Page 8 of Shattered Trinket

So much.

I miss our talks, but it’s him I miss the most.

I miss his wild jasmine and gunpowder scent, and how others got the stony demeanor, but when it was just us, he could let that mask drop and just be himself. I think what I found so appealing about his scent is that it’s honest. And so is Jeremiah.

He never hid his bad side from me. Never tried to pull the wool over my eyes about what he’s done or will do for survival.

How do you miss someone so much when you only know such a minimal amount about them?

I ponder that question as sleep finally takes hold, and my Ghost haunts my dreams.

Three

Jeremiah

The burner phone in my back pocket vibrates as I walk out to the old gray truck I’d bought from an older beta gentleman I met on my way out of the city after my showdown with Victor.

It wasn’t easy getting out of that one, but I’m nothing if not resourceful when it comes to life and death.

I pull the burner from my pocket, seeing an unknown caller ID flashing across the tiny screen when I flip it open. I answer just as it’s about to send the caller to voicemail, saying nothing as I hold the phone to my ear.

“Victor Travis is dead,” a tinny voice says quietly after several silent seconds, and my gut clenches.

It’s been over two months since I had to leave Cozette behind, and not a day has passed without her being on my mind. The worry I’ve felt over not being able to see her with my own eyes to know she’s okay has had me in a chokehold. I haven’t heard shit from my contacts since I left, and I hate nothing more than being left in the fucking dark.

I’ve felt like a coward since the day I disappeared, despite knowing there was nothing I could do at that moment. Victor was always a sly bastard, and he always made sure his visitors left their weapons at the door before conducting business. I could have taken the gun from him easily if Cozy hadn’t been right there, chained at his feet, staring up at me with wide, fearful cornflower blue eyes. When she shed a tear for me, that’s when I knew I’d have to leave and pray I’d make it back in time for her.

I’d do anything for Cozette, even if it meant turning my back on her to keep myself alive long enough to come up with a plan.

It never should have taken me this long, but the minute I disappeared from Victor’s sight, there was a price on my head. I’ve had to stay on the move to keep the bastards off my tail, but they’re never far behind me.

Until recently, I realize.

It’s been quiet for weeks since my run in with a particularly nasty alpha that Victor was well acquainted with. Fucker almost sliced my godsdamn ear off before I put a bullet between his eyes.

He should have known better than to bring a damn knife to a gunfight,I think, still pissed that he’d gotten that close to me.

“And the omega?” I grit out with my heart in my throat as I wait to hear if she’s alive and safe or worse…dead.

The person on the other end responds, and I deflate hearing that she’s alive, leaning against the driver’s side door of the truck. My forehead rests against the window as I close my eyes, giving myself a moment to let the relief I’m feeling wash over me before I regain my composure.

“Where is she?” I growl down the line, jerking the driver door open and slamming it behind me as I get in.

“She was at St. Catherine’s until today. She left with two omegas and a beta. I lost them after they left the hospital, though.”

My brow furrows as I try to think of who she could have possibly left with. As far as I’m aware, she doesn’t have any family left and I know for a fact she doesn’t have friends, thanks to Victor. Unless she’s made some since his death.

But who could she get close enough to in such a short time that she’d feel safe enough to leave with them after being discharged from the hospital?

I ask for descriptions and when I get them, my brows rise nearly to my hairline.

How the hell did Cozette meet the omega Victor had hired me to get for him?

I end the call and sit back in my seat, closing my eyes as I lean my head back against the headrest.

I’d had the chance to take the omega in that grocery store parking lot, but something stopped me. Told me to wait, to watch and see.

My conscience? If I even still have one after everything I’ve done.