by A. M. Myers
“What do you know about my company?” I ask her and she glances over at me with a wide smile on her face.
“I know you’re freaking killing it and I’ve even seen some of your pieces on some of the upper class women here in Baton Rouge.”
My eyes widen. “Really?”
“Oh, yeah. But I would expect nothing less after you got your work into a certain store that favors a little blue box.”
“Are you talking about Tiffany’s?” I breathe, my heart hammering in my chest and butterflies flapping around in my stomach. She nods and I press my hand to my heart. Oh my God. It’s so major that I can’t even wrap my mind around how much I’ve been able to accomplish in the five years I lost. “That’s crazy.”
“You should have heard your voice when you called to tell me. You could barely get the words out and you were crying. I was so proud of you.”
I grin as the elevator doors slide open, revealing a sleek lobby just like the one below us. Beyond that is a set of glass doors that lead into a wide open space. Mercedes guides me over to the doors and pulls them open.
“Right now, you just have this huge open room but you can do whatever you need to do to make it work for you. I know you need room for shipping and that might be the only thing we can’t accommodate here but I can help you look into other properties that might work for that.”
Staring around the room, a vision starts to unfold in front of me and I can see exactly how I can make this space work. Turning back to Mercedes, I smile.
“How much?”
“For you? Three thousand a month.”
My grin widens. “I’ll take it.”
“Yay!” she exclaims, clapping her hands together. “I’m so excited that you’re going to be working in the same building as me.”
“Me, too. I’m so ready to start building a life here.”
“So, that’s it, then? You’re not going back to Miami.”
I shrug. “I don’t see why I would. It’s not like there is anything left for me there, you know?”
“Besides Gavin,” she says as she links her arm through mine and we start back for the elevator. I shake my head.
“Obviously, I can’t say this for certain since my memory still hasn’t come back but I don’t think it matters. This feels like home and what I feel with Sawyer… it’s…”
“Epic,” she supplies, arching a brow as we reach the elevator and she presses the button. I laugh.
“Yeah, maybe.”
The doors open and as we step inside, she releases my arm to pull her phone out. “I’m writing myself a note to call the lawyer and I’ll get the rental agreement sent over to you as soon as possible. What are you thinking on term?”
“Let’s go month to month for now and see what happens.”
“Smart. You might hate renting from me.”
I laugh. “Or I might be a terrible tenant and you’ll be itching to kick me out.”
“Hey, anything is possible.”
We’re both giggling as the doors slide open and we walk into the lobby where she wraps me up in a hug.
“Okay, I really need to get back to work but I’ll let you know when all this is ready and let’s do lunch again soon.”
I nod as I pull away. “You got it.”
“Love you.”
“Love you, too.”
She waves as she turns to head back to her office and I watch her disappear before I turn toward the door and pull my phone out of my pocket. I dial Nico’s number and step outside.
“Jules!” she yells into the phone. “Where are you? Are you okay?”
“Are you with Gavin?” I ask, stopping and leaning back against the building.
“No… Why?”
I sigh. “I assume you’ve spoken to him though?”
“Yeah, of course. He told me that you went missing.”
I pinch the bridge of my nose and suck in a breath. “That’s not exactly what happened. I left him.”
“Why?” she gasps.
“Because I need to figure things out and I couldn’t do that in Miami.”
“Oh,” she whispers, understanding in her voice. “You’re in Baton Rouge.”
I nod. “I am but you can’t tell anyone.”
“Of course, Jules. I’ll keep my lips sealed.”
I push off the wall and begin walking away from the building. “I also wanted to ask you how open you are to the idea of moving.”
“Uh… I’m open to it, I guess. Are you not coming back to Miami?”
“I just don’t think it’s for me anymore. I feel really good here and I think this is where I want to build my life.”
She’s quiet for a moment and my belly flips as I wait for her response.
“But what if you change your mind once your memory comes back?”
“Well, I’m only doing month to month on my rental so if something happens, we can readjust but for now, I’d like to have you here with me to set everything up.”
She sucks in a breath and slowly lets it out. “Okay. Let me wrap up a few things around here and set everyone else up to run without us for a while and then I’ll be down there.”
“Thank you, Nico.”
“Of course.”
“And please, please don’t say anything to Gavin. I know he’s hurting but I ended things. I’ve asked him to move on and he’s choosing not to.”
She sighs. “I promise I won’t say a word and if he calls me again, I’ll tell him to let it go.”
I thank her again and she promises to get in touch soon to let me know when she will get to town before we say good-bye. Releasing a sigh, I slip my phone back into my pocket and glance up as I turn to where I parked Sawyer’s truck. A large man in a black SUV catches my attention as he pulls a camera away from his face. Even behind the sunglasses, I can feel his eyes boring into me and my belly flips as my heart rate quickens.
Shit.
Did Gavin find me already?
I have no idea what the new me would do in this situation but the old me, the girl I remember, would never take something like this laying down. Sucking in a breath, I march up to his car and arch a brow.
“Can I help you with something?”
He shakes his head, completely unfazed. “Nope. I was just waiting for someone.”
“Then why the hell are you taking pictures of me?”
