My heart rockets to my throat, and the jar of powder careens against the wall as I release a roar.

“That’s not going to help her.”

My chest heaves. I close my eyes—just for one second—before I turn to face Sadie. “I fucking let this happen. Again.”

She might be tiny, but there’s nothing inferior about her as she holds me in her perceptive gaze. Sadie fills the room with a determined presence, balancing out the loss of control I feel right this moment.

She pushes the sleeves of her jacket up. “It’s not your fault, Quinn.”

She’s dead wrong. I should’ve protected Avery. Even if that meant throwing her over my shoulder again and locking her up in my office. This time, it was within my power, and I pussied out. All because Avery tested my control. Regardless of whatever is skewing my perception of right and wrong…I knew what I was supposed to do, and I fucked up.

Fate’s a devious bitch. Toying with her twice so close together…Avery could lose this round. I might not get her back.

“Wherever your brooding thoughts are going,” Sadie says, snapping me back to the moment. “Stop.” Our eyes meet, and she nails me with a fierce look. “What do we know?”

And like that, she reels me in. My instincts sharpen on the case. When it comes to the job, Sadie’s my better half.

“Did Avery tell you anything about the drug—?”

“Yes,” she says, heading me

off.

Right. Thick as thieves. I nod, walking a circle around the table as CSU enters and immediately starts the sweep.

I give them explicit instructions, directing them to collect all trace from the vic, which is a complicated call to make. Wanting the evidence to be compromised for Avery’s sake, means that anything we find—any prior trace that existed before the two perps handled the body—might not hold up in court where the victim is concerned.

My consolation is in knowing that the perps who might have Avery are connected to the vic’s offender. When we save Avery…when we bring in the perps, we’re also bringing in the same fuckers who are connected to these deaths.

I walk Sadie through the crime scene, getting her thoughts on the timeline and method. No obvious signs indicate that Avery was hurt, but that only lessons the pressure on my chest a fraction. When this is over, I might just burn this damn lab down. Move Avery into the precinct upstairs and put a damn tracking device on her.

As the CSU team gets to work fingerprinting surfaces, I take a call from upstairs. The security footage cut off over an hour ago, but right before, the transport van was seen on camera pulling into the parking lot.

“She’s in that van,” I say, turning toward Sadie. “Or she was at least an hour ago. I can’t just stand here, waiting…” I ball my hands into fists and curse. “I’m going to find her.”

Sadie’s by my side as I exit the lab. I put the call in to Wexler, upgrading the scanner alert on the bus to include a law enforcement member aboard, which will ensure a safe recovery of the van, then I get a location on Carson.

The van is still off the grid, but the rookie made the right call. I have a new respect for Carson’s instincts.

As I duck into my Crown Vic, I glance over at Sadie climbing into the passenger-seat. “When I find these fuckers this time…” I say, letting my intentions trail off.

But Sadie is right there to pick up what I won’t voice. “We end the threat.”

Our gazes lock, and in the private restrains of the car, I don’t correct her.

I may still have issues with Sadie’s past, with reconciling her actions—but this we agree on.

And that realization terrifies the fuck out of me.

9

Under the Influence

Avery

The windowless room is freezing. Florescent lights hum, echoing off the cinderblock walls and tingeing the too bright, barren room in a sickly green hue. As soon as I was removed from the van and ushered inside, the bag was removed from my head and my lab coat was taken.

The thin blouse I’m left with does nothing to shield me from the frigid air.

Tags: Trisha Wolfe The Broken Bonds Dark
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