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“Shit,” Kipley cusses, and without looking up, I feel the cushion next to me sink as he takes a seat. “You’ve got it bad.”
A pathetic chuckle filters up my throat. I finally open my eyes to glance at him. “You have no idea.”
We sit quiet for another minute, until he breaks the silence. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“So you could kick my ass sooner?”
He nods. “True.” There’s another round of silence. “Damn…so you’re really in love with my little sister?”
“I am.” Fuck, I am. I love her. But it’s too late. I fucked everything up. I shouldn’t have lost my temper with her at the office. Made her feel like I lost trust in her. In us. If she’d just waited for me and we could have talked it out, maybe we could have avoided all this mess.
“Shit.” Kipley swipes his hand down his face. “Wasn’t expecting this.” Yeah, neither was I, but for some reason, the world decided I needed something good in my life and granted me her. “Say I decide to not kill you for touching my little sister, my next question is—”
“Hannah didn’t submit that harassment complaint. That, I’m sure of.”
“But why would—?”
“Hannah didn’t submit it. Ask her yourself. Yeah, we had a fight. I was angry about the case. Fuck, I blamed my slip up on my distraction with her.” I shake my head, wishing away the horrible accusations I made. The disappointment and hurt on her face when I suggested we take a pause. “I fucking hurt her, but she would never do that. I know she lov—she just wouldn’t.”
“This is all fucked up, man. If she didn’t…”
“Someone is setting me up. Ask her yourself. She’ll tell you the same thing.”
“She never showed up at work today. Never came home last night. My parents are beside themselves with worry. It’s why I came banging your door down. To get her to at least call home.”
A wave of unease hits me, and I sit up straighter. “What do you mean she didn’t come home? Weren’t you with her?”
“She yelled at me for being a shitty friend and ran after you. By the time I calmed down and left the bar, her car was there, but she wasn’t. I assumed she left with you. Then Dad called me today, concerned, and here I am.”
A sinking feeling tightens my soured stomach—and it’s not from the excessive booze or wounds. “I—she didn’t leave with me.” With everything that happened, I forgot about our call. She’d gone to see Clara Hill. Panic begins to flood my system.
“Dude, you don’t look so good. What’s going on? What do you know?” There’s an edge to Kipley’s tone.
I replay our conversation. “She’d gone to see a witness.”
“And that’s bad because…?”
My voice shakes. A thickness in my throat makes it difficult to breathe. “The witness—the case—we were fighting about—she pulled out—”
“Okay, you’re starting to freak me out. You’re not making any sense. What does this have to do with Hannah?”
I stumble as I stand, a ripple of dizziness smacking me in the face, causing me to trip.
“Whoa, slow down, man.” Kipley steadies me, but I slap his hand away. My eyes are frantic, searching for my phone. I spot it on the floor and practically dive for it, dialing Hannah’s number. It instantly goes to voicemail. “Come on…” I hang up and dial again, but it doesn’t even give me the satisfaction of a single ring before her voicemail picks up.
“Levi, you’re starting to scare me. What the fuck? Is Hannah in danger? Do you think something happened to her?” This time, Kipley’s voice is strained. I wish I could alleviate his worry, but I can’t. Kipley’s phone breaks our stare down, and he snatches it from his back pocket. I pray it’s Hannah telling him she’s fine. “Hey, Dad.” Fuck. “Yeah, she’s not here. I know…she’s not this careless…sure.” He pulls his phone away to speak to me. “He still hasn’t heard from her. She’s still on my parents’ phone plan, so he’s called the cell company to locate her. Everything will be fine.”
We both wait, holding our breath for Jim to come back on the line. I don’t realize my hands are trembling. “What’d he say?” he starts back up, and I stay super close, needing to hear him say she’s all right. “I’m headed there now.” He hangs up and faces me, confusion setting in. “Her phone pinged at Jake’s bar.”
“What? Why—?”
“I don’t know. Let’s go.”
Hannah
There’s an entire orchestra playing in my head. Not the good kind either. So much banging and pounding. I groan, turning to my side, hoping to block out the bright light coming from my window. Something restraining my arms stops me, and I groan louder, tugging at my hands, a sharpness around my wrists causing me to wince. What in the heck? I open my eyes, the light sending a zap of agony to my brain. Fighting through the pain, I force my vision to focus on my surroundings and lift my head. My hands are bound by thick rope and tied around a headboard.
