Torn - Cynthia Eden Page 0,34
with shock but with . . . .
Sorrow.
She knew he would do this.
This is why she was never happy. Never happy with him. She isn’t shocked. She’s seen this before.
But Victoria hadn’t. She’d never seen this side of her dad before . . .
Her father hit her mother then. A sharp blow to the face. Her mom fell back, and Victoria raced down the stairs. “No!”
DARKNESS. THE DARK always hid so much. Lies, secrets . . . all were safe in the dark.
Most people had a natural fear of the darkness. They knew that bad things could wait in the shadows.
Very, very bad things.
He carried his precious burden through the dark. No one was at the spot—why would they be? It wasn’t safe here, not in the dark.
But he wasn’t afraid. Why would he be?
He put her down gently. Brushed back her hair. He couldn’t see her well but he knew just how beautiful she was. She would always be beautiful. He’d made sure of that.
He put her down on the worn path. His gloved fingers slid over her cheek, a final good-bye.
He covered her up, wanting her snug and safe.
Then he walked away.
The darkness . . . it could hide so much.
Even the blackest of sins.
CHAPTER SIX
MATTHEW WALKER RAN down the old path, his pace steady, his heart drumming. The sun was starting to rise, an absolutely perfect freaking view, and it felt as if he had the whole morning to himself. He loved this part of the day, getting in the four-mile run was always a top priority for him, and this path—his path—was the best way to start any morning.
His feet pounded against the ground. The path snaked, heading deeper between the trees. His ear buds were in and the hard blast of music filled his ears. His gaze stayed focused up ahead and—
Shit. Something is in my way.
Someone had dumped, hell, something, right in the middle of the path. Seriously, this wasn’t the place to dump crap.
His pace slowed as he approached what looked like a big black bag . . . and maybe a blanket. Yeah, a blanket because part of it was flapping in the breeze and—
That’s not trash.
Matthew froze. He’d just caught sight of a—a hand? A hand, reaching out. Only the hand looked wrong. Fuck, was that bones? He stumbled to a stop a few feet away from whatever in the hell was on that jogging path. But then, helpless, he inched forward.
Hair. There was hair blowing in the breeze.
And yes, bones. Dirt-covered bones that had once been a person. A person who was thrown away like trash right in the middle of his running path.
Bile rose in his throat as he stared, helplessly, at the person he’d just found.
A PHONE WAS ringing. A fast, hard beat of music. Rough rock. The sound jarred Victoria from her nightmare—a nightmare that she kept reliving, no matter how many times she tried to leave the past behind.
When her eyes opened, she saw the tall post on the bed—an antique four-poster bed. But not the bed she’d been assigned.
I stayed with him.
Her heart was pounding too fast because she’d been jerked awake by that jarring ring tone, and now she saw that she was still in bed—Wade’s bed. It came back to her then. She’d gone to him last night. Had hot sex with him and then . . . fell asleep in his arms.
The bed dipped beside her as Wade swore, and then he was padding—naked—to grab his still ringing phone. Victoria sat up quickly, pulling the sheet with her. Naked. Oh, crap. I’m still naked.
She didn’t know how to do the morning after routine—mostly because a morning after didn’t happen for her. She spied her T-shirt, tossed on the floor. Were her panties close by? She sincerely hoped they were.
“Monroe,” Wade barked into his phone. “This had better be good—”
He broke off and, as his face tensed, Victoria stopped worrying about her clothes.
Because, based on his expression, there was something far more serious for her to worry about.
“When? Where?” Each question shot from Wade with the impact of a bullet. “Yeah, yeah, I’ll have her there as fast as possible.” His gaze flickered to Victoria. “Damn straight she’s the best.”
She slid from the bed, keeping the sheet wrapped around her.
“You secure the scene, and we’ll be there as fast as possible. And hell, yes, I’ll want to talk with the guy who found the body.”
Body.
He hung up the phone. Wade nodded as he