Page 28 of Now or Never
“And you’d know that? We haven’t heard from them in months.”
“You were captive. We made plans without you because we didn’t know when you’d be back.” Amara paused. “They were the ones who went with Bruce to rescue Jax.”
Kenna didn’t want to hear how they’d left her in FBI custody and Ramon hadn’t been able to save her. “I was there. I know what happened.”
“They’re being wrongfully accused.”
“Then the evidence will bear out the truth of the matter.” Kenna squeezed the phone. “They won’t be convicted because there isn’t going to be a case. If they didn’t do it, there’s nothing for them to worry about it.”
“You know as well as I do that the truth means nothing to these people.”
Kenna had been in their facility so long she’d forgotten what the truth even was. Their tactics had turned her mind inside out. She closed her eyes, trying not to remember.
“They’ll get their pound of flesh one way or another.”
“I’m not getting involved.” She’d said it so many times it should be easier, but the words tasted sour on her tongue.
“You know what this is.”
“How could I? I’m not part of the organization.” No matter how much they’d tried to get her to come over to their side. She wanted to say she’d resisted. Stood strong. But life was never that cut-and-dried. She and her baby had survived—that’s what she had to remember. “They leave me alone, and I leave them alone. That was the deal.”
Too badDominatuswasn’t in the business of making deals.
“Kenna, your friends are going to die or spend their lives in prison. And those are the best-case scenarios. They’ll be scapegoats. Paraded through the media like they’re terrorists with no conscience.”
Kenna said nothing.
Amara didn’t stop. “Did you know an eight-year-old girl died? Her school bus wasn’t far from the limo when it blew. The bus flipped, and all three kids on board were tossed around. The driver and one girl died, and the other two are in the hospital.”
Kenna clenched her teeth and stared out the window, unsure what to say to resolve the question in her heart and mind. How to find some semblance of peace in the middle of all of this. She had far too many doubts. Maybe they were good, and meant she should make a change, but she couldn’t even tell that much. She had no light to guide her.
Amara sighed. “You can do something to help.”
Kenna managed to say, “I’m protecting this baby.”
“And in the meantime, what kind of world will she be born into?”
In the background, she heard a man’s voice.
She tapped the dash screen and ended the call.
Chapter Eleven
Four months ago – give or take
Kenna sat back from the toilet bowl, resting on the ice-cold tile floor. Clammy skin. Wearing thin gray sweats and a white long-sleeved T-shirt. She’d peeled off the sweater they gave her but needed it now. As she sat there, the skin on her forearms prickled. She rubbed the sweater sleeves, trying to friction some warmth back into her.
“Here.” The nurse—orderly—whoever he was—crouched and held out a paper cup. “It’s warm.”
She looked in the cup. “Water?”
“Hot water tastes good. But that’s just my opinion.” He knelt by her foot, smiling politely. As if he wanted to build a rapport with her. “Hopefully, it’ll help your stomach settle. If you want, I can ask if there’s anything that you could?—”
“I’m not taking drugs, so don’t bother. Some gum would be nice, though. Or candied ginger. Or a copy ofWhat to Expect When You’re Expecting. Access to a computer, a pairof headphones, a thriller novel to read, and a cheese stick. It doesn’t have to be in that order.”
He lifted his hands. Late twenties, shaved head, and some scruff on his chin. More suited to a military unit, or a back-alley gang. Maybe that was too harsh. He didn’t move like someone in the military would. “You know there’s zero point in me asking for that stuff.”
She shifted on the cold tile to lean her back against the shower door. “So…how’d you end up here?” Her tone wasn’t so conversational, as it was completely sarcastic.
