Page 68 of The Eleventh Hour

“When was the last time anyone saw her?”

“Oh, it was the day before the night I found Louis in the streets. I remember her giving me my cookbook back. She was worried Cecil would destroy it. She was the kindest woman, a real gentle soul.”

I sigh with regret. “One more question. How did Cecil die?”

“He slipped in the tub. It was a horrible mess. Managed to break his mirror and cut his throat. Couldn’t have happened to a nicer person.” She snorts a laugh. “The police had that case closed faster than you could say good riddance.”I swallow thickly. I barely remember saying goodbye or walking out, but then we are in the car, and I ask Dane on autopilot to pull over so I can throw up all I just found out.

Jax

Iturn a deaf ear to Rafael’s protests and go home. It feels weird being in the house alone. With a weird disconnect, I stand near my island and stare through my bedroom doorway at the bed. I should pull my phone out and check it, look at the time. Perhaps I have time, maybe. I wrestle with the idea, and then just decide to do it. Wriggling down on the floor and sliding under the bed takes a moment. I shift the wood aside and stick my fingers in.

My phone is gone. I check my pockets, but all I have is the phone Dad gave me. My hidden one is gone. My heart thuds and then gallops. I know I left it in there.

My body turns icy. I push myself up, forgetting I’m half under my bed. My back aches from where I just slammed it against the wood, but I scurry backwards and shove the bed as hard as I can. The spot clears, and I slide across the floor on my knees and look into the hole. Nothing.

I reach in again like that will make it appear.

“No. No.”

I repeat the words, and then get up and rush to my closet.

“I could run. I can run and go, just leave everything behind. That’s still a choice!”

I open it and bend to reach for my go-bag, but it’s gone. My bag is gone. All my identification, spare money, clothes. It’s all gone. There’s a single piece of paper with printed words on it. I stare at those words until they make sense.

Bad girl

“FUCK YOU!” I scream. I stand up, grab my coat, and stomp my way down into the early evening air.

I don’t care who he thinks he is. If he thinks that will stop me from doing anything, he’s fucking wrong! Asshole.

The car I boost is a piece of shit and doesn’t like sitting on the speed I’m trying to hit. I drive erratically, furiously cursing the whole time. Five years of nothing, no excitement, no men, no kissing, no touching, no drama, no fucking bodies, and now, now it all blows up?

And this random freak takes my stuff and stops me from leaving?

When the car suddenly swerves onto gravel, I finally feel the tightness in my chest start to ease. I park the car and get out of it in one smooth, slinky move. I poke my finger into the darkness around me and growl.

“And you, what the hell was that in the basement?” I thunder.

Gideon walks slowly through the trees, weaving to and fro, seemingly ignoring me.

“How dare you try to hurt them, intimidate me into doing what you want?”

He snarls, and I can hear it clear as day.

“Don’t freaking snarl at me, either,” I snap. “You don’t exist. You are a psychotic piece of my broken mind. That means you don’t get to go rogue. And how can you even hurt real people? I’m losing it. I’m finally really going too deep in my mind. This is crazy. Oh, my god, I’m going to end up back in the room. Maybe I’m already there.”

The unfiltered bolt of fear makes my knees weak.

I turn to keep him in sight, ignoring the other flickers of shadows. Nothing is as threatening as Gideon, and I don’t care how mad we are at each other. He won’t let anyone hurt me, even me.

“Fall in line, G,” I shout, knowing it will piss him off.

And that does it.

I know as soon as I’ve said it I’ve made a mistake. He explodes across the clearing, his long legs closing the distance. I hold my ground, tilting my head up to glare where the darker spots that would be his eyes are. His fingers close around my throat, and he tugs me against his chest, hard.

I slap at his arm, but he just bends closer until we are face-to-face. I fall into stillness. Mesmerised by what I’m seeing. Suddenly everything is melting away, the fear, the rage, the helplessness, all of it’s replaced by this tiny detail that just blooms in my mind.