Chapter 50
CHAPTER
FIFTY
JULIETTE
After cleaning the strip club, I walk out into the parking lot and look around. A chill slides down my back because I know I’m being watched, and I know it isn’t Slade. He’s gone out of town and asked me to pick up Cade from school since he won’t be back in time.
A meeting.
That’s all he told me, and I didn’t ask for any more details. Maybe I should have. There’s a feeling of impending doom hanging over me, and it’s heavy, almost as if it’s pressing against my chest.
That, along with the feeling of being watched, is making me feel sick to my stomach. All I need to do is get into the car, drive to the school, gather Cade, and drive back to Slade’s house.
Easy peasy.
“You good?” Alex calls out.
Shifting my focus to the club’s front door, I watch as he locks it, then checks it, before making his way toward me. I am not good. I don’t know what I am, but it’s not good. I can’t tell him any of that without sounding a little unhinged, though, so I don’t.
Flashing him a smile, I shrug a shoulder. “I’ll be fine,” I say as my response.
Because how can I not be? I don’t have a choice but to be fine, just like always, and this is no different. I just need to get through whatever this is. Maybe it’s my anxiety, maybe it’s actually someone watching me, but it doesn’t matter. And I repeat that to myself over and over.
“Seriously, if you need something, we’re family, Juliette.”
Alex is sweet, and I believe his words, which is why I’m not telling him a freaking thing, because I don’t want him to get hurt. If Victor is out there somewhere watching me, then I want to make sure I’m the only one he goes after.
Then something causes my heart to race. Cade. If I’m not being paranoid or anxious, if he’s really out there, I can’t have Cade get hurt.
“You know what? I do need something.” My words come out in a rush.
Alex presses his lips into a straight line, his brows snapping together, and concern immediately consumes his face. He takes one step toward me, then another. He’s close enough that I can whisper and he’ll hear me.
I’m not going to tell him anything about Victor, though. He already knows about him, and maybe he’ll figure it out, but I’m not offering shit because I don’t want him to get caught in the crosshairs.
“Can you pick Cade up from school and take him to the clubhouse for me?”
He nods once, but then his body freezes. “The clubhouse?” he asks.
“Maybe get him something to eat. I can give you some money.”
My fingers tremble as I reach for my little purse, where I have a little money shoved into the side pocket.
Alex reaches out, his fingers curling around my wrist to stop me.
His grip tightens, and I lift my gaze to meet his.
He’s got about a dozen questions swirling around in his eyes, but not a single one of them is one I’m going to answer.
“Please,” I rasp.
Maybe he understands that I don’t want to say anything. Maybe he just doesn’t want to upset me. Either way, I let out a sigh of relief when he dips his chin in a single nod, his hand releasing my wrist before he takes a step backward.
“I got Cade, and I’ll have him at the clubhouse, fed and watered,” he states, but I can tell he’s still forcing himself not to ask me any further questions. I appreciate the restraint. He’s not finished yet, though. “You’ll tell me everything later?” I know it’s rhetorical because he’s worried.
“I will.” It’s not a lie.
I will tell him, and hopefully, it will be nothing—nothing but something we can laugh about. My absolute ridiculous paranoia. It’s all going to be nothing. It’s just my stupid anxiety and paranoia, and it’s not real.
Thanking him, I wave as I open the door to my car and sink down into the driver’s seat. I start the engine, backing up slightly before I shift the car into Drive, and then I head out of the parking lot.
What I don’t do is drive to Slade’s place. Instead, I head directly toward my new apartment. If Victor is out there, I want to keep him as far away from Cade and the clubhouse as possible.
It doesn’t take me long to reach the building. Finding my parking spot, I slip my car in, turn off the engine, and gather my new keys before heading toward the door. Standing there, I inhale deeply, holding it for a moment, then let the breath out slowly.
I don’t know what is going to happen, but the impending doom presses against my chest even harder. My breathing comes out in sharp, quick pants. I can’t take in a deep breath, and I know that something is going to happen.
Trembling, I am eventually able to unlock the door and push it open. I step into the empty condo and close the door behind me, but before I can even lock it, he steps out from the hallway leading to the only bedroom.
“Welcome home, baby,” he calls out in a singsong voice.
I reach behind me for the doorknob, opening my mouth to scream when something in his hand flashes in the sunlight and causes my entire body to stiffen and freeze.
A gun.
“Make a move, and bang-bang,” he says, “you’re dead.”
I freeze.
Oh god.