Twenty-Nine - River
“How long?” Kieran demands in a low voice, snuggling Lyric close to his chest as we all sit in the tension-filled band house. Far the fuck away from the blood bath currently being investigated.
There, nestled in his lap, is my quiet daughter, sucking her thumb for reassurance. Her other hand clings to Asher’s with a death grip. He swallows hard, stiffly sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with Kieran. Unease pulls at his muscles, nestled so close to the same man who vowed to put his fists through his ribs not long ago. For Lyric’s sake, he doesn’t move an inch.
“Yeah, River. Inform them,” Olivia barks, ping-ponging in front of me at a quick pace.
Back and forth she goes, nibbling on her thumbnail like her nerves are eating her alive. She will cut into the wood with her sharp heels if she keeps up the intense pace she’s set for herself.
I narrow my eyes at her when she huffs. “Three years,” I breathe, nervously running a hand through my hair, not bothering to say anything else.
Blood drips in the back of my mind, spelling out the dreaded word. Mine . My head spins, and colors swirl together. Shutting my eyes tight, I breathe through the panic running rampant. When did this sicko go from taking simple pictures of our outings to this? Spying on me inside my home—my fucking sanctuary—as I undress and go about my life. Vomit soars up my esophagus, ready to spew at the mere thought of what they’ve seen through their camera lens. Everything. That’s what.
“Three. Years?” Kieran growls quietly, keeping his anger at bay.
Barely. Kieran’s like an unstable volcano, ready to spew his lava everywhere when the pressure gets too much. If we’re not careful, we’ll all burn under his intensity. Hell, I could probably stick nickels in his flaring nostrils right now. One false move, and we’re all dead. Me, especially.
I sigh. The jig is up, and I’m backed into a corner. The last thing I wanted to speak of or acknowledge was the man following me around like a lunatic. “Yes. Three years of having some stranger following me and taking pictures. It’s never been an issue?—”
“Don’t let her play it off as nothing. He takes fucking pictures of her and Lyric. Up until recently, that’s all it’s been. Then you chuckleheads came into the picture, pissing the little bastard off. Hence the cow blood on the porch,” Carter’s gruff voice echoes through the house with authority. Plopping down, he yanks his laptop open and taps a few keys.
“What the hell, Pretty Girl?” Sitting beside me, Rad pulls my hand into his, gently squeezing. “I know we’re not in a good place or haven’t spoken, but your life is in danger. How could you not tell us? You could have come to us, no matter what.” Hurt lines his expression more than the concern etching into his face.
“I’m sorry. I—” I swallow my words. I shouldn’t have to apologize. They’re the ones that walked away. Not me.
What the hell can I say? Sorry for not telling you right away that some creep has been following me around. Sorry you weren’t here for the past three years to know what was happening. Let’s not pretend we’re some happy family now. Because of Asher, we were separated and could have done nothing about it.
“Whoever the fuck this is has a knack for computers. Your cameras have been compromised. Inside and fucking out. Fucking manipulated, too. This fucker took out footage and replaced it with a damn loop,” Carter grumbles, staring at the screen with his lips peeled back.
“So, whoever it is?—”
“Made themselves fucking invisible.” My face falls at his words. “But don’t fucking worry, Little West. I’m not the owner and operator of CC Tech for nothing.”
“Plus, a Veritas consultant,” Olivia adds, snapping her fingers.
My muscles tense at his words. Concealed. Undetectable. Fucking invisible like always, hiding in the damn shadows. Fucking coward! How someone could walk onto my damn property with a security guard and cameras and not get caught is a goddamn mystery. It’s like they knew exactly what they were doing and planned it all out.
I’ve ignored their presence for years, refusing to look over my shoulders. Like hell, would I allow them to see the fear in my eyes. Or the shudder of my nerves when the wind blew just right, and I felt eyes searing through my flesh.
I’m not a raging idiot. I knew they were hiding in the distance with a camera attached to their hands, probably jacking their tiny penis to my image. Denial is a hell of a drug to suffocate yourself in. It convinced me many times that I was okay and that they wouldn’t harm us. Until the pictures arrived more frequently. And now this.
“What are we going to do?” Rad asks, squeezing my hand again, comforting me in unexpected ways.
We. Not you. Or her. He’s including himself, maybe all of them, into this equation. Something stupid flutters in my chest. Maybe it’s the hope of reconciliation. Or perhaps it’s the same foolish organ that got me into this situation in the first place.
