Forbidden With Me - Leigh Lennon Page 0,74

slaps my face, and even with the protection of the black cloth over my head, my cheek stings.

“I ask the questions. You answer. So let’s try this again. You’re trying to place me?”

The pain pierces my head. “Yes, I am,” I say as clear as I can, never letting him sense my fear.

“Okay, now that’s a good little girl. But there’s more who want you besides me.”

I don’t understand this, but I answer right away to avoid another hit. “Okay,” I return in acknowledgment.

“Now that’s good, you’re learning quick.” His hand connects with my arm, and it’s instinctual to pull away. He slaps me on the other side of my face this time.

“Hey, bro?” a foreign voice calls from where I assume is the driver’s seat. “We have someone following us.”

He reaches around my waist and pulls the cell I snuck below my beltline against my skin. “Well, you’ve been a bad girl. But the better question is what the hell will we do with the person who’s chasing us.”

“It’s a late model red Honda Civic,” the voice calls from the front of the van, and my heart falls. I know exactly who drives a late model Honda.

“Don’t hurt her… I swear, she’s not the cavalry. She’s just my best friend.”

Both men begin to cackle so loud, I lose concentration on how long or where we turn. Now I not only have Greenlyn and Stewart but also my spunky best friend to protect. Though I’d lost track, I begin to count the turns again in the hopes it will help, listening intently to the outside until one more punch to my head has me seeing black.

I hear familiar voices, calling for me to wake up. “Malia, Malia.” It’s what breaks the haze of my blackout as I attempt to raise my head. Not only does it hurt like a son of a bitch multiplied by a hundred but there’s also a crick in my neck, causing the pain to radiate down my spine.

“Shit!” I shout when my eyes adjust to the light.

“I think she’s coming to.” There is a male voice, but not one I recognize.

“Yeah, I think she is, too. Malia, honey, focus, we need you to focus.” This second male voice, I know.

“Stewart,” I call out. Somehow, I feel relief knowing he’s with us. I don’t want anyone here on my account. My eyes briefly stare at every person in the room, all of us in a circle, in steel chairs, with our hands bound behind us and legs tied at our ankles.

“Yeah, honey, I need you to wake up for us. Can you do this for me?”

My eyes focus on Higgie, but next to him, my heart falls when the fire engine red hair of Georgia catches my attention. Next to her is the grown man version of Smith Turner, and next to him is Greenlyn.

“Holy fuck, how many of us are there?”

“Do you know…?” Stewart is about to ask as a man drags another person into the large warehouse room, and my chair is placed in the center of the circle—as I’m the center of this whole clusterfuck.

Chapter 27

Wells

I’m in Vanessa’s office, accessing her database. Some of the reports have not been sent to me. She’ll be pissed, but she’s not back yet, and I can’t wait. We have forensics from the scene, I need to look at it before I start to comb the old files, attempting to make sense of whatever I heard that had put me on high alert. I haven’t been able to figure it out from the drive to the precinct.

And I have no idea when Vanessa will bring the foremen in for questioning.

I have the forensics, but still no solid evidence that will help me solve this case or figure out where the fuck my partner is. My phone is ringing off the hook, when I print what I need, which really is nothing, and return to my desk, where my cell is.

Ten missed calls. Mostly from uniforms watching Malia and two from Vanessa, along with a text.

Vanessa: You better call me, right fucking now.

Well, that’s Vanessa. One minute, she’s all sweet, and the next, she’s as unreasonable as they come.

Eight calls from the uniforms have me reaching for my cell to call Kenzie back, the one who was tasked with watching Mal in the house.

“I saw you called. What’s up, Kenzie?”

“Shanahan, shit, I’m so sorry. I don’t know what happened. Malia’s best friend showed up on your doorstep. She