31
Rest In Peace
Amanda
The first rays of light have me stretching as I stand from the table. My knee has stiffened up with the inactivity. It aches as I walk, trying to find my bearings.
I make it two blocks before I facepalm. It’s a painful reminder that my brow was split. I won’t do that again.
I was two whole blocks away from my apartment this entire time. I must have wandered in a damn circle. I don’t see Ace’s truck waiting for me. I take off towards the office, taking a more winding route through alleys to keep hidden. It’s the best I can do.
As soon as I see Ace’s truck in the VIP section I rush for the front doors. Harriette hurries to unlock them with a confused expression.
“What happened to you?” She asks with a concerned frown.
I ignore her and run to the elevators to swipe my card and bounce as I wait for it.
Vanessa isn’t at the front desk when I get out, but I know someone is here.
When I burst through the doors without any finesse, it’s to find all but Jake hovering around Gabriel’s desk. They’re all facing the door. Almost like they were waiting for me. I glance at the couch and see Jake isn’t there either.
Oh, God. Where’s Jake? Shouldn’t he be back by now?
I get a quick, nausea-inducing flash of that dead body. My chest starts tightening up again. Doom and gloom follow.
Before I can gain a clear thought my mouth is running in panicked fury.
“Why the fuck can’t you answer your phone? I’ve been trying to call all weekend.”
My pointed glare at Ace turns into confusion. He’s looking at the floor, arms crossed over his chest as he breathes in a slow, calming way. No one responds, which leaves me floundering even more. I look at Mikael, Cade, and Gabriel to take in their combined flat expressions.
“Where is Jake?” My voice hushes in growing dread. Please don’t let something have happened to him.
“Have a seat,” Matthias says coldly and gracefully gestures to the chair across from him.
I’m already shaking my head in denial.
I start pacing, trying to calm my nerves. “Just tell me if Jake is okay.”
“ Sit down .” The dark words barked out of Mikael’s mouth makes my feet freeze as my eyes widen. I look at them again. This time, the concern is almost overwhelming. If something happened to Jake, the guilt will crush me. I haven’t been nice to him the entire time I’ve known him, even when he’s being sweet. I’m trying not to imagine him on a concrete floor with torture tools around him and failing.
“What happened?” My voice drops to a hoarse whisper as I fall into the seat across from them.
“Someone hacked into my personal bank account and stole quite a bit of money,” Matthias says casually.
I blink in surprise. That’s all? This is not what I was expecting and does a lot to raise my hopes sky-high. “Jake is ok? He’s just late?”
“He’s fine,” Cade says with a sneer. The way he’s looking at me makes the doom feeling start to riot again.
This is the first time I’ve had this reaction to any of them. What does it mean? Why didn’t this stupid warning power come with instructions?
I’m beyond questioning it now. This thing has been warning me, and I’ve been ignoring it. That stops now. Or does it? Why am I feeling this way now of all times?
Gabriel’s lips turn up in a cold, unfeeling smile that brings my attention back to him. He acts like he doesn’t know me. After Friday I kind of thought this might be his reaction.
I eye each of them carefully now. Each one of them is focused on me with blank expressions, except Ace. He can’t meet my eyes or even look directly at me. His attention is firmly pointed to the floor. The sudden loss of his fierce attention is like a slap by itself.
“What’s going on?” I ask warily. It’s not supposed to be like this. Not with them. I ruined it by sleeping with Gabriel. Is this my brush-off? He can’t. Not now . I need their help!
“Someone from the office opened an easily traceable account and transferred over three million dollars. All easy to find.”
“Ok?” I frown in frustration. I don’t care about his stupid money. It’s not like he doesn’t have a ton more somewhere. He’s determined to talk about it. If I let him rant and get it all out, I’ll be able to tell them the really important shit!
“Do you know who?” My voice is impatient. I wave my hand around to get him to hurry the hell up.
