Page 13 of Martyr (Sterling Falls Rogues #3)

I end up telling Dr. Hawthorne more than I probably should. I pace in her office the whole time, in front of the couch, too upset to even consider sitting. My fingernails dig at my arms, the crooks of my elbows.

“Take a breath, Tem.”

I still. “You want me to breathe ?”

“You’re speaking a hundred miles a minute, so, yes.” She tilts her head. “I’ve already alerted the marina that someone is trying to remove one of our residents against his will. They will stop it.”

I scoff. “You’ve met Kade Laurent before, right?”

She doesn’t have a response to that. It’s laughable to even think some guy locking the gate to the marina would stop him?

“Are you sending people to find Saint?” I ask her. “What if he stashed a boat on the dock closer to the center?—”

“Artemis,” Dr. Hawthorne warns. “Please.”

“ Please? ” I laugh. “Do some fucking research next time. This place is supposed to offer safe harbor?—”

“And it does?—”

“Yeah, until one of your donors comes calling and kidnaps a guy with amnesia!” I shriek.

I can’t stay here for this. I exit her office and hurry to the first floor. I weave around other residents, most of which are now familiar faces, and speed-walk to the exit. Out the door, into the frigid air.

My pace picks up when Dr. Hawthorne shouts my name behind me.

I’m halfway down the trail when a sound like a canon goes off. A split second later, the ground shakes. I stumble and catch myself on a tree, staring in the direction of the sound.

A siren goes up through the air.

What the fuck?

Last year, my brother and I found a subway car packed with explosives. It was part of a takeover plot, and we barely made it out of there without detonating it. That sound—the way the force of it shook the ground under us—feels an awful lot like this.

Fear kicks my body into overdrive. I sprint down the trail, bursting off the path into the town.

Everyone is outside. Visible over the buildings is a plumb of smoke rising into the air.

Forced to go slower, I head in that direction.

A firetruck turns onto the main street ahead of us, blasting its horn to get people to move.

The vehicle looks like it’s two decades old.

Murmurs follow me. There’s a slight stigma about those of us who come for… rehabilitation . The trauma center funds the island, but alas. It apparently doesn’t matter all that much when the residents have a variety of quirks.

This street funnels to the small marina. I’d bet most of the townsfolk have their own boats, and Reese had docked here.

Wait.

Shit , Kade, too?

The smoke makes it clear that it wasn’t a building that exploded. It’s too far out. Maybe a boat caught fire and the gas tank made that noise? It would be possible… it could’ve been a bigger ship. Possible. Plausible .

I finally clear the buildings and stop short.

Wishful thinking on my part.

The whole fucking marina is gone. There are some boats in the distance, seemingly unmanned and being pulled out to sea. Ropes trail off their sides in the water.

But the docks , the fencing that kept people out, and the boats kept close—as well as the harbormaster’s office—have been obliterated.

How?

Why?

Unease slides through me.

Was this Kade?

Or… Gabriel?

Gabriel tried to blow up Terror. It would not be out of the question to assume he’d followed Kade, spotted me, and wanted to trap me here.

Is that a little egotistical to think everything is about me? Probably.

But damn .

The firefighters are busy putting out lingering flames, but there’s not much to salvage. A crowd gathers around me, spectators drawn to the sight. There’s tension in the air. Some whisper about accidents, others suggest terrorism. But who would try to terrorize the Isle of Paradise?

“This will take weeks,” someone murmurs. “There’s that other dock, but I imagine it’ll be under supervision.”

“Whose?” another questions.

“I imagine it would be a Coast Guard problem. And then, if this wasn’t an accident, there will be an investigation…”

A chill runs down my spine.

I slip away. I didn’t grab a coat, and the thin, long-sleeve shirt isn’t cutting it now that my adrenaline has worn off. I glance down an alley on my way back and freeze.

Saint .

But, worse—Kade. He has someone pinned to the wall, and my heart skips.

Fucking Reese.

I don’t think about it. I immediately change direction and approach them.

“Are you following me?” Kade asks, shaking Reese by the front of his shirt.

Reese, for his position, seems largely unbothered. “You’d be so flattered by that, wouldn’t you?”

Neither man notices me. I come to a stop next to Saint, whose cheeks are flushed from the cold. He looks over, and his eyebrows rise.

“Don’t seem so surprised,” I whisper. “What the hell are you doing?”

“This guy presented an interesting offer.”

Oh, jeez. “Did it involve his dick?”

He stiffens. “Excuse me?”

“I thought we met in good faith,” Kade seethes at Reese. “But you had an ulterior motive, huh? Bug my phone?—”

Reese laughs in his face. “You used to be more creative. Good faith ? You’ve been around Gabriel too much.”

“Who’s Gabriel?” Saint asks me.

“Lyssa’s…” I shift. “Lyssa’s Nyx, I guess.”

His lips flatten. I imagine he might put together the pieces—Lyssa being unconscious, Gabriel out there in the universe. But then he might ask, where does Kade fit into the equation?

“Gabriel is also somewhat psychotic.” I elbow Saint. “Good thing you didn’t go that route.”

Saint snorts. “I still could.”

Yeah, you could .

Reese and Kade are still arguing.

“Does Kade know I’m here?”

