Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 135792 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 679(@200wpm)___ 543(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 135792 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 679(@200wpm)___ 543(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
So maybe Knox went to sleep, and they’d left the workshop to give him peace?
A smile tugged on the corners of Liv’s mouth when he thought of the innocent faces Knox made when sleeping. A couple of times, Liv had pranked him by tickling his feet until he woke, but he usually didn’t have the heart to fuck with him when he was enjoying much-needed rest.
His condition didn’t affect him all the time, but good food, rest, and peace made the episodes rarer, so these days Liv was very careful about Knox’s needs being met to the best of their ability. He tried to be very quiet upon entering the workshop, and switched on only his cell phone for light, but when he stepped into the little office temporarily converted into their bedroom, he found the mattress empty.
“Knox?”
Nothing.
So Liv tried again, in the workshop itself, but it wasn’t as though Knox would be hiding somewhere to prank him.
A bad feeling settled on his shoulders, but Frank’s house had more than one door, so maybe they just missed each other? It would have been typical for Knox to try and get one more snack in before bed, especially after all they’ve been through today.
He walked back but when it turned out that neither Ezra nor Ros had seen Knox, Liv rushed right back outside, heading for the truck.
“Have you seen Knox?” he asked, already out of breath, because his lungs suddenly felt too small for all the air he needed. Something was off. He could feel it in his gut.
Frank shrugged. “Thought he went to bed.”
Shane ran his hand over his face. “Not again. What did you do to him?”
Liv’s jaw dropped at the accusation. “Excuse me?”
Frank’s face scrunched as he watched them with a deepening frown. “Did something happen that I should know about?”
Shane spread his arms. “He seems to be avoiding you is all I’m saying.”
Frank squinted at Liv. “What is this fucking drama? Don’t you two have bigger problems?”
The ground under Liv’s feet stuck to his shoes and was about to crumble, taking him into the abyss. “Avoiding me? Why the fuck would he be avoiding me?” he asked, searching Shane’s eyes, because he wasn’t above looking for answers when they were needed.
“First he turns off his phone, now he’s gone. Why? You tell us,” Shane said, his thick brows lowering.
Frank groaned. “What’s it matter? He’ll be back when he wants to be.”
Liv put his hands against his mouth and called out Knox’s name at the top of his lungs. The noise made Frank stir with annoyance.
“Just stop it. He probably just went out for a walk.”
But Shane’s words have already taken root, and now Liv was second-guessing everything, especially the flat emotions Knox had displayed in the car. He did not look like someone who had been fucked well and was pumped out afterwards. Now that Liv was second-guessing himself, Knox’s behavior reeked of wanting to leave.
“He would have said something.”
Shane took a swig of beer. “And why exactly are you making this our problem? He’s a grown man.”
Frank glanced to the side with a scowl. “There’s the traps…”
Cold vines grew all around Liv and tightened their hold on him. “What? What traps?”
Shane sighed. “Yeah, Ezra once fell into one.”
“Fuck! What the hell? You should have told us. What if he’s hurt?” Liv asked, increasingly frantic, but at the back of his mind, the accusation about this being somehow his fault was growing in strength.
“Well, he’ll probably keep to the roads when it’s so dark anyway. Those are all safe,” Frank muttered before taking another sip.
How could they just sit there when there were fucking traps on this junkyard?
Shane shrugged. “We met you two yesterday. We’re not giving you a map of the place with all the traps marked. What else? Are we supposed to tell you where the tigers are locked away?”
Frank shoved Shane’s arm. “Don’t mess with him.” He turned to Liv with a serious expression. “There are no tigers, and your boyfriend’s fine. Jag would have known if a trap was activated. Is it possible he fainted?”
The way Liv was feeling right now, he might be the one fainting. It was all his fault. He must have somehow misread the situation, or come on too strong, or scared Knox in some other way, and now Knox was somewhere out there, in the dark, with traps set up all over the place.
“I… I think he might be having a freak out, and that’s why he’s gone. Look, you need to help me find him.”
Shane put away his empty bottle. “Why would he be freaking out? I’m not doing this unless there’s a good reason. I’ve got dog training in the morning.”
Liv covered his face.
He should not tell them what happened, since it was private, but they needed to understand this was urgent, because everyone would rather have a quiet evening than run around looking for a dude with an existential crisis.