Total pages in book: 112
Estimated words: 105709 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 352(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105709 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 352(@300wpm)
She flinches, making me feel instantly like shit. Great. I need to chill the fuck out before this turns into a fight and I end up fucking my reasoning into her instead of talking.
“Speak, and don’t leave out any details.”
Shit. Suddenly, words fail me, and I reach into my pocket and pluck out a cigarette. It’s I smoke this, or I rip her clothes off, but something’s gotta calm my shit down first.
Smoke fills my lungs, and I feel the tension slowly uncurl through my muscles.
“When I was at Vanguard—” I start. Stop. “There were rumours. About Triple Zero. About what happened to people who crossed him.”
“And?”
“And every story ended the same way.” I pause. “With bodies that couldn't be identified. With families that disappeared. With entire operations wiped off the map overnight.”
“Are you trying to scare me?”
“No.” I reach for her hand. She doesn't pull away. “I'm trying to make you understand that this isn't like other enemies. This isn't something we can fight head-on and win, but I need you to understand this before I move on.”
She nods, and I continue. I tell her everything that Beast did, including Beast’s thoughts on it all. I watch as emotions cross her face in waves.
We sit there for a long time, the silence stretching out, heavy and suffocating. Neither of us speaking.
Finally, she pulls back, her movements slow, deliberate. She wipes her eyes with the back of her hand, smearing the evidence of her breakdown, though the rawness still lingers in the hollows of her face.
“The fact that they kept her alive,” she says slowly, her voice rough, like she’s dragging the words up from somewhere deep and broken. “You really think that means something?”
“Yeah, we do, and we think that something is Vanguard. She’s being delivered to them.” I stand, the ache in my knees reminding me how long we’ve been out here.
“That’s bad, though! Jada told me what happens there!” Melissa’s eyes widen, as if remembering all the details.
“Hey!” My fingers curl around her chin. “Part of this life, is sometimes, we have to let shit play out. It’s how we survive. We choose our battles, and this one, isn’t one we can take on overnight. Millie’s smart, right?”
Melissa’s eyes land on mine, glassy, soft. She nods. “Yes, but she’s not tough.”
I smile, but it’s heavy. “Babe, Vanguard don’t need you to be strong. They train that. They’re more interested in this—” I tap at her head, and her hand flies to mine. I think she’s about to shove me away, but she brings it to her lips and kisses my knuckles. My entire fucking chest caves in. The power this one woman has over me is fucking criminal.
“I’m sorry,” she whispers, her voice rough. “I don’t really hate you.”
My mouth twitches. “Sure you do, that’s the fun of it.”
Tugging her up to her feet, my other arm locks around her waist as I pull her into my chest. “I know this is gonna be hard for you. I know you want to know all the answers and I appreciate you not busting our balls about it. Shows your knowledge about this world is a lot better than I gave you credit for, but baby?” I brush the loose strands of her hair behind her ear. “If you even think about going rogue or putting yourself in danger?” I flash my teeth in what’s meant to be a smile, but I’m sure it looks more feral.
My fingers move over her throat gently. “I’ll slap a collar on this pretty little throat so fast you won’t even realize it’s collared to my cut until you try to run.”
Her eyes widen. “You guys do that?”
I shrug, tucking her under my arm and kissing her head. “I mean, there are legends…”
“No more fucking legends!” she melts into my side and we make our way back downstairs. Did I know what was going to happen going forward? No. Was I sure that Millie would make it out of whatever is happening to her?
Yeah, fuck yeah I did.
Forty
Melissa
Two months.
Sixty-three days since they took Millie.
Sixty-three nights of pretending everything's fine when Olive asks where her aunt is.
“She got a new job, baby. Far away. But she'll be back soon.”
It wasn’t exactly a lie, if I take Hella’s word, but it still didn’t feel good to say it.
My phone buzzes against the counter. I wipe my hands on my apron before checking the screen.
Need you and Olive in Tāwaha tomorrow. Have something to show you.
My chest tightens. We haven't seen each other for almost a week. The longest stretch since—since everything fell apart.
What kind of something?
The good kind. Trust me.
What time?
Noon. I'll text you the address.
Okay.
I set the phone down, staring at it for a moment. The dough blurs in front of me. I blink hard. Force the tears back down where they belong.