Page 24 of Branded Souls (Ember Hollow Romance #3)

Fox

M y knuckles blanched white around the steering wheel. My jaw ached from clenching down hard as rain pelted the windshield. Tension crackled through the small space, and I was very aware of how close Skye sat in the passenger seat.

She hadn’t spoken much since she was in a room with a monster. Alone.

We’d been driving for over an hour, headed right into a fall thunderstorm that got worse and worse the longer we were on the road.

I quickly glanced at Skye before focusing back on the road barely visible through the heavy rain. She stared straight ahead, her body tense but unmoving.

When she’d first come out of that room, I’d known something was wrong. She was so pale, her eyes wide and rimmed in red as if she held back tears.

“I don’t think I got him to say anything incriminating enough,” she’d whispered, her hands shaking .

I asked her what he’d done, but she said she needed some time to process. She hadn’t wanted to talk about it. Watching the pain in her face was agonizing when she wouldn’t let me help.

I’d known this interview wasn’t a good idea. The Shadow Stalker wouldn’t have risked something like this if he wasn’t getting anything in return. He probably needed someone to fuck around with.

But Skye saw this as an opportunity to get an exclusive that no one else had. She was willing to risk about anything for the possibility of talking to the alleged killer.

“Talk to me, Skye,” I said, for the third time. I hated feeling so helpless.

My gaze was trained on what little of the road I could see out of my windshield. We were on a state highway, but visibility through the rain combined with speeding vehicles had me even more on edge. In my periphery, Skye tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

“I can’t.”

Her voice was calm, almost too much so. She sounded robotic. Another stab of worry shot through my chest.

I let out a breath. “But why?”

Worry and anger simmered beneath my skin. The thought of her being in the same vicinity as a cold-blooded killer was almost unbearable.

“I’m sorry.”

Her whispered words had me glancing over at her. Her hands were clutched tight together in her lap, and our gazes met briefly before I looked back out onto the road. I wasn’t sure if I’d seen correctly, but I was almost certain those were tears glistening in her eyes.

“You’ve done so much for me already and I’m so thankful for that.”

“Are you?” I asked, unable to decipher the truth .

“Yes,” she breathed.

“Then why won’t you tell me what’s going on in that head of yours?” I dared another look at her. Pinned her with my stare for as long as I could, slowing the car as the rain pelted us.

She shook her head. “Because I don’t know how to let it out. It’s a storm in here, Fox. I can’t see past the clouds right now. I can barely remember how to breathe.”

Her confession was raw. Real. I was grateful for it, and destroyed by it.

“I remember times like that.” I wanted to reach for her, but needed to keep both hands on the wheel.

“What did you do to make it stop?”

I let out a soft, humorless laugh. “Punch things.”

When she didn’t respond, I continued. “It does help to talk. The words don’t even have to make sense. They just have to get out.”

“Who do you talk to, Fox?”

Her question hung in the air, punctuated by rainfall. At one time in my life, it had been her. She’d been my comfort. The place I ran to for peace.

I realized for the first time since I’d seen her face again, I wasn’t angry with her anymore. I didn’t hate Skye Adler.

I missed her deeply.

“My brother. August.” It was a half-truth. When I was at one of my lowest points, physically beating my body to the point of hospitalization, he had been the one to pick me up as best he could. He was there for me when I needed someone the most.

A jagged bolt of lightning lanced across the sky, followed by a rumble of thunder so loud the entire vehicle vibrated .

Skye cursed under her breath.

I slowed down even more, the road even less visible through the deluge outside.

“How long is this storm supposed to last?” Skye’s voice was muffled by the rain hitting the roof.

I opened my mouth to answer, but a horn pierced through the pounding rain, followed by headlights illuminating the back window. I glanced into the rearview mirror, seeing nothing but light and rain.

Then my SUV suddenly jerked forward, sending Skye lurching toward the dash.

“What the hell?” I instinctively pinned an arm across her chest like I could keep her in even better than the seat belt secured across her body.

I was about to honk the horn back, when our vehicle jolted. Someone was running into us from behind. I cursed louder, ready to pull off to the side of the road, but we were hit yet again.

This time, my wheels skidded, hydroplaning on the soaked highway. I clutched the steering wheel, but it was no use.

We were spinning, the car rotating full circle, and there was nothing I could do to stop it.