Chapter 29
The next morning, Liz wakes to the sound of metal clanging together and Mikey’s horrendous singing.
She climbs out of bed, pulls Riley’s sweatpants back on and storms to the kitchen to figure out what the hell’s going on.
Liz just looks on in confusion as Mikey is singing around the kitchen while Riley is attempting to cook breakfast.
“What… the… Hell?” Liz says, pulling herself into one of the chairs.
“Riley!” Mikey shouts. “Will you buy this woman some god damn clothes so she isn’t stuck wearing yours again?” He walks over to the stove where Riley is trying to cook and slings an arm over his shoulder.
“Unless... you find it sexy when she wears them, kind of like how she thinks your mask is sexy?” he asks winking at Liz, giving her a thumbs up.
Riley stops what he’s doing and slowly turns his head to look at Liz, whose mouth now hangs open. Face frozen in shock at the audacity, especially in front of Riley.
“Michael!” she screams.
“Endearing!...She meant endearing,” he says, turning so he’s face to face with Riley.
“I should have killed you when I had the chance,” she mutters, cheeks heating. Knowing if she looks in the mirror right now her face will be bright red.
Riley laughs, shaking his head, and turns back to cooking.
Liz lays her head on the smooth countertop, too embarrassed to see either of them right now.
She just lies there, as Mikey and Riley dig out plates and start piling the food up, setting it all around her.
The delicious smells overpower her embarrassment.
She picks her head back up only to see Riley leaning on the opposite counter, arms crossed, watching her.
“So… my mask is sexy? That why you keep asking about it?” he asks, amber eyes lighting up at the sight of her cheeks flushing.
Liz lets out a loud groan, putting her head back down on the counter.
She thanks the gods when a loud buzzer goes off, drawing their attention from her.
Riley slides his phone out of his pocket and quickly looks at the screen.
A minute later, the elevator doors are opening and two large men step out into the living room.
Liz instantly recognizes the men from the night they killed her brother.
They walk over to the kitchen, and the bearded man, Alex, swipes a piece of bacon off the plate in front of Mikey.
“We need to talk,” Alex says before looking over to Liz and adding, “alone.”
The room goes silent, Mikey and Riley both look over to Liz, trying to gauge her reaction to the blatant disrespect. Already on edge from the events of the last twenty-four hours, Liz glares daggers at the man, not trying to hide how pissed she is they want her to leave.
“Here’s a wild fucking thought… You could just try asking,” Liz snaps, looking at him, waiting for a fight.
Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Riley tense like he’s waiting for her to lunge.
She slides out of the chair and storms to her room, slamming the door behind her.
She makes a mental note to apologize to Riley for her outburst.
Liz pushes her ear to the door, straining to hear what they are talking about.
“I can’t believe you brought her here. I thought killing her brother was going to be the end of your little infatuation,” Alex barks at Riley, grabbing a plate and loading it up with food.
Riley glares at him, quickly grabbing his own plate and filling it up before setting it aside. “She signed the papers, she’s officially part of the team, and the team gets use of the safe house” Mikey says.
“Part of the team or not, she may be putting everyone in danger,” Tyler says, stepping into the conversation, trying to keep the peace before Alex and Riley come to blows.
“How? Do you really need more fucking proof she’s the victim in this shit show?” he shouts.
“I’ve been thinking about something her brother said that night. He said they already knew where she was. That Dmitri will always be able to find her,” Tyler says to them, walking to the cabinet and taking out extra plates.
“What if she is telling him?” Alex snaps, eyes finding Riley.
“She’s been under constant supervision, and even if she wasn’t, Liz is not fucking working with him,” Riley shouts, stepping closer to Alex.
“Thats bullshit and you know it, Riley. She tried to kill one of ours and you just let her fuckin walk!” Alex shouts back.
“Enough, Alex,” Tyler says to his partner, stepping in between the men.
“That’s not what we came for… What if she’s being tracked?
Anywhere she goes, Dmitri and his men would be able to find her.
That could explain why the base got attacked after she left, our intel says they have been working on shit like that,” Tyler says.
“Okay, but what’s the point of tracking her? There’s no reason for them to care about where she is anymore,” Mikey says, thinking about everything they said.
“Regardless of reason, her brother was confident they would always be able to find her. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but I found something when I was trying to target where the missile was coming from,” Tyler says, walking to where he tossed a bag onto the floor, trying to pick his next words carefully.
He takes a charred paper from his bag along with a small glass vial and brings it over, sliding it across the island.
Riley looks at the picture, anger taking hold.
He keeps staring at the photo. Liz on his back, her arms wrapped tightly around him, her beautiful face nestled into his neck while he carries her down the trail.
Mikey picks up the vial, examining the small hunk of metal rattling around inside.
“Look, your feelings around her are going to cloud your judgment, Ry. I don’t believe she has done anything wrong, but, what if they did something to her while he held her captive.
Liz could be risking everyone without even knowing it,” he finally says.
“She’s going to get everyone killed! She needs to fucking go!” Alex snaps.
After hearing her name one too many times, Liz can’t help the anger building inside her. She rips the door open and storms back into the room.
“If you’re going to accuse me of shit, at least be man enough to say it to my fucking face!” she shouts, heading right for Alex.
Riley doesn’t let her make it far, his large arm wrapping around her waist as she storms past, lifting her feet off the ground like she’s a child trying to go somewhere she shouldn’t.
“Let me go,” she says through gritted teeth, staring at Alex across the room.
“Absolutely not. You’re not going to square up with a man twice your size, princess,” Riley says. His fingers splayed across her hip, tightening his grip on her narrow waist. He sets her down, steering her to the island chairs and forces her to sit.
“Well, then maybe he should have some fucking manners.” Liz sneers, staring daggers into the man. Riley lets her go and picks up the plate of food he had set aside and puts it in front of Liz.
“And you…” she says, turning her anger on Riley. “You keep saying you want me on the team, but you’re letting them kick me out and keep things from me.”
“You’re right,” he says, eying the men gathered around them.
Tyler gives him a small nod, agreeing she should know what they learned.
“Tyler and Alex have been thinking about something your brother said. They seem to think you’re being tracked,” he says, sliding the picture of them over to her.
She picks it up, smiling at how happy they look before the dread of what that photo means settles in her gut.
She looks up at Riley, eyes wide. He simply nods, confirming every horrid thought flashing through her mind.
“I need you to trust them as much as you trust me and Mikey. You need to tell us everything, and I do mean everything Dmitri and his men did to you.”