Page 35 of Craved By You
Something was wrong.
The tracker had shown her remaining stationary in the alley for several minutes. She only had six percent of her phone battery left before I would completely lose her so I was grateful that my place was barely outside of town.
Fear started to take over, and a feeling I hadn't felt in years resurfaced; a feeling I hadn't experienced since I found my mother…dead.
I hated how things played out, that I didn’t let my private life remain just that: private. Astrid didn’t deserve a piece of shit like me and more importantly, I didn’t deserve her. I was a horrible person with a past that was sure to catch up to me, especially now. Now that she knows my secret. I deserve it. I hoped shedidgo to the police to turn me in, then all of this could be over and I can spend the rest of my life behind bars like I deserve.
Not because of the fact that I had killed people, they deserved it for everything they had done, but because I did the one thing I had promised that I would never do.??I hurt her.
Now, she was in trouble which she wouldn’t have been if it weren’t for me. I slammed my hands into the steering wheel as I hit the accelerator, getting closer to where the tracker showed her location last.
Ryder needed to work on his programming. I wasn’t sure what Astrid had touched on her phone to make the entire system glitch out the way it did but it shouldn’t have drained her batterythatfast. What if I hadn’t noticed her leave out the back door? What if there wasn’t hope for me to find her, now? She could be…
I refused to continue thinking so negatively. I glanced down at my phone and noticed that the alley in question was about a block away. I parked my car and cut the lights, giving myself plenty of distance between us so that no one would notice me. Quietly, I got out of the car and pushed it closed with my hip.
I took a hit of my vape, releasing the vapors into the air. I thought of Astrid when we first started talking and how she told me that this shit would kill me. She was right. I had done well at cutting back but had yet to stop completely and this situation was proving stressful enough that, until I knew she was safe, it was going to be me and my vape against the world.
The sun was starting to peak over the horizon, casting enough light that I was able to see just up ahead where a man was loitering just outside the entry of where I believed Astrid to be.
“Hey, what’s going on bro?” I spoke quietly so as not to draw too much attention, but the guy seemed nervous andstandoffish. The alley was still dark but as soon as I heard the smack followed by a muffled whimper, I knew it was her.
I shoved the man back as he tried to stop me and the person who I assumed had just smacked Astrid was still squatting on the ground in front of her. I grasped him by his throat and pulled him back to his feet, slamming him into the brick wall. “What the fuck?” I yelled into his face, pissed, and ready to kill. “You touch her like that again and I will gut you, do you understand?
A quiet stream could be heard beneath our breaths and I knew that this pussy had just pissed himself. He could be big and bad mistreating a woman, but as soon as someone else got involved, he retreated into his turtle shell. “Do I make myself clear?”
“Who the fuck do you think you are?” He caught a second wind and apparently grew some balls. My hand immediately found its way to his throat, and I wanted nothing more than to rip out his insides.
“I’m The Reaper,” I said confidently. “And as soon as I let go of you I am giving you two seconds to get out of here before I take your last breath.” My grip on him tightened and I could hear him start to gurgle.
“Colt?” I heard Astrid trying to whisper but the sound was so small it was almost inaudible. She sounded so scared and weak. I hoped she wasn’t too injured.
I glanced around to get a feel of my surroundings. The rest of this drunken fool’s friends had already taken off to save their own lives and it made me feel better that I wasn’t at risk of being jumped. If I didn’t know any better I would say that they were even bigger pussies than he was.
“He’s not worth it,” I heard Astrid plead, begging me to release this cocksucker back out into the world so that he could do this to someone else. I would never be able to forgive myself. I spent a few moments standing there in silence, taking note of all his features, but most notably was the Hellfire Club tattoo on his right forearm.
My grip on him lessened and we stared into each other’s eyes for a few seconds. “What’s your name?” I asked him.
“C- Carter,” he stuttered over his own name.
“Well, Carter. I’m sure I’ll be seeing you again. Very soon.” His eyes widened like he had already seen death knocking on his door. “Now, run.” I snipped at him and watched him take off running in the opposite direction.
Once he was gone and I was sure we were safe, I rushed over to Astrid.As I grasped her cheeks in my hand, she winced in pain. “He hurt you.” I was concerned about what else he might have tried to do.
“I was already hurt,” Astrid retorted and I realized she was referring to what had happened hours previously.
I glanced down at my phone and noticed the time. “Let’s get you home and cleaned up. I’ll brew some coffee and then we can just… talk and clear the air.”
Astrid sighed. “I’m not sure how you can clear the air about kidnapping and murdering people, but sure. Entertain me.”
I helped her to her feet and carried her back to my car. Once she was buckled, I proceeded to drive her home - to her home - and helped her get cleaned up.
“Now, please, let me explain everything before you say anything.”
Chapter 23
Astrid
There was a part of me that briefly thought about entertaining the idea of hearing Colt out. However, I wasn’t sure how I would ever be able to look past his desire for human flesh, no matter what he said. Whether his victims deserved it or not. I stepped out of the shower and grabbed the towel that he had left hanging up for me. I dried off and turned to find Colt standing in the doorway, holding a cup of steaming coffee.
