Page 7 of Invisible Scars
The problems started after my injury. It’s been hard to go there with women since. It was almost a year later when I finally got into bed with a woman again. It’s not necessarily the physical scars, though it took me time to get over that aspect as well.
The real issue is anything that ventures beyond physical intimacy. I don’t like talking about that night. With anyone. And since the worst after-effect of my injury is the nightmares, I refuse to spend the night with anyone, which means I’ve pretty much given up on the prospect of a substantial relationship.
“What happened after Sawyer found Maddie?” I ask, and Gia’s smile softens.
“We all snuck out through a back exit in the dead of night and hotwired a car some junkie left at my motel a few months back. I took them across state lines to Minnesota and dropped them off at Detroit Lakes Station. After that, I kept driving all the way here, hoping no one would catch up.” Gia leans back and looks at me with a mischievous gaze. “Sawyer was worried you’d push yourself too hard while he was gone.” Then her gaze turns to Effie, and the amusement in her eyes grows. “Maddie told him Effie promised to keep you in line. They had a good laugh.”
Effie rolls her eyes while I glare at my laughing brothers.
Then Elijah pops his head in. “We’re ready.”
“Let me know if you need anything, okay?” Effie squeezes Gia’s arm one last time, and she nods, all eyes following her out.
Once she’s gone, I turn to Effie. “Well, Doll, I have to admit—I’m impressed.”
“I bet you are, Cadet.” She flashes me a grin, then turns to Isaiah. “What do you think, Zee?”
My oldest brother, the most level-headed of us four, ponders for a few seconds. “My gut tells me she can be trusted, but we can’t take the chance.”
“Same,” Micah and I both agree at the same time, and I give him a glare that clarifies that if he yellsjinx, I’ll punch him.
“The odds of someone finding both Sawyer and Maddie, then figuring out the dog tagsandgetting their hands on both halves are near zero.” I lean back and take a moment to think. “And Gia knew things only someone close to Maddie would know. She all but quoted what Maddie said to Effie in the hospital before leaving.” I look up at Isaiah. “Our biggest risk is her playing both sides. I doubt it’s the case, but she could have struck a deal with Harlow thinking he could get whoever she’s hiding from off her back.”
“We should probably get the tags scanned, just in case, see if any prints pop up other than Maddie, Sawyer, and Gia,” Effie suggests, and we all nod.
“Can you take care of that?” Isaiah asks me.
“Sure.”
“Micah, we’ve been approached by a tech company in Palo Alto. I want you to meet with them next week.” Zee’s back to business as usual, gesturing for Micah to follow him. “Let’s sit in my office.”
Micah stands and grins at me, opening his mouth to speak, but one glare from Effie, and he shuts his trap, following Zee out.
“If I ask you if everything’s okay, will you answer me this time?” Effie asks, and I look down at the two halves of Sawyer’s tags, my mind blank but somehow still chaotic.
“Can you even imagine loving someone that much?” I lift my gaze, only to be captivated by those sapphire eyes again.
There’s a moment of silence overflowing with a million questions and unspoken words before Effie answers. “I don’t think it’s something you canimagine, Joe. I think it’s one of those things you justfeel, you know?”
Another long stretch of that heavy silence before it becomes a bit too much for me to handle. “I should get this to the lab.”
“Okay, I’m here if you need to talk.” Effie offers a smile and stands, and once again, I’m surprised by how vividly I feel the loss of our connection.
“As part of your VP duties?” I raise an eyebrow, and Effie shakes her head with a small smile playing on her full lips.
“No, just as your friend this time, Joe.” Then she frowns and looks at me, her teeth wearing into her bottom lip before she resolves to speak her mind. “We are friends, right?”
“I wouldn’t allow myself to tease you like I do if we weren’t.”
She smiles and nods, seeming satisfied at my reply as she squeezes my shoulder on her way out of the boardroom.
“Yep.” I look back down at the tags in my palm, aligning the halves and staring at the tags of Commander Sawyer Abernathy, still alive, location unknown. “Just friends.”
3
JONAH
The fingerprint padflashes green under my hand, and the doors to Peak HQ slide open. I walk straight toward Effie’s office. As I make my way past Diva’s desk in the middle of the executive suites, I can feel her eyes on me.
