Chapter 13 Ryder
Ryder
Violet’s eyes widened at me as I moved behind the door, and I not-so-subtly told her to look away. She was glaring at me like I was hiding, which I was not. I was waiting out of sight; there was a difference.
After a flurry of silent hand signals and threats, mainly me pretending to slice my own throat then pointing at her, she finally glanced away, just as the door creaked and a presence loomed on the other side.
Oh fuck.
Of course this guy was here.
“You’re not going to need that,” Cedric said, the twat taking a single step into the room despite Violet holding a knife. “I’m looking for Geraldine Hoffman.”
Like me, Cedric was a thief, but he was an impulsive brute and didn’t have a single decorous bone in his unnecessarily bulky body. Sometimes he took on wet-work, which made sense considering his jobs usually ended wet, sticky, and about as subtle as a brick to the face.
“I don’t know a Geraldine Hoffman,” Violet said, her grip so tight around the knife I was surprised she hadn’t broken the handle.
“Oh, but I think you do.” He took a threatening step forward, and I slipped out from behind the door.
“You need to leave.” Violet glanced at me.
Seriously, zero instincts. Luckily, Cedric was too busy with his ringing phone to notice.
“Yeah?” he grunted into the receiver. “No, she isn’t here. Only the girl.” He waited a moment, listening to the instructions at the other end of the line. “Dead or alive?”
Shit.
Violet’s face lost all colour. What the fuck has this family got themselves into?
Cedric silenced his phone, placing it back in his pocket. “There’s a pretty price on your head, darling.” He lurched forward, grabbing her wrist and disarming her so fast it was almost embarrassing.
“You alright there, mate?” I asked, causing Cedric to freeze as I finally made my presence known. “Didn’t think you were into force. Makes sense with a face like that, I suppose.”
Cedric’s jaw clenched, a muscle ticking in his temple. In one rough motion, he yanked Violet behind him and drew a gun. “You know how it is, Ryder,” he said, voice low and rough as if we were sharing some private joke.
I tilted my head, forcing my tone to sound casual. “Hmm. No, not really. Feel free to elaborate.”
His mouth curled into a humourless grin. “What fate you’re here. There’s a bounty on your head.” Cedric aimed, but I was already swinging.
The frying pan hit his hand, the gun going off somewhere over my shoulder.
Cedric hissed, taking aim again. “Oh, I’m going to fucking enjoy this.”
I swung again, putting everything I had into it before he could pull the trigger. The second blow caught him across the face with an almighty whack, and Cedric’s hulking frame crumpled like a sack of shit. Out cold.
“You know him?” Violet asked, her words a touch frantic.
“Sort of.” I kicked him in the side, and he didn’t flinch. Nor did he move when I casually dropped the pan onto his head. Seriously, who’d have thought it would make such a great weapon? “Cedric’s not a nice guy. Much prefer his brother.”
Although his brother was dead. I think?
“Oh my God, what is happening?” Violet blurted, her voice climbing into a thin, trembling pitch.
“I just wanted some chocolate from the shops, and now mum’s gone, but what if she comes back?
And the washing—shit, I left it in the machine.
It’s probably going to smell, and I don’t have time for this. I don’t—”
Her hands twitched, half-reaching toward her face before falling again. She kept glancing from the fallen gun to Cedric’s crumpled body, her breath coming too fast.
Jesus Christ, her mind was going a mile a minute. Not good.
“Do you have, like, ADHD or something?”
She tried to swallow, but she was too frantic. “You’re not supposed to ask that,” she said, still panicked. Panic made people loud, and that was if one of her neighbours hadn’t already heard the commotion and called for help.
“Hey, hey.” I stepped closer, lowering my voice. “Look at me, Violet. You’re okay. We’re okay.” My hand found her shoulder, awkwardly squeezing to anchor her to the room. “Breathe. In, out. That’s it. Good girl, keep doing that.”
Her gaze flicked up to mine, uncertain. I gave her a small nod, like I had everything under control. Whether she believed it or not didn’t matter. The trick was to keep her quiet until I was long gone and she was no longer my problem.
“Grab the ropes,” I said, keeping my tone authoritative.
She jerked, then followed the order without protest.
“No, let me.” I snatched them from her as she fumbled with Cedric’s wrists. “You’re clearly terrible at bondage.”
The joke seemed to work, her eyes snapping back to mine with a flicker of defiance tinged with embarrassment. I would’ve laughed in any other situation, but it seemed I was in a bit of a rush.
“Right.” After making sure Cedric wasn’t going anywhere soon, I scooped up everything of mine including the news articles, photographs, and the damn book before heading for the door. “Good luck.”
“What? Where are you going?” Violet gaped at me.
“Leaving, clearly.” Throwing her a sarcastic salute, and with my backpack over my shoulder I reached for the door, only for a small hand to slam it shut.
Violet
“What do you mean you’re leaving?”
Clearly, I was hallucinating, because no way was Intruder Number One just ditching me with Intruder Number Two like they were doing some kind of criminal relay race.
“So, what… you were just going to leave him here?” I gestured vaguely at the man still sprawled on my floor, a frying pan balanced on his head like a crown.
Ryder exhaled sharply, his usual smirk gone as he looked at me. “Not my problem.”
Not his problem? What was I supposed to do, call the police and explain that two armed strangers had broken into my flat looking for my mum? Or at least some version of her I didn’t know?
And what about the articles? The photos? Shit.
“So you’re just going to tie him up in my flat and walk away?” I challenged.
“Exactly. Your flat.” Ryder gave the door handle a tug, but I pressed harder against it. “He was clearly looking for your mum, not me. Now, if you’ll politely move to the side…”
“No.” Slipping beneath his arm, I pressed my back to the door, tilting my jaw up to better meet his eyes. “You’re not leaving unless I go with you.”
He laughed, low and husky. But when he realised I wasn’t joking, the grin slid right off his face. “Yeah, that’s not happening, blondie.”
“Look, I need answers, and you’re the only person that can give them.”
“Pretty sure you’ve got me confused with someone who gives a shit.” His hand came up, one finger lifting my chin higher. “You’re just a job that went sideways.”
“You’re taking me with you,” I said again, firmer this time.
Ryder’s mouth curved into a mocking smile, dimples flashing. “And why the fuck would I do that?”
“Because you need that USB drive.”
His eyes narrowed. “I thought you didn’t know anything about it?”
“I lied.” Which was a lie, but he didn’t know that. “You help me figure out who’s after my mum, and I’ll hand it over.”
“Yeah, no. How about you just give me the USB, and maybe I won’t hurt you?” His hand slid down, curling around my throat with just enough pressure to make his point.
I forced myself to hold his gaze. “Hurting me won’t save you.”
Cedric groaned behind us, and Ryder’s grip tightened before his attention flicked over his shoulder.
“Right now, you need me just as much as I need you,” I pressed, my pulse frantic against his fingertips. “He said you’ve got a bounty on your head. That makes you just as much a target. You need the USB drive… and I need your help.”
Eyes of dark honey stared down at me, a battle of wills as I glared at him in return.
“Fuck!” he cursed, releasing me. “Fine, but we’re doing this my way.”
Stepping back, he quickly returned to Cedric to riffle through his pockets. Pulling out a phone, Ryder attempted to unlock it, but when Cedric’s face recognition didn’t work, nor his fingerprints, Ryder cursed again before shoving it in his backpack.
“Come on.” He straightened, already moving. “We need to be gone before reinforcements show up.”