to know how to respond.

  “I don’t trust you, but I’ll let you in on a secret. I love her,” Christian said. “I always have, but what I saw this afternoon confirms my theory that she is learning how to defeat the rest of us while we’re trying to figure out how to defeat her.”

  Marcus leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. He couldn’t have heard Wren right. “Defeat her? But you just said you loved her.”

  “She’s out of my control,” Christian said, slamming his hand down onto the desk. “The longer we keep her on this brand of sedative, the more her system adapts to it. If we can’t find something stronger, Adelaide will kill us all.”

  She’ll definitely kill you, man. Marcus bit back the words as he thought about what Wren had done to her two nights ago, remembering the expression on Adelaide’s face, one of betrayal.

  Christian rose from the desk, turning toward the window. “What is it that makes you so interesting?” he whispered. Pivoting to address Marcus face-to-face, he gave him a close-lipped smile. “She has her sights on you. I can tell, but you have no idea what to expect.” Stepping closer, he continued as he shook his head. “Either from an episode like today or for her own reasons, Adelaide will kill you.”

  Speechless, Marcus wanted to deny every word Wren had spoken, but couldn’t. His instincts told him the truth. Adelaide really was the monster everyone feared. “What happened today?”

  Christian’s gaze dropped to the floor. “She’s been mine for nineteen years. Harlow taught her how to fight, but I educated her. I made sure she’d never want for anything, that she would be happy. All of it ruined by the mere sight of him.” He turned back to the window, lost in thought again.

  There hadn’t been an answer to his question in Wren’s statement, but Marcus would wait. He needed to know exactly what he’d be dealing with in the near future.

  “It seems she’s not only schizophrenic but shows signs of dissociative identity.” His head dropped, his body language giving the impression of defeat. Wren had worked for years to be a cold-blooded killer, a weapons dealer and a criminal. Criminals weren’t supposed to be brought down by their own women. They moved on. They made the system work for them. They were stronger than this.

  Marcus forced his eyes into his lap. Wren had never been a boy scout and it’d be foolish to think his plans would change by this new development. “What’s dissociative—”

  “Multiple personality disorder,” Christian finished, exhaling in frustration. “She’s already been tested for it, but at the time she wasn’t showing symptoms.” He turned back toward his office chair and sank down into it. “I don’t know what to do anymore, Marcus.”

  “With Adelaide?” He couldn’t think of a single idea that would solve Wren’s problem, but in reality, he didn’t care. He wasn’t here to stroke the man’s ego. He’d come here to make the son of a bitch pay for what he’d done. “I—”

  “Tell me about this other woman,” Wren interrupted. “Is Adelaide the reason she left you?”

  Marcus swallowed hard, trying to buy himself a few seconds. He’d never been good at lying, never had such a need of it. “No, not at all,” he whispered, amazed at his openness on the subject. “I mean, Adelaide is . . . very . . .” He didn’t know how to finish. His attraction had grown over the past week, his heartbeat speeding at the sight of her, his eyes following her every move, but he couldn’t exactly explain that to the sociopath sitting in front of him.

  “Do you want to help her?” Christian asked.

  “Who?” His answer came automatically and the only word he could think of as he remembered the deep green color of Adelaide’s eyes, her unique white hair and the gracefulness of her every move.

  Wren leaned forward in his chair. “Tell me why you’re really here, Marcus. Why did you want to work with me? Was it because of Adelaide?”

  He held his breath, but the pounding behind his ears distracted him. “I don’t know what you mean.” He remembered the exact words coming out of his mouth when Taigen had asked about his intentions, and he had a feeling his response wouldn’t work to his advantage here, either.

  Christian smiled slightly, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “You know, I’ve never heard her speak before you came into our lives.” His eyes sank to the large desk in front of him, distant. “I’ve been waiting to hear her voice for nineteen years and today I finally did.”

  “What did she say?” Marcus leaned forward, eager to hear the answer. Other questions circled his mind, but he didn’t let them slip past his lips. What did her voice sound like? Did she accentuate her words?

  Wren blinked, his eyes returning to the present. “It doesn’t matter.” His voice had gone an octave lower, his tone grave. “It wasn’t her.”

  Marcus opened his mouth to interrupt, to ask what the hell he’d meant, but didn’t have a chance as his new employer stood, his hands still on the desk as he spoke.

  “Do what I hired you for, Marcus. Keep Adelaide under control with that pretty little voice of yours and I won’t kill you for lying to me.”

  He’d meant the threat. He heard it behind every word and Marcus sensed it was time to leave.

