Page 45 of Echoes of Danger
“Eli?” Ghost growls.
“Yeah,” I answer. “You know the part about Eli already.”
“Tell us anyway.”
“Freckles told Eli about his father and what he’d done not long ago,” I continued. “The man was released from prison after fifteen years. He came to their home and tried to kill Delphi, but Eli stopped him. Shot and killed the bastard.”
“That’s the case you were working?” Ghost asks Taylor.
“Yeah,” he says.
“Paston’s name ever come up?”
“Not once,” he responds. “Maybe we should see if Knox can find a connection.”
“Use the burner phone,” Ghost tells him. “I don’t want to take any chances of our cells being tracked.”
Taylor nods and moves to the corner of the room, pulling out the burner phone. As he dials, the rest of us sit in tense silence, the weight of the revelation pressing down on us. Delphi’s past wasn’t just a tragic story. It was a goddamn warzone, and now it was colliding with ours in ways none of us fully understood.
Ghost breaks the silence, his voice low and dangerous. “If Paston’s connected to that piece of shit or had anything to do with the aftermath, we need to know. And fast. If he’s after Delphi, this could be about leverage or revenge.”
“Leverage for what?” I ask, my hands balling into fists. “She doesn’t have anything Paston could want.”
“Doesn’t mean he thinks that,” King says, leaning against the wall. “People like him, they don’t see individuals. They see pawns. Maybe he thinks she’s got dirt on someone, or maybe he’s just using her to send a message.”
“She’s not a fucking pawn,” I snap, the edge in my voice sharp enough to cut.
King holds up his hands, his expression calm but his eyes hard. “None of us think she is. But Paston? He doesn’t give a damn about her or Eli. He cares about power, and right now, she’s a thread he thinks he can pull.”
Taylor lowers the phone, drawing our attention. “Knox is on it,” he says. “He’ll dig through every connection Delphi’s rapist had, financial, personal, and criminal. If there’s even a whisper of Paston’s name, he’ll find it.”
“Paston didn’t give us a way to contact him after the three days,” I say. “So, maybe he plans to contact us. If he does, we need to be ready. It might be our only chance to get them back.”
My head spins, knowing that my beautiful woman is most likely being abused and beaten.
“Keep your head on straight, brother,” Taylor tells me. “You have to know Steel will keep her safe.”
“Not if there’s a bullet in his head,” I respond. “Who the hell would risk keeping a beast like him around knowing he’d likely find a way to kick their asses?”
“He’s not wrong,” King says, turning back towards his hellhole. “Let’s flip things around on Mark while we wait for Knox. Let’s promise to save him from his father and see how fast he talks against him. We might get some promising intel.”
Ghost nods sharply, already catching on to King’s plan. “Good. Let’s twist the knife. If Mark’s got anything left to give, fear of his old man might be the key to prying it out.”
I glance at Taylor, his words still echoing in my head.Keep your head on straight.But how the hell am I supposed to do that when every second feels like a countdown to losing Delphi? The thought of her suffering, or worse, makes it almost impossible to think clearly.
King moves to the door, his steps deliberate. “I’ll take the lead. He’s already seen me as the devil. I might as well keep playing the role. Reynolds, you’ll back me up. He doesn’t trust you, but he knows you’re desperate. That’s leverage we can use.”
I nod, running a hand through my hair. “Fine. Let’s see how fast he folds when he thinks we’re the only ones who can save his sorry ass.”
As King pushes the door open, Ghost calls after him, “Make it quick. If Paston makes contact, we drop everything and move.”
Taylor’s phone buzzes again, and he picks it up, his brow furrowing as he reads the message. “Knox has already found something,” he says, his voice tight with urgency.
Ghost turns sharply. “What is it?”
Taylor looks up, his face pale but his eyes blazing with fury. “The bastard who raped her was on Paston’s payroll. He funneled money and information through a ‘school improvement fund.’ Regarding what, I’m not sure I want to know. But that’s not all. Paston’s been keeping tabs on Freckles since the trial. The second she testified against that bastard, she was on his radar.”
Ghost’s jaw tightens, his face a mask of fury barely held in check. “It’s worse than that. If Paston’s been watching her this whole time, taking her isn’t just leverage; it’s tying up loose ends. He doesn’t leave witnesses, Reynolds. We all know that.”