Temptation Trails - Page 155

“That’s not all, Haven.” His voice hardened. “Jack shouldn’t have just sent you home. I already told him that. I told him earlier I saw you in town and you didn’t look good. There was something in your eyes. He should have ordered a mental health evaluation. But he didn’t, did he? And now look what Garrett Haven did. He snapped. He murdered his lovely girlfriend, then killed himself.”

I struggled against my bonds, itching to rip his face off.

“I don’t have Harper, yet. But that’s the next step. And it doesn’t matter where she is right now. I’ll get her. You’re going to wait here and, trust me, no one is going to find you.” He got off the chair and knelt next to me. “Then I’m going to bring her here and make you watch while I kill her. That’s what I want. What I’ve been craving. Not just to kill someone stronger and more powerful than me. I want someone to watch. You get to witness something special, Haven. Something glorious. The power of life and death. I’m going to break you before I kill you.”

He paused again. My heart hammered against my chest and the bonds chafed against my skin. Rage burned in my veins like fire.

“Everyone is going to think you did it. You killed her. All the evidence will point to you, and you’ll be dead too, so you won’t be able to defend yourself. And I get to stand by and watch it all unfold, knowing that it was me. I’m the genius. I made this happen.”

He stood and looked down at me. “I wanted you to know that before I go so you can picture it happening. I want you to sit with it until I get back. I’m going to kill you both and I’m going to love every second of it.”

My control was on the verge of snapping. I strained against the bonds, teeth gritted, pain exploding through my entire body. He was not going to hurt her. I was not going to let it happen.

“Fuck!”

He took the chair, stepped over me, and I heard the sound of metal creaking. A heavy door? I craned my head but couldn’t quite see where he went. It creaked again and the door shut.

I was alone.

Bound. Captured. Helpless.

For a second, a wave of despair crashed over me. It was my fault Harper and our child were in danger. I’d failed.

No. This was not how it ended.

Hot anger swept through me, burning away the doubt, the despair, the failure. I didn’t know how I was going to do it, but I was going to save her. She was not going to die.

Phillip Lancaster had made a fatal mistake. He’d picked the wrong fucking man.

CHAPTER 41

Harper

I couldn’t find my phone.

It was just my luck. Of course on a day when it felt like things were spiraling out of control, I’d lose my phone.

Stupid mirror curse.

Although I shouldn’t have been surprised. I’d lost my phone approximately eight hundred thirty-four times since I’d broken that dang mirror.

I’d decided to stop looking and just head to Paul and Marlene’s house. The SPS guys had waited long enough, and I could go back to the bakery with Garrett later to find it. No sense in making them hang around while I searched. I was so frazzled.

Besides, I had a feeling it would be sitting out in plain sight the next day. Things like that happened to me sometimes. I figured the bad luck curse had a dark sense of humor.

Stan and Russell walked me to my car after I locked up. Even with them there, I felt weirdly exposed. Like someone was watching.

“Thanks for everything.” I opened my car door and tossed my purse inside.

“It’s not a problem,” Russell said. “Thanks for all the goodies.”

“Of course. It’s the least I could do.”

In addition to the boxes I’d prepared just for them, I’d loaded them up with the day’s leftover cookies and cupcakes for the SPS meeting they were having that evening.

“You sure you’ll be okay getting home?” Stan asked.

“Oh yeah. I’m heading up to Paul and Marlene Haven’s. Garrett is meeting me there.”