Chapter Eight
Rylee
I’m trying not to drool as I watch my mate drive.
He changed into a black long-sleeved shirt, black cargo pants, and heavy black boots.
I think it’s the black baseball cap that is wreaking havoc with my body.
His blonde hair curls under the edge of it and over his ears.
It could also be the knives he has strapped to his legs, and the one he tucked into his boot.
One hand is on the gearshift, and the other is dangling over the steering wheel.
We arrived at my place, and he told me what to wear.
I changed into black jeans and a dark blue shirt.
I dug a blonde wig out of my closet that I wore on Halloween, and a half mask.
The hair is short, and it took some time to bundle my long hair underneath it.
I didn’t question him, and he waited patiently while studying his phone.
“What are we doing?” I’ve kept my silence, following his orders, but I can’t stand it anymore.
“We are tracking him. Shade gave me his last location. He’s going to guide us through surveillance cameras.”
“He was the man on the phone.” I’ve heard the name before.
“He is my friend. Occasionally, he gives me information.”
“Some in the family have mentioned him.” I don’t remember any details.
“He’s very active with the people here. There are several who work for him.”
“But you don’t,” I guess.
“No. I’m an independent contractor. I’ve known him since we were teenagers. He’s important to me, and I rarely do jobs for him. A couple of times, he’s called me for an emergency.” He glances at me briefly. “This is one. The man could be stalking a child now. We can’t let him get them.”
“No, we can’t,” I say softly.
“I don’t have the time to do my usual routine, but we will wait until dark. I need to find the opportunity, with as few people as possible within hearing distance. I agreed to bring you because you said you would follow my orders.” He lifts a brow.
“I will.”
“I know, you’ve been doing so well.” He smiles. “The wig looks sexy, but I miss your hair.”
“Why the mask?” I ask, loving how much he likes my hair.
“Shade is going to do his best to make your image disappear wherever the day takes us, but if he misses something, I don’t want anyone to recognize you.”
“What about you?”
“I can shield my face.”
“What do you mean?”
“Do you know about the white fox? Our powers?”
“No.” My education of the fox came late in life. My family didn’t feel the need to tell me anything.
“Most of us can shapeshift our faces. I do it when I’m on the job. It’s why I am successful at what I do. No one remembers my face.”
“Can you look like anyone you choose?” I ask, fascinated. My mate has many skills.
“If a certain face comes to mind, that’s who I become.
Usually, I focus on an average face I make up in my head, or to them, my features will be a blur.
It wouldn’t be right to use the face of anyone I know.
There he is,” he says, slowing the car. “That’s his car.
” I follow his line of sight and see a minivan in front of us.
“What do we do?”
“Follow.” He lifts a shoulder. “Most of my job is boring. I find out who they are, where they go, and what their habits are. I do extensive research. I have to be invisible.”
“My mask,” I mumble.
“Yes. You can’t shield your face. Right now, we are just driving. When we make our move, you have to put it on.”
“What about your car?”
“It can’t be traced to me. Not the real me.” His lip tips up. “You’re mated to a ghost.”
“Is it wrong that I find you even more attractive?” I lift a brow, and smile.
His grin widens.
“Not at all.” He cups my knee. “It’s hot as hell that you wanted to come with me.”
I push up my sleeves, suddenly warm.
“So, if we are killing him in a remote place, why do I need the mask?”
“A sick fuck like him doesn’t deserve to see your beautiful face before he dies,” he says roughly, and I inhale sharply. “I hide my face until they are close enough to kill.”
“Do you always use knives?” I glance at the wicked blade on his thigh.
“Yes. I’ve never owned a gun. Using a knife is personal; I have to be close enough for them to look into my eyes. I don’t want to be like the cowards who killed my dad,” he says softly.
“I understand,” I respond solemnly, and he slows down. I look out the window. “He's stopping.” We park three cars behind him. “No.” The sick feeling is back.
“He’s preparing,” he mumbles. “There is no reason a grown man who doesn't have kids or siblings would go into a toy store.”
“Shit. Are we going in?” I nibble on my fingernail.
“No. He doesn’t know we are following him. He won’t run, and Shade will have access to the cameras,” he explains.
