Page 87 of Erik's Redemption
“But that’s not why I’m calling.” There was the usual tapping of keys over the line. “I found something on Clarence Burns.”
Erik straightened. “Tell me.”
“He had a lot of nieces and nephews because both he and his wife had a few siblings. I didn’t think anything of it, until I looked into Anne Burns’s hospital records. She had a fair few because of her alcohol addiction. And one of her nephews visited her a lot, particularly during a hospital stay shortly after Clarence died.”
“Hannah mentioned she thought her foster mother was home that night but was probably passed out. Though she could have seen what Hannah did and told her nephew.”
“That’s what I’m thinking. I’m sure that, because she was a drunk, law enforcement wouldn’t have believed anything she said. But if this kid cared enough about his aunt to visit her in the hospital—”
“He might have believed her.”
“Yep.”
“Who?”
“His name is Oden Menzes. He’s a mechanic from Everett.”
Erik’s entire world slowed, a darkness slipping over his vision. “A mechanic?”
“Yeah, I have a photo.” More typing sounded. “It’s old. He’s probably eighteen here, but it’s the best I could find.”
Erik pulse beat so fucking fast it was all he could feel as he pulled the phone from his ear and clicked into the image Chandler had texted.
Fear, panic, and fury rivaled inside him.
“Owen…” he whispered.
“What? Who’s Owen?”
The guy in the photo was younger, but it was Owen. Same eyes. Same shaggy brown hair.
“Call the police, Chandler.” His friend had a tracking device on Erik’s phone, so he would know where to send the cops. “Oden’s here with us right now!”
Then he was running, a million emotions spreading through his limbs, threatening to consume him as he pulled his Glock from its holster.
Hannah’s breathssawed hard and fast through her lungs as she ran down the hall. Fear tried to choke her. To buckle her knees and pull her to the floor. But she refused to let it.
Survive. That’s what she had to do. Survive long enough to get to Erik. He was armed. Trained.
And Henry—God, she needed to find Henry! There was no way he was measuring walls downstairs. Owen had done something to him, she knew it.
A sob tried to break free from her lips, but she choked it down.
She opened her mouth to call to Henry when an angry growl ripped through the air from behind. She shot a look over her shoulder, and her heart nearly stopped.
Owen ran toward her, knife in hand. Blood dripped down the left side of his head, and he staggered into the wall to his left, unsteady on his feet.
She instinctively screamed, “Help!”
But she knew it wasn’t loud enough for Erik to hear. The house was too big, and she was on the second floor. She had to get downstairs. Without stopping, she pulled out her phone to call Erik.
She reached the top of the stairs, her thumb hovering over his name, when Owen’s body slammed into hers from behind, sending her to the floor.
The impact stole her breath and had the cell flying from her fingers and tumbling down the stairs.
Before she could recover, he flipped her to her back. She started to scream before fingers wrapped around her throat.
Quickly, she grabbed one of his fingers, just like Erik had taught her, and pulled.
