Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 77051 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 385(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77051 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 385(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
“That’s what we’re working on,” Arrow says.
“But we need something solid,” Juno adds. “We need you, Riv.”
“I was with him all night,” I say again, the words tumbling out. “We didn’t leave Riverside. Not once.”
Knight looks at Arrow. “That’s not gonna be enough. The cops will say you’re covering for him. Alibi bias.”
I blink. “No. No, they can’t just ignore me. I’m not lying.”
Arrow’s expression softens. “We believe you. We know he didn’t do it. But we need independent verification. Something they can’t refute.”
I straighten, a sudden burst of hope flooding my chest.
“The cameras,” I whisper.
Lark leans forward. “What cameras?”
“In Riverside,” I say, standing now, adrenaline kicking in. “The guys put up cameras. If Gage and I were inside all night. We can prove it.”
Knight’s already pulling out his phone. “I’ll get on the footage.”
I stop him. “Uh, there’s some…” I don’t even know how to finish my thought. Of telling Knight that Gage and I were doing very indecent things to each other last night.
Knight holds up a hand, stopping me. “Don’t worry, I’ll blur it all before we give it to the cops.”
I breathe a sigh of relief.
“I’ll get the security team at Maddox Security to prep a secondary server to host the evidence,” Arrow says, tapping away at his phone. “That way we can submit it to the precinct directly. They’ll have no excuse not to clear him.”
Lark moves beside me and squeezes my arm. “We’re gonna get him out.”
An hour later, I’m staring at video playback of the Riverside safe house.
It’s clear as day. Timestamps. Us. Alone. Never leaving. Not once.
Just two people curled up in an apartment that has become the only place I feel safe.
I hit pause.
“There,” I say, my finger shaking as I point to the timestamp. “He didn’t do this.”
Arrow nods. “Let’s package it. Get it on the record.”
“Do you think this will be enough?” I ask.
Knight stares at the screen. “It’ll raise enough doubt to get him released, at the very least. And we’ll use it to go after whoever sent the fake video.”
Arrow nods toward my laptop. “Can I borrow your rig for five minutes? I’ll scrub the metadata, layer in third-party verification, and route it to the department’s main line.”
“Yeah,” I whisper, stepping aside.
Lark stays close. “We’ll get him out,” she says again. “I swear.”
I nod, even though I’m holding back tears.
Because I’m not just scared.
I’m angry.
Whoever did this wanted Gage gone.
Which means they think I’m alone.
But they’ve made one critical mistake.
They underestimated what I’ll do to protect the man I love.
FORTY
GAGE
The metal door clicks open, and I step out into the cold morning air. The station reeks of stale coffee and even staler bullshit. My wrists are red from the cuffs, and my jaw still aches from clenching it too long.
Arrow’s waiting in the parking lot, leaned against his Jeep with two coffees in hand. He lifts one in a silent toast.
“Nice of you to drop by,” I mutter, my voice low and ragged.
“Couldn’t let Saint Pierce’s Most Wanted walk home,” he says, pushing the coffee into my hand. “Besides, you missed all the fun. River practically shoved the surveillance feed down their throats.”
I pause, stunned. “Wait… she did?”
He nods. “Yeah, she’s a keeper.”
“Damn. She saved my ass,” I say, exhaling.
Arrow doesn’t answer immediately. He just opens the passenger door and waits for me to get in.
Once I’m seated, he glances over at me, something guarded in his eyes. “She’s worried about you, man.”
“She okay?”
“She was when I left. She and Lark were at your place. Juno said they were going back to River’s to grab some stuff.”
Something tightens in my chest. “You let her go back out there?”
Arrow bristles. “She wasn’t alone. Juno was with her.”
“That’s not the point, and you know it,” I snap, fingers white-knuckling the paper coffee cup. “After last night, you should’ve kept her locked down.”
“She’s not the locking-down type, Gage.”
I know that. God, I know it. But it doesn’t make it easier to sit still knowing she’s out there—after everything that’s happened.
We drive in silence for a few beats before Arrow mutters, “For what it’s worth, she cares about you.”
My throat tightens. “Good. Because I’m in love, man.”
Arrow chuckles dryly. “I know you are. Welcome to the club.”
I stare out the window as the city blurs past, my mind stuck on the way River looked last night—barefoot, sleepy, wrapped in nothing but one of my hoodies. She trusted me. She put her body and heart in my hands. And for a moment, the world didn’t feel so dangerous.
That illusion didn’t last.
We pull up to my place, and Arrow kills the engine. “She’s probably inside, curled up on your couch. Told Lark to keep an eye out.”
But the moment we step inside, the hair on the back of my neck stands up.
“River?” I call out.