Total pages in book: 66
Estimated words: 61868 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 309(@200wpm)___ 247(@250wpm)___ 206(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 61868 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 309(@200wpm)___ 247(@250wpm)___ 206(@300wpm)
We let this thought settle, and none of us notices that Skye is back in the hallway, leaning against the wall for support as if even holding her own body upright is an impossible task right now, until her small voice cuts through the silence.
"I'm sorry. I really am. I don't know what else to say!" Her voice seems to come from far away and fades into nothingness.
"You don't need to apologize." Finn is on his feet and lumbers towards her, ready to comfort the girl who can't sleep. He leads her back to her room and doesn't return.
"I called Bill," I tell West. "He didn't pick up, but I left a message that he will respond to."
"Let me know what he says."
I nod and lean against the chair, cracking my back on the wood.
The events of this evening have wiped me out, and the familiar sense of foreboding that accompanies my exhaustion and wired emotions threatens to spill over the edges of my mind.
"You should go to bed," I tell West. "I'll keep watch. Set an alarm for three am. You can take the second shift."
As West leaves the room, I pull my rifle from the cupboard, making sure it's loaded.
I sit with it over my knee and pull my phone from my pocket.
One new message.
My pulse quickens, and my chest tightens. But as I listen, my blood seems to leave my body, and all around me, there is only stillness.
And then the entire world comes crashing down around me. I’m frozen in time.
And I can do nothing.
It takes every ounce of my restraint to stay still, to not tear out into the night to torture the wrong target, to destroy everything in my path.
That wouldn't be the way to redress the balance.
And right now, I need to keep my cool for Skye. For West and Finn.
And for me, because God knows that dropping dead from a cardiac arrest would be damn inconvenient right now.
It's not the message I anticipated, but more life-shattering than I could ever imagine.
That son of bitch stepfather of mine chooses today to drop dead.
Before I had a chance to find him and exact my revenge.
And he left me as his next of kin.
Son of a bitch.
17
WEST
PICTURES AND PAIN
Skye has to come to work with us every day. Leaving her behind isn’t safe. It doesn’t feel that safe to ask her to hang out at a hazardous site with rough lumberjacks, but at least we’re around to deal with any danger that might come about.
On Monday, she tries to read to pass the time but admits she finds concentrating a challenge.
On Tuesday morning, Jack installs her in the trailer cabin that doubles as our break room with a book and a sketch pad that will hopefully keep her occupied all day. Her phone must remain off since she potentially compromised it with the message.
Ethan calls in sick, which is a good thing. If I see him today, I don’t think I’d be able to hold off punching him in his stupid face. I used to feel so much guilt for what happened with his brother, but his actions have turned that guilt into exasperation and now into burning anger. Skye has enough on her plate without worrying about getting killed by a rock flying through the window.
My hard hat makes my scalp itch, but I work through it, focusing on the giant tree we’re taking down next.
Aiden is working with me. He’s a good guy and an old hand. I trust him to make decisions that won’t put either of us in danger.
We’re almost done when Liam emerges from the tree line, pulling off his gloves and watching the mighty Western Red Cedar fall hard enough to shake the ground.
I tip my head questioningly in Liam’s direction, and he urges me closer. “Everything okay?” Maybe something has happened with Skye.
“Last night, there were some new people at the bar … I thought I should let you know.”
“Who?”
“He didn’t say, but I overheard one of his friends calling him Carter. He said he was looking for a girl called Skye. That’s the woman you have living with you, right?”
“What else did he say?”
“There were a lot of them, throwing their weight around. It got messy.”
“Messy, how?”
Liam grins and rubs his hand over his red beard, dislodging bark that was wedged in the dense hair. “We made them leave. They didn’t like it, but those city boys think they can come into our town and make threats against our friends. The Shadow Outlaws were there last night, too. When I told them that Skye was with Finn, they ran those guys out of town.”
I grit my teeth and peel off my gloves. Aiden calls out, already moving onto our next tree target, but I can’t focus on logging when danger seems to be creeping closer with every minute that passes. “Thanks for telling me and for getting those assholes out of our neighborhood.”