Shattered (LOST #3)(83)

“Brent, please!”

But his eyes were sagging closed. And more cops had closed in on her. They grabbed Sarah and carried her back. Her gaze darted frantically around the scene. One of the body bags was partially open. She could see—

Detective Cross.

The other bags were zipped up. Smoke filled the air. Sirens were screaming.

And Jax was gone.

“Stay here!” The cop told her when he shoved Sarah beneath the police tape. She almost ran right back under, but Victoria caught her hand.

“He’s not dead, Sarah!” Victoria’s hold tightened on her. “I talked to the ME. Cops . . . the three dead are cops. Detective Cross and two uniformed officers. Jax isn’t here.”

She sucked in a deep breath, but her heartbeat wouldn’t slow down. It felt as if her heart would leap right out of her chest at any moment. “Where is he, Viki?”

Victoria shook her head. “I don’t know.” She nodded. “But we’ll find him, Sarah. You can count on it. We’ll find him.”

Sarah looked at the chaos around her. So many cops. So much fire.

The house Jax had loved was gone. Nearly obliterated. But he wasn’t dead. He was still alive.

“I’m coming, Jax,” Sarah whispered. She wasn’t going to just let him vanish. She’d tear this city apart if she had to do it, but Sarah would find him.

BY NOW, SARAH would know that Jax was gone.

She’d be looking for her lover. Worried. Afraid.

In the hours to come, her fear would just get worse. Fear was such a powerful weapon. He knew that. Murphy had taught him that.

Jax was out cold. Maybe he’d hit him too hard with the gun, but he didn’t really care. The guy would die in the end, so it didn’t matter if he’d cracked Jax’s skull or not. He just needed him alive long enough to speak a few words.

Molly had been good bait.

Jax was even better.

He’d bound the guy’s hands behind him. Tied his legs to the chair. They were in an old empty house, a house that sat alone on a dead-end street. Once upon a time, the place had probably been nice—now it was just crumbling ruins. Why the hell Jax bought places like that he didn’t know. But at least Jax’s property had sure made things easier for him . . .

In this area, there was no one to watch. No one to hear the screams. And before he was done, there would be plenty of screams.

Jax groaned.

Ah, so he was coming around. Good. It was almost time to make a little phone call. He’d already taken Jax’s phone. Soon, they’d be contacting sweet Sarah. Inviting her to join their little party.

And when Sarah got there, that was when the real fun would begin.

“F-Fucking . . . bastard,” Jax muttered.

He took his knife and sliced down Jax’s arm, cutting right through the tattoos.

Jax’s eyes opened. They were bleary, but rage was already starting to burn there.

“Guess what happens next?” he asked Jax.

Jax didn’t answer. The guy just glared at him.

“It’s your turn to die . . .”





Chapter 16

THE POLICE STATION WAS A FRENZY OF ACTIVITY. When three officers were killed and another was sent to intensive care, the brothers-in-blue went into serious attack mode. They were combing the streets then. Talking to witnesses. Flashing photos of Jax to the media.

Sarah and Emma were at the station, trying to keep tabs on all the chaos so they could catch any leads that the police might get.

Gabe was in the captain’s office, making deals, as usual, to keep LOST fully in the loop.

Dean was at the hospital, waiting for Brent to get out of surgery so that he could find out what else the guy might know. Brent was their best bet right then. Their main chance of getting a lead on the bastard who’d taken Jax.

“He’s alive, right, Sarah?”

She turned at Emma’s soft question.

“The guy wouldn’t take him to just . . . just kill him right away. Jax is still alive.” But her words sounded more like a question than anything else.

Sarah nodded. “He’s alive.” And she was going to find him. She wouldn’t give up on Jax. Because he wouldn’t give up on her.

I love you.

Her gaze slid around the station. So much chaos. Tips were coming in, but, so far, those tips weren’t panning out at all.

“Your father didn’t know who we’re after?” Emma asked her.

Sarah’s lips thinned. “All my father wanted to do was tell me to get the hell away from Jax. He thought Jax was the threat.”

“Jax isn’t!” Emma’s denial was immediate. “I know his past is dark. He’s done things that crossed the line, but I swear, he’s good inside, Sarah. He’s—”

“You don’t have to convince me,” Sarah told her softly. “I know exactly what he is.”

Emma swallowed. Her arms wrapped around her stomach.

“And we’re going to find him, Emma. We are.” If she said those words enough, Sarah knew they had to be true. She knew—

My father wanted me away from Jax. He wanted me to stay with LOST. He’d been intent on driving Sarah away from Jax. But if Jax wasn’t the threat, and if her father had known that . . .

Then my dad thought the killer was coming for Jax. He thought I could be in danger, just because I was near him.