Hunt

I whittled the corners of the wooden block, hoping to pull out more of my angel.

Griff’s voice rose. “Can you hear me, Cain?”

I frowned. “Phoenix won’t stray too far from this park.”

“You know this how?”

“Instinct.”

“Bullshit. It’s been a week, bro. This is a lost cause just like when we sat outside of her childhood home last week. She didn’t go there and she won’t come here.”

“It’s not. She’s mine. People who are supposed to be together will always be reunited. Nothing could keep them apart.”

“And what if you both aren’t meant to be together?”

Aggravation filled me. “I told you she wouldn’t call the cops. She didn’t. Now, trust me on this too.”

“But for how long?”

“Be patient.”

“Do you even know what you will do, when you get her?”

“I have a few ideas.” I gripped the whittling knife’s handle hard.

I intended to show her that she was mine, no matter if she wanted me or not.

Granted, I knew she would cling to some stupid reality, some belief of normalcy. I knew she would beg and plead for me to stop, while her body craved for more and more of my knives and my dick and even my tongue.

She was mine.

And I planned to take her over and over again and watch her helplessly writhe under my touch while she screamed back at me in utter ecstasy.

Griff disrupted my thoughts. “We should be in Paradise working on our next job.”

“I asked for three weeks to help me get Phoenix back. Give it to me.” I set the block of wood down. “And be quiet so I can think.”

Griff grumbled, but said nothing else.

For the hundredth time that day, I scanned the park, craving her.

Where the fuck are you, Phoenix?

Anxiety coursed through my body.

I’m almost willing to pray to a non-existent God to help me. Do you see what you’re doing to me, Phoenix?

I’d been a mess since she escaped. I could barely eat or sleep. The note she’d left with her lingering smell was the only thing that kept me going. That sweet scent drenched the card.

At the thought of it, I took the card out of my pocket and gently unfolded it, terrified the paper would disintegrate within my fingers, and then I would have nothing left of her.

Griff sighed over the line. “Here he goes again with the card.”

West sounded in my ear next. “Leave him alone and keep your eyes on the playground.”

“It’s about to be evening now. There won’t be anybody but old hoes sucking guys off by the swings,” Griff grumbled. “And you would think that would be a great sight, but it’s the most depressing shit I’ve ever seen.”

West chuckled. “We can switch posts in an hour. I’ve just got some drug dealers freestyling by the fountains. They’re actually not bad. I’ve been entertained.”

“I hate rap. Are any of them singing country?”

West chuckled. “Shut up, Griff.”

“It’s a fair question.”

Ignoring them, I placed the card to my nose and inhaled.

I should have covered my clothes and bed in your blood. Then, I would have more of you.

I breathed her in some more, knowing that soon this scent would fade and I would be completely lost.

The sky darkened. The moon glowed.

The void in me burned with a rage, a hate and a fear that would not still. It was unlike anything I had felt before, and it scorched, scratched, and boiled inside of me. A part of me wanted to escape it, to not give into the hate. Another part urged me forward, to indulge in the sensation. In the end, I found that I didn’t have time to react. My mind gave way and I plunged into the current of emotions that was tearing through my awareness.

While Griff and West were ready to head to Paradise and execute our final job, I couldn’t think or do anything without her.

If I don’t find her, then. . .

Shaking my head, I put up the card.

No. No. I won’t think that way.

Phoenix had barely been with me for two full days, yet she’d suddenly become the most important person in my life. My obsession grew with each passing day. I had to get her back, no matter what it cost me. I couldn’t stand to think of a life without her.

There would be no other option that I would consider. There would either be life with Phoenix or there would be no life.

Maybe. . .I should pray. . .

My heart ached, and my chest swelled with this rising obsession. I pictured her face. I remembered the feel of her soft skin. The scent of her body, her blood, her pussy. I remembered the way she made me feel. I remembered how she tasted. The way she kissed. The way her eyes sparkled when she laughed.

God. . .if you really exist. . .then help me, damn it. Help me.