Page 69 of Kiss of Deceit

“Mask,” she breathed out. “Brown eyes.”

I stared down at her, fear sinking into my bones. So many similarities to my attack.Too many. Panic threatened to take over as I sucked in shallow breaths.

“My computer…” she trailed off, coughing lightly. “Roxy0428. I need you to remember that.”

I frowned in confusion. “What?”

She winced in pain. “My password. Repeat it back.”

“Roxy0428,” I whispered, not wanting to argue when I could see her slipping away. “I need to try to carry you out—” She reached up, grabbing the collar of my sweater, yanking me closer. My eyes cut to her stomach where blood was still seeping out. “Don’t move anymore. You’re hurting yourself.”

“This town,” she forced out, anguish laced in her voice. “Trust no one, Dani. Not a soul… understand?”

I nodded even if I didn’t understand. This was important to her. Her hold on my sweater loosened as she fought for each breath.

“The file is Winterlake,” she choked out. “It only works on my computer.”

“You’re going to be fine,” I promised, swallowing a sob. “I’ll get help.”

I wasn’t even that close to her, but she’d always been nice to me. But it was more than that. When I looked at her, I saw myself. Hovering on the brink of death, my hope slowly diminishing as my body went cold.

I couldn’t carry her—not when she was so badly hurt. It was impossible to know what her internal injuries were. Defeat crawled through me as I stayed there, holding her head on my lap. A paper floated down from the printer, landing beside me. My eyes drifted over it and then widened in horror when I read the black text.

Danielle is next.

I jerked, barely coherent as I mumbled an apology to Natalie from my sudden move. A lump grew in my throat, my mouth turning dry. I didn’t realize I was holding my breath until my chest grew tight and my head got a rush. I exhaled, carefully moving Natalie’s head off me.

“My neck,” she groaned. “It hurts.”

Once she was back on her side, I reached for her blood-soaked hair with shaking fingers.It wasn’t fucking possible.I gently pushed her wet hair aside to look at the back of her neck. I froze, raw terror holding me hostage.One. Two. Three.Circular burn marks. Just like mine. My neck burned as I wrestled to stay in control.

The printer ran out of paper, the sudden silence making my ears ring. I scrambled to my feet, reminding Natalie to keep pressure on her injury.

“I’ll be back,” I vowed hoarsely. “I’ll get help.”

She didn’t respond, and I rushed away only to stop. I whipped around, searching the floor. I kicked papers out of my way, scanning the entire area.

“Where is it?” I hissed under my breath.

My purse was gone. Where my knives were. I figured working in the police station was safe enough not to keep one strapped on my body. I was wrong. Was someone in here with us?

My head snapped up when a door clicked shut from the front of the room. I crouched behind a cubicle wall, looking for anything I could use as a weapon.

“Natalie?” an unsure voice called out. “I’m sorry I’m a bit late. I got caught up. You still here?”

Miles?It sounded like him, but there was no way I was chancing it. I stayed hidden, snatching a pair of scissors out of the top drawer of the desk I was next to.

“Natalie? Dani?” he yelled out, still sounding far away. “Okay…I guess I’ll come back tomorrow.”

I bit my lip, my gaze cutting back to Natalie. If Miles was really here for an innocent reason, I was ruining my chance at saving her. Before I could make the decision, Miles let out a surprised yell, and then there was a loud crash. More yelling ensued as I raced away from my hiding spot, making sure to keep in the shadows.

A pained scream had my heart dropping. Keeping a tight grip on the scissors, I made it to the front desk just in time to see Miles thrown on top of it. He rolled off with a groan as he hit the floor hard.

My breath caught when a man reached down, grabbing Miles, only to heave him into the cement wall. Miles slumped down, his face a bloody mess. He spotted me, his eyes going wide.

The man who was fighting him straightened up, turning slowly to face me. His black ski mask hid everything except hiseyes. It was too dark to see his eye color, but Natalie had told me they were brown. His clothes were all black. Boots, cargo pants, and a black hoodie. There was nothing to give away who he was.

“Run, Dani,” Miles yelled with panic as he attempted to stand up. “Go.”