Page 13 of Wanted
CHAPTER 5
Emery
I’m so frustrated by the time I get back to my motel room that I’m vibrating with it. No, I’m well past frustration at this point. I’m full-on angry.
The deep breathing exercises I’ve learned to do over the years to manage my anger aren’t helping as I pace back and forth in front of my bed.
Classy, civilized women don’t get angry.My mother’s words repeat in my mind. I hold on to them to do my best to tamp down on the sensation roaring through me.
That son of a b…almost hit me. I recall, however. Not only was I almost hit in that run-down, good-for-nothing bar, but then I was unceremoniously thrown out.
How dare that owner and his staff do that to me. I wonder if that’s how Ashley was treated when she went to that place.
That thought makes my heart sink.
My pacing comes to a halt. Despair replaces my bout of anger. Not one person in that bar even hinted at seeing Ashley in the last week. I couldn’t tell if any of them were lying because most people didn’t even look at the photo of my sister.
And that owner…
He didn’t bother asking me for her name. When I pressed and threatened him with the police is when he became the angriest, almost striking me.
He would have if that other guy hadn’t stepped in.
The other guy…
I noticed him the moment I was dragged into that office. But he only gave me a cursory glance. It wasn’t until that wretched owner almost hit me that I got a closer look at him. He was tall, towering over me and the owner, bronzed skin and immaculate square jaw and beautiful, long dark hair that fell over his shoulders.
He stopped that owner from attacking me, but paid me no attention. I wondered if he worked there as well?
With a shake of my head, I say out loud, “It doesn’t matter.” He’s probably as terrible as the rest of the people in that bar.
I push thoughts of him out of my mind. I undo the blanket and sheets on the bed. Right before tucking myself in for the night, I set my alarm to get up early. First thing tomorrow morning, I plan to go directly to the police station. They may not have taken me seriously last time, but this time I will make them.
I turn over on my side and sigh heavily. Even though it was something I was reluctant to do, I may also have to tell my parents that Ashley is missing. As of now, they still think she’s on vacation with her friends. But telling them the truth may be what I need to do. Especially if the police don’t take me seriously this time around.
My parents have a lot of connections in New York and may still have some in Florida where they used to live. We might need those connections to help find my sister.
Serious,intense copper eyes linger on me. They trap me in their sights leaving me breathless. I don’t mind the loss of oxygen as those penetrating orbs drink me in. The attention from those eyes is truly all I need to survive.
I can’t see the face of the person those eyes belong to, though.
“Who are you?” I say out loud, but it comes out as a whisper.
There’s no answer. The eyes blink and then I’m enveloped in darkness again.
“No,” I yell, sitting straight up.
It takes a few seconds and a number of deep inhales to realize I’ve startled myself awake in my motel room. I kick myself free of the blanket and work to steady my breathing and slow my heart rate.
Before I can, however, the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.
I’m not alone.
That one thought flashes across my mind before I see anything out of the ordinary. I reach for the light on the nightstand.
“Don’t,” a deep voice permeates the air, scaring the heck out of me.
I yelp, but then quickly clap my hands over my mouth. I turn toward the corner of the room and there he is. I can only make out the outlines of his long body as he quietly sits in the chair. He’s wedged it between the door and the desk.