Lost & Found (Possessed 3)

Jake was thoughtful for a moment before answering her. “I think with the right people, it could be. I know they plan to treat their woman like a queen, but she’ll also have to treat them as equals. No playing either against the other. They would all have to be a team.”

He made sense. Communication would have to be a major factor in that type of relationship. The more she thought about Ace and Nick, the more she wanted to know if that was what their looks of longing meant.

Chapter Five

People were fucking stupid.

The more they warned visitors away from the trails and mountains, the more Ace believed this sentiment. Those people thought because the skies were clear and the sun was shining that it was okay to do as they pleased. Little did they know, the snow was unstable further up the mountains, putting them in possible unseen peril.

He’d joined Nick in a meeting with the park rangers that morning where they declared avalanche warnings throughout the county. While fresh snow was always an incentive for tourists, right then it was downright deadly.

Now, they were once again trailing up the mountains on slippery terrain not suggesting people leave but damn well demanding it. Nick had to arrest one smartass that was trying to show off in front of the group of people he was with. Explaining in fascinating detail what would happen to them if an avalanche were to happen. That if by some miracle, they survived mother nature’s wrath, then they could get frostbite and watch as their fingers and toes turned black from lack of blood or die from exposure. And if, by some miracle, they survived all that, it was highly likely that they would lose their blackened limbs, never to recover from the worst nature had to offer.

One of the guys thought it was gnarly—as he’d put it. Luckily enough, Nick had a video detailing exactly what would happen and how. The pain and suffering they would endure during the event, the agony as the shock wore off. And finally, the emotional toll it would take on them if they were one of the lucky few to survive. He then took it one step further by showing them a man that had actually killed and eaten his friend just to stay alive, only to die from blood poisoning afterwards.

The morons had taken off running, looking like death warmed over after that little presentation. He had never seen Nick laugh so hard in their life.

“You really enjoyed that?” Ace asked.

Sobering up, Nick looked at him. “People are fucking mental thinking they know everything that happens in these mountains. They have no fucking clue.” His head was somewhere else as he answered him.

“You’re thinking about it again.” It wasn’t a question. The one case Nick could never let go of, that ate at him. When people got stupid, it was all he could think about—the one that got away.

“I had a dream about it last night. I can’t help feeling like I fell down on the job with that case. I should have moved faster.” Frustration laced his words.

Ace understood. In their line of work, there was always something they could have done differently to achieve a better outcome. “I get it, man. I really do. But you can’t keep carrying that around with you.”

He was sure the look his cousin was leveling him with was supposed to be intimidating; he really was. Except, it wouldn’t work on him. Ace was made of stronger stuff than that and had been faced with far worse.

“I couldn’t fucking find the bastard, Ace.” The pure anguish could not only be heard but felt as he spoke.

He felt terrible that there was no way to help Nick through his feelings of guilt. He knew they were being brought to the forefront again because he was stressed over finding Pepper’s attacker. Control had been taken out of his hands again, and that was something he didn’t deal with well.

Looking at his watch after lunch, Ace suggested, “How ‘bout we head back, see how Pepper’s doing and if Jake has scared her off yet or not?” The thought, while funny, could be true. If Jake felt she wasn’t good enough for them, they were in for the fight of their lives.

“Yeah, I wish we’d have known he was coming. I can only imagine how shocked and pissed she must be.” There was laughter in his cousin’s eyes as he thought about it.

Jake was a character unto himself. He had more of a sense of humor than anything else. Life was his own brand of joke, or so he said. He was always trying to make others happy in order to mask the pain he felt from losing his wife over a decade ago.

Ace had never known a better man than his uncle. He was one of the few people in his own life he could always count on. There was never any doubt that no matter how much he’d fucked up, he was always welcome at Uncle Jake’s house.

They were both quiet on the walk back to Nick’s SUV, neither needing to fill the void of silence they often fell into. It had always been that way for them. When he’d left, he feared it would drive a wedge between them, especially with how long he’d been gone and regardless of whether or not one of them took another woman to bed. He was happy to note that while they still had some things left unsaid, it hadn’t really affected their relationship all that much.

“Bitch!” He couldn’t help yelling into the cold mountain air. She was supposed to be his. She was supposed to be submissive to his wants and needs, not fight him on it. He figured showing his hand a little at a time would warm her up to what he wanted from her.

It hadn’t.

Beating on her beautiful body hadn’t been in the plan, marring her perfect tan skin, pulling chunks of her black hair out hadn’t been what he wanted. It was her fault. She’d forced him to hurt her. If only she had listened to what he had to say instead of looking at him with disgust.

Her friend’s brother indicated she was submissive, that she would be perfect for what he needed. That son of a bitch had been wrong.

After he had tossed her body off that mountain, he figured she’d be dead for sure. Now, he had some Podunk fucking cop looking into who she was here with. It was only a matter of time. He knew he should get out of town. Leave, and never come back, but he had to have her.

If he couldn’t, then no one else should get her either.

“Looks like they’re back,” Jake called to Pepper from the front porch as she was getting her boots and coat on to join him. She needed out of the house so bad. Cabin fever was setting in, and pretty soon, things were going to get ugly. Jake had promised to take her for a walk around Nick’s land, show her some of the true beauty in the mountains.

Standing on the top step as Nick and Ace pulled in, her fingers played nervously, hoping they’d still let her go. She wasn’t sick anymore. Her body ached a little but nothing too fierce like it had when she’d woken up.