BETH
It shouldn’t have been a surprise, what Stephanie said. Rafe carried a gun, why would I think he hadn’t used it? Of course he’d used it. To kill people. He’d been shot at. Hell, I’d been shot at!
My body screamed for his touch, but my mind finally began to wake up from the lust haze he’d put me in. As he drove the car back to my house I started to think over what Stephanie said.
“Beth, don’t let her get you worried. She’s had shit luck; I can’t deny that but—”
“How many men have you killed?” I blurted out before the question could go through my mental filtration system.
He glanced at me briefly, the street lights illuminating his face well enough for me to see he didn’t like the question. “Don’t go down that road, babe.” He shook his head.
“Why not? Scared of what I’ll find, or ashamed of what you know is there?” I shot back at him. Not so long ago I had his arms around me, making me feel like nothing in the world could touch me. That being with him was a complete shield from the horrors of the world.
“Beth.” His warning went unheeded.
“That many, huh? Lost count?”
“I never said I was a good man.” His voice darkened as he turned down my street. I could see my house come into view, the front Living room lamp lit up the window.
“That’s right, you never did.” I gave him that much credit. “But you never told me you were a murderer either.”
“I never murdered a single fucking person. I may have done shit that most guys don’t have to do in their lifetime, but I never fucking pulled the trigger on anyone who didn’t have it coming or wasn’t trying to take what was mine.” His fingers tightened around the wheel. A small tick in his jaw signaled me we were headed down a dangerous path.
The car stopped in my driveway and he jerked the shift into park and turned on me. Putting his hand on the back of my seat, his dark eyes fixated on me in a way that sent a shiver down my spine. “Rafe, you can’t deny that killing someone is murder,” I said softly, but with more force than I thought I could have mustered given his glare.
“I can and I do. What I do for the club has nothing to do with us.”
“I wonder how many times Jason told that same line to Stephanie. And now look, she’s alone.”
“She’s not alone. She has a fucking family, the whole goddamn club would be at her door if she only asked for them, but she’s turning her back on them. She did the same thing when Christian died, she turned away never came back. Now she won’t even open the door for our fucking president.”
“Your president who apparently lied about how Christian was killed.” My voice rose higher. My own anger and fear built up to where I couldn’t hold it inside anymore.
“I will deal with that.” He shook his head.
“Yeah, you should do that. Go after the killers, get yourself shot, get me killed and maybe Maddie too!” I screamed the last bit, just before a sob broke free from me. My little girl. I shoved the door to the car open and jumped out.
I heard him do the same, heard the door slam behind me but the tears in my eyes made me keep moving. I didn’t want to face him. Not when my emotions were pulling me away from him. I knew in my head he was no good, but I kept finding a way to justify being with him. I kept telling myself that as soon as he found the killers things would be normal. I wouldn’t have to worry.
But that was all a lie.
I jammed my key into my doorknob and shoved it open, hoping to shut it before Rafe got to me, but of course his mammoth of a body moved faster than it should and he was already in the house before I could slam the door in his face.
Turning to demand he leave, I realized only the front light was on. The kitchen was dark and Maddie’s bedroom door was open, lights off. Where were they?
“Beth.”
“Not now.” I shoved past him and ran to Maddie’s room. The bed was empty. Thinking Mrs. Olsen took her back to her house after they had gone out for dinner, I moved past him and through the door. He followed me, calling my name, but I ignored him. Something wasn’t right.
My gut twisted when I saw the lights out at Mrs. Olsen’s house. She wouldn’t have gone to bed if she was expecting me to pick Maddie up. Rafe must have picked up on my fear because he rushed a head of me and knocked on the door, ringing the bell over and over again until the overhead porch light flickered to life.
Mrs. Olsen opened the door with wide eyes and messed up hair, hugging her robe around herself. It was obvious we’d woken her.
“Where’s Maddie?” Rafe demanded, pulling the screen door open.
She shook her head and tucked some of her curls behind her ear. “Not here. Your friend picked her up. She said you sent her because you would be later than you thought.”
“Friend? What friend.” My stomach twisted into a knot.
“One of the twins. Brittany. No, Chrissy.” Her face scrunched up in thought. “I’m not sure, the one with the purple in her hair.”
“Brittany.” I let out a heavy breath. “Okay, if she has her, she’s okay.” I pulled out my phone. Why the hell would Brittany come for her? She never babysat for her and she’d never really been alone with Madison before.
“Was anyone else with her?” Rafe asked the question while I started dialing the phone.
“No, I don’t think so.” She shook her head. “But I couldn’t see so well, her car was parked on the street, the lights were off.”
The phone was ringing but she wasn’t answering.
“How long ago did she pick Maddie up?” Rafe continued his questions.
“Oh, two hours ago or so.” She looked to me with concern in her eyes. “Is everything okay? I’ve met Brittany lots of times, and Maddie seemed excited to go with her. I should have called you.”
“No, it’s okay, Mrs. Olsen. I’m sure she’s fine,” I tried to convince her, but really I needed the convincing. The call went to voicemail, and I left a message.
“Thanks, Mrs. Olsen.” Rafe let go of the screen door. “We’ll see you tomorrow.” He sounded confident and I tried to steal some of that from him, but the ache in my stomach wasn’t going away.
I sent three texts.
“Is Brittany seeing anyone?” Rafe asked me as we walked back into my house.
“Off and on. I know she was seeing some guy in your club a little while back.”
“Who?”
“I don’t’ know.” I typed out another message, but one came in before I could get it out.
I got her. Don’t worry. Just do what he says and it will be fine.
Rafe yanked the phone from me, probably because my mouth dropped open. Nothing worse than your child going missing could happen to a mother. Well, there was worse, but my brain wouldn’t let me go there. Not yet. Not ever.
Reading the text, he cursed and pulled out his own phone. He started to dial but I slapped the phone from his hand. “Get out!” I yelled.
“Beth—” His eyes went wide, his hands splayed out in front of me.
“Fuck, she was right! Not twenty minutes after she warns me about you, my world collapses!” I fisted my hands flying at him. He grabbed my wrists before I could do any real damage. Not that my little fists would do anything to the broad muscular chest of his.
“Beth, wait. Calm down.”
I twisted in his grasp, trying to get free. When I kicked my foot out and managed to land a good hit to his shin he dropped my wrists. Pointed heals will have that effect on people.
“Get the fuck out!” I shoved him. “Get out of here! This is your fault. This is because of you! I know it!”
“Beth, Brittany has her, but I doubt she took her for herself. We have to find out who Brittany is with.” His face contorted somewhere between anger and worry.
“Get out! Whoever is behind this wants you! So get out!” I shoved him gain, trying to push him to the door.
He wrestled my hands off of him and looked down at me with wide eyes. “Fine! I’ll go look for her, you stay here. Keep your phone on. Don’t go out, do you get me, Beth, do not leave this house until I get back.”
“Fuck you,” I whispered, and his face fell; he let go of me. “Just go.”
He opened the door, letting the sounds of crickets calling for their mates into the room. “Stay inside this house.” His voice was flat, his eyes blank. I didn’t answer him. There was no need, because he shut the door.
Moments later I heard his bike roar to life and the sounds of him riding it down the street fade. Tears fell down my cheeks, and my chest felt heavy, as though a sumo wrestler sat on me. I sunk into the chair in my kitchen, holding my phone with Brittany’s text glaring up at me.
Where was my little girl?