“Run and fucking hide,” Carter suggests without peering at us. A permanent scowl etched onto his face, but I’m used to it by now. He only smiles for violence and my sister-in-law, Kaycee.
Olivia side-eyes him. “Thanks for being subtle like we discussed.” He waves a hand, ignoring her presence altogether.
“What do you mean?” Don’t say it. Don’t fucking say the most rational thing that’s about to fall out of your mouth. Please don’t. I’m not prepared for this.
“River,” she says sincerely, dropping into a chair across from me. “You’re more than my friend, babe. I love you and Lyric. I want to protect you both more than I have in the past. It’s never been this bad.”
“I know.” Razor blades slide down my throat at her implication. My mind whirls in so many different directions. I swear I’m giving myself whiplash.
“Then don’t hate me when I suggest our safe house in Maine. It’s the farthest place away from here. Away from that asshole who won’t leave you alone.”
Fuck me running, sideways, and up the damn stairs. Maine? Shit. My heart crashes into the waves of my volatile stomach. It’s either fly across the country or die at the hands of my crazy stalker. And I like my damn life.
“In the meantime, I’ll scour this footage and unscramble what this dickhead did. I’ll find this bastard if it’s the last thing I do, Little West.”
“Maine?” I ask, shaking my head. “I can’t go to Maine. Liv, I have a life here… I can’t run just because of some weirdo. I’m braver than that.”
Fingers squeeze mine in support as my mind jumps off a damn cliff into the what ifs. My calendar flies by in my swirling mind reminding me of my obligations coming in the next few months. The boys need me. They have gigs to rock and mental hurdles to overcome.
“I’m sorry, Riv. I can’t give you a choice in this. At midnight we’re extracting you. Whether you like it or not, babe. This is for your safety and hers. This is non-negotiable.” She rubs a finger along her forehead, nervously watching my blank reaction. “You trusted me with your safety three years ago when Carter introduced us. And I’m saying all of this for your damn safety.”
“It’ll be for the best, Pretty Girl,” Rad whispers with an aching sadness squeezing his voice, running a finger along my chin, and bringing my gaze to his. “I don’t know much about the situation. But we need you safe.”
“You’ll be safe. That’s the only thing that matters,” Callum says, sidling up to my other side. “You two are too important to lose.” He swallows hard, keeping his eyes locked on mine.
“Why Maine?” I mutter.
“It’s on the other side of this place. So far away that your little stalker will have no way of getting to you,” Olivia says, raising a sharp brow. “We’ve been trying to nail this fucker for years. Now, we’ll finally have the opportunity.”
“What are you going to do?” An evil glint appears in Olivia’s eyes, cluing me into her nefarious plans in my absence.
“Whatever we need to do to bring this fucker down.”
“What she means is, we’ll camp out on your property. Get a little look alike to parade around and act like you while you’re away. We’ll get this asshole,” Carter says, shaking his head. “I’m going to have to take this shit back to the lab and let them work on it.” Snapping the laptop shut, he throws it to the side with a worried expression.
“What about?—”
“Shh,” Olivia interrupts, shoving a finger over my lips. “Think of this as a much-needed vacation. How long has it been since you could not focus on work and live your life to the fullest? Nope, don’t answer that. You’ll tell me you don’t have time, that you’re building your damn empire.”
“I love you, but I hate you sometimes,” I mumble through her finger secured over my lips.
“I’d say pack a bag, but you’re under house arrest until we leave tonight. No stepping outside. No going home. You get the picture. There’s a team discreetly at your house right now cataloging the weird mess left for you.”
“You mean the naked pictures they took of her?” Kieran asks, putting his large mitt over Lyric’s ear.
Olivia’s lips roll in, and she nods. “Looks like whoever they are, they’ve been busy.”
Carter sighs, rubbing his forehead. “I know how they did that.”
“How?” I ask, swallowing hard.
Do I want to know the answer? How they’ve been getting pictures without my consent and looking at me in my most private moments. No. I’d rather stay ignorant. That’s bliss, after all. But I give in like a curious cat for my sanity’s sake and the urge to protect my daughter from everything harmful. She doesn’t have a clue that a psycho lives on the fringes of our life, snapping photographs of our every move.
Carter locks his gaze on mine, licking his lips like he’s nervous for once in his grumpy life. “Not only did they manipulate your cameras, Little West. They hacked into them. They’ve been fucking watching your every move. Inside and out. Wherever you have a camera, they’ve been following. Creepy fuckers,” he grumbles the last part with a grimace. “Thankfully, you don’t have cameras here to compromise us further.”
