Page 66 of Thorned Vengeance

Before I go upstairs, I move through the kitchen to the living room. The only piece of furniture that remains on the first floor is a couch, and I recognize it as being the same one that was in the house all those years ago. I pull Kyle’s contact info out of my pocket and dial his number. Barely one ring registers before he answers.

“Hello.”

“Kyle?”

“Who is this?” he demands.

“We’re getting to that,” I assure him calmly. “I believe I have something that belongs to you.”

A string of curses comes through the line, and I grin.

Good. He’s rattled.

“If you hurt her, I swe?—”

“I’m gonna hurt her,” I assure him. “Unless, of course, you can get to her in time.”

“Tell me where you are, and I will,” he snarls.

“What fun would that be, Kyle?”

“How do you know my name?”

“Don’t worry about that. All that matters is that I do.”

“I wanna talk to Delaney,” he barks. “Put her on the phone.”

“You’re not in a position to be making demands!” I shout.

“Okay, okay.” He takes a deep breath. “At least tell me your name.”

“I believe the masses call me the Phantom Strangler.”

CHAPTER 32

THORN

“Dammit!”

I spin around toward Jez and Fort. As soon as I returned to the clubhouse, they put a trap and trace on my phone just in case.

“You didn’t get him?” I bark.

“Not his precise location,” Fort admits. “But he’s in Glendale, Arizona.”

“That’s my hometown.”

“Any idea why he’d take Delaney there?” Soul asks.

“To fuck with me,” I reply sardonically. “Shit, Pres, I don’t—” My phone rings, and I glance at the screen. Groaning, I answer. “Mom, this isn’t a good time.”

“Sorry, honey, but I wanted to let you know that a friend of yours stopped by the house earlier.”

My blood runs cold. “Who, Mom?”

“Shawn something,” she says. “Shawn, Shawn… Williams. Shawn Williams.”

I search my brain for the name, and when it registers, rage slithers through me like a Black Mamba ready to burst from a basket.