“I wasn’t.”
I point to the camera in his lap. “I saw you.”
“I was taking pictures of the city. Not you.” There is something sketchy about him and I don’t believe him for a second but without proof, what else can I do? I suppose I could demand to see his camera but that is a little too much for me. Sucking in a breath, I take a step back and nod.
“Sorry.”
He flashes me a grin. “No problem.”
I back up and turn away from the car with my cheeks burning, my stomach sinking like a stone and hoping against hope that my time isn’t up.
Chapter Fourteen
Sawyer
“Heard you ended things with Tawny,” Storm, the club’s VP, says as he plops down on the couch across from me with a bottle of beer in his hand. I take a sip of my own as I nod.
“Yeah. She’s not getting the message, though.”
He arches a brow and a shit eating grin spreads across his face. “Oh? We got another Hysterical Hoover situation on our hands?”
“For the love of God,” I growl, shaking my head and clenching my fist. “Y’all need to stop bringing that shit up and no. I can handle her.”
“You sure about that?” He laughs. “I heard about her parting words to you.”
I shake my head and down a third of my beer. “Those weren’t her parting words. She called me incessantly on my trip and when I got home from Miami, there was a note from her on my front door.”
He laughs again but before he can say anything, Blaze steps out of his office to bellow “Church” before disappearing again. Thank fucking God. The last thing I want to do is l
isten to more jokes about how badly my relationships go. Then again, maybe I just met the one who is going to change all that.
Sighing, I stand up and follow Storm into the war room before taking my seat near the back of the room as Storm sits on the other end. The rest of the guys begin to trickle in, some taking their seats while others stand around bullshitting with each other.
“How was the trip, by the way?” Storm asks. I set my bottle of beer down on the table and lean back in my chair as I nod and I fight back a smile, my mind consumed with thoughts of Juliette and our drive back from Miami.
“Good.”
He narrows his eyes, studying me, but before he can say anything, Blaze walks into the room and a hush falls over our group as everyone sits down and faces the front of the table where Blaze sinks into his chair and sighs.
“All right. Let’s get started, Smith,” he says as he nods to Smith, our sergeant at arms. Smith nods and glances down at the paper on the table in front of him.
“We’ve only got one rescue this week but it’s going to be super tricky and we probably need a couple of back-up plans.”
Kodiak crosses his arms over his chest with a scowl. “How is it tricky?”
“Peyton is basically a prisoner in her own home. Her boyfriend, Dustin, went a little crazy at their local tech store and installed cameras and motion sensors all throughout the house. He watches her during the day to make sure she doesn’t leave and if she even opens a door to accept a package, he gets a notification on his phone. When you add in the fact that he only works a mile away from their house, it makes getting her out of there a challenge.”
“Try impossible,” Chance says, shaking his head as he leans back in his chair. We all stare at each other, trying to come up with a plan that could possibly work, but no one says anything.
“Streak, could you disable the cameras and sensors?” Blaze asks and Streak, our tech guy, nods.
“Most likely but it would tip him off immediately if everything went dark. I might be able to run a loop. You guys would have to be quick and we’d have to pray he doesn’t just decide to pop on home for something.”
“How did we even find this girl?” Storm asks and I nod in agreement. It seems odd that she was able to reach out for help if she can’t even open the front door of her house.
“The one person she’s allowed to speak to is her mother and that’s who reached out to us,” Smith answers, shaking his head. “The other issue is we haven’t been able to have any contact with Peyton but her mother has agreed to pass along the message when we’re ready to move.”
Blaze nods. “Streak, why don’t you look into the security system and we’ll develop a plan once we know more?”
“Sure thing, boss.”
“Anything else?” Blaze asks, his gaze flicking around the room. When no one says anything, he grabs the gavel and bangs it on the table once, dismissing us. We all head back into the main room and Streak heads upstairs to his lair while the rest of us gather around the bar.
“Heard you got another stage five clinger,” Chance says as he walks up behind me and slaps me on the shoulder. These guys really should have better things to do than sit around and gossip like a bunch of women and yet, they all seem to know what’s going on in my life. Well… mostly. My thoughts drift to Juliette and the way she felt in my arms last night as I pushed her up against the front door and kissed her like my life depended on it. Quite frankly, I’m not convinced it didn’t.
I shake my head as he grabs a beer. “Naw. I’ve got it all under control.”
“Mmhmm,” he hums. “Let’s just hope she’s not as crazy as Courtney or we’ll have to find you a new road name.”
“Fuck off,” I growl, turning away from them. I hate how much they are always doggin’ on me. I mean, yeah, I’ve made some mistakes when it comes to women and relationships but they aren’t fucking saints either. Shit. Chance was married to a stripper for a while and Storm didn’t date at all before he met his wife.
“Moose. Kodiak. Fuzz,” Blaze calls as he walks out of his office with his phone in his hand. “With me.”
I set my beer down on the bar and clap Chance’s shoulder to say good-bye as I follow behind Kodiak and Fuzz. Blaze leads us outside to the line of bikes.
“What’s up, boss?” Kodiak asks. Blaze shakes his head as he grabs his helmet and puts it on.