“Oh, yes,” his smile gets broader and more menacing. “Like I said, it’s all easily traceable. I have parameters set up to catch that kind of thing.”
“That’s great,” I scoff and rub my face with my hand.
“I already got the entire amount back,” he assures me smugly.
“Sweet. So who’s going to jail?” Hurry up and tell me so we can focus on the dead body I found yesterday! Not to mention everything else!
“You,” Cade smiles at me sweetly.
I blink at him. My chest tightens unbearably, and my brows start to furrow. It hurts bad enough that I straighten my face out quickly. My heart has begun to hammer double-time in my chest. “What are you talking about?”
“You don’t have to act anymore,” Gabriel assures me with a smirk. “If you were smarter about it, you could have gotten away with it. We have plenty of proof.”
“I didn’t steal any money,” I protest in confusion. “Are you guys serious? Ace?”
He shakes his head and still won’t look at me. The doom feeling gets stronger.
That’s the warning. They planned on accusing me as soon as I walked through the door. This makes no sense. There’s no way I could hack anything. I can barely understand my phone. Wouldn’t an intelligent thief have bailed by now?
“The thing is, I would have given it to you if you had asked.”
My eyes go wide on Gabriel’s cold face. The words sounded like they went through a shredder before they could come out. “Are you crazy ?”
“You could have gotten so much more if you had been patient,” Cade laughs as my face pales. On the surface, he sounds like he finds it hilarious. But I can hear an undertone to it that’s deadly.
“I did not steal anything! Shut up and listen to me!” My rage-filled shout gets cut off.
“ Stop ,” Gabriel barks and slams a hand onto his desk, which makes me jump in surprise. My nerves are shot after the weekend I’ve had. I’m starting to shake, and I can’t stop. “The distractions are over.”
He leans to the side and motions someone forward.
I turn to see two police officers approaching with stern expressions.
My stomach drops into my shoes. There’s a good chance that these cops are in league with Blake.
Is this a setup? Did someone rob him and make it look like I did it?
“I didn’t do anything, Gabe!” I protest vehemently.
I stand as if I’m going to run, but my feet stick because I have no clue what’s going on. This is a setup. I know it. There’s no way I could figure out how to steal his money. That’s insane.
I turn back to them desperately. “Send them away. This is a setup-”
“Let it go. You’re caught ,” Cade interrupts in disgust, his mask of charm falling away wholly to reveal his true thoughts. The man despises me. It’s plain to see and agonizing.
“Please hear me out,” I beg him. I’m desperate for them to listen, but how much can I say with a couple of police officers behind me? “I did not steal any money. Send the cops away. Please .”
“With our techs on hand, they found you in under ten minutes,” Mikael says in a dark tone of rage. Of course, he’s mad. He’s practically glued to Gabriel like they’re conjoined twins. I’m shocked he hasn’t punched me in the face yet. “They’re too good to be fooled. The proof took longer, but we got it.”
That’s why they weren’t answering. A united front to keep me away, just like Gabriel’s father. They looked into the theft, and whatever they found points the finger right at me. Everything is tied up in a neat bow.
But the phone calls I made started on Saturday . I didn’t find the underground hideaway until Sunday. Why would someone set me up that early? Do they have a psychic on the payroll who knew I would find that bunker? That makes even less sense than South being Captain Camouflage.
The feeling presses harder. I turn to see the cops closer to me with grim expressions.
“Make them check again,” I desperately gasp as one of the cops grabs my arm to cuff me. It makes me wince in pain as the scab on my forearm breaks again. “It wasn’t me, I swear! ”
Damn it, I should have handed over my phone first! Now, I can’t reach it, and my arms are cuffed.
“Take my phone-”
“Just like you swear you’re looking for a lawyer?” Mikael says and crosses his arms over his chest. “And no one has gotten a call from you?”
“Or you swear Blake is trying to kick people out of the complex you live in?” Cade says and tsks while he shakes his head. “He doesn’t even own it.”
