Burn Like An Angel (Harrowdean Manor #2)

18. Ripley

CHAPTER 18

RIPLEY

STRAY – JXDN

TEN YEARS EARLIER

Oakham Airfield is nestled between a smattering of sleepy villages in the rural midlands. By some miracle, there are no passing motorists on the quiet roads. I’ve no doubt anyone who spots us would run away screaming.

We’re all filthy, struggling to walk and utterly exhausted. Even after doing his best to clean with water and old napkins found inside the van, Xander is covered in bloodstains.

The others haven’t fared much better. Lennox has a rapidly swelling black eye while Raine limps with a bad ankle that we’ve concluded is sprained rather than broken. I’m covered in Rae’s dried blood. We’re all done.

After a lengthy debate, we decided not to risk driving the van straight up to the private landing strip, allowing us to be tracked. Leaving Rae’s body behind with our captive when we parked the vehicle miles back was devastating.

Xander holds me braced to his side. “The airstrip is coming up.”

Hobbling along, Raine clutches Lennox’s sleeve. “See anything?”

With his guide stick still lost somewhere in a maize field, he’s reliant on Lennox to move safely. We couldn’t locate any of our supplies either before we had to flee, leaving a bloodied graveyard behind.

Lennox scans the distant buildings. “Not yet.”

“Theodore said to meet here,” Xander grumbles unhappily. “He better turn up.”

“He will,” Raine croaks.

I’m leaning almost all my body weight on Xander. Hours of sleepless travel have made an already pitiful situation worse. I haven’t stopped to look, but I can feel how badly bruised my tender stomach and ribs are.

If the mysterious Theo doesn’t show up, I’ll march down to London and tear down Sabre’s front door myself. No matter what happens, the running ends today. We’ve already lost too much.

“Ripley?” Lennox calls my name. “You still with us?”

I feel Xander peer at me, his arm curled around my back. I’ve been silent since my beloved uncle swiftly hung up the phone upon hearing my voice, leaving us stranded with several corpses and a half-alive hostage.

“She’s okay,” Xander answers for me.

I’m grateful. I don’t have any reassuring words for them right now.

“Raine’s ankle is the size of a fucking balloon.” Lennox guides him forward. “We can’t go much farther.”

“The airfield should be just up ahead,” Xander replies.

In the rising dawn, our rendezvous point is eventually revealed. It’s an exclusive, members-only landing strip in the middle of upper-class suburbia. Probably home to all manner of sleazy politicians’ private jets.

Bonus? It’s deserted.

Sabre chose carefully.

The office buildings appear empty at this hour, but the two blacked-out, armoured SUVs pulled into the car park make my hackles rise. Our desperation doesn’t make this last-ditch effort any less risky.

We’ve been alone since escaping Harrowdean. Pinning everything on total strangers is a tall order after everything we’ve endured. But regardless of the lies Warner previously told, I trust his intentions.

“Eyes open,” Xander orders curtly. “Two vehicles parked up.”

“This is a shitty idea,” Lennox mutters.

Raine hisses in pain. “We’re out of options.”

“Doesn’t mean I have to like this.”

“When do you ever like anything, Nox?”

Tentatively approaching the car park, we linger outside the gates. The two SUVs are tinted, concealing their occupants. Birds chirping is the only sound for several tense seconds. No signs of movement.

It feels like we’re locked in a tense Mexican standoff. Someone has to make the first move. I shrug off Xander’s support, swaying on my feet for a moment before steadying.

Xander creeps behind me with each step I take, refusing to let me move more than an inch from his side. He hasn’t let go of me since we clambered into the van and fled for our lives.

A car door cracks open, two booted feet hitting the gravel. My pulse races at lightning speed, almost knocking me straight off my feet. When the heavy door closes, I recognise the face that appears.

Thank god.

Overwhelming relief makes my knees knock together. It takes all my mental resolve to hold still instead of melting into a puddle.

“Ripley!”

I stare into Warner’s rich baby blues. “Hey.”

Hand braced on a gun holster, he rushes across the car park to meet us. I’ve barely managed a step before I’m pulled into his arms. Not even my smarting ribcage can stop me from hugging him tight.

“You have no idea how good it is to see you.”

“Yeah.” My throat is thick with emotion. “You too.”

Leaning back to examine me, his mouth turns down in a grimace. When his gaze travels to the other three standing nearby in varying degrees of distress, that grimace morphs into a look of abject horror.

“What on earth happened?”

I wave for Xander and the others to approach. “Long story. We have some catching up to do. What happened to you?”

He shrugs with a strained smile. “Even longer story. I got caught up in the violence and had to hide so I didn’t get taken hostage like the real guards.”

“Well, I’m glad you’re alive.”

Warner squeezes my shoulder. “I’m sorry we got separated. I searched for you once the authorities moved in, but you were already gone.”

“We managed to escape.”

“So, what happened?” he repeats.

I brush his question off. “Later. Is your team here?”