“You don’t think he has a child now, do you?” I glance at him as he pulls out his phone, and I drop my arm.
“No. He is traveling. The cops were too close to the truth. He abandoned his home, job, and friends. Shade has tracked his presence across states. This is the only thing he does now.” He pulls down the visor in front of me. “I don’t want him to catch a glimpse of you when he returns.”
“Why? Why would he leave everything? Be what he is? It’s disgusting,” I whisper.
“We will never understand why anyone would hurt kids. Something is wrong with him. It’s our job today to make sure we stop him from causing any more pain.” He cups my thigh and squeezes. I press my hand to his. “He’s coming back.”
“He’s nothing like the world portrays as an abuser.” He looks like a soccer dad.
“Because he doesn’t want the world to see him that way. He doesn’t think of himself in that way.” Ezra waits a moment before easing out of the parking space. “In his mind, he has numerous reasons why his actions are justified.”
“You know a lot about it.” We continue to drive, keeping the van in sight.
“I’ve watched men like him for years. Before I started doing this, I took some classes and studied the minds of killers and abusers.
I wanted to understand just as you do, but in the end, there is no one answer for every killer.
Some are born with the need to cause pain, others are the product of their life.
Perhaps their father abused them, their mom, or the kids next door.
Maybe they were bullied, and they snapped one day, and took their power back in a horrible way.
The list can go on forever.” He keeps his eyes on the road, and I study his face.
“There are crimes of passion, something happens in the moment, and that person does something they normally wouldn’t.
I don’t chase them for the purpose of knowing what makes them tick, only to the point of knowing their routine.
I want to eliminate them so they can’t do any more damage than they already have. ” He growls low, and I look around.
“No.” The van is driving slowly through a school zone. “Ezra?”
“He’s scoping.” He parks across the street from the playground and beside a park.
“What do we do?” I squeeze his hand.
“We wait. He won’t take them now.”
“How do you know?” I ask as my mate eases to the curb.
“He hasn’t been in the area long. He needs to make a plan.” The asshole gets out and strolls into the park, sitting on the bench.
“He’s going to eat a fucking sandwich,” I grit out.
“Men like him don’t want to get caught. He doesn’t flaunt his sick ways because he wants to continue to do them.
His light blue polo shirt, pressed slacks, and shiny shoes don’t advertise the killer underneath.
Trust is his goal. If you weren’t in this vehicle with me and knew nothing about him, would you have a clue about the monster underneath?
” he asks, never taking his focus off the man.
“No.” I know all about hiding the monster behind a shiny exterior.
“That’s what he wants. I think he’s been here for more than today,” he murmurs.
“How can you tell?”
“The way he walks. He’s sure of himself, so I think he’s sat on the same bench the past few days.
He knows the routine of the school and the people walking through the park.
” He drums his fingers on my knee. “He smiled at the woman walking by in jogging gear. It’s her routine to walk this way, at this time, and she recognized him. ”
“And smiled at the monster,” I whisper.
“It’s so easy to never delve beneath the surface.”
“Ezra, we have to get him.”
“Mate, he won’t see tomorrow.”
“You promise?”
“Yes. I always get who I’m after.” We stare at each other for a moment. “I can take you home.”
“No. I want to be with you. Now that I know about him, I have to see him get what he deserves,” I say firmly.
He nods and looks away.
“He’s on the move,” he says quietly. We watch him smile at a child with their mother as he walks to his car, and I want to kill him in the street. “Patience, Foxy. There are too many witnesses. It won’t matter that we are stronger or justified when the cops come.”
“I’m not that patient.”
“That’s why you are with me. We rely on each other.” Once again, he keeps pace behind the man. “Are you hungry?”
“I can’t eat,” I say. Imagining a poor child in the man’s evil grasp has curbed my appetite.
“Don’t make yourself sick.”
“We can’t lose him,” I say.
“We won’t. It’s after lunch, and I keep water and snacks.” He nods over his shoulder. “I have a cooler behind my seat.” I glance behind him. “Would you get me a water?” I lean between the seats and unzip the bag.