  * * *

  For the first time in hours, Christian had been left to himself, able to think clearly as he watched Agent Grant leave the room. The office had been cleared, the police long gone, and Harlow had escaped and disappeared as he always did.

  He sank back into his office chair, his breathing exercises relaxing every cell in his body. Half of this battle is over, he reminded himself. Things would return to normal over time.

  Christian clenched his teeth and pushed the cold press to the back of his head.

  It had all started with Scott Lively, the damn ATF agent. If it hadn’t been for Christian’s carelessness, he wouldn’t have another agent try
ing to put him behind bars, his deal with the district attorney wouldn’t be on the rocks, and Adelaide would be . . . Adelaide.

  No, Harlow would have come back sooner or later. He always did, but this time Christian hadn’t been able to keep her from him.

  He should have gone into the meeting alone.

  * * *

  Taigen sat next to her bed, biting down hard on his knuckles until they bled. He felt the sweat drip down his forehead as he stared down at his twin with havoc slithering through his mind.

  It would be for the best, he told himself over and over, but couldn’t bring himself to move. If Marcus won’t help her, I will.

  Christian had given her more than her body could handle and Taigen vaguely worried he’d sent her into a coma. Only her even breathing let him know she hadn’t slipped into her dark side.

  He watched the steady rise and fall of her chest for over an hour as he tried to make his decision. Nobody would be able to help him. He was her only hope.

  He couldn’t hold still any longer.

  Pushing himself from the chair, he paced again, positively sure of himself. He had to save her. Tonight.

  The alarm clock on the nightstand read two a.m. No one would know until morning. Taigen withdrew one of the knives from his wrist sheath, staring over his sister’s limp form.

  It’s for the best, he thought. For us all. Raising the knife above his head, he stretched his arms back, the knife held tightly in his grip. He imagined himself plunging the knife into her chest, and for a moment he twitched at the thought.

  He couldn’t do it.

  Images of their childhood flashed in his mind. The little girl she used to be had been destroyed long ago and Taigen didn’t know if there would ever be a chance, a possibility, of bringing her back.

  He studied Adelaide, knife still in hand. Things had been much simpler when she’d been younger. Looking down to the nightstand, he considered giving her another dose of sedative before she woke. Taigen knew how she’d react if she saw him now: she’d kill him without question.

  Something crashed into his left side, knocking him against the nightstand. They wrestled for the knife, but Taigen soon realized the attacker wasn’t making a move for the weapon, only holding him in place.

  “Marcus?” Taigen whispered, unsure.

  “Not Marcus, son.” The body on top of him shifted, relieving the pressure pushing his wrists into the floor.

  “I’m sorry,” he said over and over, more to his sister than to whoever kept him pinned to the floor. Tears pricked at the corners of his eyes as Taigen realized what he’d been about to do. He could never kill his sister. He loved her. He wanted her to be happy. He wanted her alive and didn’t know what he would do without her.

  The sheets shifted on the bed as Adelaide searched for him in the dark. He’d always sat at her side at night, there to push the nightmares away.

  What am I supposed to tell her? he asked himself. That I was going to kill her? His mind went blank as he tried to think of an explanation. The seconds ticked by and Taigen groped for the questions he wanted to ask.

  “We just wanted to make sure you were all right,” the accented voice volunteered. “Go back to sleep.” His attacker moved toward the nightstand, reaching over him into the drawer, and drew out another syringe filled with clear liquid. He didn’t waste any time sticking the needle into her arm, and soon Taigen relaxed as she fell unconscious once again.

  He looked up to the man now offering his hand and exhaled. “Thank you.”

  The figure didn’t reply, only pulled him up from the floor.

  He stared at the man before him for a moment as everything dropped into place. “You’re helping Marcus find the ledger.” He shook his head in disbelief. “I should have known you’d be involved.” He nodded in confirmation to himself, looking down to his sister. He couldn’t help but smile and let the tears fall down his face as his memories of the two of them as children swam before his eyes. “There’s good in her, Dad. She wasn’t always like this.” He glanced to Daniel for understanding.

  His father didn’t move. “I know she is.”

  “Christian told me what happened. She would be better off dead,” he whispered. “She couldn’t hurt herself. She couldn’t hurt anyone else.”

  “It’s not a solution,” Daniel replied sharply. “She needs help, Taigen. Professional help. You know that. You knew it when we found her in that damned cell.”

  In the back of his mind, he knew the words to be true. “She won’t get the help she needs in a hospital, Dad. The doctors have already said—”

  Daniel’s hand landed on his shoulder, his fingertips squeezing into Taigen’s muscles. “You can try. That’s all. Just try.”