“No, but I have security measures that obviously meant nothing. Fuck. Where was the guard? They’re on twenty-four-hour duty.” There are four of them for various shifts. Someone should have seen something odd and flagged it for the police to check up on.
Years before, when I got my first piece of mail from my stalker, I invested in a security firm. From there, they sent four guards who watched my place day and night. My cameras also came from them with a live stream sent directly to their database where someone watches for anything suspicious. Window alarms, door alarms, and anything in between secures my home.
“He was there all night. We checked with him. Carter even gave him his scary look, almost making him piss himself. It’d be funny—” Olivia trails off with a huff, and another worried look crosses her face.
Carter chuckles. “Yeah, he was there all night. Believe me. He wasn’t lying. Says he didn’t hear or see a damn thing. I also checked with your security people, who gave the same answer. Useless fucks if you ask me.”
“Great. What good is a security guard if he doesn’t see anything?” I shake my head, looking toward the front door as it quietly opens, and Olivia’s long-time partner saunters in with a grin.
“Oh, River. You really got yourself into a pickle now, didn’t you?” Jordy remarks, twirling his keys in his hand.
“Nice to see you, too,” I quip to the Veritas agent I’ve gotten to know over the past few years.
By looking at his grinning face and easy facade, you’d think he’d be easy to read. He’s not. Over the years since he and Olivia took over the Veritas, he’s perfected his calm demeanor, even when raging on the inside. With his small-town hunk looks—curly blond hair, boy next door face, and sparkling blue eyes—you’d never guess that he’s a full-blown killing machine, taking down the enemy without blinking. Yeah, I’m always happy to have him on my side. He’d put my stalker down in a nanosecond. If we could catch the fucker first.
“Maine is out,” Jordy grimaces when Olivia shoots him a look, and he shrugs. “Don’t give me that look, Espie. There was a storm, and it disabled the house, making it unsecure. You need a new plan.”
“How many times do I have to remind you it’s Olivia,” she growls, narrowing her eyes at his full-blown grin. He shrugs, twirling his keys again, loving the way he’s egging her on.
For a time in Olivia’s weird and complicated life, she went by another name in the field. It was the name her uncle gave her after the murder of her parents and sister. Or so she thought. As I said, her history is complex and hurts my brain. Since reuniting with her old friends and discovering who murdered her parents, she’s returned to her birth name—Olivia.
“We need something now. Everywhere else is occupied.” She waves a hand in Jordy’s direction.
“I can hide her in my basement,” Jordy jokes, grunting when Olivia pushes him away. “Cool your tits, Liv. Sheesh,” he grumbles, stumbling over his feet. “Anywhere is better than here. I can hear Riv’s phone from a mile away.” His nose wrinkles in disgust, staring at the object lighting up on the table in front of us.
He’s not wrong. Message after message. Email after fucking email, lighting my phone up like a damned Christmas tree. My stomach twists into a million knots. Whoever is stalking me has finally snapped into a miserable person, hellbent on making my life hell on earth. As long as I’m around my phone witnessing their increasingly aggressive messages, I’ll never sleep. Or eat. Or function, for that matter.
“I might have somewhere we can all lay low.” Every eye in the room snaps toward Callum as he rises from beside me. Uncertainty twists his face, but he continues before anyone can say anything. “I have a house in a small town. I have a security system and privacy fences. It’s completely secure in the middle of nowhere.”
“So was this compound River has built up for herself,” Jordy remarks, lifting a brow. “You sure some Podunk house will facilitate River and Lyric, and nothing will happen to them? Are you confident?”
Callum stiffens, crossing his arms over his chest. “Yes. It’s secure. I built it myself with my fame in mind. It’s completely secure. No one knows it’s there.”
“Where is it?” Olivia asks, slapping a hand over Jordy’s mouth. You’d think they were in some ill-fated relationship by the insane chemistry they exude. I told her as much one drunken night, and she laughed. They’re friends—nothing more and nothing less. Besides, Jordy has somehow fallen in with my long-lost sister Zandt’s grasp. But she’s a whole other story. “I need more information before I send my best friend to some ill-equipped house in the middle of nowhere.”
He nods, side-eyeing me. “It’s in Central City, Illinois. Besides, who said River and Lyric were going by themselves?”
