Page 49 of Glamour and Grit

I check the lock. Just a cheap, mass-produced padlock. Sturdy but nothing fancy. I could scale the fence, but the rusted barbed wire at the top reminds me I may have let my tetanus shot lapse.

I slip one of the thinner wires into the lock and feel about for the tumblers. Using my hooked pliers, I gently turn the lock as I latch the tumblers into place, one by one.

The lock falls open and I undo the chain. I start to close the gate behind me, but Selene is in the way.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m coming with you.”

“Selene, you need to stay in the car.”

“No way. My brother might be in there. I’m going in, with or without you. If you want to protect me, I guess you’d better come along.”

I sigh, and remember what Jax said. The customer is king, but their safety comes first. If I force her to stay behind, she won't be happy. Not one bit.

Plus, I’m not sure if I can make her stay behind, short of tying her up and I’m fresh out of rope.

“All right, just stay behind me and try to be silent as possible. And don’t whisper. A whisper carries a lot further than a softly spoken, normal voice.”

“Okay,” she whispers, then catches herself. “I mean, okay.”

My gaze returns to the studio lot. Tufts of weeds jut up from cracks in the pavement. Signs of coyotes and other wildlife litter the environs. It’s not the most inviting place, but the lock didn’t have any rust on it. This place gets visited fairly often.

I take a deep breath, and lead the way into the compound.

15

SELENE

Dane changes on the way into the old studio lot. His eyes, his movements, everything about him shifts into military mode. He picks his way across the broken pavement and tufts of weeds as if he’s walking over a perfectly smooth sidewalk. And he does it all silent as a cat.

No wonder he made such a good zombie. Dane has absolute control over his body. I’m so mesmerized by his sinuous grace that I almost miss the pistol in his hand. Where did that even come from? I don’t remember seeing him draw it.

I’m glad he’s armed, but it’s also a constant reminder of the stakes. We might be on a movie lot, but there’s no script to follow. Nothing says that we’re going to win just because we’re the so-called good guys.

I’m almost afraid to hope that we’ll find Justin. If this is over quickly, all the better. Yet, that would mean Dane and I would have no reason to be in proximity. Does that mean we wouldn’t see each other any longer?

What a dumb thing to think about while my brother is in danger. But I can’t help how I feel, either. I want to get to know Dane better. Iwant him to let me in. He keeps putting up these walls, though, and I don’t know that I’m the one to knock them down.

Dane approaches the soundstage and flattens his back against the wall. I follow suit, scooting along with the rough concrete against my back. He peers into the gaping maw of an empty doorway. Tense moments pass while I wait for him to finish his recon.

“Okay,” he says in a low voice. “I don’t see anyone. This section of the building is in rough shape, but I see lights on the northern side. That’s probably where we’ll find Petty.”

He doesn’t have to say the quiet part out loud. We might find my brother there, too. My body shakes so bad I can barely stand. All the worry I’ve held for Justin inside of me comes boiling out, now that he could be so close.

Dane stops, and turns his verdant gaze my way. Something builds up inside of his eyes. He’s about to say something, and right away I wonder if it’s going to be about the other night. He wants to do this now?

“It wasn’t just a bad dream,” he says in a rush. “It was a memory. A memory of the time I screwed up and a whole lot of people paid for it with their lives. You think I’m this badass Navy SEAL, but I’m a fuck-up. I failed when it really counted.”

My heart breaks at the pain in his face. What he leaves unsaid echoes as loud as the words he spoke. He failed when it really counted, and he thinks he’ll always fail when it really counts.

The weight of his revelation hits my stomach like ten pounds of lead. What a burden to bear. The tattooed bad boy has baggage. Big surprise, Selene. Who are you to judge?

“Selene,” he says, his voice dropping low, his eyes heating up. “In my nightmare, I failed to save someone who…someone who I really care about.”

Who could he be talking about? An old girlfriend? An army buddy? Or maybe..? No, now isn’t the time. We need to find Petty, find my brother, but my pulse races and sweat breaks out on my body, spurred by Dane’s nearness.

His head suddenly snaps to the side, eyes narrowed to slits. He creeps to the open doorway and carefully peers inside.

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