Page 168 of Buried in Blood
“She’s local.”
I slam the heel of my palm into the desk hard enough to send the laptop skidding across it. The screen flashes static before going black.
Reese stands in the corner of the room like a shadow that grew teeth. His jaw ticks. He doesn’t flinch.
“She went to her friends,” I hiss. “Shehadto.”
He nods once. “Astra.”
“Of course, Astra. Who else would welcome a traitor with open arms and herbal tea?”
Reese says nothing.
I pace the length of the room, eyes flicking from the security feed on the wall to the stack of burner phone data laid out like tarot cards across the table. The motel camera caught nothing. No exit. No movement. She just… vanished.
And now my skin itches like it’s trying to crawl away from my bones.
“She took a coat,” I mutter. “She took her time.”
“She took the gun,” Reese adds, watching me closely.
I snap my head toward him. “You let her keep it.”
“You told me to let herrun.”
I walk toward him slowly. Deliberately. “Did I sayarmher?”
“You said protect her.”
“I said make it lookreal.” I snarl, grabbing his collar. “You were supposed to let her shoot me. Bleed a little. Fall down. Let her believe she had a chance.”
“I did.”
“Not enough,” I growl. “She’s still out there breathing.”
Reese rips himself free, eyes cold. “And you’re still alive because of me.”
That stalls me. Just a second.
But enough.
I exhale, step back. Smooth my shirt like I didn’t just come inches from fracturing the only loyalty I have left.
“She’ll go quiet soon,” I say. “She’s bleeding. Bruised. Terrified. That kind of fear doesn’t disappear—it festers. It makes mistakes.”
Reese crosses his arms. “You want me to stake out Astra’s place?”
“No.” I tap my temple. “Too obvious. She’ll know we’re watching.”
“Then what?”
I look toward the window. The sun is setting behind the hills, casting long shadows over the lawn. I imagine her in one of them—watching, listening, waiting for a sign.
“She’ll want closure,” I whisper. “That’s what girls like her always want.”
“Closure?”
“She’ll come back. Tosomeone. To confess. To burn a bridge just to make it feel like she had control.”
