Chapter 28
TWENTY-EIGHT
RODRIGO
The lodge faded in the rearview mirror, and I swallowed down the regret that clutched at my throat. I couldn’t think about the way I’d left Lily—not now. There was too much at stake, too many things to do.
I steered the ugly pink van down the mountain, my heart racing. It seemed to take forever to get to Lily’s house, and it felt as if every resident’s eyes were on me as I drove down Main Street. I heaved a sigh of relief as I finally turned into Lily’s driveway and parked the van inside the garage.
The blue sedan waited exactly where we’d left it. I hadn’t found anything on the man’s person when I searched him, so I hoped to hell that the keys were still in the ignition.
They were.
I gave the car a quick once-over, checking the backseat and trunk for anything that might later be tied to the man. Aside from a few fast food wrappers, the car was clean.
I popped the glovebox and pulled out the rental paperwork. Lily had told me the man went by “Storme,” a nickname he’d earned in the MC, but his real name was Oscar Mendoza. The paperwork revealed the renter’s name to be David Johnson.
The name was most certainly an alias, which worked perfectly in our favor. The rental agency would eventually report the car missing but, since Storme had rented the vehicle using a false name, there would be no way to tie him to Lily.
I slid into the driver’s seat, the heat of the interior swirling around me.
The engine turned over smoothly, and I backed out of the driveway.
Instead of turning toward Pine Ridge, I headed in the opposite direction.
I had no idea where it would lead me, but I figured I would know the place when I found it.
Darkness slowly settled over the land and a half hour later, I found exactly what I was looking for. The road stretched for several hundred yards before curving hard to the left, with a steep drop-off just beyond the shoulder. And, best of all… no guardrail.
I pulled to the side of the road and killed the headlights, letting the night close in around me. For a moment, I stayed inside the car, scanning the mirrors, listening. Nothing greeted me but the faint rustle of branches and the distant whisper of wind threading through the mountains.
Satisfied, I stepped out. The air was cooler here, biting at my lungs as I walked along the berm, my boots crunching softly against gravel and loose dirt. I scanned the ground in the golden glow of the headlights, searching for something heavy that I could use to prop on the accelerator.
A rock lay half-buried near the edge of the ravine, and I crouched down, using my hands to sweep away the sandy soil and work it free.
Once it was loose, I carried it back to the car and opened the driver’s door.
I settled it on the floorboard, then rolled all of the windows down so nothing would be trapped inside.
I took a few moments to wipe down everything I’d touched, then wedged the rock against the accelerator, adjusting it until the pedal depressed just enough. The engine responded with a low, eager rumble.
I shifted the transmission into gear and stepped back quickly, shutting the door as the car jolted forward.
Gravel crunched beneath the tires as it began to roll, slowly at first, then faster. The sedan surged ahead, picking up speed as it hurtled straight toward the edge of the cliff.
For a split second, it seemed to pause at the brink, hovering in midair. Then the nose tipped down, the body followed, and the whole thing vanished into the black. The sound of crunching metal and shattering glass reached my ears, but I didn’t linger.
I turned and slipped into the treeline, following the road back to Lily’s house. The forest floor was uneven, roots and rocks hidden beneath a thin layer of pine needles. It gave me something to focus on, something to anchor me as my thoughts began to drift.
They always circled back to Lily. I could still see the look on her face before I walked out, the anguish in those beautiful blue eyes. The way she’d told me she hated me.
I hated myself.
I never wanted to hurt her; I only wanted to keep her safe, and this was the only way I knew how. I still wasn’t certain that Storme was the man I’d seen outside Lily’s shop earlier. I’d only gotten a brief look at him, but he’d disappeared before I could catalog his features.
I thought of what it must have been like for her, leaving everything behind—her home, the only life she’d ever known—and stepping into the unknown with nothing but instinct telling her to keep running.
It made something in my chest tighten, and my thoughts shifted, inevitably, to him: Storme. Icy anger settled in my chest. He’d abused Lily, would have killed her if she hadn’t killed him first. I was glad he was gone.
The moon was high in the sky by the time Lily’s house came into view through the trees.
