Page 37 of Restitution

It takes me less than three minutes to catch up to her on my motorbike.

While she goes as fast as she can, I stay on her tail. I need her terrified enough that Bernadette believes all of this until the very last minute. I need as much time as possible before she realises I’m aborting the mission.

My breathing halts when she nearly misses a turn on the road.

Fucking hell, Freckles. Drive carefully.

I speed up, approaching her right side. For dramatic effect, because she’s only doing fifty on a road with a limit of fucking seventy, I pull out my gun and keep it in view as I slide up beside her window and aim right at her.

She looks to the side, and her eyes widen.

She abruptly takes the next turn.

Good. We were supposed to meet on this road anyway.

She’s still as terrible a driver as ever. But no matter how fast she goes, I match the speed, mocking her every time I turn my head to look at her. She keeps her eyes forward, gripping the steering wheel for dear life.

Finally, she slows down, and we both pull over at our meeting place, before she’s opening the car door without pausing. Instead of a hello, she slams the door behind her. “Get this over with.”

I swallow and turn off the bike’s engine, my eyes finding the cameras Bernadette set up trained on the car park for a split second before I look back at her.

She crosses her arms, and it kills me that she’s holding back tears. She’s trembling. I can see the quake in her knees and how stiff her entire body is.

I pull up the visor, and she doesn’t give me any eye contact; she just stares at my hands as one lifts to aim the gun at her, the other pushing into the space of my helmet to press the button in my ear.

Fuck, forgive me.

Fucking please forgive me, Stacey.

“I have her,” I say in a firm tone. The uncontrollable blinking starts, a layer of sweat forming on my face. “She’s right in front of me.”

12

KADE

Stacey shakes her head and tightens her arms around herself, looking off into the distance now, waiting for me to pull the trigger again. To put an end to her life. Waiting to give up everything to win me my freedom.

Bernadette’s sadistic laugh comes through my earpiece, loud enough for Stacey to hear. “Are you intentionally playing with your food?”

“You know I like the chase,” I say, removing my finger from the trigger as it spasms.

Accidentally shooting her in the head is one of my biggest fears. Especially after my fuck-up earlier. She has a gash on her cheek from where I hit her, and I feel illthat I hurt her.

“I’m not in the mood for games, Kade. You have a job to do. And I’m busy.”

My eye twitches, my jaw ticking, and I swallow hard. “I do this, and you’ll cut all ties with me?”

Stacey closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, before opening them again to glare at me. A tear slides down her cheek.

“If that’s Bernadette, tell her that her days are limited. When they find the old bitch, she won’t last a day. That evil, vile, disgustingrapistof a woman.”

Damn.

“She’s feisty. I understand her appeal to you before. Pretty, spunky, with a little bit of attitude,” Bernadette says. “Well, give us a show then, Kade. Shoot her. Shoot the slut who cheated on you with your brother.”

“She didn’t cheat on me,” I snap.

Stacey frowns as I add, “Watch your fucking mouth.”