Lead Me Home (Fight for Me #3)(110)

Cruelty.

Cruelty.

My sister.

Fuck, my sister.

It hurt. It hurt so damned bad.

The reality.

I’d hunted for so long.

And the proof was right there.

It was like the idiot wanted everyone to know. Or maybe he’d just realized once they’d found Sydney, there was no place left to hide.

I’d die before I let it happen again.

“Shit,” Seth whispered in shock from behind me, pulling me back. “Get out of here, Ollie. Don’t touch anything. This is evidence.”

I blinked at him, seeing nothing but red.

He didn’t have to ask me twice.

I was busting back out the door and running for my Mustang.

“What do you think you’re doing?” he shouted.

I jumped inside. “I’m going to find Nikki. You go to her apartment . . . he’s been there. Call me if you find anything.”

“Where are you going?”

“Up the river.”

“I can’t just let you take off like some kind of vigilante. I’m calling it in, everyone will be looking for them.”

“And you can’t expect me to stand aside and wait for that to happen. I’ll call you if I see anything. Swear, man. I’ll call. But you can’t expect me to sit here. Go. Find her,” I begged him.

He gave me a reluctant nod before he jogged back to his cruiser.

I was throwing my car into first when I met Nikki’s mom’s stare through the windshield. Her hands were pressed against her chin and tears blanketed her face.

I made her a silent promise.

I’ll fight for her.

I’ll die for her.

Most of all, I’ll live for her.

Twenty minutes later, I’d made it through town. Dusk sat heavily as I wound down the twisty, country road.

My nerves were speeding while I drove like a motherfucking snail, foot itching to hit the gas. But I was looking for a hint of . . . anything. Anything that felt off.

I passed the turn that lead to the lake and wound around a bend, heading for Row. There were at least a hundred little offshoots of deserted roads, no more than trails carved out between the trees.

Anxiety clawed, the sharpest talons in my flesh.

Flickers of awareness.

Realization and a tease.

Little Tease.

I jammed on the brakes in the middle of the road as a sticky feeling came over me.

Drawn.

Compelled.

Row would still be crawling with investigators.

And Nikki . . . she wouldn’t go there.

I knew it.

I knew it all the way into my soul.

Heart taking off at a sprint, I flipped a U-turn in the middle of the road, tires sliding off into the shrubs and dirt. The tail end whipped behind me when I forced the accelerator to the floor, and I righted the car when it skidded.

Two seconds later, I was cutting across the road to make the left.

Praying the whole way that she was there.

That she was alone.

That she was just seeking the solace this place had always given us.

Needing that peace when I’d done the exact thing I promised her I wouldn’t.

I’d hurt her.

Shunned her.

Left her.

When she was dealing with the same damned thing.

I was so finished with being this selfish prick. The guy who thought it was his duty to suffer. Only thing that stupidity accomplished was taking the ones he loved down with him.

Again, I was gonna be the beggar. Pleading for forgiveness when I didn’t deserve it. Couldn’t change that.

All I could do was fucking fight.

Fight for her.

This time, I would make it right.

The lake shone a vibrant pink as the sun sank at the far end of the sky.

Off to the left was the public beach.

I knew that wouldn’t be where Nikki would go.

I barreled on to where the road curved at its end, and I took the same worn-out path we’d used for all our lives.

It wound up through the trees and back down again.

My pulse thudded when I caught sight of the glint of metal in the dusky haze. I edged forward until it fully came into view.

Nikki’s car.

But it was the beater truck sitting next to it that punched the air from my lungs.

Sent a quiver of stakes through my spirit.

An earthquake.

Hate and fury and devastation.

I wouldn’t let this happen.

Hands shaking like a bitch, I dialed Seth.

He answered on the first ring. “You got anything?”

“They’re here. At the secluded cove at the far end of the lake. Both of them. I’m parked behind both their cars.”

“Fuck,” he shouted. I could hear the siren blip on the other end before it became a full, shrill cry, the sound of his cruiser quickly accelerating. “Do not approach them, Ollie. I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

“Send help,” I told him before tossing my phone back to the seat without taking the time to end the call.

I reached for the glove box and pulled out the handgun I’d taken from the safe before I’d headed for Nikki’s grandparents’ land.

I jerked open the door, blood pumping so hard I could feel it as it slogged through my body.

Taste it on my tongue.

Rage and desperation.