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Then, refusing to be childish, he read the message. “Text me that you’re okay.”
He gritted his teeth, fighting back the sense of betrayal. He felt like an idiot for being jealous. He’d always thought jealousy was a fool’s emotion. If people wanted to be with someone else, it simply meant they didn’t want to be with you and they weren’t worth hurting over.
Yet, here he was … hurting. Feeling insecure. Another emotion he wasn’t accustomed to feeling. The last time he remembered feeling like this was with Tami, when he’d been fourteen.
Was this what it was like when you really cared about someone? Damn, he cared about Della. And the thought of Steve putting his hands on her did a number to his gut.
Realistically, he knew the guy probably hadn’t had his hands on her. Chase hadn’t smelled Steve on Della. The shape-shifter’s scent had just been on Baxter. But from the look in Della’s eyes when he mentioned Steve, he knew the two had been together.
He had started to text her back when he heard someone in the distance. Putting his phone away, he listened. Was Burnett still having him tailed?
When the noise came from the shed, he relaxed and pulled his backpack off.
He moved toward the small building that he knew was the back entrance of the prison. Then Leo stepped out of the small door.
“Hey?” Chase walked up. The African American man, ten years older than Chase, stood about four inches taller than him and had the body of a football player.
Leo shook his head. “I don’t know if I think you’re stupid or if I’m impressed.” He opened the shed’s door, where a staircase led down.
“Let’s go with the first one.” Chase followed the guy down. The smell of unwashed bodies permeated the air. Leo got halfway down and turned, his eyes a brighter blue. “Is that O blood I smell?”
Chase nodded. “One for you and a couple for bribes.”
Leo smiled and continued down. Their footsteps echoed through the concrete halls as they made their way to the small office. There stood a huge metal door with some serious locks on it.
“You been here before, right?” Leo asked.
“Yeah.” Once. At the time, they’d only had two prisoners locked up.
“We supply soap and water, but they don’t bathe. They know the smell gets to us.”
“I’ll deal with it.”
“We lock ’em in their cells, but those bars are cheap metal and don’t hold up to some of those prisoners. We’re supposed to get upgraded bars next month.” He looked at a small screen. “From what I can see, no one has gotten loose. But every time I go down, I go with the notion that someone is loose. It’s saved my life.”
Leo reached over to the desk. “This here’s a Taser. You ever work one?”
“No,” Chase said, tempted to tell him he wouldn’t need it. His hands, with his Reborn strength, could cause plenty of damage. But he decided to take it. He wasn’t afraid, but he wasn’t stupid, either.
Leo pulled off the tip of the gun to show him how to load it. “Just pull the trigger.” He grabbed a few extra cartridges. “Put these in your pocket. Whatever you do, don’t let them get their hands on it. It hurts like a mother. I learned the hard way.”
“Got it.” Chase tucked the extra cartridges in his pocket.
“Be extra careful of the weres. Tomorrow’s their night and they’re at their strongest. If one gets out, don’t hold back. They are planning on killing you and you best be planning to do the same. They’re all on death row anyway.” Leo shook his head. “Seriously, kid, we’ve lost two guards and a visitor this year. You sure—”
“They have visiting privileges?” Chase asked.
“Yeah. The visitors sign waivers and pay for their burial before they go down. And it’s nonrefundable. I always take my wife something nice when we get anyone stupid enough to visit.”
Chase smiled. “Then I’m sure she wishes there were a lot more stupid people in the world.”
Leo nodded. “Didn’t you say it was Douglas Stone you were looking for? The same one the council is looking for, right?”
“Yeah,” Chase said.
“Then you are wasting your time, they already checked out that lead.”
“What lead?” Chase asked, unaware there’d been a lead.
