Page 128 of Guarded Knight

Stay calm, Lara. Do not let panic rule you.

He kicks open a door of the abandoned facility.

My mind starts working despite the pain of his shoulder in my ribs.

Count the steps.

Track the turns.

Exit signs.

Remember everything so when you bolt, you know where the hell you’re heading. You’re getting out of here, Lara. You’re a Young. Youngs are tough.

The sound of our entrance echoes—concrete floors, empty space. We head up metal stairs, along a catwalk, and into a hallway with several doors. Eventually, he opens a door that leads to a stark room with nothing but a mattress in the corner, a space heater, and a bedside table with books on it on one side. In the opposite corner, there’s about ten gallons of water next to an antique cupboard with vials in it.

An ancient pharmacy.

My heart stutters, and much as I try to keep my head on straight, I can’t help but think about Xander’s rule.Never let someone take you to a second location.

Too late. I’m already there. And now every step deeper into this place feels like a countdown.

Trent places me down on the mattress, and I fall to the side. I push myself up with my tied hands and back into the corner to sit against the wall and shoot daggers at this man.

I cough more and glance at stacks of water bottles, knowing how good it would feel on my sore throat, but I’m terrified of what’s in it. This sick man’s cure?

“What the fuck do you want from me?” I hiss. “Whatever it is, you’ll die trying to get it.” I cough and spit phlegm on the floor.

His features soften, but there’s still a deadly psychopath swimming in his gaze. “Sweet girl. Look at you. Look at what’s happened to you since you left Santa Fe. That asshole hasn’t been looking after you.” His teeth clench. “Nobody can take care of you like I can. You let Cameron touch you… now…” His nostrils flare. “…that dirty soldier…” He says his name like a fuming dragon: “…Gabriel.”

Trent knows everything. How long has he been following me? How could he have so much access to my life? He got into my homes…

He’d have my addresses if he worked at Santa Fe General, all of them. I updated all information to the Echo Valley address just in case. It was supposed to be confidential. But I never thought my stalker had access to my medical records.

I need more from him. Know your enemy. That’s what Xander taught me. And it will buy time.

“The only one who’s sick here is you. One joke at the bar and a damn prescription at the pharmacy and now you want to take care of me…”

He tilts his head. “You don’t remember me?” he asks, seeming genuinely hurt, then… angry. “We were in it together, Lara. At SFG…”

Do I acknowledge that I think I know him? Will it piss him off more if I say I don’t?

I don’t answer quickly enough.

“I gave you life in those pills… when you smiled at me, I knew it, I saw it… You need me.” He smiles with the hollow eyes of someone delusional. “I was there. Every time you filled your prescription. Every time you walked those sterile halls like a goddamn angel with your little cough and that brave smile. We’re made for each other. You don’t have to worry about being sick anymore.”

This man is the one who’s sick. He thinks he can heal me? My chest tightens with every word he speaks.

“I watched. I learned. I know your dosages, your side effects, and your needs. Better than anyone. You’ll be safe with me.”

I can’t believe this is happening. I close my eyes and send telepathic messages to Gabriel.Find me… I’m here. Waiting for our life to begin.

But when I open them, I’m still alone in this. And I’m all I’ve got. I need to fight for this. I need to stay alive.

“You…” my voice is hoarse, “…left all the notes, the money… the photos…”

“You were naughty. You shouldn’t have ever been with Cameron. I had to punish you for being such a bad girl.” He speaks to me with conviction.

It was all actually Trent… lashing out… holy shit. How long has he been following me?