again, despite the moonshine already warming my belly.
He went straight to the kitchen, stepping around some supply boxes stacked on the floor, and opened a cupboard.
I spared the supplies a quick glance. He already had a lot of food. Why was he interested in my supplies? Not my problem or concern, I decided. If he wanted to trade and was willing to give up some of his moonshine, that was fine with me.
He turned to me with two, quart-sized jars in his hands.
“My housemates are out right now. But only for a little while. We need to hurry this up.”
“Does that mean the moonshine isn’t yours?” I asked, tearing my gaze from the boxes.
“It’s partly mine. The part I’m trading with you.” He winked.
What did I care if it wasn’t his? He was giving it to me and getting something in return. By the time his housemates caught on, hopefully, I’d be long gone. Or, at the very least, long drunk.
“I need to sample both,” I said. “I won’t be tricked with water.”
“Then we have a deal with two quarts?”
“We have a deal as long as you find a way to save the rest and agree only to trade them to me.”
He smiled and uncapped both jars.
“Drink up, sugar.”
I lifted the first jar to my lips and took two swallows. It was just as strong as the sample and burned its way down to my stomach. I took a slow, calming breath, already feeling it mute some of the emotions that had been clinging to me since I woke. Taking the second jar from him, I repeated the process.
He took a seat at the table while he waited.
“I’ve never seen a girl who drinks her shine as neat as you,” he commented. “You’re not new to it, are you?”
I flashed him my thousand-watt smile just because I felt like it and sank into a kitchen chair.
“I’ve been known to drink from time to time,” I said.
Rather than capping the jar, I took another sip. The mellow was already setting in, weighing down my arms and legs in that pleasant way I’d come to love.
“What’s your drink of choice?” he asked.
“There was this one bottle of cognac that was really good. Wouldn’t mind more of that.”
He laughed.
“You have expensive taste. I’m surprised you like the moonshine.”
I shrugged lightly.
“It does the job.”
“And what job’s that?”
“Numbs the memories.” Just saying it brought them back, and I took a longer drink, desperate to drown the pain.
“Sounds like you need some new memories. What’s your name?”
“Hannah.” I exhaled slowly, really feeling the moonshine kick in. The room even gave a little spin.
“Drink up, Hannah. You’ll do just fine.”
He was right. I would now that I had something to help. I took another drink, no longer feeling the burn.
“Do you have anyone who’ll miss you, Hannah?”
I blinked at him. He didn’t seem like Merdon now. He seemed nicer. Kinder. He’d given me moonshine, and when he asked about my people, it was in a simple, not so hurtful way.
“No. Everyone who’d miss me is already gone.”
I heard the way my words slurred and didn’t even care. I had a few hours before I’d be missed, and I planned to make the most of them.
With a smile at my host, I drank some more.
Bliss came in different forms for different people. Not many would call a screaming headache and a mouthful of ass-taste bliss, but it was pretty close for me. So was the fact that I couldn’t remember anything after drinking from the man’s jar. Not even his name.
I lifted my head, expecting to see a strange room. When I didn’t, the familiar view of my own curtains confused me. I could have sworn I’d been in Tenacity.
A sinking feeling settled into my soul.
Where was my moonshine?
“Are you hurt?”
Emily had to repeat the question to gain my attention.
“Yep. My head. How did I get here?”
More importantly, where were my jars?
“I mean, did they hurt you?”
I frowned through the throbbing in my skull and tried to focus on Emily. She had the chair near the bed for some reason.
“Did who hurt me?”
Her expression, which was already sad, notched up the pity a few degrees.
“The men who kidnapped you.”
I laughed, not a full out laugh—that would have hurt too much—but enough for Emily to know I didn’t believe her. This headache needed to go. Sitting up a little, I looked around my room hopefully. Maybe someone had brought the jars with me.