Page 16 of After the Burn

There was only one person stubborn enough to sneak out in the middle of the night without telling anyone first.

And more importantly, only one person Lila would’ve followed without thinking about the danger.

“Taryn,” I muttered under my breath.

Ethan shoved a hand through his hair aggressively. “You knew?”

“Hell, no,” I snapped, already heading for the door. “But I know enough about the little brat to realize her fingerprints are all over this.”

I shoved past Ethan and headed straight for the stairs, two at a time.

“Taryn!” I barked.

No answer.

My pulse slammed harder against my ribs with every step.

I hit the hallway and crossed straight to the room she’d been using, throwing the door open hard enough that it cracked against the wall.

It felt satisfying because I’d wanted to storm in here and punch that asshole Beck in the face every time I heard Taryn moan late at night… these fucking walls were paper-thin.

I felt embarrassed to admit that Taryn’s sex sounds had probably made my right arm significantly stronger.

At least I wasn’t standing outside her room at night like my best friend. I’d stopped him from going in there and killing Beck more times than I could count.

Empty. Just as I expected.

The blankets were tossed back, and her bag and knife were gone. The space near the door where Max usually slept was also empty.

“Fuck.” I ran a hand down my face.

Behind me, footsteps pounded up the stairs.

“What’s happening?" Lane called out from the kitchen while the girls, Avery and Emery, spoke anxiously over one another.

Ethan appeared in the doorway, breathing hard. “Tell me Taryn’s still here.”

I slowly twisted, my jaw clenched so hard it was painful. “She took Max.”

His face turned pale immediately, as we both understood what that signified. Taryn never went anywhere for long without that dog, and judging by how things looked, she’d been gone for hours.

“Son of a bitch,” Ethan snapped, dragging both hands through his hair. “What the hell was she thinking?”

“She was thinking Beck and Adrian should’ve been back days ago.” I shot back.

Why I was defending her was anyone’s guess.

He didn’t have anything else to say because we both knew it was true.

A one-day walk there, and a few days to check things out.

Something had happened.

Without delay, I went to the room where I slept. Grabbing my bag, I hurled supplies inside almost faster than my mind could keep up.

Knife.

Gun.