Page 88 of Beautiful Secrets

I jump to my feet, and almost throw the remote control at the fucking television.

Instead, I switch it off, snatch up my suit jacket, and head for the door.

Dimitri can’t reschedule—I know where the fucker lives. I’m taking her back now, so I don’t have to keep her in my head. Christ—I can barely think straight.

That fuck can wire me the money—I don’t give a shit.

This was all to get my life back. Instead, I’m turning into some soppy teenager who keeps getting a semi whenever he thinks of the girl he fucked. Like I lost my fucking virginity to her, or some shit.

I step into the elevator and pat my pocket, making sure her passport is still safely inside.

Sorry about Russia, little rabbit, but life isn’t in the habit of handing out favors. If you want out, you’ll have to climb out a fucking window again.

31

Cole

Ishould seriously check out the side effects of my medication. I mean, I already know one of them—and it never really bothered me—but do any of them list hallucinations? Or accidentally ending up in a parallel universe? Daydreams?

Not?

Because it’s got to be my medication…that, or I’m tripping. Why the hell else am I standing in the middle of Sarah’s living room and feeling like I’ve stepped onto an alien planet or something?

It’s not the mass of toys scattered about—shit got messy at the Facility too sometimes.

Could be that this place has a lot more children now than when I left. And I recognize them too—Kill’s little scrogs. Two of them are in the living room mucking about with their toys, Maddie is in the kitchen with Mika.

In the kitchen. With Mika.

I guess the little kid’s standing on a footstool or something, because her head’s close to Mika’s shoulder. They’re busy doing something industrious with flour—and they’re both covered in it. Mika even has a smudge of it on her nose.

Sarah steps back, opening the door a little wider. “You coming in or what?” she says.

Maybe it’s all the kids around, but she sounds impatient.

“Aye,” I murmur, stepping inside. “Just making sure I don’t stand in any landmines.”

“They’re children, not dogs, Cole,” she snaps. “You can be such an asshole.” Then she quickly glances over her shoulder toward Mika and Maddie, as if to make sure her voice didn’t carry. “Where were you?”

“Told you. Went back to the hotel.”

When that does nothing to simmer Sarah’s glare, I grab Mika’s passport out of my pocket and hold it up for Sarah to see. “Needs this, doesn’t she?”

Sarah blinks, lips parting. “Oh.”

“Yeah,” I say. “Oh.”

I glance back at Mika. She hurriedly drops her gaze, but I don’t for a second imagine she didn’t take notice of her papers as I put them back in my pocket.

“Get cleaned up,” I tell her. “We’re leaving.”

“Leaving?” Sarah says as she comes to stand alongside me. “But Derek said Dimitri is—”

“I don’t give a fuck what Dimitri said,” I cut in.

She frowns hard. “Cole! Language!”

I show her my teeth, and then turn that same grimace to Mika. “Did you go deaf? Wash that shit off your hands—I’m not getting flour all over my car.”