Page 93 of Romeo

“He didn’t kill Odie,” I reply, my tone a bit harsher than it should be.

“No?”

“No,” I reply.“They got into an altercation at the hospital, and he was picked up for questioning.”

“Well then, I’m sure the truth will come out.He’s a handsome one.Are you two an item?”She blushes.“Forgive me, I’m a romantic at heart.And the idea of you falling in love with your bodyguard is just too charming.”

Sweat begins to bead along my skin.

My heart starts to race.

And then, my vision wavers.

“What is—” I trail off, words slurring like I’m drunk.No.What is happening?

“The effects will wear off in a few hours, dear,” she says as she sets her mug down.A large man in a black suit comes out of a back room.His hair is cut short to his scalp, his expression stone-cold.“But I’m afraid that, by then, it’ll be too late.”

Chapter32

Riley

“What do you meanshe’s gone?” I demand, fear clawing its way through my insides.Sampson drove me back to the house himself after a call to Tucker revealed that Jules had stepped out of the room for a second and not come back.

The house is empty.

The grounds too.

And I don’t know how to explain it, but I know we’re running out of time.

“I’m searching,” Tucker says as he moves his mouse around and continues scouring video footage of the exterior of the house.He’d placed a few extra cameras when he arrived here, but there’s so much to cover that I imagine there’s at least one blind spot.I can only hope whoever took her didn’t know where it was.

I’m going to tear them apart.I clench my hands into fists.

“Here.”Tucker points to the computer.Beckett, Sampson, and I all come around behind him to stare at the screen as we catch a brief glimpse of Jules as she rushes around the corner of the house.Her expression is determined, but not fearful.

She left on her own.

“Find her,” I tell Tucker.“Whatever you have to do, find her.”

“I’ll put out an APB,” Sampson says.

“Good.Finally, you’re doing something.”Beckett rolls her eyes.“None of this would have happened if you hadn’t arrested Riley in the first place.”

Sampson glares at her then steps away.

“Where could she be going?”Beckett asks.“Her brother is dead; you were in jail.What could have possibly motivated her to leave the house?”

And then the realization slams into me.

Jules is the self-sacrificing type.She would gladly trade her life or comfort for someone else.Which is exactly what would have driven her out of the house.

“She went to Dodger,” I say, the words vile on my tongue.

“Why would she do that?”Tucker asks.

“Because she knows he’s behind it, and she thinks she can get him to let me go.”

“How?”