Forsaken (The Secret Life of Amy Bensen #3)(62)

“You said she was blond.”

“She was, but that is either her or her doppelganger. They’re using the doctor to try and get information from Amy about you and the cylinder.”

That icy cold I haven’t felt in days is back, and I am frozen inside. “The question is, who is ‘they’? Liam Stone, or Sheridan and his consortium? Rollin, maybe? All of the above, or someone else? I’m not waiting until Thursday. We get her now.”

Jared pops his door. “I’ll walk in and tell her I need to talk to her in private.” He doesn’t wait for a reply, exiting the SUV, and I curse, grabbing the beanie from my pocket and pulling it over my head. I quickly follow him, meeting him at the hood of the vehicle. “The back door of the coffee shop opens to Fifty-first Street,” he says as I step in his path. “Amy and I will meet you there.”

“How are you going to get her to the door?”

“I’ll figure it out. Just be there. Liam will be back any minute.” He dashes through traffic before I can stop him.

“Damn it to hell,” I curse, rushing to the driver’s door, and claiming the seat behind the wheel as Gia climbs into the front to join me.

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” she asks.

“No. No, I am not sure this is a good idea.” I start the engine. “Watch for Jared while I watch traffic. I have to get to the side door to pick up Amy. Tell me when Jared enters the coffee shop.” I look over my shoulder, trying to find a gap in the traffic to pull onto the road and seeing none.

“He’s inside,” she announces. “But Chad, the Bentley is back, and Tellar just exited the building. I think he’s going to trade places with Liam.” She turns to me. “You need that distraction we talked about now. I’ll make one.” She opens the door. I reach for her, but it’s too late. She’s out of the SUV, and I shout, “Gia, get back here!” but she slams the door back into place.

“Fuck me,” I curse, cutting into traffic, promising myself that I’m going to lock Gia up after this and throw away the key. Maneuvering into traffic, I cross three lanes and eye my rearview mirror in disbelief to find Gia talking to Liam and Tellar. She’s cleared a path to free Amy, but at what cost?

Dread heavy in my stomach, I cut right onto Fifty-first Street and pull into the service lane, identifying the coffee shop door, and wait. Wait some more. And then it feels like I wait some more, when really it’s only a minute. Maybe two. Okay, three. It has to be f*cking three minutes.

I get out of the SUV and my fingers curl by my sides, debating my next move and then launching into action, running for the door. Once I’m there, I enter into a hallway and run smack into Amy and Jared. Amy gasps. “Chad. I . . . I . . . ”

She bursts into tears and wraps her arms around me, and while this is the wrong place and time, the emotions that overwhelm me are second only to those I’d felt the night of the fire. I hug her, holding on so tight I’m not sure how she can breathe.

“We need to move,” Jared warns.

He’s right, and my hands go to my sister’s arms, lifting us apart. “He’s right. We have to go.”

“Go? Where? Why? Oh God. Is it really you? How is it you?”

“I’ll explain everything, but not here. It’s not safe. We need to go somewhere else.” I turn her toward the door, ready to get the hell out of this place, when I hear a voice.

“She’s not going anywhere without me.”

I stiffen and look up to find myself staring into the piercing blue eyes of Liam Stone. The door to my right opens, and I catch Tellar’s entry from the corner of my eye. Jared is to my left, and Liam directly behind Amy.

And one person is missing: Gia.





FIFTEEN



LIAM’S VOICE ECHOES AROUND US, seeming to bounce off the walls and repeat. Amy is the first to break the spell, whirling around to face him, and wrapping her arm around mine.

“Liam. This is my brother, Chad.” Her voice trembles, quavering as if emotion is consuming her the way it threatens to me. “He’s really alive. Can you believe it? He’s really alive.”

“And trying to kidnap you,” Liam observes, never taking his eyes off of me.

I don’t take my eyes off him, either, but I’m aware of Tellar to my right and Jared to my left. “Go find Gia,” I order Jared, before speaking directly to Liam. “I’m leaving with my sister.”

“What?” Amy asks, releasing me and folding her arms over the pink lace bodice of her dress. “I’m not leaving without Liam.”

“We’re leaving, Amy,” I assure her. “Together and alone.” She sways toward Liam and I grab her arm. “We need to leave. Now.”

She jerks her arm away. “You can’t come into my life six years after you left and just grab me and run. Liam is in my life, and he’s staying. And he’ll help you if you let him. He’s safe. He can be trusted.”

“No one is safe,” I assure her. “Not for us. And everyone who suddenly comes into our lives has hidden agendas. Believe me, I had my Liam, and I paid the price.”

She hugs herself, and I can almost see her withdraw from me. “I hate that you went through something so horrible. I know how lonely it is in this life we were forced into, but Liam isn’t the person who did that to you. He has no hidden agenda.”