Page 223 of Poison Aches

“Have I not been clear with you, Angel?” Emmett’s voice is still carrying that gentle cadence but the deceptive calmness it usually carries is absent this time. I can hear the impatience and the biting anger now.

“I’m not sure I understand what you’re talking about,” I stutter.

“Answer that.”

“What?”

Emmett glances at the buzzing phone dancing on the bedside table that I hadn’t noticed. When did I dump that there?

I grab my phone and see a blocked number. As a rule of thumb, I never answer private or blocked numbers. Hell, Icreated and updated a code that automatically blocks them…but somehow this one managed to go through.

I’m about to hit the decline option when Emmett’s commanding voice reaches my ears.

“Answer that damn call.”

Shocked by his biting words, confused by the tension in the room and still feeling strangely numb and upset over what just happened, I swipe across and answer the call, while holding Emmett’s frosty gaze.

“Who’s this?” I ask immediately. There’s no need to be pleasant.

“Ivy… Ivy…can you hear me?”

That nagging feeling of doom I’ve had for days now comes back with a vengeance

The line is unstable and static, but I don’t need the best technology in the world to recognize my own brother’s voice.

“Samuel?”

“Ivy… listen, I don’t have long. They’re listening and watching. He knows! Do you hear me, Ivy? He knows!”

“What?” I shout. “Who knows? Who’s listening?”

“Ivy, I’m so sorry! I’m really sorry, sis. Remember, you never wanted this. You know nothing! Delete everything and deny! I… I might never see you again…I’m sorry and I love you! You know nothing! It’s all on me!”

“What do you mean I won’t see you again?” I shout.

A wave of fear drenches down on me. I grip the phone tight to my ear, but I can’t hear anything but static now.

“Samuel!” I cry. “Where are you?”

Static greets me.

I immediately pull my phone back and open the navigation program I created to sync Samuel’s movements… but as soon as I open it, it crashes… and as I watch, the app I FUCKING CREATED deletes itself.

WHAT THE FUCK??

In a panic, I pull the phone back to my ear…since the call is still connected.

“Samuel!! Talk to me… say something! Where are you?”

The static goes on for a second and then the line goes dead.

“No, no, no…Samuel!”

Frantic, I scroll through my phone to find my brother’s secure, in-case-of-emergencies number and dial it…but it says the number I just dialed doesn’t exist.

What’s going on?

His voice didn’t sound right.

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