Page 111 of Hurry Up And Wait

I didn’t stop until the only sound in my head was my inner voice telling me I had failed them.

26

CASH

It was all coming together.Soon, I would have the answers I needed. My father, Shadow, was waiting for my call, for me to tell him the names of the men who worked with The Syndicate—who turned a blind eye to their activities and allowed my sister to be kept on an island with a madman, all in the name of money and power.

And the sooner this ended, the sooner we could get back to our lives. I would finally be able to put Rafe’s death behind me. My father would be able to move on with Claire. And Isabelle…she would finally be able to live her life in peace, knowing that the men responsible were dead and could no longer hurt her.

As for where she was now, that little-known fact was completely hidden from me—from all of us. Michael had hidden her where no one could find her so she could recover in peace. She didn’t yet know everything about what happened to Rafe, and I doubted she was of the mindset to accept the sacrifice he made for her. She was fragile after such an ordeal, and she needed time to heal. Time away from her family and the new relatives that she wasn’t yet ready to meet.

So, I backed off and gave her that time. Everything could wait until her mind was healed, until she could move on and accept what life had thrown at her.

I glanced at my desk where my phone vibrated, skittering across the wood. It was Eli, probably calling to check in. Eager for any news, I answered immediately, trying to drown out the background noise from whatever rally they were at.

“Speak up. I can’t hear you.”

“Cash, what the fuck is going on?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You know goddamn well what I’m talking about,” he snapped. “The senator just announced his plans to run for president. You fucking knew, didn’t you?”

Of course, I knew. I knew the moment the senator asked Kavanaugh for a favor. I did my homework. I talked to his advisors. I found out what the price would be for the information I needed. It would have been stupid to walk in so blindly.

“Cash, you’re playing a dangerous game,” Eli snapped when I didn’t answer.

“Kavanaugh knows what he’s doing. He agreed to this.”

“Did he agree to being bombarded on stage? That wasn’t what these rallies were supposed to be. It’s a fucking shitshow out here!”

“He can handle it,” I snapped.

“Yeah? Is that why he just fucking ran off stage and fled on foot?”

I speared my fingers through my hair, cursing under my breath. “I thought he could handle it.”

“Maybe he could have if you had actually talked to him about it. Christ, what the fuck are you doing, Cash? This isn’t like you.”

“I’m getting answers.”

“And since when do those answers include lying to everyone who’s trying to help you?”

I stiffened at the accusation. “Watch your mouth.”

“Or what? Do you have plans for me, too? I never fucking took you to behave like Rafe. I thought you were better than that.”

He hung up before I could respond. For just a second, I allowed myself to feel the weight of his words. There was truth ringing in them, but I refused to let it take hold of me. This was about justice, about taking down evil. Maybe they didn’t understand that or didn’twant to believe it, but Rafe had an end goal, and I’d be damned if I would let him die and not finish what he started.

“Tell me you didn’t do it.”

Her voice slid over me like silk, soothing the anger inside me. Eva had a way of doing that, but right now, there was an edge to her voice. Anger and fear lingered in her words, making me question if I could go through with this.

“What’s that?” I asked, keeping my tone even and controlled.

“Tell me you didn’t just hang your friend out to dry for answers.”

I finally turned to face her, my emotions locked down tight. I wouldn’t let her penetrate the wall I’d built around myself. If I was going to finish this and avenge my brother, I had to rid my soul of any emotional attachments. And that included links I had with those closest to me.