Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 63895 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 319(@200wpm)___ 256(@250wpm)___ 213(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 63895 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 319(@200wpm)___ 256(@250wpm)___ 213(@300wpm)
“California law deems solitary confinement for longer than two weeks as cruel and unusual punishment, so you’re getting moved out to general population after our meeting.”
Roman’s eyes widened. This was huge. It meant he could try and find Bang Bang, along with an opportunity to escape. He wanted to reach over and hug Garret but figured the handcuffs chained to the table might make that a bit difficult.
“And as for your actual case, I think I can drum up enough reasonable doubt to get you and your friends off the hook here. I need you to be honest with me from here on out, though. I don’t want the prosecution bringing up anything I wasn’t aware of.” Garret adjusted the glasses up higher, his pupils becoming slightly magnified behind the lenses.
“I’m an open book.”
“Alright, good, walk me through everything, then.”
And so Roman did. He told Garret everything he thought he’d need to know. Even though Roman planned on never stepping foot inside a courtroom, at least this conversation helped him feel like he was doing something. It was also the longest he’d sat and talked with another human being in the past three weeks, so for that alone he felt grateful.
But it wasn’t until the meeting was over that Roman felt the brightest spark of hope yet.
“Okay,” Garret said, grabbing his suitcase and standing up, a cocky grin on his face. “I think I’ve got everything I needed so far.” He slipped his hand into the pocket of his slacks before taking it back out, smile still on his face. He reached and gave Roman an awkward handshake. With that, he turned and left, replaced by Aimee and another corrections officer.
Roman looked down at his hands and nearly passed out.
Right there, sitting in the center of his palm, was a small salt packet. No words, no messages, just a tiny white packet of salt, and that was all the confirmation Roman needed.
Wyatt was coming for him.
Chapter 2
Wyatt Hernandez
The playful barks from the sea lion enclosure battled with the sounds coming from the penguin exhibit, both of them bordering the underwater tunnel that Wyatt currently strolled through. He found himself able to think when he was surrounded by the swirling blue water and the colorful saltwater fish lazily drifting in and out of the rainbow-bright coral. These moments of serenity were becoming harder and harder to find the longer Roman and Bang Bang were locked up.
Wyatt hoped it wouldn’t be for much longer. He had a plan forming, but it required about a dozen different moving parts, which left plenty of room for failure. And failure in this case meant losing Roman—once again, likely permanently. He couldn’t even process that possibility. Every time he thought about it, his chest would contract, and his heart would begin to race. A physical reaction to the intense fear of losing the man he loved.
Loved. Who would have guessed.
Wyatt certainly wouldn’t have. Sure, he had fallen for Roman years ago, back when his smile and kisses had drilled a hole directly down into his soul, but life had thrown a wrench into their love, and Wyatt assumed it had been completely and irreparably destroyed. He couldn’t imagine the pieces ever being put together, even though he occasionally dreamed about it.
And then Roman was back, smiles and kisses still golden. Wyatt thought the animosity and negative feelings he’d harbored against him would be anchored in deep.
He should have known Roman Ashford would find a way to move past all that.
Oh, Roman… God, I hope you’re doing okay right now.
Wyatt walked down the tunnel, looking up as a hammerhead shark lazily swam over his head, a couple of remoras attached to the shark’s fins. The serenity helped ease some of the bubbling anxiety, but only some of it. Wyatt was having trouble sleeping, eating, thinking. The stakes were higher than he could ever imagine, and somehow, he found himself at the head of this rescue mission. The most he’d ever led before this was a team-building day at the science museum he used to work at, which (not surprisingly) happened to be much easier than breaking out two men from a high-security prison after they were both framed for a bombing.
Yeah… Wyatt definitely preferred the ropes course over this. Any day.
He continued his walk, the anxiety and stress clinging to him in the same way those remoras clung to the shark. He passed the one moray eel that had been suspiciously staring at them when he and Roman were hooking up in the tunnel. A small reminder of how perfect things had been and how far from perfect things had become.
The tunnel ended and deposited him out into a wide playground. To the left was the beluga whale exhibit. He glanced at his watch and saw that it was pushing close to midnight, but Wyatt couldn’t imagine lying down for even a second. His mind buzzed far too loud for him to even entertain the idea of sleep.