Page 64 of Dark Notes

He chuckles loudly in my ear. “Unless you’d like to sacrifice yourself for her life.”

My heart drops to the fucking ground with pure terror. I shake, holding the phone tight against my ear.Make sure she’s okay.

“I need to know she’s okay before I agree to anything.”

The whimpers that come from her nearly bring me to my knees.

“Baby?”

She starts screaming, “Don’t do it, Jagger. Please don’t do it!”

A loud bang sounds over the phone, followed by more screaming from McKinley.

“I swear to god if you fucking hurt her, I’ll kill you.”

He chuckles darkly. “Do you prefer to hear me fucking her?”

The fury instantly builds through my entire body. She has never told me he violated her, but for some reason, I don’t think it’d be the first time. I don’t respond with the threats that are crawling up my throat like venom because I don’t want him to follow through on his words.

“That’s good, Jagger. I see I have your attention now. The rehearsal space on seventy-ninth. Be here in under an hour or she’s dead. And come alone. I have a gun on her and, if you don’t do as you’re told, you can collect her corpse.”

The line goes dead.

“Fuck!” I scream to the entire parking lot before calling Jett, expecting the worst, but hoping for the best.

He answers on the second ring. “Hey, Jagger, listen to this.”

“No. You listen. Are you sober? Please tell me you’re not high.”

He laughs. “Ish.”

Alright, I can handle that. Soberishis better than high as fuck.

“Erik is alive, and he has her. I need your help.”

All the laughter is gone, and he says, “He has McKinley?”

“Yes,” I grit, “I have to go alone. I need you to come later than me. He has a gun on her, and if I don’t go alone, he’s going to kill her and I won’t let that happen.”

Jett speaks calmly, sounding much more together than I feel.

“Jagger, no. If you show up there, you are a fucking dead man.”

I pace back and forth on the street, as I run a hand through my hair.

“It doesn’t matter. I’d rather die than live without her again. I can’t fucking do it. I will not risk her.”

“You’re my best friend, man. I’ve got your back. Tell me what you need.”

I sigh audibly, because I’m so fucking relieved. Unarmed, he would never be a problem, but I know he’s going to use her, and if he has to kill her, to destroy the man that stripped him of everything, he will.

“The rehearsal space on seventy-ninth. I’m going now. Do not show up for forty minutes. At that point, I should have been inside for about twenty minutes. I’m going to try to get her to leave. If you find her outside, get her to safety first.”

“Forty minutes. Got it. I’ll be there but, Jagger, man, I gotta tell you, this is a bad fucking plan.”

I climb into the back of the car and tell my driver, “Remember the rehearsal space on seventy-ninth? Get there and fast.”

“Jett, I know, but that’s all I’ve got. If something happens to me, take care of her. Make sure she has all of my fucking money. Everything she needs is taken care of.”

---