“Yeah, we’re all here.” He shakes his head in disbelief. “I couldn’t believe it when I heard you’d made contact. Thought I’d never see you again.”

“We contacted Theodore a while back, but things have escalated.”

“So I can see.”

Surveying the guys, Warner offers them a tight nod. I shoot Lennox a glare, silently urging him to behave. He’s glowering at Warner like he can melt the skin from his bones with his mistrustful stare alone.

The sound of more car doors slamming interrupts our reunion. We all tense as several figures emerge from their SUVs and stroll towards us. Every single eye is locked on our motley group.

Walking ahead, a truly intimidating mountain of a man leads the way. He’s built like a fucking house, exuding strength and aggression. I try not to gawp at his massive frame, stacked with corded muscle.

The moment his glowing, amber eyes land on me, the most peculiar shift happens. This terrifying, raven-haired beast… offers me a little smile. Peculiar. Though it does soften his harsh features.

Behind him, a slimmer man walks fast to keep up with his colleague’s strides. He’s hugging a laptop to his flannel-covered chest like it’s a safety blanket. His messy blonde ringlets are denser than mine.

They’re flanked by security—two men and one brown-haired woman, all wearing holsters and matching black clothing. I count several weapons, though I have no doubt more are concealed.

“Warner,” the giant rumbles deeply. “Care to introduce us?”

“Right.” He steps back to wave them forward. “This is Ripley, Xander, Lennox and Raine.”

“The missing patients.” Blondie looks up at us.

Past the wire-rimmed frames he wears, intelligent blue eyes several shades lighter than Warner’s hold deep apprehension. I recognise his voice from Xander’s earlier phone call. This is Theodore Young.

“That’s close enough.” Xander inches in front of me. “Who are you?”

“Bloody hell.” The woman’s eyes are wide as saucers. “You walked here looking like that?”

If looks could kill, she’d be adding her blood to Xander’s splattered state with that comment. He looks none too pleased about her attitude.

Warner clears his throat, gesturing to the huge man first. “Enzo Montpellier. Second in command of Sabre Security.”

Scanning us up and down, Enzo narrows his bright-amber eyes. “You’re all looking rough.”

“Charming, aren’t they?” Raine snorts to himself.

“Trust me,” Lennox whispers back to him. “If you could see us, you’d agree with them.”

Enzo gestures to his glasses-wearing colleague. “You’ve been speaking to Theo. Head of Intelligence.” He turns to wave a hand at their security detail. “This is Becket, Ethan and Tara. Warner’s teammates.”

With pleasantries exchanged, I run out of patience. It takes a moment to moisten my mouth enough to form words.

“There are bodies behind us,” I rasp. “Just outside Keyworth. Look for the maize field.”

“How many?” Enzo doesn’t even bat an eye, his attentive stare still locked on me.

“Four.” Xander eyes him suspiciously. “And another in the van we ditched several miles back. An unconscious hostage all trussed up too. He works for Incendia.”

Murmuring to each other, Warner’s teammates seem to be formulating a plan.

“Rae.” I glance at Warner, vision swimming with burning tears. “They killed Rae.”

“Oh, Rip.” His gaze fractures with sympathy.

“Harrison shot her. He tracked us down in the middle of the night.” My voice cracks. “We ran for our lives. They had weapons… an assault rifle. We barely escaped.”

“Are you injured?”

I contemplate our sorry states. “A little. Raine has a sprained ankle. And all our stuff is gone… Meds, clothes, everything. We lost it all.”

“Don’t worry; we can sort all that out and arrange immediate medical attention. What about Harrison? Is he alive?”

“Not anymore.” Xander lays a possessive hand on my shoulder.

I push past my grief, sucking in a deep breath. “Rae’s body is in the van. I couldn’t just leave her in the field. She deserves better.”

Cataloguing that information, Warner nods. “I’ll take care of her, Rip. I promise.”

He turns to his teammates. Weirdly, Warner defers to the older blonde guy, Becket, who seems to be presiding over the small group. I reluctantly match the smile he shoots me.

“We can locate the vehicle,” Becket assures me. “And it’s… contents.”

Theo clutches his laptop. “You’ll need help disabling the tracking software. I’ll accompany you.” He looks at Enzo. “Are you taking them back to HQ?”

“Hunter has a safe house lined up,” Enzo responds. “Brooklyn and the others are still at HQ. We’d like to keep witnesses separate to avoid evidence contamination.”

I perk up at the familiar name. The escapee from Blackwood. She’s still working with them. These people seem to be collecting Incendia’s strays faster than we can escape.

“Just hold on a minute.” Theo and Becket turn back at Lennox’s deep timbre. “Why should we trust you?”

“Nox,” Raine chastises.

“In the last twenty-four hours, we’ve been hunted down, shot at, threatened, beaten and damn near killed. I respect Ripley’s choice to make this call, but I still want assurances that my family will be safe.”

My head jerks in his direction, a swarm gathering in my stomach. Family. Lennox fucking Nash wants his family to be safe—including me.