“ What? ” I ask in disbelief. “What are you talking about? I’m serious! I can’t get arrested. Ace, look at me .”
“It was all in your apartment,” Ace turns on me, his expression filled with pain. “Right fuckin’ there!”
I rear back in shock as my jaw drops.
Clarity hits with the strength of an anvil dropping on me.
The destruction of my apartment wasn’t some mystery man. It was Ace . He’s broken in several times and I brushed it off like it wasn’t a warning. Somewhere in the last two weeks, I forgot how dangerous they are.
If he’s the one that trashed my apartment, was Ace the one in the stairwell? The thought makes my stomach clench in nausea.
I can’t believe it. I don’t want to.
“You?” My voice cracks through the middle as tears well up and spill over my cheeks.
I kissed him. I wanted more with him. With all of them. I guess I don’t have to worry about any of that now.
“Why? Why would you do that?”
It’s an idiotic question, and the answer shouldn’t matter. No matter his reasons, there’s no coming back from this.
Ace turns away from me, and Cade snaps at the officers, “Get her the fuck out of here.”
I look at each of them in stark fear. I put my faith in them. Just like I did with Blake. Mrs. Danvers is right. I will always be an idiot.
They all look so angry. I can’t say anything anymore. My throat feels swollen closed with fear.
My eyes meet Gabriel’s frozen expression. There’s no smile there now. He looks as cold as the day I first met him. As if I’m a stranger. That hurts so much it almost staggers me. It’s more painful than Blake’s betrayal at the beginning of this mess. All of the fight washes out of me in an instant.
I felt more for these assholes than I did for the man I married.
“I trusted you,” I choke out in disbelief.
Why did I do that? I saw this office. I knew he was like Loser. I met Jake and Cade and saw who they really are. Ace’s betrayal guts me. He’s the one who charmed me and made me think I was something special. And Mikael. Gentle giant, my ass.
Gabriel huffs a dark laugh. “That’s what makes you stupid, isn’t it?”
The question hits me directly in my heart, almost bringing me to my knees.
This much concentrated hate is over the top. Like they’re trying to prove something to me.
That I’m worthless now? That they’ve never had a second of faith in me and now they don’t have to pretend anymore?
“Take her away,” Mikael gives me a disappointed once over as if I’m not already beaten down by their words. “Let her stay in an interrogation room until we’re ready to speak to her.”
My stomach drops to my feet and rolls away. At least it takes the nausea with it. I feel numb on the outside. My brain makes up for it by going a million miles an hour.
If they have all this special evidence, there shouldn’t be any questions. If they come to see me, it will be for a very different reason.
My brain clicks over to all the lunch dates they had with Blake and stalls.
It’s been right in front of my face the entire time .
They’re golfing buddies.
I’m too shocked to puke at the thought. My taste in men is unrivaled. Holy shit.
They’ve had me here for weeks, highlighting. They know about the photos. Was this all some type of demented torture routine? Put the rat in the maze and see if it makes it to the center?
This has all been one great big play to them, with my death being the outcome.
They have me stealing some money. All the proof in the world and fancy techs to back it up. It’s a slam dunk case. The arrest will be public. At the very least, Harriette will see.
I’ll be escorted to jail to wait for questions .
And be force-fed a bullet.
Accidents happen.
I’m not going to survive this. What can I do? There’s nowhere for me to go.
I can’t look at them anymore. It hurts too much. It’s so overwhelming my anger can’t top it.
I stumble as the cops pull me away. I can’t think anymore.
Everything inside me cracks down the center, leaving me with a hollow feeling in my chest. I’m dead. Are they going to play with me more before they kill me? Or will the police do that for them? Am I going back to that bunker to die?
I don’t struggle as they take me down the elevator reading me my rights. Harriette gapes as I’m led out of the building in cuffs.
Outside, the sunshine seems too bright. The police cruiser is right in front of the building. So is South. Our eyes meet as her brows furrow. Then, a hand is on my head, and I’m helped into the car.