Misted (Team Zero #5) by Rina Kent

His fingers trace the ring on my finger. “I’ll get you a better one.”

“Don’t you dare.” I brush my lips against his neck. “This is the only ring I’ll ever wear.”

“Wait for me,” he whispers against my ear.

The bliss slowly fades and I shake in his arms. “I can’t do this without you anymore. I can’t pretend to be strong.”

“Then don’t.” He strokes a red strand off my forehead. “Just be yourself, Hellion.”

“I love it when you call me that.” I smile up at him, not wanting our last moments to be all gloom.

“And I love calling you that. I love the fiery hair, your temper, and these tiny freckles.” He runs his fingertips underneath my eyes.

“They disappeared!” I say in defence.

“They better not.” He nuzzles his nose in my hair, inhaling me. “Everything about you has been my obsession.”

I lean over and kiss his throat. “And you are mine.”

I try not to cry, but when the door barges open, announcing that our time is up. I can’t help it.

I’m torn away from Hawk’s arms.

He’ll be thrown into The Pit’s hell once again while I’ll be thrown out.

I have to believe that he’ll come back for me.





43





Mist





Life brought us to our knees for fifteen years, but we never broke down.



Patience.

Such a weird word. Patience and being strong have always been a part of who I am.

I had to be strong.

I had to be patient.

Otherwise, I would’ve run back to Hawk’s arms and put us both in danger.

It’s been two months since he was snatched from my arms again.

Two long months.

I’m back to Le Salon for the girls. I wanted to bail, but I couldn’t especially since that lieutenant isn’t taking his nose off us any time soon.

Scar is becoming agitated and manic around him to the point that even her meditating doesn’t reign her psychotic episodes down.

I feel sorry for Liam and the demons from his past. Scar is really crazy and provoking her isn’t only dangerous, it’s lethal. But again, Liam is strange himself. Sometimes, his eyes don’t hold the look of a good boy police lieutenant. It’s as if he crossed over to the other side.

Zoe and Elle said he has a strong prejudice against criminals, but it’s turning to the point of obsession.

He did help Jessica, though, and I’m thankful for that.

She had to be admitted into the UK witness protection program. New identity, new life, and new everything. I couldn’t risk that any of Molly’s friends knew about her and could come for her.

I barely held my tears as Jessica cried in my arms while saying goodbye. Neither of us will forget Sarah and her wrongful death, but Jessica has the right to start anew with her life.

Ghost almost made my ears bleed with nagging once he returned. Shadow filled him in about what he missed in meticulous, gruesome details. From when I was arrested to when Hades showed up for his ‘kids’.

Ghost blamed us both for keeping him in the dark, but he’s a changed man after Elle and he needs to learn how to let go sometimes.

He and that wanker Shadow have been so happy, it physically hurts to watch them.

I know I’m being petty, but I can’t help imagining myself and Hawk in that little house in France. I’ve been thinking about it so much since the day I last saw him.

That’s why I’m taking a plane to France. Even with the journal, the ring, and the knife, I can’t quite feel his presence in Le Salon.

It’s not our home.

I stand in front of the small, cosy house over the beach and a wave of familiarity hits me.

This is our home.

Our dream.

Our future.

I retrieve the key from my bag – that Hawk left me along with the house’s deed – and turn it in the knob. The old door releases a small hiss as it opens. I walk into the cosy living room with its mideterreanian carpets and warm colours and just like that, tears burn in my eyes.

Like I promised Hawk, I quit forcing myself to be strong. I went on for too long without him and I can’t be strong anymore.

Sometimes, I stare at the ceiling, recalling our younger years and the past months we’ve been thrown together again.

Some nights, I have dreams of him holding me, cradling me to his chest, and inhaling my hair. Other nights, I have nightmares about him being killed and wake up with tears in my eyes.

Hades being the arsehole he is, has been keeping Hawk in an isolated area in The Pit that even Ink and Flame’s spies can’t access. I just receive the occasional video of Hawk sitting in a corner. I don’t know if I should be happy or freak out that Hades isn’t torturing him physically.

But then again, Hawk said the mental torture was what ruined him the other time and Hades always goes for what hurts the most.

I kept providing Hades with information about Ink religiously. I didn’t miss any phone call or summon from him. Ink gave me permission to tell Hades everything I know about him — which isn’t much.

When Ink joined Team Zero, he was already screwed up. I think he’s the only one who didn’t fight Omega and let it consume him right from the beginning. I know little to nothing about Ink’s life prior to The Pit and it’s in his advantage. That way Hades won’t extract the information out of me. Because if he threatens Hawk’s life, I’ll be ready to give up anything.