Deceiving Lies
Page 55
“Okay, Rachel. It’s okay.”
“I’m happy to see you, I swear!”
And yet it sounded like she was trying to convince herself rather than me. I dropped my head back so I was facing the sky, and ground my teeth to stop my jaw from shaking. I just needed to be thankful that she was alive. The rest . . . well, the rest we would just have to sort out later. Bringing my head back down, I forced a smile and stepped back, and away from her.
“Stay here while we call the department and inform everyone of what happened today. When this is over, if you want to go back to our home”—I swallowed past the lump in my throat—“then, uh, that’s where . . . that’s where I’ll take you.”
“Logan,” she choked out, but I had already turned and walked back to where Mason was playing with his phone.
“Do you think you should be upsetting her more right now? Maybe just—”
“Just what, Mase? You’re not the one having to go through this shit, so don’t tell me how to f**king act right now. Let’s just do our jobs.” I let out an aggravated groan and rested both hands on top of my head and forced myself not to turn and look at Rachel. “Did you call the department?”
“Yep, before you ever came out of the building. Police and ambulance should be here any minute. Chief and some of the others will be here not long after.”
I nodded my head and walked toward the building just so I could get away from Rachel, and Mason’s observant eyes.
“Kash,” Mason said in clear warning, but I didn’t stop.
As soon as I entered the building, I went directly to Trent and bent down so I was closer to his eye level. He finally looked up at me, and his dark eyes were hard as we stared at each other.
“If you put those bruises on my future wife’s face”—I growled—“I will pay back every one tenfold.”
“I would die before doing that to her.”
I saw red. My hands clenched into fists as I yelled, “I’m sure you’ll understand why I don’t f**king believe you! You’ve held her here for over a goddamn month, you worthless piece of shit! If I find out that any of that torture actually happened, you won’t live to see the next day!”
Trent kept his eyes on me but didn’t say anything else until after I’d stood and began walking away. “She loves you.”
My chest clenched painfully. “You should have reminded yourself of that before you kissed her.” Turning to look at him, I held his gaze as I said, “She’s mine. Do you get that? You can’t have her, and if you touch her again, I won’t be held responsible for my actions. She belongs. To. Me.”
When his eyes fell back to the floor, I turned and left the building. The faint sound of sirens could be heard as I made my way to Mason.
“Mase, I’m going to want to go back with Rachel when they take her in, if they still need you here. Are you cool?”
“Yeah, just— Never mind. Yeah, I’m good.”
“No, tell me.”
He sighed and looked over my shoulder at the truck before looking back at me. “Just be prepared, all right? She was kidnapped and kept here for over a month, and we don’t know what they did in fact do to her.”
A short, humorless laugh left me. I’d just been saying the same thing. “Trust me. Mase, I know that. Be prepared for what?”
He chewed on his bottom lip for a moment before blowing out a ragged breath. “Anything, Kash. She might not be the same Rachel anymore. Even with everything that already happened, you just have to be there for her, and hope that she’s still in there.”
God, I hope like hell my Rachel is still there . . . somewhere. I shut my eyes tight against the tears pricking the backs of them and locked my jaw. It wasn’t until the ambulance and two patrol cars were on the scene that I finally opened my eyes again and made my way back to the truck.
“You ready, Rachel?”
Her jaw trembled when she looked up at me, and it broke me to watch her eyes fill with tears again. She opened her mouth, but only nodded when nothing came out.
“All right, let’s get you to the station then.”
AS WAS EXPECTED, I wasn’t allowed in the room as they questioned all the men we’d arrested or Rachel on everything that had happened from the actual kidnapping, to the month that she’d been gone. At least Chief had let me stay in the observation room to Rachel’s room so I could watch.
I hadn’t decided if I was glad I’d stayed to listen, or not.
After finding out Trent was the one to physically kidnap her, and keep her locked in that f**king small room with the mattress in it, my jealousy turned into pure rage, and it took everything for me to not hunt down the room he was in and finally do what I’d been wanting to. After listening to Rachel countlessly remind the detectives interviewing her that Trent had been protecting her, taking care of her, and trying to help her escape, I just wanted to throw up again.
She talked about him like he was a hero. She described him as being tortured emotionally, and being forced to do everything. “But, oh no! He isn’t a bad person!” And apparently I wasn’t the only one thinking it . . . because Detective Byson asked her if she’d ever heard of Stockholm syndrome.
“What? No! I mean, yes, I’ve heard of it; but no. I don’t have that, he was just good to me. He was just protecting me and keeping me safe, and it’s something I appreciated, that’s all.”
