Page 20 of Desperate Crimes
The scent of salt curls through the cracked window like a ghost slipping inside my jacket.
Briny. Wild.
Sharp enough to slice through the tension thrumming just beneath my skin.
We’re close now.
So close I can already feel it.
The land knows me. The cliffs hum with my pulse. The road curves like a secret, winding through pine and fog as we ascend into my kingdom—our kingdom now.
Just a few more minutes and we’ll be hidden away, locked in the estate I carved out with my own hands.
For her.
Every room tailored to her taste.
Every lock, every camera, every inch of the security system designed with them in mind—the ones who’ll come searching.
But they won’t find her.
I press the button on the dashboard.
The heavy, repurposed barn doors effectively disguise the steel behind them. It’s aesthetically pleasing, but security is always the reason behind my decisions.
This place is a fortress. It was designed for that reason. Everything works as it should, and there’s hardly any sound at all as the garage slides open. Just a low mechanical groan that I pick up because I’m listening for it. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be noticeable.
I step lightly on the gas, pulling into the parking space, and then I press the button again. Those same doors close quietly, swallowing us into the dark like the mouth of a beast.
Motion-sensor lights flicker to life—cold, sterile. Clean. Controlled.
Just the way I planned it.
I turn the engine off in the SUV, and I suck in a breath.
This is it. We’re here. Sealed inside together.
Locked.
Hidden.
Safe.
Then I sit still for a second, gripping the steering wheel until my knuckles ache.
And I continue to breathe.
Slow. Deep. Centered.
I’ve been waiting for this moment for so long it doesn’t feel real.
But she’s here.
In my orbit.
In my world.
And everything is about to change.
