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I reached into my pocket for my keys, handed them to her, and then shouted, “Go!”
She didn’t hesitate as I let her go. She sprinted for the front door and flung it open, and with one last look at the gruesome scene in front of me, I followed her and Lottie out. I was only a few feet behind them as I slammed the door closed, and then we were running for my car, trying to get to it as fast as we could. I had no idea if someone was watching us, but I knew as soon as we were in the car, we would be safe.
The lights beeped as we made it down all the flights of stairs, and Lottie was beside Belle, protecting her, understanding something bad was happening. Belle flung the passenger door open, and Lottie jumped in with Belle right behind her. I wasn’t sure what was going on around me as I pulled my door open and then got inside.
I locked the doors so no one could get in, and took a breath, wishing I could close my eyes but knowing all I’d see was the scene in Stella’s bedroom. I yanked my cell out as Belle handed me the keys, but I had no intention of moving, not until I knew there was someone here to look at the crime scene.
I called the local PD, giving them a rundown of what had happened and what we saw, and telling them who I was. As soon as I ended the call, I clicked on the app to view the security footage from the apartment, but there was nothing there. Several blank screens greeted me, and I gritted my teeth. I needed to find out if they’d been wiped all together, because at least then it would give us a timeframe.
Within minutes of calling, sirens were sounding, and several cop cars were in the lot. Once they’d gotten into the apartment, I turned the engine on and backed out of the space. There was only one place I’d be taking Belle, and that was the safe house. I handed Belle my cell and demanded, “Call your dad and put it on speaker.”
She did as I said, and even though I could see her fingers shaking, I couldn’t concentrate on that. I had to make sure she was safe first. Brody had been right. He was never wrong when it came to his gut. I couldn’t help but wonder if Lottie hadn’t been with us, would we have even known what had happened to Stella and Justin until the morning? By then, it could have been too late.
Had someone come in, expecting to get Belle, but instead come across Stella and Justin? I hadn’t been keeping an eye on surveillance while we were gone because I didn’t think I had to.
“Ford?” Brody’s voice rang out in the car.
“We’re on our way to the safe house,” I rushed out.
“What? What happened?”
“Belle’s roommate and her boyfriend have been murdered.” I cringed at the sentence, wishing what I said wasn’t the truth, but it was, and at my words, Belle hiccupped a sob. She’d opened the door to the scene. She’d witnessed her best friend in the worst way possible, and I wished I could scrub the memory from her brain.
“Belle?” Brody asked. “You there?”
“Yeah, Dad,” she whispered, her voice broken. “It was…oh god.” She placed her hand over her mouth, but there was nothing I could do to comfort her because I was driving. The nearest safe house was an hour away, but I intended to get us there in half the time. “There was blood everywhere, Dad. And her hand…”
“Her hand?” Brody asked, and I could tell by his tone he had a feeling he knew what she was going to say. We all knew the trademarks when it came to the cartel.
“It was…”
“Nailed to her chest,” I finished for Belle.
“Fuck!” Brody shouted. “I goddamn knew something was gonna happen.”
The silence stretched between us as I took a corner fast. “I’ll call when we’re at the safe house,” I told him.
“I’m tracking you,” Brody told me, and I knew what his unspoken words were. Anything could happen between now and then, and although I wasn’t being followed, I had no idea if someone had been watching us back at the apartment. Maybe they only wanted to scare us, or perhaps it was a warning. We wouldn’t know until someone was down at the crime scene.
Brody dropped the call, and I had no idea what to say to Belle. I wanted nothing more than to tell her it was going to be okay, but I wouldn’t make promises I couldn’t keep. I’d do anything to protect her. I’d go to lengths I never thought possible so she wouldn’t get hurt. And not just because she was Brody’s daughter, but because she was Belle.
My Belle.
* * *
BELLE
They never portrayed in the movies how tired you felt after witnessing a dead body—a murder scene. They’d make it look like the person was in shock, scared of what had happened, but they never told the story of the tiredness that hit you.
It was an effort to keep my eyes open, but every time they’d close, all I could see was Stella and Justin lying on the bed, blood pouring from their necks. Their faces though…they looked peaceful, a complete contrast to what they must have felt in the last moments of their lives.
My brain was trying to shut down and protect me, but I couldn’t let it. I had to stay alert. I had to make sure I was prepared to run at any stage because I didn’t know what was coming next. I kept my gaze fixated on the windshield as Ford sped down roads I’d never seen before. He hadn’t spoken since we’d called my dad, and I wasn’t sure if it was because he was thinking or was letting me process.
This was all my fault. If I hadn’t gone to the club in the first place, then I wouldn’t have seen Ford, and everything that happened after that would have never transpired.
Stella was dead. Justin was dead.
Ford slammed the breaks as he pulled up outside a house in the suburbs. It looked the same as the rest of the houses on the street, but as he opened his door and came around to my side, I realized this was the safe house. Hiding in plain sight. It was clever but risky.
