Page 114 of Chalk Outline

I lean against the van, scanning the alley ahead. Steam rises from vents behind an old dive bar. The air feels thick and salty. The smell of burgers lingers from a nearby restaurant, mixing with the sulfur wafting from the alley. “I know where the big boss is.”

“Where?” she asks, but does not demand an answer, which is unlike Romina. It’s almost like she knew the answer all along.

I let out a suppressed chuckle. “Inside your prison. He was very quiet about his status. But he is there. I don’t doubt it. I also think he wanted to be there in the first place.”

“Who is he?”

I slide my gaze to her. “I have yet to find out, but all the pieces lead there, and I’m going with Winona to the prison job you’re going to give her. I will transfer her over there myself.”

She blows out an irritated breath. She tried to keep us apart, but we are destined stars meant to collide, and we could always sense each other from miles away.

“Fine. Only you. No one else can know.” She looks at the van, specifically at my team.

“We know for certain someone inside the prison is dirty because they allow them to contact someone outside. They encrypt their messages, but Braxton hacked into the system and found out Larson Stone is contacting the boss, also known as the big boss.”

“I allow certain communication that we monitor to gather information.”

“Someone is using it for their benefit, but you already knew that.”

“You needed to know. This job wasn’t just about Winona. You need to let go, too.” She clicks her heel against the asphalt repeatedly. “She’s not the only one they want.”

It doesn’t matter what they want. I would do anything to protect my wife.

“We think that Larson is here in Salem,” I carry on. “There’s someone I know who works as a mechanic, and he goes to college parties that are hosted by the same guy who hosted Winona’s college parties. His name is Klaus. We’re not friends, but I used to know his mom, and guess what?”

“What?” Romina is completely immersed.

“He is Summer Kent’s friend, Third Eye’s daughter. He’s off the grid, but I bet she knows where he is. All we need to do is persuade her to work with us.”

“Good luck. She might be just like her father.”

“When I called Klaus, it sounded like her atomic hatred for him could cleanse water. That leaves Larson on the loose. He disappeared, and we think he will show up here.”

She looks down, twitching her mouth to the side.

Her strange behavior bothers me.

“Maybe you should let him find you,” she counters. “End this once and for all.”

I bite my teeth into my lip as the urge to confront her becomes overwhelming. “You know they’re offering millions for her death, and an additional million if she’s brought in alive to set an example. The girl who slipped through the cracks was finally captured.”

Her eyes rise slowly, softening with each motion, bearing a painful secret. “So, you know?”

“I know.” I blink slowly, still processing it all myself. “I want to hate you sometimes because it seems that all I am to you is a weapon. Replaceable. Negligible. But you saved me, nonetheless. You trust me. You made me your ally. You even slip sometimes and smile at me.”

She does right now, and it’s amusing to watch her. Truly.

“Maybe part of you wants to hate me because I took her away from you, but not in the way you think. We were both lonely, and you were too busy running your empire. We never blamed you for that, but we needed someone to breathe with when chaos surrounded us and to share our secrets when no one understood.” I swallow around the lump in my throat. Finally, I let my emotions slip through the cracks. “When you sent me to Germany, I grew stronger and learned many great things about myself and the world, but it didn’t heal the damage inside me. She did. Little by little. And I was stubborn enough to keep my past from her, even when she deserved to know. Now more than ever. But at the end of the day, I want to thank you. You were there for me more than my parents ever were.” My voicebreaks, but I fight the tears welling in my eyes. “I don’t hate you at all. You gave me everything I ever wanted.”

My face hits a small frame. Arms wrap around me, and I hold her, aware of all the ugly, disturbing things I now understand. Everything hurts. Being away from my wife for three years to chase dangerous men and their evil deeds nearly tore me apart.

“I love you, kid,” Romina whispers. “I just tried to prepare you for the world I live in. I can’t be nice because they would walk all over me. It’s a man’s world, and I’m a woman ruling in it without their knowledge. I kept my identity a secret for as long as I could, but eventually, I knew someone would figure out who I was because I did something that brought them to my front door. But I have no regrets.”

I pull back, nodding my head at her.

“I need to know where Winona’s mind is. Tell her to write a letter,” I request, and she nods in response. “I’ll take it before we go.”

I blink back to reality and pull out Winona’s letter from my rear pocket. I read it over and over, and every word still cuts deeper than the last.