Total pages in book: 30
Estimated words: 28311 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 142(@200wpm)___ 113(@250wpm)___ 94(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 28311 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 142(@200wpm)___ 113(@250wpm)___ 94(@300wpm)
We make it to her apartment, and the door is slightly ajar. “Hold on.”
“Who the hell do you think you are?” a uniformed officer asks, stepping up to us from behind the open door. What the fuck is he doing in her darkened apartment?
“This is my apartment,” January says.
“You must be January.”
“I am…”
I cut her off and question the bastard. “Where the hell did you come from, Officer, and why the hell are you hiding in the apartment building in the middle of the night?”
“Why are you two slinking in here in the middle of the night?” he questions, flashing his light at us.
“We just arrived back in Chicago and I came to get some clothes after my trip, but I’m not staying after what happened.”
“Oh, well. You need to be careful. The place was burglarized, Ms. Holmes. That’s why I’ve been asked to watch over the building just in case someone returns.”
“Sweetheart, let’s get you some clothes and go. We need to get some rest.” I grab my phone out of my pocket, but I’m not sure if I should call for backup when I want to shoot this fucker the second I spot his name. Officer Thompson. We step into the apartment and find that it, in fact, has been ransacked.
“What the hell were they looking for?” she sobs. Fuck, it breaks my heart.
“Where’s your room?”
“That door.” I walk her to her room because I don’t trust that asshole cop and I’m not sure there isn’t trouble waiting inside. I pull out my phone and give Luca a call, whispering the conversation. “Listen, we have a problem at January’s apartment. It’s been ransacked. There’s a cop named Thompson outside. He surprised us in the dark and then questioned us. Don’t trust.”
“On my way.”
“Okay.” She stares at the room in dismay, and I want to smash someone’s head in. They destroyed her shit, but I can replace it all. She turns to me when a realization hits her.
“Oh my God, wait. That’s Thompson,” she gasps. I press my hand to her mouth. I’m guessing she heard a lot of my conversation.
“Go get your shit like I told you to—right now,” I say in a hushed whisper. We need to move quickly and silently, or we’re leaving without her shit.
“Sorry.” She steps back as I let her and then grabs a couple of things out of her drawer, but then freezes. “Enrico.” I come over, and there’s a death threat inside the drawer. Say a word and die. It must have been from Thompson but handed down on orders by Strongman. The fucking prick.
“I’ll get you new clothes, sweetheart. Let’s just go.”
She shakes her head. “I need to grab my favorite book.”
She moves before I can stop her, and Thompson’s waiting. Dust flies in the air, blowing into her face. Shit. I deck the son of a bitch, but as I do, she falls backward onto her ass. I go to help January up, but she’s slapping away my hand.
“Get away from me.”
She slaps my hands away. “I’m sorry, baby. I didn’t mean to knock you down.”
“You’re a monster. Get away,” she shouts. Damn it, I didn’t think it was that serious. I’m trying to protect her.
“He is. I’m a cop. I’m here to protect you,” the asshole says from his spot on the ground, wiping his busted mouth. I’m about to grab my gun when I think twice about it. Right now, I don’t have a story to spin.
“You’re a monster too. Oh my God.” She panics, eyes glassy as hell. She goes running through the apartment. I’m on her in a second before she heads to the nearest window. Fucking hell, I’m going to kill this bastard for whatever she’s on.
A rush of light footsteps can be heard, and I know it’s Luca. He comes through the door, finding the cop on the ground. “He blew something in her face.”
“Oh my God. Everyone is out to get me,” January cries, sobbing into my chest until she realizes I’m holding her again. Then she scratches the shit out of my face.
“Fuck,” I growl. Luca tosses me some zip ties from his pocket.
“Here. These won’t leave too bad of a mark, but your face might need some treatment. Shit.” He looks down at the officer. “Now, what do we have here, Officer Nicholas Thompson. Is this…” He takes a taste of the residue in the vial that the officer has in his pocket. “Um…ketamine?”
“Fuck. She’s tripping right now.”
“Yes, and since she’s scared, this isn’t helping.”
“Yeah, he left her a little note in her drawer.”
“What are we going to do with you?” Luca says.
“Let him go.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yes, I’m sure he’s going to run to his lackey and tell him that he failed to get his target, but if he ever comes near my woman again, I’ll chop off his balls and serve them to his wife in a nice bolognese.” Luca took the rest of the vial and blew it in the officer’s face before taking the cop’s hand and helping him empty his gun clip but leaving the one round in the chamber. We don’t want him to get a couple shots off at us.