Chapter 18
Phoenix
“Do you know where the salt is?”
I glanced at Levi and motioned to the container of salt next to the big pot of water that was just starting to boil on the stove. “Next to you,” I said.
To say he was distracted was an understatement. In the two weeks since I’d been working with him in the soup kitchen each night, I’d never seen him so scattered…not since that first night when I’d intervened between him and T.
“Oh, right.”
He reached for it, but then hesitated.
“You already added it to the water,” I offered, since I knew that was what he was struggling to remember.
His gaze shifted to mine, but he didn’t say anything. He looked tired…and dejected.
Despite the great day we’d had at a local petting zoo with Henry, Levi had been distracted all day.
He’d checked his phone several times throughout the day, though he’d tried to be discreet about it.
I suspected it had something to do with how he’d gotten the bruises, but since he wasn’t talking about it, I was at a loss.
I hadn’t believed his story about it being an accident at work.
I knew it was likely another run-in with T, but I couldn’t discount that it could have just as easily been his father as well.
I cursed myself for not having been around to intercede, but I’d needed to be at the rehab center to discuss the result of Amani’s brain scan and I’d thought Levi was safe at work.
I knew Levi was on the cusp of trying to get out of whatever tentative relationship we seemed to be forming, because every time he looked at me, he seemed to grow even more despondent.
I was on the verge of telling him the truth about who I was, but I needed to reach out to Ronan first. I was certain that if I showed Ronan that Levi was no threat to Seth and that he hadn’t gotten off scot-free after the attacks, that the other man would back off.
But the big sticking point was, I had absolutely no proof he wasn’t a threat.
I believed it in my heart, but Ronan wouldn’t accept anything but concrete proof…not when his husband’s life was at stake.
I didn’t know what the fuck I’d do if I couldn’t convince Ronan. The logical answer was to take Levi and run, but I couldn’t leave my daughter. I wouldn’t. As much as I loved Levi, and I’d come to accept that I was, in fact, in love with him, I knew that just wasn’t an option for me.
The alternative was to help Levi go into hiding, but then I wouldn’t be able to protect him. If Ronan sent someone else after him, he wouldn’t last five minutes on his own.
As I finished rinsing the dish I’d been cleaning and set it in the dishrack to dry, my gaze shifted back to Levi who was still standing in front of the pot of water, which was now rapidly boiling.
The salt was still in his hands. He was staring at the water, but not really seeing it.
I went over to him and put my arms around his waist. I used one hand to free the salt from his iron grip.
“No, I need to add that,” he said half-heartedly as he reached for the salt.
“You already added it,” I murmured and then I kissed his neck.
“Fuck,” he whispered before he shut his eyes.
I was about to plead with him to tell me what the hell was going on, but a discreet cough had me pulling back a little and both of us turned to see Father O standing a few feet away.
His face was drawn tight and my initial thought was that he wasn’t happy to see Levi in my arms. The Catholic faith wasn’t exactly accepting of people like Levi and me and as much as I liked Father O, it wouldn’t surprise me if he’d put his religion’s antiquated beliefs first. I half-expected Levi to panic about being caught in an intimate embrace with me, but he didn’t seem concerned.
Neither man spoke, but Father O made a slight motion to the left with his head and then walked away.
Levi turned to face me. “Can you add the noodles?”
I nodded and then looked in the direction Father O had gone. “Everything okay? Is he going to have a problem with this?” I asked as I motioned between us.
“No,” Levi shook his head. “I told him I was gay back in prison…Father O doesn’t think the same way a lot of priests do,” was all he said. “I’ll be right back.”
I liked that he brushed a brief kiss over my mouth before leaving the room.
I tried to focus on getting the spaghetti going, but I couldn’t help but glance at my watch every few minutes.
When Levi returned, his face was pale and I could tell he’d been crying.
But as soon as I reached for him, he skirted out of my grasp and hurried to the freezer to search out the dinner rolls.
“Levi-”
“Can you get the oven going?”
“Levi-”
“I’ll be right back. I’m going to go check the other freezer for more rolls.”
I knew he was talking about the larger freezer located in a back room. But I also knew we had plenty of rolls in the main freezer. It was an excuse to escape my questions.
