Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 69577 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 348(@200wpm)___ 278(@250wpm)___ 232(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69577 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 348(@200wpm)___ 278(@250wpm)___ 232(@300wpm)
Bernice shrieked in laughter as she tried to push the snow out with her nose.
My smiling gaze moved to where Odin was watching, and I blinked in surprise at the open need there.
When he moved his gaze away and caught mine, his entire face shut down, and it was blank once again.
I snuggled in closer to Creed and closed my eyes.
That was the last thing I remembered until hours later when I woke in the dark.
Twenty-Eight
Therapy isn’t enough. I need to bite people.
—Text from Birdee to Creed
Creed
I was called away.
Again.
I let Bernice know that I had to leave and to have her check on Birdee in a couple of hours, then slipped out of the house heading for my truck.
Apollo met me at the police station, jerking his chin toward me as he stood from the waiting room chair.
Gentry caught my eye as I passed him and gave me a chin lift. “He’s in his office. Head on back.”
I did, winding my way through the police station which was giving me fuckin’ hives.
I hated being here.
It reminded me of my darkest days, and I would rather be anywhere but here.
Yet, there I was at the police station to answer even more questions.
This time it was informal, unlike the last two of the day.
“What’s up?” I asked the sheriff.
Sheriff Black jerked his chin toward the chair. “Have a seat.”
I did, gritting my teeth as Apollo came in like he owned the place and took a seat beside me.
“Your friend here showed me quite a few views of what happened today with Cody,” he said. “And again with what happened with Vito and Grace at your place. He made a special stop here, however, when he showed me what Vito was whispering to Grace after he was allowed to check out of the hospital.”
My brows rose. “What’s up?”
“Vito and Grace devised a plan to come back to your place and kill you,” Apollo said point-blank. “I tapped into the cameras.” He grinned. “Which I had full permission from the hospital to do, in case you’re wondering like Sheriff Black here.” I wasn’t. “I shared that information with Sheriff Black, and they caught Vito on the way to your house. He had a gun in his truck.”
“Fuck.”
“He’s in police custody. He’s admitted to everything,” Sheriff Black grumbled. “And I’m really fuckin’ tired of hearin’ things coming up in relation to this. If I have to hear about one more…”
“Sheriff Black,” a hesitant female voice called out.
Sheriff Black’s cold gaze turned to the woman cowering in his doorway.
“Yeah?” he snapped.
“Uh, I hate to tell you this, but that guy’s wife is missing from the hospital.”
Sheriff Black let his head rest on the back of his chair, his angry eyes glaring at the ceiling. “That whole damn family is fuckin’ off their rocker!”
I looked over to Apollo. “Can you find her?”
Apollo pulled up his phone and started tapping away.
It took him a few minutes, but he said, “She left in a brown SUV from the hospital’s front parking lot. Ambulance bay entrance. I tapped into a few cameras that go through that area. She’s heading toward…Creed’s place.”
“I don’t want to know how you got this information,” Sheriff Black said. “Gentry!”
Gentry appeared looking hesitant.
It was funny, despite the situation, to know that he was wary of his boss.
I could see why.
Sheriff Black was a powerhouse of a man. Six-foot-five, older in his late forties. Salt and pepper hair. Square jaw. Permanent scowl.
Oh, and a member of the Dixie Wardens MC.
“Yeah, Sheriff?”
“Get out to Creed’s place. If a brown SUV manages to get out there, I want you to arrest the fuckin’ twat in the passenger seat. Whoever gave her a ride, you can bring them in, too. We have fuckin’ questions.”
“You think she’s actually paralyzed, Sheriff?” Gentry wondered.
“If she was able to get out of the hospital, I’m betting she played the long game,” Sheriff Black grumbled.
“All right.” Gentry headed out.
“Go home, Creed. You see that woman getting arrested, keep drivin’.”
“Yes, sir.” I grinned.
He flipped me off as Apollo and I left.
Apollo and I were in the parking lot when he said, “I have a few more things.”
“What’s that?” I asked, eager to get to my place.
I didn’t think that Grace had a chance to get in thanks to half my living room filled with bikers who were too inebriated to go home last night, but that didn’t stop the itch between my shoulders urging me to leave as fast as possible just in case.
“One, Vito and Grace, as well as Cody, weren’t as clean as they would like everyone to believe. When you started to spend time with Birdee, I kind of looked into her parents. Her mom was obviously a psycho, which you know about. But the dad wasn’t much better. Apparently, they were committing some hella fraud through their business. Scamming people out of their lunch money, practically. Nothing too big or scary, just overcharging on services. Charging when they asked for services to be stopped and not giving their money back. Making it impossible to cancel at the gym. Just being altogether asshole human beings. Oh, and one last thing.”