“I’m happy to see you, I swear!”
And yet it sounded like she was trying to convince herself rather than me. I dropped my head back so I was facing the sky, and ground my teeth to stop my jaw from shaking. I just needed to be thankful that she was alive. The rest . . . well, the rest we would just have to sort out later. Bringing my head back down, I forced a smile and stepped back, and away from her.
“Stay here while we call the department and inform everyone of what happened today. When this is over, if you want to go back to our home”—I swallowed past the lump in my throat—“then, uh, that’s where . . . that’s where I’ll take you.”
“Logan,” she choked out, but I had already turned and walked back to where Mason was playing with his phone.
“Do you think you should be upsetting her more right now? Maybe just—”
“Just what, Mase? You’re not the one having to go through this shit, so don’t tell me how to f**king act right now. Let’s just do our jobs.” I let out an aggravated groan and rested both hands on top of my head and forced myself not to turn and look at Rachel. “Did you call the department?”
“Yep, before you ever came out of the building. Police and ambulance should be here any minute. Chief and some of the others will be here not long after.”
I nodded my head and walked toward the building just so I could get away from Rachel, and Mason’s observant eyes.
“Kash,” Mason said in clear warning, but I didn’t stop.
As soon as I entered the building, I went directly to Trent and bent down so I was closer to his eye level. He finally looked up at me, and his dark eyes were hard as we stared at each other.
“If you put those bruises on my future wife’s face”—I growled—“I will pay back every one tenfold.”
“I would die before doing that to her.”
I saw red. My hands clenched into fists as I yelled, “I’m sure you’ll understand why I don’t f**king believe you! You’ve held her here for over a goddamn month, you worthless piece of shit! If I find out that any of that torture actually happened, you won’t live to see the next day!”
Trent kept his eyes on me but didn’t say anything else until after I’d stood and began walking away. “She loves you.”
My chest clenched painfully. “You should have reminded yourself of that before you kissed her.” Turning to look at him, I held his gaze as I said, “She’s mine. Do you get that? You can’t have her, and if you touch her again, I won’t be held responsible for my actions. She belongs. To. Me.”
When his eyes fell back to the floor, I turned and left the building. The faint sound of sirens could be heard as I made my way to Mason.
“Mase, I’m going to want to go back with Rachel when they take her in, if they still need you here. Are you cool?”
“Yeah, just— Never mind. Yeah, I’m good.”
“No, tell me.”
He sighed and looked over my shoulder at the truck before looking back at me. “Just be prepared, all right? She was kidnapped and kept here for over a month, and we don’t know what they did in fact do to her.”
A short, humorless laugh left me. I’d just been saying the same thing. “Trust me. Mase, I know that. Be prepared for what?”
He chewed on his bottom lip for a moment before blowing out a ragged breath. “Anything, Kash. She might not be the same Rachel anymore. Even with everything that already happened, you just have to be there for her, and hope that she’s still in there.”
God, I hope like hell my Rachel is still there . . . somewhere. I shut my eyes tight against the tears pricking the backs of them and locked my jaw. It wasn’t until the ambulance and two patrol cars were on the scene that I finally opened my eyes again and made my way back to the truck.
“You ready, Rachel?”
Her jaw trembled when she looked up at me, and it broke me to watch her eyes fill with tears again. She opened her mouth, but only nodded when nothing came out.
“All right, let’s get you to the station then.”
AS WAS EXPECTED, I wasn’t allowed in the room as they questioned all the men we’d arrested or Rachel on everything that had happened from the actual kidnapping, to the month that she’d been gone. At least Chief had let me stay in the observation room to Rachel’s room so I could watch.
I hadn’t decided if I was glad I’d stayed to listen, or not.
After finding out Trent was the one to physically kidnap her, and keep her locked in that f**king small room with the mattress in it, my jealousy turned into pure rage, and it took everything for me to not hunt down the room he was in and finally do what I’d been wanting to. After listening to Rachel countlessly remind the detectives interviewing her that Trent had been protecting her, taking care of her, and trying to help her escape, I just wanted to throw up again.
She talked about him like he was a hero. She described him as being tortured emotionally, and being forced to do everything. “But, oh no! He isn’t a bad person!” And apparently I wasn’t the only one thinking it . . . because Detective Byson asked her if she’d ever heard of Stockholm syndrome.
“What? No! I mean, yes, I’ve heard of it; but no. I don’t have that, he was just good to me. He was just protecting me and keeping me safe, and it’s something I appreciated, that’s all.”
