Garnet (Gems of Wolfe Island)

I drop my jaw. The turkey sandwich. I gobbled it up. “No. I wasn’t. But I suppose it could’ve been days later.”

“Could’ve been. But most likely it wasn’t. Somebody made you sick so you wouldn’t go out to dinner. And then somebody knew you ordered a turkey sandwich because you ended up getting a turkey sandwich in the concrete room.”

“Yeah. I always thought that was kind of weird, but I didn’t dwell on it. I mean, not with everything else that happened after.”

“Totally understandable.” He trails his finger over my cheek. “Damn.”

“It’s okay,” I gulp.

He draws in a breath. “So we’ve got the hotel staff. Someone possibly monitoring your phone call or intercepting your room service order in another way. Someone knew you’d be expecting room service, so they knew you’d answer the door, and they could drug you.”

“But I don’t remember. I remember opening the door but then it’s a blank.”

“You don’t remember if it was actually a hotel employee who brought your room service?”

“No, Buck. I wish I did, but I don’t.”

He sighs. “Okay. Who would want you off the team?”

“I don’t know. We all got along.”

“Once you were gone, Gloria got your position.”

“I assume she did.”

“She did.” He holds up his phone.

I scan the screen. Wow. Buck has been searching this whole time we’ve been talking. Gloria Delgado took my position, and the team went on to win a championship that year. And the next.

Of course, who’s to say they wouldn’t have won with me as middle blocker?

“Still think it wasn’t Gloria?” Buck says.

I don’t reply.

I simply close my eyes, willing more memories to come back to me.

Because now… Now I want to remember.

I want to find out who did this to me.

And I want to make them pay.

23

BUCK

For the first time since I found Aspen at the train station, she has a different look on her face.

Her eyes are narrow, and her jaw set. Her hands are gripping each other with white knuckles. It’s a look of determination—of anger and determination.

Something has awoken in her. I see it clearly because I’ve seen it so many times on my own face.

She wants revenge.

She wants her memories, and she wants revenge.

And I want revenge on her behalf.

God, I know better. Revenge is never the way. But sometimes…

Sometimes it’s necessary.

“Aspen, baby.”

“Yes?”

“We’ll find them. We’ll find them together.”

She relaxes—slightly—and the whiteness of her knuckles softens. Her beautiful face, though? It’s still a billboard for determination, for vengeance.

“Promise?” she says.

“Anything you need. I promise, baby. Anything you fucking need.”

She walks toward the bed and sits down. “You said you ordered the food? It’ll be here soon?”

“I did.”

“Funny,” she says. “I feel different. It’s like… I don’t want to answer the door and get the food from room service.”

“That makes sense. You just had a big memory resurface. Answering the door for what you thought was room service is what led to your capture.”

“Which means… I have to be the one to answer the door for room service.”

He nods. “I understand. But I’ll be right behind you.”

“Thank you. I appreciate that.”

God she’s beautiful. So determined and beautiful, and damn… Revenge looks hot on her.

If only she could remember who was sitting next to her on the plane.

I’m getting ahead of myself. I don’t even know if it was ipecac in her Coke. Or something else in her Coke. Or a simple virus.

But I have a hunch, and my hunches haven’t failed me often in the past.

Sure, she could’ve been chosen randomly. Aspen is a beautiful woman—and a woman who would definitely be “worthy prey” as Derek Wolfe apparently liked to say.

Then again, any of the other members on the team would’ve also been worthy prey. I scroll through the team roster from before Aspen was taken. Gloria Delgado, her backup, is also beautiful—olive skin, dark hair and eyes.

Many of the other women are beautiful as well.

So perhaps it was just random. Someone knew her volleyball team was there—all of whom would be worthy prey—and Aspen just happened to be at the hotel while the rest were at dinner.

Except…I’ve been around the block enough to know things are rarely random.

Aspen was most likely chosen on purpose.

And again, the most logical culprit is Gloria Delgado, who would take Aspen’s place on the team.

But Gloria—the good Catholic girl, Miss Congeniality of the team…

Aspen is right. It simply doesn’t make sense.

And then it’s hits me.

Gloria’s girlfriend, Taylor. She was sitting in the aisle seat across from Aspen. If Aspen got up, went to the bathroom, and her Coke was still on her tray…

No. She would’ve moved her Coke to the next tray table while she got up so she could put her tray up.

Not Taylor, after all. If it was anyone, it had to be the person sitting in the middle seat next to Aspen.

Damn. Who was that person?