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“Why?”
“You’ll just have to see, Agent Hadley.”
I turn again, finally leaving as she huffs out a frustrated breath.
“Where are you going?” she asks as I jerk open the door.
“To buy some lube.”
“Too much information,” she grumbles as I walk out.
Chapter 12
Though she may be little, she is fierce.
—William Shakespeare
LANA
I stare at my future, knowing how bleak it is. And I worry. I worry for my children. What happens to them? They’ve already lost their mother, and now the sins of another have landed in my lap, destroying what’s left of our family with all the dark lies and insinuations.
They’ll become outcasts. My name will bring them harm, I fear. My daughter is fierce, constantly fighting for me. My son is fragile right now, barely holding it together.
I worry the most about Victoria. My son will grieve me, but he will recover. My daughter will never stop fighting for me. That could put her in danger. It’s obvious I’m supposed to take the fall for this; I just don’t understand why.
Why is any of this happening? Why is this happening to us? Haven’t we suffered enough?
If I could end my life and spare them the rest of this trial, I would.
But if I do that, then I’m teaching them to give up. I’m setting a precedent my wife would never approve of.
So I’ll fight. I’ll pray. And I’ll hope against all hope that the truth prevails.
For the sake of my children, I’ll fight.
I put the journal away, sliding it into my bag just as the sun sets. Any time I need a reminder of why it’s important to always fight, I read the journal of a man who had no choice but to fight. To fight for his kids.
To fight for us.
“Lana, you there?” Jake asks, annoyed as I wedge the phone between my shoulder and cheek.
“Still here,” I tell him.
“I don’t like this. I haven’t even installed any cameras in Morgan’s house, and he teaches a MMA class for fuck’s sake. You’ll be going in blind with a guy who knows how to fight.”
“They all know how to fight,” I say carelessly.
“Not like him. You know it. You’re rushing this, getting too brave. You’ve reached the point where you think you’re indestructible. We talked about this. We agreed you’d let me pull you back a little if you started to develop that complex.”
He’s frustrated, and I understand. The second I fell for Logan, all our plans became five times more complicated and seven times more fucked up. Not to mention rushed and sloppy.
“I have to be there tomorrow. Morgan has to die tonight. I’m not leaving behind two to run off once they hear what I’ve done to that town. It’ll be hard to kill them afterwards. Well, hard to kill both and not have immediate FBI attention.”
“Damn it, Lana. Let me handle it.”
“No,” I say immediately. “The Scarlet Slayer—as you named her—can’t be in two places at once, or they’ll know I have a partner. It’ll ruin the whole thing. That town once called me the devil’s spawn—and they meant it, Jake. They truly believe that. They’ll believe in spirits and demons coming back to reap their souls when I’m done. I can’t scare the hell out of them without your compliance.”
He curses, groaning. “Fine. Fuck. Fine. I’ll be there in twenty minutes. Leave your phone on. If you get in trouble, I’ll hear it and come in, armed.”
