Page 29 of Hawke

I watched silently as Simon abruptly turned away, and I glanced out the window to see where he went. But he had gone, leaving only a wisp of his cologne lingering in the air.

As soon as I left the restaurant and returned to my extended stay hotel, I sat in front of the small desk with the mirror facing back at me. My dinner was in front of me, but my mind was full of Bram’s voice.

Yes, I remembered his name as soon as my manager left, but I found it odd I would forget his name when someone asked for it. So, I left it. My stomach churned with unease when I was near the manager, so staying away from him was for the best.

Maybe there was something about Simon that wasn’t right.

This Bram character, though, I didn’t get the red flags to stay away from him, but I didn’t get a good feeling either. He was peculiar, and his way of reading me, knowing who I was, was unsettling.

So, what if the manager hired me without a second thought during their brunch rush? He was desperate, waiting tables himself when he gave me a trial run, and I excelled with flying colors. But what if it all fell into my lap way too easily?

I pursed my lips, the sensation of my chapped skin sticking together overwhelming my senses.

Unless, Simon was working forhim.

I hadn’t thought abouthimin so long. I had forgotten the hold he had on me. Since the Iron Fang, since Hawke, all my worries had slipped away. I’d become happier, worry free. I wasn’t being chased; I wasn’t being tortured with nightmares.

My hands went to my neck, rubbing it softly. Only Hawke could make me feel completely at ease, and I’d left him. But he’d ruined it all. He caught me in a web of emotions and tearing through those was hard enough. I couldn’t go back to look for protection now. Not even from the Iron Fang.

Because he would ruin me all over again. I couldn’t help but love him, he was a magnet too strong to ignore—the further away from him, the better.

At least, that is what I was telling myself.

He didn’t love me like I loved him.

Idiot.

I’d made my bed by leaving, now I must lie in it.

I desperately rubbed my temples to drive away my aching memories, yet the exhaustion of being deprived of sleep and the pain of unrequited love was unbearable. This past week was the perfect storm to relive memories long forgotten when I was with Hawke.

I was being sucked into the past; I could feel the cool air just as I was sitting in the county jail cell on the opposite side of the wall all those years ago.

The noises were loud, but not unbearable. The clinking of uniformed guards’ freshly shined shoes echoed through the hallway. I sat on the “visitor“ side of the glass, my hands folded neatly against each other as I waited.

Others were already talking to their significant others, husbands, children, friends. All of whom were arrested and awaiting trial. I rubbed my thumbs together, waiting for the one man I shouldn’t see. But I needed closure. I needed to see he was on the other side of the glass, waiting to be transported to a high security prison.

There was a tap at the glass. The plastic phone rapped three more times before I looked up. He smiled, those white, blunt teeth shining despite the surrounding darkness. To an ordinary person, he looked like an outstanding citizen. But my stepbrother was the devil beneath those boyish charms.

“Dear sister, what do I owe the pleasure?” he mumbled into the phone.

I didn’t know what it was. Everyone saw him as such a saint. It could be the enormous amount of money he donated to charities, his volunteer work, his outstanding reputation for being a wonderful religious man. But I saw him for who he really was.

“It makes it worse when you call me that,” I tutted. “You know they listen to these calls, right?”

He wasn’t my blood brother. Not by a long shot, but my stepbrother. He just got off on calling me sister.

Shane smiled, the wicked smile the wolf gave before he tried to eat Little Red Riding Hood. “I know they listen in, and they should. That is part of their job, to protect the public from criminals. Once they realize they have the wrong man, I’ll be free.”

I gritted my teeth, trying not to lose my temper. I had become quite good at hiding my emotions from Shane. He thrived off pain and suffering. The only way I could make him angry was smiling and acting as if nothing was wrong.

With a demure flutter of my lashes, I propped my cheek up with my hand. “You are certainly right, Shane. I do hope they catch the criminal and lock him away a real long time.”

Shane’s fake smile fell.

“And once the prison realizes that they committed crimes against an underage person, I’m sure he will get what he deserves. I heard even in prison such a crime is frowned upon. Death often coming to them.”

Shane’s hand gripped the phone, his breathing deepened.

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