Chapter 63
KAIDEN
After a day of searching Blackmore for any trace of Aaron—the cemetery, the asylum, the motel, the woods behind the school—by dinnertime, we retreat to Vinny’s house to get some food and rest so we can start again the next morning, maybe hop to the next town and check there too.
We decide we don’t want to head across the country to California until we know, without a doubt, that Aaron really did leave Blackmore.
It isn’t like he would’ve been able to transport Sage across state lines without raising some flags, so we’re half-convinced that he’s stashing her somewhere here in town.
We just need to figure out where.
There’s a plain cardboard box on the doorstep when we get to Vinny’s house, our names written on the top in thick black marker.
I rip the tape off the top as soon as we’re shut inside Vinny’s living room, the box resting on the coffee table.
The box is larger than necessary, because inside, there’re only a few single polaroids sitting loosely at the bottom. Grabbing them, I hold them up so Becks and Vinny can see them clearly as well.
The first is a shot of Sage’s face, her eyes shut and her nose bleeding, a hand grabbing her jaw to hold her head up straight.
“It’s her,” Becks breathes, his hand digging into my forearm. “It’s Sage.”
I flip to the next photo, which is Sage lying on her stomach completely naked, the same hand holding down the back of her head, so her face is pressing into the mattress.
Nausea spirals through me, making me want to scream.
The third photo is Sage on her back, her blonde hair a mess on the pillow under her head, a hand around her throat and her face blooming with reds and purples.
I crumple that photo in my hand and stand up, not wanting to see the rest. “Let’s go. We’re going to find her.”
“Where? We’ve looked everywhere, Kai!” Vinny says, grabbing my arm as I start to move toward the door.
A renewed sense of urgency rushes through me, though. Now that I have concrete proof that my girl is alive, it’s like the surge of panic makes me think clearer, and pieces start to come together in my mind.
“I have an idea,” I say, looking at my brothers. “We need to check Juliet’s house.”