Page 67 of Haven

Melisa was waiting for me when I pulled up. Her hands were tucked in her pockets as she watched the water crash onto the shore.

I killed the engine and dragged myself out of the car. The wood groaned beneath my boots as I walked up to her. She had a cigarette lit between her fingers and dark circles under her eyes. This life affected her almost as much as it did us.

“I got a toddler at home waiting for me with a grouchy babysitter. What do you have?”

Melisa was always the one to jump headfirst into something. I saw why Cinder had a thing for her. They were cute together, but their lives clashed hard when it came to law and order. Cin said the sex was great, though. Now I had to break Melisa’s heart with the truth. I needed to rip the Band-Aid clean off.

“Cinder is…”

Her cigarette fell from her fingers. “Don’t fuck around like that, Widow.”

“I’m not. He called Rory, but it was Cinder. She said her goodbyes before he shot her.”

Melisa crushed the cigarette under her boot, looking up at the dark clouds. She was hiding her emotions. Cinder and Melisa never admitted their relationship status, but the secret was behind glass. Everyone knew, but no one said anything because they didn’t.

“How’s Rory?” Her voice was low, almost a broken whisper.

I clawed my scalp, trying to stay grounded. This was something I still hadn’t processed myself, and I didn’t know how to. “She’s…we’re all distraught, but he did it to hurt her, and it worked. She hyperventilated and passed out. She is in bed with Axel Morningstar’s kid now.”

Melisa did a double take. “What do you mean in bed?”

“They’re together. Fucking. I don’t know.” I still didn’t like it, but right now all I needed to do was make sure Rory was okay. Unfortunately, that meant dealing with Haven fucking Morningstar in our town, with my…with Rory. She wasn’t mine, and could never be mine. Especially not after this. It was my job to protect her now.

“Do you know if he’ll dispose of her body?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“Then she might not be dead,” Melisa stated bluntly. “I’m a cop. No body, no proof.”

“I can’t put Rory through that. I can’t give her hope and then find out Cinder is actually dead.”

“Then we will wait to tell her. I’ll look into it myself if I need to, but until her body is found, Cinder is alive.”

I would let Melisa have this, and hope she was right.

Fifty-Eight

Vesper

Bam!

Bam!

Bam!

My fist slammed against the punching bag in vigorous strikes until a searing pain radiated up my arm and my knuckle split open. I needed a different outlet, but I never handled grief well. When I was a little girl and lost my abuela, I went on a bender. I stayed locked in my room, sharpening sticks before going outside and stabbing them into the dirt. And then Violet died, and I spiraled. I found the drunk driver and burned him until his body was unrecognizable before getting rid of the remains.

There was tension radiating in the clubhouse because of Widow and Hades. I knew Widow would have issues with her, but I didn’t expect it to escalate like this. If it wasn’t for Rory, she would have killed Hades where she stood—but one thing about her was she didn’t want to hurt our girl. Widow was pigheaded and blind to the fact that her rejection still hurt mariposa.

I wiped the sweaty strands of black hair from my face, smearing blood across my forehead. My muscles were screaming in agony, but it didn’t compare to the ache taking root inside me. I needed to let up and breathe, but I couldn’t. The storm raging in my mind was powerful, and it was never a good idea to allow it to fester. I knew my emotions better than anyone else, other than Cinder. Allowing my loss and anger to take control over me would lead to more destruction.

There were too many emotions in my mind, and I knew I would spiral. The Vipers didn’t need me going on a bender right now, and neither did Rory. She needed us. When we found this bastard then I could let everything out and make him pay for all the damage he did. Cinder saved a lot of the Vipers, but what no one else realized was how much Rory helped her.

Rory always talked about Cin rescuing her, but the truth was they saved each other. How were we going to function without her? Not just as leader of the Vipers, but as a friend and a sister? The clubhouse was agitated, and with that, we were distracted. How were we supposed to keep it together if we were grieving? Grief was different for everyone, and the entire town would mourn Cinder.

I needed to make sure Rory was okay. Hell, I needed to make sure everyone was okay. Widow would step up to lead us, but she would hide her feelings behind that mask she wore. She would make sure everyone else was okay before she realized she needed to check on herself, as well. I didn’t know how, but one day we would figure this out and find a way to move past our grief.

I grabbed the bag, using it to steady myself as I controlled my breathing. I needed to be okay, not just for myself, but for the Vipers, for Rory, and for Widow. What I wanted was to find the asshole who killed her.