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Prologue
Orly Shepard sat in her car under the gas station’s busted streetlamp, staring out her windshield into the dark expanse of the desert. In less than an hour, Russell would return to their two-bedroom apartment in West Hollywood and find her engagement ring along with the note she’d written, telling him the wedding was off.
She’d dreaded writing that note, but after what she saw, Orly had to get as far away from him as possible. Morning rush hour was starting soon though, and she couldn’t decide if it was better to wait it out at a motel, or risk getting back on the freeway, and hope she wasn’t spotted in some gridlock by law enforcement.
It seemed like an impossible choice. The worst part was that there was no right answer. Russell was bound to find her no matter what she did. With his money and his resources, tracking a former foster kid turned nurse was practically child’s play. Still, Orly had to try. She had nothing left to lose.
He knew about her ability to telepathically connect with people in danger. He knew she had no control over who she connected with.
When she first felt that woman in her mind last night, Orly thought someone had broken into the woman’s home. Then the woman called the intruder by name, just as a passing headlight shone through a window and illuminated his face.
Russell, please don’t do this.
The woman had literally begged for her life, but Russell didn’t even flinch when he pulled the trigger.
Mentally shaking herself from the awful memory that felt more like a nightmare, Orly decided it was probably safer to stay off the roads during rush hour. She pulled into the motel, parking in front of the lobby. If Russell came looking for her, or rather when, he’d hopefully drive right past this hole-in-the-desert motel with a blinking neon vacancy sign missing a light bulb in the second A.
The lobby was small with a registration desk on one side, and a small seating area on the other. Orly didn’t see a television, but there was a Keurig machine, and a tower of disposable cups and lids on a table in the far corner next to a bin of K-cups. She sighed, making a mental note to grab some coffee before leaving later.
“I need a room,” she said unceremoniously to the skinny guy behind the registration desk.
He wore a Dodgers baseball cap backwards, and his attention was on his smartphone. Without looking at her, he typed something on the computer. “Cash or credit?” he asked, before returning his gaze to his phone.
Orly paid cash.
He handed her a metal key with a rubber keychain. It had the motel’s name printed on it in fading black ink. “Room eight. Checkout at eleven. You can drop the key in the box outside.”
“Thanks.” Orly headed back out to her car, oddly grateful people were too busy with their screens these days to pay attention to those around them. If Russell came looking for her, hopefully this guy wouldn’t remember her.
She moved her car out of view from the street and freeway, and lugged her two suitcases into the room. They were the same suitcases she’d brought with her when she moved in with Russell eight months ago. He’d since bought her new clothes and jewelry, but Orly left it all behind. She wasn’t interested in his things or his money. She just wanted her freedom.
As she crawled into the king-size bed,her eyelids instantly grew heavy with much-needed sleep.
A sudden knock at the door had her bolting to her feet. Had she even fallen asleep? A quick glance at the alarm clock on the bedside table showed almost eight hours had passed. She cursed under her breath. She hadn’t meant to sleep so long.
A woman’s voice called from the other side of the door. “Housekeeping.”
Orly groaned as she made her way to the door, snatching the ‘Do not disturb’ hanger. She needed a quick shower, some coffee from the office, and would hopefully be on the road within thirty minutes. She opened the door, prepared to tell the woman that her services weren’t needed, but before she could utter a word, the door was forced open by a familiar large hand, nearly knocking Orly off her feet.
Russell Graham’s large frame filled the doorway, nearly blocking Orly’s view of the dark haired woman skittering away. “Russell...” She started to say as he glared at her with all the rage of a pissed off bear. Orly wanted to say more, but her words were cut off as he shoved her back into the room, kicking the door shut behind him. He pushed her onto the bed with such force that her body bounced before settling on the mattress.
She stared up at him with wild eyes, shocked he’d manhandled her like that. Russell had a temper. Everyone knew that. But he’d never laid a hand on her.“Let this be your first lesson,” he said in a calm tone that was somehow scarier than if he’d roared the words. His spiked dark hair glistened with beads of sweat, and his eyes sent chills down her spine. “You don't get to leave me. We’re getting married, and you will not embarrass me.” When Orly didn’t respond, he continued with a shake of his head. “I was afraid something like this might happen. Look, I get it. You think you saw something, and it scared you. But that doesn’t give you the right to pack your shit and leave in the middle of the night. What? I’m not even worth a conversation?” He was nearly yelling now, and Orly winced. Leaving him had been the hardest, albeit fastest, decision of her life.
She couldn’t live with a man, much less love a man, who she knew killed someone in cold blood. She hadn’t just seen it. She’d felt it. That woman’s fear. Her utter helplessness. Orly felt the damn bullet, and the spot on her forehead still tingled from the impact. “I didn’t think there was anything to talk about. I know your job is dangerous, but you killed a woman in cold blood last night. She was terrified, and you just - killed her.” The words spilled out before Orly could think better of it. “I saw it,” she whispered, not hiding the horror she felt.
The image of Russell shooting that woman replayed in her mind like an awful movie, making her completely unaware of his arm swinging wide until it was too late. His palm slammed into the side of her face, slapping across her cheek with a loud pop.
Her head snapped to the side as she instinctively curled into herself, bringing her knees up to protect her chest and pressing her hand to her face. The skin just below her eye socket burned with a kind of pain she couldn’t describe, and her eyes watered.Stunned by his action, Orly stared at him in disbelief, but he didn’t miss a beat. “Let’s get a few things straight. I don’t care what you think you saw. You will not use that witchcraft bullshit of yours on me. And another thing,” he went on, not waiting for any sign of acknowledgment from her. “You are mine. From the moment I put that ring on your finger, you became mine, and I will always find you. There is no place in this country, in the world, where you can hide that I won’t find you. Are we clear?”
Orly swallowed the excess saliva in her mouth, now tinged with a metallic taste. Her heart was about to beat out of her chest, but she quickly gave him an almost imperceptible nod. What else could she do? He may have sounded over the top, but she knew better. Russell Graham could find anyone, anywhere. Criminals. Escaped convicts. Uncooperative witnesses. And now… her. Though she did wonder how he’d found her so fast, Orly decided it didn’t matter. He was probably tracking her car or who knows what. Just then, her gaze landed on her purse, sitting on the table just a few feet away. The zipper was open and she spotted the corner of her cell phone. Dammit. In her rush to leave, she’d completely forgotten to take the stupid thing out. Could she be any worse at this running and hiding thing?
Taking her prolonged silence as acceptance, Russell finally drew a breath and let his shoulders drop. He looked around the room, his eyes narrowing when he spotted her two suitcases. “Let’s go.” It wasn’t a request, or even a command. It was a threat. He picked up a suitcase in each hand, and proceeded out the door, not even looking back to make sure she was following.
After his large frame cleared the doorway, Orly stood on shaky legs and quickly detoured to the bathroom. Her bladder was about to explode and she wanted to at least splash some cold water on her face before being forced to drive all the way back to Los Angeles. She could try to sneak off, but Russell had just taken all her things and was putting them in his car.
“Where are you?” His gruff voice called from the doorway.
Orly closed her eyes right for a moment before responding. “Just need to use the bathroom,” she called back, trying to keep her tone even. She had no idea what to expect from this man anymore. Until last night, she thought she knew him, but now it was clear she never really did, and that terrified her. Her hands trembled and her head hurt. Every instinct was telling her to get away from him, but he had her well and truly trapped.