Saint looks down at me and frowns. “How would he know?”

“Did you say anything?”

“I walked into Dr. Hawthorne’s office, this dude was there. He seemed not surprised to see me, so I figure we had met. But I’m not about to show all my cards. And he asks if I want to get off the island. Obviously I said yes.”

He hasn’t referred to Kade by name.

I slowly shake my head. “His name is Kade Laurent. Lyssa’s brother. He was on the island to check on her, and I would bet twenty bucks he spotted you somewhere. But more importantly, you went with a stranger and you didn’t ask who he was? ”

Saint’s cheeks get redder. “I didn’t think giving away my vulnerability was a good idea.”

Oh, for fuck’s sake.

I smack his chest. He’s wearing Kade’s goddamn jacket.

“So, who set off the…” I gesture vaguely behind us. “And how did you guys find Reese?”

“Kade.” Saint pauses. “Kade saw Reese on the street after. It nearly blew us off our feet.”

“It felt big,” I admit.

“That’s what she said.” He smirks.

“ Focus .” This is the first time that Saint has been both forthcoming and not a sarcastic asshole to me. We need to keep the momentum rolling in the right direction.

“He thinks Reese set it off. I don’t know why he’d suspect that, but I just followed after him. Gotta admit, I was curious about the guy. Comes in all smooth-talking, offers to get me out of here, and now this?” He motions to them. “Do they always fight like this?”

“No. I don’t really know how they fight. I’ve only seen them bicker a few times.”

Their conversation—Reese and Kade’s, that is—has shifted away from the mess at hand to something in their past. Which seems a bit pointless, if you ask me. Off topic.

“Huh,” Saint says.

I eye him. “What?”

“Did you rush out here after me?”

“Because I thought Kade was going to sweep you away and I’d never see you again?” I grimace. That’s too close to the truth for my liking. “Don’t flatter yourself.”

“You’re shivering,” he points out. “Weren’t you yelling at me about not wearing a jacket?”

I cross my arms. There are goosebumps on my skin that I do my best to ignore. From the street behind us, it sounds like the small local police force is clearing the streets.

I stride forward, within reach of Kade and Reese, and clear my throat loudly.

They both start. Reese doesn’t seem surprised to see me, but Kade’s eyebrows shoot up.

“As much as I’m enjoying whatever this is…” I gesture at Kade’s grip on Reese’s shirt. “We should get out of here.”

Kade slowly releases Reese’s shirt. He wears a fitted long-sleeve black shirt, also at odds with the weather. His hair appears recently trimmed. Reese takes one look at me and pulls off his coat. He offers it to me.

I’m not too proud to ignore it, so I turn and let him slide it up over my shoulders. Then, wordlessly, he spins me back and zips me in.

Warmth—and his scent—envelops me.

“Where to?” Reese finally asks.

Kade scowls. “I would’ve said my boat, but you blew that up.”

My eye twitches. Reese is behind it? No—he’s going to deny it at any second. But then he doesn’t.

Reese blew up the marina?

I smack him. “What is wrong with you?”

He points at Kade.

Well… that’s fair.

“We should get off the streets,” Saint says. “Like Artemis said.”

I glance back at him, but he’s focused on the mouth of the alley. The flash of blue and red lights from police cars paints the sides of the buildings on both directions. We really shouldn’t be caught out here. Not when one of us is guilty of the crime.

“Kade should leave,” Reese interjects. “You two should go back to the center. And I’ll…”

“You blew up my boat.” Kade crosses his arms.

“He said that already,” I mutter. “And…”

How do I convey to Reese through mind-speak that Kade being here is actually probably better for us? We can get answers about the Sterling Falls takeover.

“This island is going to be on a full lockdown in a matter of hours,” Kade says. He eyes Reese, then me. “If you wanted a way to keep me here, congratulations. You succeeded.”

Reese grimaces. “I didn’t want to keep you here.”

I snort.

Saint’s gaze bounces between us, his eyebrows up to his hairline. He’s probably trying to figure out the dynamic—and, pre-amnesia, he would’ve added a whole new layer to it. Now, he’s partially removed to observer.

“We can go to my house,” Kade finally says.

My jaw drops. “Excuse me?”

His gaze meets mine—for the first time, he directs all of his attention to me. It burns, a million emotions in his expression. None of those emotions are malicious, though. Pity, concern… happiness?

Surely not.

“I bought a house here when I moved my sister to the island.”

Okay, Kade. We’ll pretend I have no idea who your sister is.

He tips his head deeper into the alley. “We can cut through this way.”

I exchange a look with Saint, but he’s useless. He scowls at me and throws his hands up as if to say, What do you want from me? I don’t know, Saint, a little clarity? An opinion?

Saint doesn’t give a shit about that, though, and sets off after Kade without hesitation.

Reese sighs. “May as well. He’s not gonna kill us in our sleep.”

I pause. I hadn’t thought of that option.

“He’s not.” Reese holds out his hand to me. “He’s made a mess of your city, but I still do trust him not to stab us in the back.”

“That’s not very high standards,” I mumble.

He chuckles. I take his hand, his warm palm against my chilled one. He tugs me into his side and kisses the side of my head.

“This could even be a good thing,” he adds.