Page 25

Anchor

I sat on Pearl’s porch as the old rocking chair creaked under me with every slow push of my boot. The air was heavy and thick with mist rolling in from the lake. A half-burnt cigarette dangled between my fingers and glowed orange in the dark as I took another drag. Pearl had fallen asleep maybe thirty minutes ago, breathing slow and even, her leg brushed against mine as she curled into me in bed.

But I couldn’t stay there. Not tonight. Not after the fourth fucking body.

I stared out into the dark, past the path, past the trees that swayed gently in the breeze. My mind wouldn’t stop. Whoever was doing this… whoever was dropping bodies like breadcrumbs across my island was sending a goddamn message. The only problem was, I didn’t know what the hell it was supposed to say.

The latest victim was the guy in the fourth picture on the USB drive. We’d confirmed that much. Young. Fit. Unknown to any of us. Like the others, his mouth had been sewn shut with black twine, the letters KOAMC carved into his stomach. Kings of Anarchy Motorcycle Club.

Us.

All of them were tied to us, but how?

Mick Barber had been the first. A new-to-town idiot who ran errands for people on the mainland. Small-time. No real club ties. His girlfriend had gone missing two days later. Presumed dead by the police.

She was.

The third guy? Still no ID. Same deal: markings, sewn lips, dumped in our waters.

And now a fourth.

What was the connection? Why here? Why now?

“Can’t sleep?”

Pearl’s soft voice drifted through the screen door.

I turned my head just enough to see her. Barefoot. Her hair was a mess of curls, sleep-kissed and wild, and she had one of my shirts hanging loose over her frame. A blanket was draped over her like a shawl.

“I’m fine, doll,”

I said, my voice rough.

“Go back to sleep.”

She ignored me, of course.

The screen door creaked open. She padded out onto the porch and wrapped the blanket tighter around her. Without asking, she walked over and lowered herself into my lap. I caught her by the hips and settled her there. She sighed, warm and solid against me, and tugged the blanket around both of us.

“I don’t like smoking,”

she muttered sleepily.

“but I think you’ve earned one or two after the past couple of weeks.”

“I’ll quit tomorrow,”

I joked, but I meant it. I didn’t need the smoke, not when she was the thing keeping me grounded.

I dropped the spent cigarette and snuffed it out with my boot.

Pearl wiggled in closer and rested her head on my shoulder.

“Want to tell me what you’re thinking?”

I didn’t. Not really.

But she was here, and maybe saying it out loud would keep the darkness from swallowing me whole.

“Just… trying to make sense of it all. Asking the night to talk back for once.”

Her fingers traced light, lazy patterns over my chest, right over the KOAMC tattoo on my heart.

“You’ll get there,”

she whispered, voice thick with a yawn.

“You’ll figure it out. You always do.”

I wrapped my arms around her tighter and rested my chin on her head.

I hoped she was right. Because I could feel something coming. Something bad.

And I wasn’t sure we were ready for it.