Olivia blinks at him, releasing her hand from Jordy’s mouth. “You’re willing to go with them? Keep them safe? That’s a big task for little boys.” Oh, ouch. The boys physically recoil from her remark, tightening their expressions.
“There’s no willing about it,” Rad pipes up, rubbing his hands together.
“We’ll go with them,” Asher says for the first time, still clinging to Lyric’s hand, despite her tiny snores filling the room as she lies on Kieran’s chest.
A satisfied sigh rocks through Asher as his weightless gaze locks on the beauty clinging to his hand. A sparkle flashes in his eyes, relaxing his body on the couch. Asher looks at peace for the first time since our big blowout, where secrets filled the room and choked us. His eyes stare down at her with admiration, filling the holes once left in my soul. How he looks at her is how he looked at me once upon a time when he didn’t know I was looking.
“We’ll never leave them alone again.” His words pierce the room with authority, leaving no room for arguments.
Olivia nods, biting back the grin of I told you so . “Good! This is good! The six of you will be extracted from here at midnight. I’ll have a local team prepare your house. You say it’s secure? Let’s go over some details.”
And that they do. Thoroughly.
As they make plans, I make my own. Calling the important people in my life about where I’ll be, knowing they won’t tell a soul. My brothers freak the fuck out. But they knew something was up when Carter took off and came here after I got my package.
“Hey, Kat,” I say, pacing around the kitchen as Asher watches me with a close eye.
“Miss West,” she says with a surprised tone. “Is something the matter?”
I swallow hard, rubbing my forehead. “Hey, yeah. I’m going to be out of town for a little while. My stalker paid my house a visit last night, and I need to go into hiding, basically. It’s for my safety and Ly’s.”
“Oh my god! Your stalker? Where are you going?” she asks with concern, breathing heavily into the phone. Soft murmurs come from the other end from a low, deep voice, and my brows raise.
“Uh, Central City. Back to my home. We’ve got a secured house there.” I won’t tell her anything else when someone is obviously sitting close to her.
“Got it! I’ll keep everything running smoothly in the department. Is there a way for me to get ahold of you? Or should I go through the bosses?”
“My brothers, yeah. Just talk to them about anything you need. I’ll be unreachable for however long this takes. Thanks, Kat.”
We say our goodbyes and hang up. Worry slams through me at what we’re about to do.
The day goes by in a blur as they hash out the details of our extraction and new living situation. After hours of research and ground teams inspecting Callum’s house, they clear it for our use.
Under the camouflage of night, Olivia disappears across the street, sneaking around and gathering Lyric and me some essentials for the trip and subsequent never-ending vacation. Only coming back when several bags are filled with our clothes and other items, we may need for weeks to come.
How long would I be away? From my job? From my damn home? Olivia wouldn’t give me a direct answer, simply shrugging and telling me to enjoy the dick I was about to receive.
If I wasn’t so panicked, I might have killed her. Dick is so not happening.
“I know none of this is glamorous. But if they’ve hacked into your camera system, they’re probably tracking your phone somehow. So, we’ll keep that here. We’re going to use it to our advantage if they are. We’ll start by trying to lure them out and grab them when we can.” Her eyes dart to the floor, and she worries her lip.
“I trust you, Liv. You’ve kept me functioning and safe these last three years. You’ll get him. Just…keep me updated or something?” She nods, curling my fingers around the new cell phone, before going to each of the guys and retrieving theirs.
“Sorry, boys, it’s a safety precaution.” Without a fight, the boys turn in their phones. “Also, Riv. I’ll let Rocco know what’s up.”
“Thank you. He’ll worry,” I mumble, chewing on my bottom lip.
Before we know it, we’re loaded into a blacked-out SUV at midnight and escorted to a private airfield on Veritas’ property.
Kieran carries a sleeping Lyric onto the plane, sitting her beside him and buckling her in. He smiles at me, informing me he has her, and urges me to get some rest.
Fat chance.
Murmurs vibrate around me in muted conversations. Some snores ring out. But not mine. I’m left begging for sleep and staring out the darkened window, wondering how my life ended up like this.
Away we go, back to the city that started it all. Our beginning. Our love. Our brutal fucking ending.
For so long, I’ve held onto this grudge, letting it infect me with the need for revenge. Suddenly, I’m not feeling so vengeful. Day by day, though, they’re breaking down the walls I’ve put in place.
Forgiveness is on the horizon, but there’s still so much work to be done to earn my trust and prove their loyalty.