The Revenge by Tijan

Josh had been fully briefed on everything Bailey was capable of.

“I’ll ask, but knowing Bailey, she’s already ahead of us.”

She proved my point when I entered the office again.

She wheeled around, all smiles and literally glowing. A sheen of sweat covered her face, and she jerked her hair up in a hair tie and gushed. “I got everything. Everything! It’s all been transferred to an account that’s off-line. Take that, you bitch. You want to fight by keeping shit off-line, I’ll do the same. I cleaned everything but let her keep certain items that aren’t harmful to any of us. She had a crap load on Quinn, things that will be helpful if we need to use it. And”—Literally. Fucking. Glowing.—“I uploaded my hacking program. It’s the ghost program I was working on before.”

Some of the glow lessened. She bit her lip, looking down. “I got the codes for her security system. I looped footage from earlier in the day, changed the time stamps and put them in. I also wiped two alerts she got on her phone. They showed that she hadn’t seen it yet, so we’re good on that account. Now we have to leave, and she’ll have no clue we were here.”

She started to wheel back but stopped. Her hand in the air. “Oh!” She pointed around the office. “Could you take pictures of everything in here? Just to have. When she has the computer on, I can watch her from there, but you know.” Some of the glow was fading, and fading fast. She’d been on an upswing of adrenaline and emotion. She was going to crash soon. “The psych part of this office is probably off the charts.”

I crossed the office and leaned down.

My arms went around both sides of her.

She looked up, her eyes wide and trusting—starting to cloud over, but still so trusting.

I stifled so many other things I wanted to say to her at that time. I brushed my lips to her forehead, tucked some of her loose strands behind her ear, and turned her back around. “Finish up. We’ll take care of the rest.”

Her shoulders slackened a second.

She was losing her steam at a faster rate than I thought. Her arms went up to the keyboard, but they looked like they were suddenly under a crushing weight.

Shit.

I brushed more of her hair back. Her eyes closed. She savored that touch, so I leaned down again. My lips found hers and I whispered there, “You did amazing.”

She nodded, her lips finding mine, and as I stepped back, she had a little more gusto than just a split second earlier.

She was working again. It wasn’t with the speed and force she had before, but it was steady. She’d be done before we would.

That meant I’d change our plans.

I waited, and as soon as she was done, I helped put her stuff in her backpack. When she stepped out of the office, I told her to head to Fitz. She did, and then I waved Josh over. The guys had been spot-dusting any places their fingerprints might’ve been left.

Josh watched her go with Fitz, then turned to me.

“Take photos of everything in the office. Copy anything left in the copy and fax machine. See if there’s a history there we can get. Then close up. Bailey said she got the codes. Matt doesn’t need to grab the girl’s phone. Bailey did it all remotely.”

“Got it, boss.”

I left, and Fitz had Bailey in my car. I stepped around him, taking the driver’s seat. He nodded, going to his car. He’d follow us back to the Chesapeake. Once on the way, with Bailey’s backpack sitting in front of her and with Bailey curled in a ball on the passenger seat, already asleep, I called Matt. I relayed to him everything that happened.

Forty minutes later, Matt texted.

Camille Story was in a cab, heading back to her apartment.

Hoda and her other friend had left earlier.

Josh called.

“I got everything. Place is locked up.”

“Take the night off.”

Bailey would be asleep most of the night, but I needed her. I needed to hold her. I needed to be there in case she woke, because when she did, I knew she’d be hurting. It was always that way after a high that she was on. There’d be the low and then her haunts would slip in.

I’d be there.

She was back, and I intended to keep her back.





TWELVE

Bailey


I was falling.

I felt it.

It was a pull, tugging me down. I knew it. I knew the consequences.

I was back there.

The shots.

Matt tackled me.

They were bursting through the doors.

More shooting.

Trembling.

Weeping.

Shrieking.

The smell of burning and urine in the room.

Sweat.

Dust.

Then I was up. They were gone.

I was running.

“Bailey!”

“Mom!” A panicked breath in. “Mom!”

Chrissy.

I had to get to her.

Chrissy.

My legs were weak, shaking.

Chrissy!

I slammed into the wall, and then I saw them.

Outside.

He was dragging her.

He was looking.

He pushed her to her knees.

The gun was out.

He looked up, right at me.

And he smiled—my chest squeezed.

I’d forgotten.

I’d forgotten!

Bam!

I jerked upright. Someone was screaming.

It was bloodcurdling.

“Hey.” A soothing hand. Down my hair. “Hey. Hey, Bailey. Baby.”