Page 35 of Fueled Fury

21

Austin

“Tell me where she’s at.” I don’t beg but I’m not far from it.

Eli saunters across the kitchen, placing his palms against the counter. “Say please.”

My teeth clench together. That’s what he wants. He wants me to beg. For her, I’ll do anything. “Please.”

“You can do better than that.” He cackles as he looks around the empty kitchen. I’m sure he’d enjoy this more with an audience, but I don’t have time for his ridiculous game.

Surging forward, I wrap my fingers around his neck, slamming him back into the wall.

“Please,” I say through gritted teeth knowing this isn’t the way to go about it, but he’s hammering my last nerve.

After the phone call from her dad, things changed. She needs to be found, and I will find her. Only, I’ve looked everywhere I can think of. Now I’m spinning in circles, not making any headway and the prick clawing at my hand wrapped around his neck thinks this is nothing but a joke.

“Her dad said she drove off upset, and no one has heard from her since yesterday. If you know where she is, you will tell me.”

“Or what? You’ll gut me like a fish? Leave my insides strung up in the woods? Carve an X in my chest?” His wicked grin tells me just how deranged the lunatic really is.

“If that’s what it takes.”

He gasps, pulling at my hand as I squeeze tighter before he starts wheezing out the words. “I don’t know.”

“Tell me.”

“I don’t know,” he shouts best he can with his windpipe seized in my grip. I debate for a second about ending it. Ending him. The world would be a better place without this sick fucker walking around. He’d be away from her. It’d be worth every second of rotting away in prison. But could I really go through with it? Could I really be the monster I feared I’d turn out to be? Until her.

As long as there’s a slight possibility she’ll forgive me, stay with me, I’ll hold onto it. Hold onto the hope that only has ever revealed itself to me through her. My fingers reflexively tighten slightly before releasing, and I struggle to take a step back. My feet feel weighted to the floor.

Eli lunges forward, but stumbles, off balance I’m guessing from the lack of oxygen. Throwing him back against the wall, I stand firm in front of him.

“I have to find her. I’m done with this shit.”

“I’m not.” Eli (surprisingly) doesn’t keep the battle going. Instead, he remains against the wall, eyeing me for a few seconds before walking out of the room.

Good, I don’t have time for him. I have to find someone who doesn’t want to be found, someone who is hiding from everyone but most of all from herself.

Damn it. I really am an idiot. Why haven’t I thought of it sooner? Where’s the best place to hide when you don’t want to be found? The only place no one would think to look, or at least not look deeper.

Hurrying to my truck, I speed out of the driveway and head where I hope she is. If I don’t find her there, I really don’t know her at all.