Page 117 of Risky Passion

“If she did make him disappear, then she would’ve been just a kid at the time.” I shook my head in disbelief.

“Yeah,” Whitney said with a shrug, “a kid who probably received her own treatment from that doc.”

The room fell silent as the weight of his words settled over us like a heavy fog.

Parker nodded slowly, his brow furrowed as if he were piecing together a puzzle. “He was a senior doctor at Rosebud Hospital. Noted for his ‘exceptional community service’.”

Ryder growled. “Exceptional? He was a fucking creep.”

“How many times is he listed in that book?” I asked.

Whisper leaned over the little black pocketbook and ran her finger down the line items. She flipped the page, and her expression shifted, her face going pale.

“Oh my god,” she muttered, her voice trembling. She looked like she was about to vomit.

“What?” Ryder shot to his feet, and everyone leaned forward, the tension snapping tight like a coiled spring.

“What is it?” Cobra barked.

“There’s another name in here we know . . . it’s Watts.”

We all froze as the air sucked out of the room.

“Fuck. No,” Ryder said. “It can’t be Captain Watts.”

“I refuse to believe that,” I said, my voice shaking.

Parker didn’t look so sure. His gaze swept across the room, his expression grim, jaw tight like he was holding back a storm. “His age fits the profile. And it would explain why our fucking investigations have been railroaded at every turn.”

“Jesus,” I muttered, my stomach twisting. “The police chief . . . working with Beatrice?”

“Son of a bitch.” Ryder slammed his fist into the table, and I jumped. “That fucking bastard.”

The realization hit me like a punch to the chest, knocking the wind out of me. “Oh my god. What if Jaxson tells Captain Watts about these boxes? What if . . . what if he already has?”

A shadow crossed Parker’s face as he yanked his phone from his pocket. He punched a single number and pressed it to his ear.

The room fell into a suffocating silence as we waited. The tension was unbearable, coiled and ready to snap. The phone rang once. Twice. Three times.

Parker shook his head, his jaw clenching tighter as the phone rang. And rang. And rang.

“Come on, pick up,” he muttered through gritted teeth, his knuckles white as he gripped the phone like it was the only thing tethering him to control.

My mind spiraled, panic clawing at my chest.

God, please let Jaxson be okay.

CHAPTER 28

Jaxson

I frantically pulled away shatteredpieces of timber and buckled corrugated iron, blocking my access to where Blade and Viper were trapped in the water below the floor of the old warehouse. “I’m coming! Just hold on!”

Onyx barked as if telling me to hurry. She was above the men, looking down at them and wildly scratching her nails over the floorboards they were trapped beneath.

A massive timber beam barricaded the access point that the Onyx had wriggled through. I gripped the wood, splinters bit into my palms, and every muscle screamed as I threw my weight backward. A primal growl tore from my throat as I channeled everything I had into one desperate heave. The wood creaked, resisted, then finally surrendered.

I dragged it aside, opening a gap barely large enough for me to fit through. Dropping to my stomach, I crawled into the narrow space, and my flashlight cut through the oppressive darkness ahead.

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