Page 78 of Burn Me Down

“I fucking knew it!” I heard before hitting end. I had three things to live for that I never thought I would, and Chase had somehow made that list. Fuck to have a do-over of this life. That was something I would sell my soul for.

I let Beck sleep as I did chores around the yard that I’d been meaning to get to and even fixed the fence where the gators from the pond were getting through. By the time I finished, the sun was up and high in the sky as I walked out to the mailbox. Grabbing the small handful of bills and such, I walked to the house and found Beck inside looking like a ray of sunshine.

She was smiling and wiggling around the kitchen to the music that was playing from the old stereo as she cooked grilled cheese. I’d know that smell anywhere.

Laying the mail down on the counter, I wrapped my arms around her waist and loved the little yelp she made before turning around and kissing me.

“Mmm, that is quite the welcome,” I said, pulling her flush to my body.

“Are you hungry? You didn’t come in for breakfast, and you seemed so focused that I didn’t want to disturb you.” I smoothed back the wild strands of her long hair to take in the light that radiated from her eyes. I fed off of that look like a goddamn vampire.

“I’m starved, but I can’t decide which meal to devour first.” I gave her ass a squeeze, and she swatted my arm, but a bright red blush spread across her cheeks.

“Down, boy, food first. You need to keep your strength up, and not eating or sleeping won’t do either of us any good.” She had a point, but fuck, she looked good in my shirt.

“Fine, I’ll eat the sandwiches first, but then…I’m laying you out on the table for my second meal.” I loved how she bit her lip.

Moving away, before I changed up the order of events, I grabbed the mail and began sorting it. A plain white envelope made me pause. I held it up to the light, but it had a liner, and I couldn’t see what was inside.

“What’s that?” Beck nodded to my hands.

“I don’t know.”

“Here.” Beck held out a knife. I took it, sliced open the top, and looked inside, but all I saw was white paper. A picture fell out the bottom when I pulled out the folded paper.

“Oh my god,” Beck said and covered her mouth.

I thought I knew fear. I thought I understood it and had conquered it. As many times as I faced it and growled, I didn’t believe anything could make my blood run cold, but I was wrong.

I picked up the photograph and stared at the carnage. It was a close-up of the murder from the news last night, the strange one from the alley. The woman was filleted like the witness said, each bone cut from her body and placed beside the mangled remains. It was horrifying and disgusting, but that wasn’t the worst part. I recognized this face and body even through the blood and gore. It was Adalyn. The large X stood out in the photograph, the blood making the lines more distinct. Her short blonde hair was long and dyed brown. Dye was smeared across her forehead, and she wore contacts, making them look grey, but the final statement was the mermaid tail. Not just any mermaid tail, Beck’s that she used to perform at the aquarium.

“Where did you have that outfit?” I looked up at Beck, her face so pale I thought she might faint, and quickly wrapped my arm around her.

Her wide eyes met mine. “At home.”

My teeth ground together as I stared at the terror in Beck’s eyes. No one threatened her. If Adam wanted to come after me, he was welcome to try, but if he touched one hair on her head, it would be the last thing he ever fucking did.

“I need to get you somewhere safe, Beck. This is a direct threat to your life, and I have to go meet him.”

“Meet him? Are you crazy? No. No. No.” Beck pulled away and marched around the kitchen. “We are sticking together, and I can learn to fight or shoot a gun or something. I’m not letting him threaten us. And how do you know he wants to meet you anyway?”

I flipped over the photo and pointed to the scribble that said Aquarium 2300. “He wants me to meet him at the aquarium at eleven tonight.”

“No, this is a setup, and I’m not letting him hurt you.” She looked so fierce with her hands balled into fists, her grey eyes all stormy with anger. Fuck, I loved her, and I couldn’t let her anywhere near Adam, no matter how much she wanted to protect me.

“Okay.”

“Okay?”

“Yes. Get changed and get packed. We’ll do this together. I need to make some calls.” I hated deceiving her, but it had to be done.

“You’re serious?”

“Yes.”

“Can we eat lunch first?”

I burst out laughing and glanced at the clock on the stove. “Yeah, we have time for both the meals I want. We won’t let Adam ruin that for us, but then we need to get going.”