Page 40 of Cruel Titan

I pull in front of the garage, hopping out to open it with the code that still works, before pulling in and shutting it behind me. I hate trapping myself in here but I want to hide my car instead of advertising that I’m searching the house for clues.

I push the interior garage door open, stepping into the kitchen as the familiar smell of the house overwhelms me. It doesn’t have a smell I can describe other than the smell of our home. I don’t flip on any lights, instead I walk the path that I know by memory but since my vision is adjusting to the darkness, I can see to make my way around. The first room I check is the one I’d never been in much. Not because I wasn’t allowed but because there wasn’t much reason for me to be in my dad’s room. And now I have reason to snoop in it. Wow, how things have changed.

Pushing his bedroom door open, I almost expect to see him sitting on the bed watching TV or getting dressed for work. But it’s only silent, undisturbed darkness as I glance around the room that looks exactly like it did the last time I was in it. He’s the only thing missing.

I don’t fight the tears that fall unseen in the darkness. I let them trail down my cheek as I begin looking through the dresser. Next, I search the nightstand and everything else I can think of in his room, but nothing raises my suspicions or appears out of place … except me—the daughter busily searching for incriminating evidence on her dad.

A hand suddenly grasps my shoulders and I scream. Spinning around, I find Haley standing behind me.

She jumps back, startled as she waves her phone around, shining a small beam of light into the room. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I saw you pull into the garage, and I just … I just wanted to come over in case you needed a friend.”

“I don’t. So you can leave now.”

“Quinn, you’re still my best friend, even if you don’t consider me yours anymore.”

“Like I said, you can leave now.” When best friend comes to mind, Haley surely doesn’t appear. Actually, Victoria comes to mind which doesn’t surprise me. Even in the short time we’ve known each other, she seems to be one of the few people that aren’t full of bullshit.

Haley nods, slowly retreating from the room. I wait a few moments before heading upstairs to the spare bedroom that served as my dad’s home office. He didn’t use it much, but it’s worth a look, which ends up pointless. Making my way to my bedroom, I take a look around before plopping on the bed. There’s nothing in here. Probably nothing in the house that will help find answers. My dad’s voice fills my head. “When you need answers, look up,” he would say all the time. He was never very religious, so I thought it was odd that he’d be referring to God and looking to faith. But as I look up, I see the tiniest flicker of light flashing on the ceiling, reflecting through the window from outside. Hurrying to the window, I search for the source of the light. It’s coming from the small shed in the backyard. The wind chime hanging on it reflects the outdoor flood light onto my ceiling. I’d never noticed it before. Maybe because I’d had no reason to look up before.

Darting out of the house and into the backyard, I heave the shed door open. There’s nothing but yard equipment and some random water fountain my dad never repaired after Haley and I ran into it with her golf cart while driving my ex- and her current boyfriend, Mason, around in it. The day used to make us laugh, now it agitates me. How many times was I laughing with them but they were laughing at me?

Pushing the memory aside, I search around, but don’t find anything at all after looking in every corner of the small shed.

“Damn,” I mumble under my breath. My hip is propped against the single wood shelf when my head falls back, my hand rubbing over my face.

“This is pointless,” I say to the ceiling, blowing out a frustrated breath before opening my eyes. When I do, I zero in on a board on the ceiling that is a slightly different color from the rest, like it was replaced or doesn’t belong. I hop on the counter, reaching for the ceiling. As my fingers press against the rough wood surface, it gives. I tilt the board, removing it as I set it at my feet. Grabbing my phone, I shine the flashlight into the small opening, illuminating the dark rafters and finding nothing but years of grime until the light catches a shimmer from a metal box.

When my dad said look up, he meant it literally. Reaching for the box, I grab it with both hands, carefully pulling it out of the grimy space. There’s a keypad on it and a keyhole. Looking back to where the metal box was stashed, there’s no key or anything else in sight, so I replace the ceiling board before hopping off the counter. I don’t need to look for anything else. This is what I was looking for, I know it in my gut.

Shutting the door behind me, I hurry back into the house. I don’t recall seeing a key, but it has to be here somewhere. Or maybe I can figure out the code.

I punch in the numbers that my dad used on his debit card, then try his birthday, my birthday, and hold my breath as I punch in Candace’s, but I get the same beeping sounds and red light. Not wanting to risk it locking me out, I go on the hunt for the key. I’m digging through the upstairs guest bedroom nightstand when a text on my phone causes me to jump, glancing at it as I read the message.

Asher: Get out of the house now.

My breath hitches, eyes darting around the dark room automatically. I creep over to the window, glancing out, looking for Asher’s car, then my stomach drops. The vehicle I spot sends a bone-chilling fear through me. It’s the white car that followed me from the hospital. It slows down in front of the house but doesn’t stop.

Dashing down the stairs, I punch the button to open the garage, throwing the metal box on the floorboard as I jump in the driver’s seat, but I’m too late. Headlights shining in my rearview mirror momentarily blinding me. I’m trapped. I bail out of the Audi to hurry into the house when I hear Asher say my name. I freeze, trying to comprehend that it’s his car parked behind mine. Not the white car that had been lurking. Is this part of his game? If it is, he’s really good because I’m so scared, I think I’m about to vomit as I stomp over to where he’s standing.

“Why would you do that? You scared the—”

His strong hands grasp my arms, spinning me to place my back flat against his car as he presses against me. In a swift move, his mouth covers mine in a passionate kiss. I’m so relieved it’s just Asher screwing with me and not the white car, that, for a second, I kiss him back. Quickly, my sense returns though, and I shove him away. “What—”

“Play along. They’re still watching.” He stays close, teasing my neck with his tongue.

I grip his shoulders, tense as I hold onto him. If he’s playing me, then he’s doing a really good job. “Who?”

He trails his hands up my arms before pressing them on either side of my shoulders, flat against the car, as he continues kissing my neck. “We need to leave now. Go straight to your house. I’ll follow behind you, but first I need you to do something.”

“What?” I say breathlessly, trying to keep focused in case he isn’t lying to me for once.

“I’m going to kiss you again, you’re going to slap me, then get in your car and haul ass like you’re running from me—not them. So make them believe it.”

“Who is them?” I ask, but his mouth covers mine and I kiss him back, clutching his shirt. Though I want him to answer my question, for once I trust him and do as he says. Shoving him away, I wind up and land a slap across his face a little harder than I’d intended. My adrenaline is surging at the thought of someone actually watching us. And he must have been watching me. How else would he have known I was here?

He rubs his face and whispers under his breath, “Straight home.”

Running to my car, I hear him get in his, slamming the door for effect before the engine roars to life. His tires screech against the pavement as he backs out onto the road. I start up the Audi’s engine and follow suit. Reversing out of the garage, I quickly shift the car into drive, punching the gas as the car takes off, heading in the direction of either my safe haven or another nightmare.