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Harry is the financial guy who tells Chad what to do with his money.

I shake my head once more. “I…”

“Kate, I’ll just say it,” Mary Beth says. “We’re thinking about putting you somewhere for a while. Some kind of treatment center.”

“No,” I blurt out.

“Okay, hold on,” Chad says, putting his hands out. “That’s an option, yes. I wanted to make sure you didn’t feel pressured. Or scared. Or threatened. So what about a really long weekend somewhere? Get out of this house and this town. A nice hotel. You’ll be by yourself. You can actually relax.” Chad steps toward me. “Kate, I’m terrified right now. I’m not even sure putting you in a hotel is smart.”

“It’s not,” Mary Beth says. “She needs actual help.”

“I need the hotel!” I blurt out. I shut my eyes. “I need… to be away from here. From everything.” I open my eyes. “I need to be away from my life.”

My chin quivers.

I stare at Chad.

That’s probably the most honest thing I’ve said to him in months.

Chapter 40

Corbin

I knowwhere Axel likes toplay.

Where he hangs out, drinks, fucks women who want nothing more than their nightly fix.

Suck his cock and he’ll feed your veins.

I’m not here to judge the decision making of junkies or whores.

I simply stand outside the door, the knife used on Mutt in my right hand.

And I wait.

To pass the time, I do the one thing that makes sense—I think about my Katie girl.

I’m not the kind of guy to obsess over days that have come and gone. Days that are under our feet and days that require you to stop and turn to appreciate.

You can’t worry about the past.

Ten years without my Katie girl.

I’ve only had her for a little while, so far.

It’s not enough. It’s never going to be enough. I’m never going to catch up to what I want and what I think and feel.

My phone vibrates with a text.

If it’s Mutt, he’ll keep driving me crazy until I respond.

To my surprise, it’s my Katie girl texting.

WE NEED TO TALK ASAP - SOMETHING BAD HAPPENED - I HAVE TO GO SOMEWHERE FOR A WHILE

“What the fuck is happening?” I growl.

Of course that’s when the front door to the rundown building opens.