Page 171 of The Betrayal

It’s been nine days and nothing. Not a single sign that they’re even trying.

My hate isn’t with her. It’s with her cunt of a father and Xavier.

But spilt blood is still spilt.

I’m at the point where I don’t care who it comes from.

She goes to scream but I cover her mouth with my hand.

“Now, now, little Vixen, I need you to be quiet.” I smirk as I look down at her, and she fights against me with all she has, but she’ll never win.

Ever.

CHAPTER SIXTY-SEVEN

KEATON

I am going out of my mind. It’s been nine days. nine long, horrific, grueling, torturous days. We’ve had nothing else from Wolfe, and for some reason that scares me more. Nate is working day and night to try and find the missing piece. We need to work out where Wolfe has taken Arizona. We’ve replayed his steps, we even checked his laptop that he left in the hospital room, and there is nothing apart from his chats with Arizona when she used to be a cam girl.

He has left sloppy clues, but still nothing that will indicate where he has her hidden.

Xavier walked into the room with fresh coffees and food, placing them down on the large conference room table. But the thought of eating food makes my stomach turn. I can’t think of anything other than finding Arizona. I can’t sleep, I can’t eat, I don’t even feel like I can breathe without her. I inhale a sharp intake of breath and I feel the rattle deep within my chest, reminding me just how hollow it has become since Arizona was taken. I fear for my unborn babies lives, but I fear more for Arizona’s.

I can’t stand to be here anymore. I pace towards the elevator and Kaleb is hot on my heels.

“Where are you going?” he asks me, concern lacing his voice, and I let out a heavy sigh.

“I just need a moment,” I admit, as I press the button for the elevator and call it to our floor.

“Let me come with you, I don’t like the thought of you being out there alone.”

I want to protest and fight against him, but it’s pointless. Even if I said not to, Kaleb would still follow me. He always has and he always will at the end of the day. He is my big brother.

“I don’t have a choice, do I?” He lets out a soft chuckle, and I have no idea how we can even laugh at a time like this when I feel like my world is ending, I feel like my heart has obliterated in my chest, and there’s nothing more than dust, crumbling through the crevices. Once there was a full and strong beating heart, and now there is nothing left, but a few remains of what once was. Arizona was the reason my heart beat the way it did. She was the reason my heart beats so ferociously within my chest, making me feel things I have never felt before, but now, without her, I was empty, numb, a shadow of myself. My eyes were hollow. I was dead behind them, nothing left and all my soul has done since she disappeared is weep. Without her, I was dead.

I can only breathe with her, I am only able to live with her, I am only able to exist with her in my life because without her I am nothing.

We have walked for what feels forever. My tired and heavy feet beating against the sidewalk. The heavy rain is hitting my skin and it stings. But I don’t care. I would like to say it’s nice to feel something other than a shattering pain but I don’t feel anything, I am numb.

There is nothing that could make me feel any worse than how I am feeling now. My whole world has crumbled around me and it didn’t matter how much I tried to pick up the pieces and glue them back together, they would never look the same. I would never be whole again.

I had to learn to live with a broken world, a broken heart and a shattered soul.

The silence is comforting after being in an office for nine days, listening to voices constantly talking about what may have happened, or where she may be, and even worse what he has done to her. It was too much for my mind to comprehend. It was nice to have some silence, so I could gather my thoughts, but who was I kidding? My thoughts were dark and gloomy with a thunderous cloud hanging over me, but I have kind of gotten used to that now. I’ve got used to feeling how I have. She was my ray of light, and without her my world was gray.

I have no idea out of all the places in New York why my legs have taken me to the hospital where I dropped Arizona off. I didn’t want to be here, I didn’t want to be reminded of the last conversation that we had, where I broke her trust, and no doubt her heart but here we are. I’m standing outside, the rain is cascading over me and I’m taking it all in. I’m letting the rain wash every ounce of guilt that I feel away.

“Did you wanna go inside?” Kaleb asks me and I can see the concern all over his face. He’s worried about me. I know he has been here; I know he’ll be feeling the indescribable pain that is searing through my heart, but I don’t care how he felt. I don’t care that he has been through this. I don’t care that even Titus had been through this with Amora. Well, let’s be honest his situation was completely different to mine. He was still with her. Still got to watch her. Make sure she was safe because he was to never leave her side but me? I did leave her side, I walked away again. Instead of dealing with it, I ran away like a coward to lick my wounds when it wasn’t even my wounds that needed to be licked. I had to focus on her, but I was too childish to even do that.

Before I answer him, I walk up the steps and into the hospital. I don’t stop to talk to anyone, I just head for her room.

Fear cripples me as I step closer to where I left her ten days ago.

I made Kyra promise that she wouldn’t go to the police because we were working privately to find her. I just hoped she stuck to it.

Whispers echoed around the ward as I walk towards her room, my chest aches and I heave.

Kaleb rests his hand on my shoulder as we step into her room. Everything has been left where it was. The room has not been touched and it scares me.