Though everything looked the same, a heavy pall seemed to hang in the air.
I paused near the edge of the woods and waited, listening.
There was no movement near the house; no unfamiliar sounds drifted on the night air. Still, I waited.
Ten minutes passed with no change, and I finally stepped out of the treeline and crossed the yard, senses still tuned to every small sound, every flicker of movement. One problem had been taken care of tonight, but it didn’t mean it was the last.
I entered through the back door, my steps nearly silent as I moved deeper into the room. Not bothering to turn on any lights, I did a thorough sweep of the house. It was empty.
Her front door still needed to be repaired, but I couldn’t do anything about that tonight. A strange sensation nagged at me as I took up residence in the chair I’d placed in the corner of the room.
I needed to be certain that Storme was the man I’d seen in the alley. If not, Arana’s men would certainly show up in the middle of the night, when people were asleep and vulnerable. They would move in under the cover of darkness, hoping to catch us off guard. I wouldn’t give them the satisfaction.
Shrouded in darkness, I sat deathly still.
Waiting. Watching.
I was certain they would come. But an hour passed, then two. Time steadily slipped away while I sat guard, never moving a muscle. My body was primed and ready for action. But my mind... My mind was back in the hotel room with Lily.
Guilt clutched at my throat and tightened the muscles between my shoulder blades.
What I’d done was wrong, but it was the only way to keep her safe.
Lily was too damn headstrong. She would rush in to help no matter the consequences.
And I refused to allow her to put herself in danger.
Not for me. I didn’t deserve her nurturing.
I’d brought evil to her door; it was my responsibility to make sure she was safe. Even if she hated me for it.
The words she’d thrown my way had cut deeper than any knife.
The pain of hearing her say she hated me, that she wished she’d never met me, was worse than any torture.
But I deserved no less. Had I never stumbled up to her door, she would be safe and completely unaware of the evils that lurked close by.
On the other hand, at least I’d been here to help when Storme had arrived. Not that she’d needed it. I knew that Lily could have taken care of everything, but I hated the thought. She never should have been in that position in the first place.
Still, I couldn’t bring myself to regret a single thing. I’d enjoyed every moment of my time with her, and I’d carry a part of her in my heart for the rest of my days. The memory of her compassion and caring would keep me warm when I was long gone, far away and all alone once more.
I adjusted my grip on the knife that rested at my side. Arana’s men still hadn’t shown, and I now I had to wonder... Was I overthinking things?
Keeping my back to the wall, I skirted the house and peered out the windows for the dozenth time. I’d cracked the window earlier so I could listen for any approaching sounds. Creatures called to one another within the woods surrounding her house, letting me know that everything was safe.
I sighed and rubbed my temples. Had I been wrong all along?
Guilt pressed in on me from every side. I hated feeling this way.
In fact, I’d never felt it before. I’d always been so sure of myself, and I’d justified any action I carried out.
But with Lily it was different. She was good and pure, and I’d betrayed her trust.
A pang of regret ricocheted through my heart. I wasn’t sure why it bothered me so much. In the past, I’d completed my job and walked away. But Lily wasn’t a job. She was... a complication.
Every encounter with her left me rattled, unsure of every move I made. I knew she was attracted to me—but what I hadn’t counted on was the passion that had exploded between us like gunpowder.
I’d assumed whatever I felt for her was born from protectiveness; I now wondered if I had made a serious miscalculation. I wanted her with a desperation that worried me. I never lost my head over anything, let alone a woman. But how could I walk away from something so potent?
It would be wrong of me to take her to bed when I planned to leave soon. But she was single, as was I. Perhaps we could ease the ache of loneliness for just a bit—if she allowed me into her bed.
I snorted. Like that would happen after this afternoon. She was probably just waiting for me to get back so she could unleash that epic redheaded temper on me. Despite the severity of the situation, I couldn’t help but smile at the thought.
I didn’t want to be away from Lily longer than necessary, so I closed and locked the windows, then retraced my steps to the garage. All the while, I kept a sharp eye and ear on my surroundings. It seemed I was bound to be disappointed, because nothing happened the entire way back to Briarleigh.