“I said, shut up!” She was holding on by a thread, her chest rising and falling with her rapid breaths. “Nate loved me. He said he did and he betrayed me. For months, he talked about leaving her and marrying me. That night he was supposed to tell her the truth, but instead, I found them together. If I couldn’t have him, neither would anyone else.”
The girl was severely messed up in the head. There was a part of me that felt sorry for her, but her actions made it hard. She probably grew up without love and had to find it in the worst ways possible. Many women fell for celebrities, and some unstable ones felt like they had a connection to them by watching their movies or seeing them on television. Sadie needed to be in an institution.
“Is that your grand plan with Jaxon?” I asked. “Kill him if he doesn’t want you?”
She shook her head, her blond hair falling in her face. “He wants me, Bristol. I don’t want to kill Jaxon. You saw the pictures, so I know you could see the passion we shared. It was the most unbelievable night I’d ever had with anyone.”
I scoffed in disgust. “Please, you’re making me sick. Anyone can have a night of passion and that be all it is. It’s called a one-night stand.”
That evil smile was back and she approached me. “Oh no, it was more than that. Shall I enlighten you?” She walked over to the TV and turned it on. “The pictures have nothing on this.” When she put a DVD into the player, I could feel the bile crawling up my throat. I knew what she was about to play and I didn’t think I could stomach it. The pictures were bad enough.
The screen came to life and there were she and Jaxon, taking off their clothes in a fit of lust. I couldn’t watch so I closed my eyes, humming as loud as I could to get their moans and the sound of their bodies slapping together out of my mind. “Open your eyes,” Sadie commanded.
“Fuck you,” I snarled, humming even louder.
Her hands slapped against my cheeks, squeezing my face so hard I could feel the pressure in my skull. “What’s the matter? Can’t handle it? I thought you were stronger than that.”
It was as if everything snapped and I didn’t care what the consequences were. I took a deep breath and head-butted her as hard as I could in the nose. The sound of it cracking was music to my ears, along with the strangled cry that escaped her lips. Her blood splattered across my clothes and I smiled. If she was going to kill me, at least I could go down knowing I’d hurt her.
“I am stronger, Sadie. You’re the one who tied me to a chair. If anything, you’re the weak one. Now play your goddamn video if that makes you feel better. We both know it’s not going to win you Jaxon.”
She stormed out of the room, leaving me to the endless torture of their night together. My vision started to blur again and I could feel the darkness creeping its way back in. Head-butting her might not have been the best decision with a concussion, but it had felt good to do it. And in this case, I welcomed the darkness.
Chapter 29
Jaxon
“What’s the plan now? If Sadie’s not at her house, where could she be?” I asked. Time was running out, and if Sadie was as fucked up as we thought her to be, there was no telling what she was doing to Bristol. Standing around in the M&M parking garage wasn’t going to get us anywhere.
Jason sighed. “Not sure. I would say we’d trace Bristol’s phone, but she left it in Corbin’s car. It’s like everything is working against us. Sadie doesn’t even have a phone registered in her name.”
“What about in Jennifer Hallowell’s name?” I suggested. “It’s the name she used when she tricked Bristol.”
“Good idea, Reed. I just need to get home to my laptop.”
I started toward my car. “While you’re doing that, I’m going to keep moving. I can’t just sit here.”
He nodded in understanding. “I’ll call you when I find something.”
We separated ways and I got in my car, not knowing where the hell I was going to go. I wasn’t a man to fear anything, but for the first time in my life I was terrified. I would never forgive myself if anything happened to Bristol. She was paying the price for my mistakes. Driving around without a plan was useless, but I didn’t know what else to do. However, that was exactly how I felt…useless.
I was close to my house, but I kept going until I reached the public boat landing about a mile down. My chest was so tight I could barely breathe; I was desperate, my body shaking from every emotion fighting inside of me. I sat there for what felt like only a few minutes, but it ended up being an hour. My phone rang, bringing me back. It was Jason.
“Hey,” I answered quickly.
“You were right,” he blurted out. I could hear his car in the background, roaring to life. “I found several cellphone accounts for the name Jennifer Hallowell. I traced them all, and only one is in our area…right at your house.”
“You can’t be serious,” I growled. Heart pounding, I sped out of the parking lot toward my house. I was only a mile away, but it felt like it took an eternity.
“Reed, don’t do anything stupid. I’m on my way there. Where are you?”
“Almost there. I can’t wait.” I jerked my car into the neighborhood and when I pulled up to my house, there was no one parked there. “I’m going inside.”
“Dammit, wait for me!” Jason shouted.