“It doesn’t feel like hours since breakfast.” I lost time as we drove. I grab a water bottle for him.
“Take one for yourself,” he says, and I lick my lips. I notice how dry my mouth is, and do as he suggests. “I have some jerky in there. Share some with me.”
“You’re prepared.” I open the bottle and hand it to him. Digging inside again, I grab the jerky.
“Always.” He drains half the bottle and hands it back. I re-cap it and drop it in the cup holder before opening mine.
“Where do you think he’s going now?” I take a drink, and pass him a beef stick.
“My guess…to wherever he’s planning on taking them. He either already has a place and is learning the route or is searching for the perfect place.”
I shake my head and stare out the window, nibbling on the snack.
“This isn’t the first time I’ve followed someone,” I say quietly.
Ezra has shared many things about his life, and if I didn’t trust him enough, I wouldn’t be with him.
“The day before we met, I killed a man. Well, Heath finished him, but he was on the verge. I’m not ready to tell you all the details of why, yet, but he was a nightmare from my past. I waited years to take my revenge.
I didn’t know where he was until recently, but I hadn’t looked.
Once I believed I was ready, I tracked him down.
I didn’t do all the research you did, yet I watched him for a while.
I knew where he would be, and I went there with the intent of killing him. ”
“Was he the first man you planned to kill?” he asks.
“Yes. I’ve built up the rage over the years, and I knew I could do it.”
“What changed?” I don’t sense any judgment, just curiosity.
“I had hit him, stabbed him, and watched his blood flow. As I was doing it, I told him all the emotions he made me feel as if he cared. It was therapeutic. His heart was barely beating, and I couldn’t do the one thing I swore I would do.
” I want to gag thinking about his dick, and I set aside the food.
“I was contemplating how to end him when Heath showed up. I don’t hide many things from him, but I did this. ”
“Why?”
“I knew he would do it for me, but I needed to take my power back. It was personal. ” I lean back. “I couldn’t do it.” I roll my head, looking at him. “I felt like a failure.”
“Would he have died from his wounds?”
“Yes, he didn’t have long.”
“Then you failed at nothing. Did you feel better after you told him all the ways he was a piece of shit?”
My lips twitch. “Yeah.”
“Would you have felt any better if you ended it?”
I frown and think about the moment.
“I don’t think so,” I mumble.
“You didn’t fail. He was at your mercy the entire time, and it caused him immeasurable pain. You said what you needed to. I think you are brave and powerful. It took guts and strength to push aside what he put you through to be in his presence again.”
“You don’t know what he did,” I whisper.
“I don’t have to. I believe in you, and you must have had a good reason to kill him.” He tugs on my fake hair. “I’m proud of you. If Heath hadn’t intervened, you would have buried him, and if he were still breathing, I would tear him into pieces.”
“Without knowing the reasons,” I rasp.
“I trust you. I help the people I care about no matter the task,” he says. As I’m trying to wrap my head around his statement, his phone rings. “Will you answer that, baby?”
“Uh…sure.” I pick up his phone, and Shade’s name is on the screen. I answer, and the car's system connects.
“Shade, Rylee is with me,” Ezra answers.
“Rylee, I’ve wanted to meet you,” Shade says.
“What do you have for us?” Ezra asks roughly.
“I think I know where he’s going.” We’ve been driving for hours, and he doesn’t seem to have a purpose in the direction.
“Think or know?”
“It’s a little cabin away from a populated area. He’s been taking supplies there.”
“So, he’ll probably take the toys there he bought today,” Ezra hums.
“Fuck, probably.”
“Send the address. It might be worth getting there before he sets up the area.”
“I would. I’ll keep an eye on him until then.”
“I’ll be in touch.” I end the call. “When he messages, enter the address.”
“What if he doesn’t go there?”
“My gut is saying he will. He’s not ready. Much like me, he needs to prepare.”
“You’re nothing like him,” I growl.
“Of course not,” he says, smiling. “Is it wrong that your defense pleases me?”
“No, I felt the same when I told you my secret.”
“Are you ready to end this?” he asks, nodding.
“I'm with you,” I say softly.
I think I always want to be with him.