Finding Tessa by Jaime Hendricks (best ereader for comics .TXT) 📗

Instead, I play good wifey. Compliant. “I’m glad you’re all mine again. I knew about your affair, and it hurt so much. But you’re the man, and you provided for me. Who was I to really say anything?” I gulp. “Where is Maribel now?”

He rubs his hand over the back of his neck. “I put her body in the basement. This is an Airbnb rental just outside of the town where you played house with that Jace character. She won’t hurt you anymore.”

He killed Maribel. He’s going to drag me back to Delaware and keep me locked away and raise my baby as his own.

No way.

I nod at him. “Thank you for doing that. For killing her, to protect me. I always knew you loved me.”

He rushes over to the bed and I involuntarily wince, thinking he’s going to punch me again, but instead he pulls the cover off me and forces me to stand. He hugs me, hard, and if I didn’t know any better, I’d actually think he cares.

I know better.

The wires from the IV twist and pull on my skin. “Ouch. Careful,” I say, and point to it. I’m standing on my own two legs. I can do this. “I’m hungry. Is there food here? Can I make you something?”

After every beating, after every time he patched me up and saved me from himself, I was still expected to cater to him. Today should be no different.

“There’s food in the kitchen.”

I take a step to make sure I can, and I’m able to. I have to survive. “Can we take this out?” I hold my hand up to him, the one with the needle in it. “You were always gentle with me. Can you do it?”

You son of a bitch.

I hate the feeling of the IV being dragged out, and I get queasy but I remember the big picture. Now is not the time for nausea.

I immediately grab the heavy glass lamp from the nightstand and hit him as hard as I can on the head, shattering it.

He grunts and slams into the wall. Unfortunately, I know I haven’t killed him—I’ve only pissed him off. I have to get away from him.

I run.

38

JACE

Solomon wasn’t amused at Jace playing detective, investigator, cop, judge, and jury better than he did himself. Jace sat alone in the cold room in the police station, with the cuffs pinched around his wrists. That jerk wouldn’t even take them off as he waited for Robert at the Valley Lake Police Department building. And he’d been there for almost two hours.

Still. The fact that he wasn’t wearing orange and in county jail already had to mean something, right?

The whole ride back to the station, Jace begged for his freedom, begged Solomon to listen to him as he tossed out his discoveries about possibly having information on what happened to Tessa, about Maribel, Bella, the recording device, the Moon. Solomon answered him by lighting a cigarette in the patrol car and then smiling for the cameras as he dragged the murderer inside the police station. The cameras that were likely there because Solomon called them himself. The small-town cop got to have his name displayed everywhere for the past week. Jace was sure he’d be using this leverage to run for mayor, maybe even something bigger. Local portly detective catches bad, bad man.

Jerk-off.

The screech of the door revealed a smiling Robert and a tight-lipped, downtrodden, defeated Solomon entering the room. Prick.

“Well, Mr. Montgomery,” Solomon started after throwing some papers on the table, “some new information has come to light.”

“I bet,” Jace said under his breath, knowing full well those were the last words Solomon wanted to utter. He wanted his arrest. He wanted his initial accusation to be correct. Jace glanced at Robert and held his wrists in the air. “Is this legal?” His head whipped to Solomon. “Can you get these fucking cuffs off?”

Solomon smarted at being spoken to in that fashion but strode over and unlocked the handcuffs. Jace immediately rubbed his wrists, then his face, and looked again at Robert. “What’s going on?”

Robert nodded in Solomon’s direction. “My guy talked to him. I told him I was there during the interview with Maribel. Ralph from the electronics store gave them the information. They worked with the company. They—they have a recording, Jace. From last Thursday.”

Jae swallowed; his eyes were wide. “And? What was on the recording?”

Robert and Solomon looked at each other, but Solomon took the reins this time. “There’s a lead. An address. We’re getting a tactical unit together. They’re coordinating now, but they should be dispatched in the next fifteen minutes.”

Jace stood. “I’m coming.”

“No, Mr. Montgomery, you’re not.”

Jace looked at Robert. Pleading.

“Detective Solomon, I do believe you have to let my client go at this time,” Robert said.

Solomon resigned, and nodded. “We’re going to drop the charges, Mr. Montgomery. You’re free to go.”

Jace thanked Robert and Robert gave him a signal with his eyes. Jace read it as hurry up and get up and let’s go now. So he did.

Robert walked swiftly to the back door of the station and Jace had to speed walk to keep up. “Robert, where is she? Is she okay? Is she alive? Who has her?”

Robert put a finger to his lips. “Let’s just get you out safely back here. The reporters are out front.”

“I don’t care about that. I care about Tessa. What’s going on?”

Robert pushed on the door and pulled right to the curb was Evan’s car. “Get in the front,” Robert said. Jace did as he was asked, and Robert got into the back seat. “I have a transcript of the recording.”

“Give it to me,” Jace demanded.

“No. Not yet. I—I don’t want you to see it yet.”

Tears sprang to Jace’s eyes. It wasn’t good news. What was on the recording that Robert didn’t want him to hear? “Is she dead? Oh God, is she dead?” He looked at Evan, whose face was as crestfallen