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I sat straight up and looked over at Diego.
It took a second for disorientation to fade and when it did my brain immediately keyed into the fact that there was a decorative pillow from the sofa covering his face.
“What the hell?” I muttered.
Any lingering drowsiness vanished when I saw the outline of someone standing a few feet away. A rush of adrenaline shot through my veins. Without voicing my panic, I reached for the pillow covering Diego’s face. The lack of light made it hard to see the extent of the wound, but I couldn’t miss the hole in the center of Diego’s head.
His eyes were wide open and unblinking, fixed on my ceiling. With a sharp gasp, I scrambled out of my bed as if it was on fire. Unsteady on my feet, I crashed into the drawer of my nightstand with so much force that the lamp on top of it rocked and fell over.
The impact sent me to the floor with a solid thud that had a sharp pain caressing my tailbone.
This drawer… why was it?
Shit. My gun!
I didn’t waste any time thinking of the who or why. Fuck all of that. I got to my feet and ran out of the room, making it across the apartment in record timing. It looked like I was going to make a clean exit. I should’ve known the universe would never be as kind as to let me get away scot-free.
I felt the overbearing presence of my intruder right behind me, causing the hairs on the back of my neck to stand on end. It was like a goddamn horror movie where the girl runs and the killer walks but still catches her in the end.
The front door began to swing open just as I reached it. Audrey’s tired sigh boomed in my ears. There was no fucking way she could come in here.
I launched myself forward and used my body to slam the door shut, hurriedly turning the lock.
“Rhia?” From her tone, I could tell she was instantly on edge.
“You can’t--!”
A gloved hand clamped over my mouth, cutting off my warning. I instinctively reached up to pull it away, slamming my elbow into the gut of whoever was behind me. The second I was able, I bit into the side of their palm like a rabid dog. Smooth leather and chalky, acrid gunshot residue coated my tongue and made me gag.
With a low curse, the gloved hand was torn from between my clamped teeth and dropped to my waist, dragging me deeper into the apartment and away from the door.
“Don’t come in, Audrey!” I contorted my body so that I could finally face whoever was in our apartment. “Get the hell off of me!”
I was let go without any further struggle. For the second time that night, I hit the floor with a thud. Wincing, I took notice of the shoes the person towering above me was wearing and a creeping suspicion began to sprout in my brain.
No one came to rob or kill people in their Sunday best unless they were an absolute psychopath. There was only one person I could think of that fit such a description. I swallowed and slowly raised my head, confirming what I should’ve known minutes ago.
There wasn’t any denying it was him. I knew those eyes all too well. Judas Barron--the star of all my warped fantasies.
CHAPTER THREE
It’s one thing to imagine something and another entirely to experience it. In my mind, Judas had always looked the same. I never went too far beyond the boy I once knew becoming a man. Even when perusing the net, I tried to avoid looking at images of him.
Of course, I’d wondered what he would look like in the flesh grown and more mature. I had done that long before we went our separate ways, though. I didn’t have to wonder anymore. The kitchen light clicked on, and I became acutely aware of everything at once.
Gavin, or at least who I assumed was him was there with a bag of my Doritos in his hand. He watched Judas and I completely relaxed, leaning against the countertop like he didn’t have a care in the world.
Audrey came barreling through the front door like a superhero minus any kind of heroic abilities. I could’ve throttled her. I just sacrificed myself so she could get away. She made it a few steps before coming to a complete stop.
Her eyes went from Judas to his accomplice, a stormy look settling on her face. “What exactly do you two think you’re doing?”
“Good to see you again too, baby girl” Gavin drawled, “Shut the door and stay awhile.”
Again?
His tone implied he’d seen her recently.
She gave me a look I think was meant to be reassuring before doing as he said. That wasn’t like her, to comply so willingly.
