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My shoulders relax.
Ajax smirks, giving my ass a firm pat. “I’ll try not to kill them . . .” He looks at the ruined furniture. “But I make no promises.”
I glare my disapproval but carefully climb the few steps into our RV.
Not funny.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Lulu
I wake up alone, shrouded in darkness. The other side of the bed is cold under my palm, making me frown.
What time is it?
The bedside clock reads 3:57 a.m. Curiosity gets the best of me, drawing me from under the thick covers.
Curiosity killed the cat,I remind myself. My legs are shaky as I stand, and my core gives a sharp twinge. We went to bed a few hours ago, but we didn’t lie down to sleep for a long time, and we hardly slept. Why would he get up?
Pulling on his discarded T-shirt, I quietly open the bedroom door. Nothing, no movement other than me. I peek into Mary’s room; she’s fast asleep, one of her long braids hanging over the side of the mattress.
I huff a quiet laugh. I wish I slept that well. Silently, I close her door and head farther into the living area, but that’s also quiet. He’s not here.
My heart stops.Please tell me he didn’t go back for poor Phil and his wife.
As if my legs have a mind of their own, I exit the RV, and my bare feet sink into the mud. It’s gross, lodging between my toes. It must have rained after we went to bed, not that we noticed.
My core gives another twinge. Movement at the back of the RV draws me over. Please don’t be the elderly couple,I pray. They seemed nice. Half blind and loud, sure, but nice.
Rounding the corner, I gasp. It’s not the old couple. Instead, Ajax stands half naked, his bare chest splattered with mud and blood. The bottom of his jeans are filthy, his boots no longer black but brown due to the mud.
What really has my attention is the body at his feet. It’s the guy from under the RV. My stomach roils.
Ajax’s head snaps up at the sound I make when I see him. His face darkens. This isn’t my Ajax. It’s not the man who feeds me sticky treats or who plays with Mary—this is the man who killed my stepfather.
“Not a word,” he hisses. I’m a statue forced to watch him bend, his long fingers grab the dead man’s shirt, the body jolting when Ajax pulls, ripping a button off. I gag at the sound the body makes when he drops back to the wet ground.
Ajax stuffs the button into his front jean pocket.
I clamp my mouth shut, my nostrils flaring when he approaches. My whole body shakes, but I keep my feet rooted.
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
“You’re supposed to be in bed, asleep.”
I blink, my chest rising quickly. I want to say that I’m sorry, but I can’t get my mouth to open.
“Is Mary asleep?”
I nod quickly.
“Good.” He sighs, some of the tightness leaving his shoulders. “You will go back inside, lock the door, and stay in bed. I’ll be in to punish you once I’m done. You should know better than to leave the RV by now, Louise. I’m disappointed.”
His words pierce me. He might as well have used his knife.
A sound behind me has us both freezing.
“Too late,” Ajax snaps.