  Adelaide twitched in her sleep, having a nightmare, and Taigen placed his palm on her forehead. She went still immediately.

  Would there be someone to do this for her? he asked himself and secretly hoped Marcus would rise to the occasion.

  “You want to help your sister, don’t you?” Daniel asked.

  Taigen turned away from Adelaide, facing off with the man who’d abandoned his children years ago. “What kind of a question is that? I’ve been trying to help her for the past six years. Where the hell have you been?” he yelled, letting the rage he’d kept bottled up inside for so long escape. “You couldn’t save her, so I had to! And look what happened. Now, instead of being forced to survive night after night, she feels indebted to a different kind of sociopath.”

  “I tried to stay close, Taigen. I really did,” Daniel said, stepping closer. “But I couldn’t escape.”

  He backed away, afraid of what he might do. Sitting down on the edge of Adelaide’s bed, he closed his eyes. “Harlow?” He already knew the answer, but it wasn’t an excuse to drop off the face of the planet, to stay back while his children tried to survive.

  “Yeah, Harlow,” Daniel whispered.

  “How did you even get in here?”

  “Marcus let me in the back.” Daniel sat down on the bed beside his son. “He’s not allowed in the house anymore, but he knows the alarm code.”

  Two full minutes passed in silence and Taigen didn’t know what to do next. He’d almost killed his sister, something he’d have had to live with the rest of his life, but Daniel had saved him from knowing that pain. “What now?” He rubbed his eyes in exhaustion.

  “If you want to save your sister,” Daniel whispered, “then we need to get our hands on that ledger.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Christian’s small army lined up in the training room, waiting for him to begin. Dressed in their gear, Adelaide, Taigen, and Marcus were ready to go. The only question left was the location. He hadn’t given them specific details in case his pet ATF agent decided to be a hero.

  “It looks like everything is in order.” Crossing his arms in front of him, he paced back and forth. “According to my intel, the papers we are looking for are hidden in a safe on the sixteenth floor. The office belongs to William Roberts’s associate, someone he’d confided with in case something happened to him. Thanks to Marcus here”—he nodded toward the man—“the announcement of our assistant district attorney’s death has not been made public.” He shifted his gaze over each member of the team, finally settling on Adelaide.

  She remained steady, no sign of her other half leaking through her tough exterior over the past couple of days, but Christian’s level of trust had plummeted to an all-time low, even lower than when she’d tried to kill him in the compound.

  He needed this job to go off without a hitch. His last chance to prove Rutherford wrong and that he could protect his clients’ interests fell upon him. The DA had been his largest client outside of the military contracts for years and Christian couldn’t afford to lose him. He wasn’t about to let ATF put him behind bars, either. If everything went as planned tonight, Agent Marcus Grant would be the one left holding the life sentence. “We all know what it means if copies of my ledger make their way into the wrong h
ands.” He stopped pacing. His business, his livelihood, all would be lost if he went to prison, and he put special emphasis on each of his next words. “So let’s get it right.”

  They left the house as one, then each member broke off to separate transportation. The team couldn’t be seen together to pull the perfect heist.

  Christian crossed the driveway and straddled the bike, pulling his helmet over his ponytail as the engine growled to life. Missing license plates, each bike had been painted black in hopes of remaining unseen. They didn’t have time for the police. He watched Adelaide pull out of the driveway first, an expert on a motorcycle, followed by Taigen, and finally Marcus as he twisted the accelerator. Catching one last glimpse of his team before they disappeared into the night, he headed south toward the last copy of his ledger and his freedom.

  * * *

  The streetlights blurred as Adelaide let the bike fly over eighty miles an hour.

  “Adie,” said the electronic piece in her ear. Christian. “Let’s keep it reasonable.”

  He knew her too well, but Adelaide refused to slow down. He only gave commands, ones she had to follow or she wouldn’t get paid. Observing the speed limit wasn’t something she gave a damn about, and after learning just how strong she could be by letting her monster take over, she wasn’t his pet anymore.

  This would be her last job.

  “Take a right,” he said into her earpiece, followed by another command and then another. Christian usually trusted her with the details of his plans, but this one had been different. Only he knew the location, and if she wanted her money she had to obey.

  “We’re here.”

  The building’s rectangular shape appeared as the sound of four bike engines filled her ears. Parking opposite the grounds as instructed, Adelaide dismounted, listening to the creak of her leather jacket as she moved. She chanced a glance at one of the other motorcycles pulling into her peripheral vision and nodded to the driver.