It went on like that for the rest of the night, but when Levi tried to insist on walking by himself to the grocery store, I put my foot down and practically dragged him to my car. When we reached the store and he tried to get out of the SUV, I clamped my hand around his uninjured wrist.
“What’s going on?” I asked, trying to keep the frustration out of my voice .
He refused to look at me as he said, “Nothing…just tired.”
“Cut the shit, Levi,” I snapped. He flinched and I instantly regretted my harshness. I leaned across the console and put my hand around the back of his neck. “Don’t do this,” I whispered as I pressed a kiss to his temple.
“It was never going to work,” he said, his voice uneven…like he was on the verge of tears.
“Why not?” I asked, though I knew the answer.
The kicker was, he was absolutely right. We were building something based on lies. Only, he thought he was the only one lying. With that thought rattling around in my head, I released him when he pulled his hand free. Pain tore through me when he turned his face and brushed his mouth over mine.
“Please don’t be here waiting for me tomorrow morning,” he whispered.
I was about to tell him no, that I would most definitely be waiting for him, but when he clasped the side of my face with his hand, he croaked out another “Please.” I couldn’t ignore the pain in his voice, but I couldn’t force myself to say the word, so I merely nodded.
He kissed me one more time and then he got out of the SUV.
I didn’t wait for him to look back because I knew he wouldn’t.
As soon as he entered the building through the employee entrance, I moved my car to the part of the lot where Levi wasn’t likely to notice it, but that would still afford me good views of both the front and side entrances.
It was about an hour before closing time when my phone buzzed and I looked down to see a text from Ronan.
Where are you?
I typed out a brief message telling him I was outside the mark’s work, but cringed at the use of the word ‘mark’.
Because Levi was anything but.
And I most certainly wasn’t there to keep an eye on him on Ronan’s behalf.
Not anymore.
Ronan didn’t respond, but twenty minutes later, his luxury SUV pulled in the spot next to mine .
Fuck, this couldn’t be good.
The man looked cool as a cucumber as he strode around his car, but I saw the familiar tick in his jaw.
He got in the passenger seat, but didn’t say a word as he handed me a file folder. I flipped it open and felt my gut clench.
In the folder was a single picture.
Of Curtis Deming’s car sitting in front of the old Nichols house.
And it was dated the night before.
I swallowed hard as I realized the picture had been taken a couple hours before Levi had shown up at my door.
“I want you to take him out.”
I closed my eyes and flipped the file shut. “Ronan, there are things about him-”
“I don’t give a shit!” he snapped. “I don’t care about this” – he motioned to the store – “and I don’t care that he’s trying to look legit by volunteering at that damn soup kitchen!
” Ronan paused, seemingly to pull himself together.
I’d never seen him so enraged before. Of course, I hadn’t been around when Seth’s life had been in danger a year earlier either.
“I let him live because it was what Seth wanted. But this shit ends now,” he bit out and then he was out of the car before I could even respond.
While I understood his fury, he also wasn’t the Ronan I knew. Not the emotionless killer, anyway. The one who believed in serving justice, not vengeance. And while I couldn’t condemn him for the fear that was driving his rage, I also knew nothing I said would get through to him.
Which meant my options were growing more and more limited by the second.
I glanced at the picture again and then looked up at the store in frustration.
Why the hell had he gone to that house again?
As I pondered the question, my eyes settled on the security camera pointing at the front entrance.
There was a second one pointing towards the short drive leading to the side where the employee entrance was.
I reached for my phone. I dialed and waited until Daisy answered.
I’d only met the group’s tech girl once, but I’d spoken to her often enough to know she was capable of getting to even some of the most difficult of information.
“Hi, Phoenix,” she said happily. I could hear the clicking of a keyboard.
“I need you to do something for me…stat.”
The clicking stopped. “Go,” was all she said, her voice all business now.
“I need you to check some security footage. Carlisle’s Food Market, Rainer Avenue.”
“Timeframe?”
“Yesterday between 7:30 pm and” – I glanced at the timestamp on the photo – “10:00.”
“Subject?” she asked.
I hesitated before saying, “Levi Deming or Hugo Larson.”
Daisy was silent for a moment before she said, “It will take a little time.”
“Send me any footage you find.”