Page 107 of Love is Angry

But Steve’s right, too. I can’t beat him alone, and my sister is too damn close to this. I could go to the cops—I’ve got the picture of her. I’m resistant to that, mostly because it’s what Steve told me to do.

How do I know what side he’s on?

How can I know which side the cops are on?

Contreras said he had a bad feeling—maybe his bad feeling will work in my favor. My only other possible ally is Noelle. She’s already investigating my father—but the very first person she would tell is Mr. Willis. I can’t let him know. Not yet. Not until I get her back in one piece.

My father started this war.

I’m going to finish it.

Chapter 47

Madison

It takes me forever to wake up.

Oddly enough, I’m aware of being asleep. This vivid dream I’m having has come to a sudden halt, as if they all know that I know. The jig is up, and these people I don’t even remember meeting at any point in my life begin to dissipate like wisps of smoke in a sudden gust of wind. We were gathered here, in a colorful and bizarre recess of my mind. We were talking and laughing, though I couldn’t say what about. Everything is fuzzy, now, with the exception of my sharp self-awareness.

“This is a dream,” I say. I think I say that, anyway. Truth be told, I can’t hear the words coming out of my mouth.

There’s no one left. It’s just me, surrounded by fading blobs of color. This used to be a familiar place, not that long ago. I think it had brown leather booths and black-and-white lacquered tables. Maybe a diner?

“I don’t know.”

This is weird. I know I said it out loud. I felt the words leave my tongue, yet there was no sound. Around me, the colors dissolve into a—non-color. Perhaps a grey, a warm grey that issupposed to mean something. Ugh, my head hurts. I need to wake up.

Yes, that’s right.

I need to wake up because I’m in a dream. I’ve been in a dream for quite a while, and the real world beckons with a sense of urgency. Why, though? What was so important out there to require my immediate attention? I was making love to Rhue…

No, we were falling asleep. We’d made plenty of love. Warmth fills me up like liquid sunlight, the taste of honey settling on my lips. His kisses. Good grief, his delicious and ravenous kisses. Yes, we broke the threshold. I’m tired from the many ways in which he worshipped my body last night. That’s why I’m sleeping.

Rhue’s face breaches through the fabric of my subconscious. I can see him, a tall and broad-shouldered silhouette. The light bounces off him as though he were invisible, but I know it’s him. I know it’s Rhue. My heart sings upon seeing him. No one else ever made me feel this way. So, why can’t I reach him, then?

“Rhue?”

Again, no sound. This isn’t right. Something’s not right.

“RHUE!” I cry out, but nothing. Nothing. Constant nothing!

Finally, I feel my eyelids again. They’re peeling open.

Slowly, the light inundates my existence. A blinding white light sprawls across my vision, filling every nook and cranny until the real world comes into focus. I’m not where I’m supposed to be. That’s the first thought to come to mind. I’m not where I’m supposed to be. My loins quiver with the memory of last night. I’d give anything to be back there again – back in Rhue’s arms. But I’m not. And his tongue isn’t tracing invisible lines up and down my body. His mouth isn’t making love to my wet, aching, yearning folds.

“Rhue.” My voice is barely a whisper, and his name comes out all wrong.

My mouth. Ugh. I taste dust and cotton. My mouth is dry. It’s… damn, I’m gagged. Oh, god, I’m gagged! Panic takes over quickly, and it’s the worst possible reaction because I’m firmly bound. Thick rope keeps my ankles tied together. There’s a tight zip-tie around my wrists. Behind my back. Oh, my god. Oh…

“Fu…” Fuck. I mean to say fuck.

The faint stinging sensation in my neck brings back a memory of me melting in Rhue’s arms, a deep sleep about to indulge my senses. The feel of linen caressing my naked body glued to his. And the needle. Fuck, the needle. The burn. Yes, I remember. I was… oh, no, I was drugged. And now, I’m bound and gagged.

Dread replaces panic, and I stop struggling altogether.

I need to calm down. No matter what happens next, I need to cool my heels and assess this situation. This place seems familiar. I’ve been here before. There’s no sunlight coming through the windows but it’s daytime outside, for sure. I see trees galore. A blanket of dark brown and black leaves. It’s all dry, so it hasn’t rained recently. It’s a forest. Yes, this place. It’s in a forest. It’s a cabin.

The hazing ritual.