The little dot that tracks his location is in the same spot. It makes me feel sick, like something’s terribly wrong. The fucking dot won’t move. I wish I could talk to someone, Joseph, one of his associates, and be assured that he’s okay. Anyone!
I called his phone at least a dozen times, but he hasn’t answered. I knew he wouldn’t in the beginning, but by now he should’ve.
My throat constricts and I roll over in bed, hating to think about it. Hating time for going so slowly.
Just come back to me.
A knock on the door brings me to my feet faster than I would have thought possible, my heart pounding in my chest.
I’m just at the door when Madame Lynn walks in.
She looks sharp as usual, dressed in a black dress that has ruffles at the bottom and black glossy heals, her hair pulled up into an elegant bun while wispy bangs frame her face. She looks perfectly fine. As though her friend isn’t out killing his father and brother this very second.
Her face is solemn as she steps into the room and stops a few feet away from me.
“I’m here to tell you that you can go home now,” Madame Lynn says softly. “Isaac set up a security system around your townhouse. You don’t need it,” she shakes her head gently, her eyes rolling, “He’s peculiar about safety.”
I part my lips to ask her about Joseph when there’s a knock at the door.
Isaac sticks his head through the doorway, glances between the both of us, and then steps inside the room. Though I’m filled with anxiety, I can’t help but notice the authority Isaac radiates. It reminds me of Joseph. Those chiseled features, the power and ruthlessness behind his eyes.
“It’s done,” Isaac tells Madame Lynn. “I’ve made sure that no one will gain access.”
The look that passes across Madame Lynn’s face as she glances at Isaac is one of extreme gratitude.
“But what about Joseph?” I ask. The hell with my safety, I want to know what’s going on.
Madame Lynn exchanges a glance with Isaac and something seems to silently pass between them. My heart pounds harder in my chest.
I look back and forth between the both of them. “Where is he?” My body trembles with anxiety. Someone tell me something!
Madame Lynn is silent and the look of sadness she throws my way makes my stomach churn.
“Please tell me what’s going on!” I cry.
“You’re better off without him,” Isaac says finally, firmly. At the frown that crumples my face, he adds, “I’m sorry if it’s not what you want to hear, but he’s no good for you Lilly.”
“Isaac!” Madam Lynn snaps, she looks pissed. And Isaac’s shocked.
“If he really wanted you, he’d be here. Not leaving you to wonder where he’s at.” Isaac says.
“That’s not true. You don’t know him!” I cry out..
“Get out, Isaac.” Madam Lynn says in a low voice. “I told you, you don’t know him.” Her voice is full of hurt. And from the look that flashes in his eyes, he seems genuinely sorry.
“Out,” Madame Lynn says in a bit of a brighter tone, shooing him away.
Isaac stands there for a moment waiting for her to look at him again, but she doesn’t. He looks like he wants to tell me something. But again… nothing.
He presses his lips into a straight line and nods before leaving the room. At the door, he stops to tell me, “My team and I will be waiting to escort you home Ms. Wade. Just come to us when you’re ready.”
I don’t answer him. Fuck him for saying that. It hurts. I’m already hurting and what he said was only salt in the wound. The only words I can get out are, “you don’t know him.”
The second the door closes, Madam Lynn says, “I was really pissed at Joseph.” She clears her throat, taking the seat in the far corner of the room. The chair is a pale pink, studded nails line the smooth leather. She runs her hands down the edge and it suits her. She looks like she belongs there.
“He’s okay,” I stare at her with wide eyes. “Joseph is.” My body sags with relief. “He called a few hours ago. It’s over with.”
A few hours ago? Her words hit me like a knife to my back.
“I’m sorry about Isaac. He doesn’t know Joseph well.” I can tell she’s trying to change the subject, but I don’t let her.
“Hours?” I ask her. Her expression tells me that she knows how I feel.
“He’s safe. And he knows you’re safe.” I’m quiet as I sit on the edge of the bed. Overwhelmed by so many emotions.
“He’ll come for you. I’m sure he will.” Her eyes are so full of sincerity, that I believe her. I believe that she truly thinks he will.
But her words don’t give me the confidence I need. I want him here now. I want to watch that stupid dot on the phone coming closer and closer to me. Bringing him back to me.
But then I think back to the last look he gave me, and my doubts fall away.
I know what I saw in his eyes. And that wasn’t a lie.
He loves me. And he’s going to come for me.
And if he doesn’t, then I’ll go to him.
Chapter 30
Joseph
The trunk closes at the foot of my bed with a loud clack. All the memories of my past placed inside. Including my journal. I have no need for it anymore, no desire to write another word.
It’s over.
There’s not a single target on my back with both my father and my brother gone. Zander’s assured me he’ll keep his ear low to the ground. His fingers on the pulse of what’s going on behind closed doors. I’m not sure what he wants from me, he’s yet to ask. I don’t like owing a debt to anyone if I can help it, still I’m grateful.
Because of Lilly.
I want her back. I want her here, in my house and in my bed, just like I did that first night I saw her. She belongs to me now. So any protection I can take, I will. Even if that means making a deal with Zander.
As I grab my keys, they clink off the foyer table. The sound echoes with me as I realized the only reason I’ll be coming home without her is if she doesn’t want me. My hand hesitates on the doorknob, my mind replaying all the moments we’ve had in the past month.
We’ve grown together. I’ve been there for her and she’s been there for me. At least in my mind, that’s what happened. I know these past two weeks, she’s been a prisoner. Unable to go as she pleases. It was for her own safety, her own good. As I close the front door behind me, my body heats I remember her in the cage staring at me with daggers in her eyes.
She could leave me now. She could walk away from me and there’s nothing I can do. I never locked the cage and I never will.
The thought chills me along with the bitter cold February air. I forgot my coat. I don’t give a fuck, I’m not going back. Not until I have her in my arms.
My strides quicken and I hit the clicker to unlock my car. The faint beep beep ringing out in the cold.
I’ll be coming back with my flower. I know I will.
Just as I open my driver door, I see a car coming up the long winding drive. There’s a dusting of snow over the clearing, and as the old, red Honda takes the bend, the car drift slightly.