“Not sure but Rodriguez just called and said there’s something he needs to show us. It sounded urgent.”
That’s all we need to hear.
We all nod before going to our bikes and following Blaze out of the parking lot. The club met Detective Rodriguez five years ago when he was involved with a case we were working on. After everything went down, we were able to develop a friendship with him and it’s proved beneficial to both of us. When things fall beyond our reach, he steps in to give us a hand and anytime he ever needs our assistance, we are there to help. It’s unconventional but it’s been a fruitful relationship and has resulted in more lives saved which is all we both want.
As we drive through the streets of Baton Rouge, my mind drifts to Juliette and that intense kiss on my front porch last night. I’ve thought a lot about what Cora said on my trip down to Miami and even if I can’t admit it out loud to anyone other than Juliette, I know she was right. I hold myself back and don’t invest in anything as a coping mechanism and to prevent myself from getting hurt again but this thing with Juliette… I have never felt anything like this so I don’t give a fuck how much it scares the shit out of me - I’m not letting her go.
Red and blue lights bounce off of buildings as we slow to a crawl. Police tape stretches out, blocking off the street as a crowd of people start gathering around, trying to get a peek and my stomach sinks. Why the hell would Rodriguez be calling us to a crime scene? Blaze pulls his bike off to the side of the road and we all follow behind him. As we park and dismount, we exchange worried glances. Rodriguez has never called us to a crime scene like this before so I have to assume that it has to do with someone we know but who? I look at Kodiak and Fuzz, my thoughts racing out of control.
“Let them through,” a voice calls out as we approach the police tape and an officer in uniform lifts the tape, allowing us to walk under it as Rodriguez makes his way over to us, his face strained. “Sorry to bring you out here, guys.”
“What’s going on, Diego?” Blaze asks, his gaze sweeping over the scene and I do the same. There are drops of blood in a line along the sidewalk and when I follow them, I suck in a breath. What I can only assume is a body lies on a gurney at the end of the trail, covered in a white sheet. My thoughts screech to a halt as I stare at it and then a list of names begins running through my head - anyone that means anything to us.
Tatum.
Emma.
Nix.
Carly.
Ali.
Quinn.
Brooklyn.
Daisy.
Addilyn.
Alice.
Tucker.
Trey.
Juliette…
My breath rings in my ears and my heart pounds as the world around me warps and fear creeps up my spine. Rodriguez calls out to two men standing near the body and as they wheel the gurney over, my stomach rolls. I want to leave, turn away from what I know is coming, but I can’t move no matter how hard I try. The men stop next to us and Rodriguez pulls the sheet back.
“Sammy,” I breathe. A sense of relief shoots through me, quick as a flash, before the pain descends and I take a step back, tears stinging my eyes as I stare at her bruised and bloody face. Memories come rushing back from my past and another wave of pain crashes into me, this one older and weathered from years of tormenting me.
“What happened?” Blaze asks, snapping me out of my daze and I take a step forward as I push the pain away, ready to funnel all my energy into examining the scene around us. Rodriguez shakes his head as he covers her with the sheet again.
“We’re not sure yet but it appears someone lured
her out of her apartment and attacked her from the cover of the trees.” He points over my shoulder and I turn, studying the thick patch of foliage behind me. “She stumbled out of there and made it into the street before she collapsed.”
“How did she die?”
Rodriguez glances over at the gurney. “We don’t have an official cause of death yet but it looks like someone literally beat her to death.”
“Jesus,” Kodiak hisses, shaking his head. “Poor girl.”
“We just saw her,” Fuzz adds, looking as shell shocked as I feel. It’s insane. Only a week ago, we were helping her move boxes into her new place and now she’s dead. But how? The man who hurt her, the man we saved her from, he’s gone. None of this makes any sense. Blaze runs his hand through his hair.
“How did you know to call us?” I ask. When we saved Sammy from her captor, we never involved Rodriguez in that part of it so there’s no way he could have known that we had helped her.
He grabs an evidence bag and presents it to us. “This was on top of her body.”
My eyes widen as I stare at our business card, covered in blood and Fuzz releases a stream of curses. We gave her a couple of our cards but the placement doesn’t make any sense. The only way that it would have been laying on top of her body would be if the killer put it there himself.
“Do you have any witnesses?” Kodiak asks and Rodriguez shakes his head.
“I have officers canvasing the area but it’s not looking good.”
“So you don’t have any leads?”
Rodriguez sighs. “I just started the investigation, Blaze, but I promise I’ll keep you guys updated.”
Blaze nods and shakes his hand. “Please do. We’ll let you get back to work.”
Rodriguez nods and turns back to the crime scene as Blaze ushers us back to our bikes, all of our questions hanging over us like a cloud.
“Who would do this?” Kodiak asks as we stand on the sidewalk, watching the police work. Blaze shakes his head.
“I don’t know. After all that girl survived…” He blows out a breath. “She deserved better than this.”
Something nags at me and I scowl as I watch them load her body into the medical examiner’s van, unable to put my finger on it. We had such a run of bad luck lately when it comes to the girls we help and I can’t help but feel like we’re failing in our mission.