His pale-green gaze snaps up as if he can feel my surprise. For a breathless second, we’re alone. Isolated by our locked eyes. Hatred bled into attraction a long time ago, but right now, it feels like something more. A destructive force.

The kind that ruins people.

In the best possible way.

“Unravelling Incendia’s complex criminal web is painstaking work.” Enzo sizes him up. “It may not look like it from the outside, but we’ve been battling these people for years.”

“Are you expecting some kind of praise?” Lennox laughs.

“No. Just a little faith.”

Whispering a curse, Xander tilts his head up to the sky like he’s searching for patience. The analytic in him doesn’t ascribe much to faith. Every move he makes relies on cold, hard logic.

“We will make a move on Incendia Corporation and its assets soon,” Enzo proclaims, his gaze fixed on me. “When we do, your testimonies will join the countless others we’ve helped.”

“To what end?” Xander growls.

“You’ll have the chance to earn your freedom.”

They may not be able to have faith right now, but I can. I don’t have much choice. I’ve got nothing else to give. Pulling Xander’s hand from my arm, I move to Lennox.

His deep-lidded eyes are pinched with tension, watching me approach. “Don’t even start?—”

“Can you give us a moment, Raine?” I speak over him.

Raine releases Lennox’s sleeve, taking a limping step away. “Sure.”

“Thank you.”

I stop in front of Lennox, laying a hand on his broad chest. He paces backwards, putting some distance between us and everyone else. His expression is caught somewhere between apprehension and intrigue.

“Ripley, I’m just?—”

“I can’t run anymore,” I interject. “Not from this. We need to take a stand.”

“I know,” he agrees. “But I need you to be safe.”

Newfound warmth curls around my heart. Not the same warmth that Raine’s honesty and soft affection provoke. Nor the toxic warmth I hold for Xander and all his complexities.

This feeling is different. It’s been there for a while, escaping in brief moments ever since our shared trauma in the Z wing. Even when he’s driving me insane or I’m plotting his death, I still feel it. The inescapable draw.

Lennox brings out the worst in me. I want to taunt him. Punish him. Break his mind the same way he broke mine. Yet I also want to reassure him. Gain his trust. Put the broken pieces in his brain back together.

“Don’t look so surprised.” Lennox smiles wryly. “I’m aware that I fucking suck at… well, this. I’ve never felt the need to fix my mistakes before.”

“Must be nice.”

“It was.” His teeth pierce his bottom lip. “Until you.”

This isn’t the time or place, but honestly, we need to lay it all on the table. We almost died last night with all this unfinished business.

“And now? What do you feel?”

“I’ve been trying to figure that out.” Lennox shifts from foot to foot.

“When we go with these people, I don’t know what’s going to happen. What they’ll demand from us. We have to be able to trust each other… fully.”

Seeing him so uncertain would be funny if it didn’t take us almost dying to get here. I suppose it couldn’t have been any other way. Only facing pure evil could force us to put our old hatred aside.

“You flipped my entire world upside down in that basement.” He pauses for a breath. “I finally understood your actions. We hurt your family.”

“And you were protecting yours.”

“I’ll always hurt someone else before I let the people I love suffer. I want to protect you, Rip. I want to make up for all the cruel shit I’ve done. The pain I’ve caused you.”

In the spirit of honesty, I gather my courage.

“We’ve almost died more times than I can count, but these past few weeks… Fuck, I’ve never felt so whole, Nox. Even while on death’s door. You all make me feel that way.”

My hand still resting above his heart, I can feel how out of control it is right now. Stuttering with each hard pound, the organ is pleading with me. Begging for this clean slate.

“That’s why I’m willing to have faith right now.” I smooth his bloodstained shirt. “Because I know you’ll protect me. Just like you’ll protect Raine and Xander. I trust you.”

Reaching up, Lennox pushes a matted curl behind my ear. “You do?”

“Perhaps against my better judgement.”

His mouth quirks. “I’ve learned to ignore my judgement. It’s led me down the wrong path too many times.”

“And now?”

“Now… I think it was wrong all along. I’m where I need to be.” His knuckles gently stroke down to my jaw. “I’ll spend every waking moment ensuring your trust isn’t misplaced.”

I take Lennox’s hand from my face, his grip firm and reassuring. It feels right clutching mine. His fingertips dance over my skin, leaving butterfly kisses that raise my gooseflesh.

“Ready?” I ask him. “They won’t wait forever.”

“No. I’m not ready. Not yet.”

Grip tightening on my jaw, he leans in to touch his lips to mine. It doesn’t matter that we’re standing in broad daylight, surrounded by strangers. Coated in blood. Beaten and broken down.

Because Lennox is kissing me.

He’s holding me close.

Giving himself to me.

Unlike previous kisses, this one is tender. A slow, delicate touch of the lips. He’s hesitant at first, mouth lingering on mine before he pecks me again. Harder. Breathing vulnerability and hope into the vacant space I’ve carved for him in my heart.

Everything about Lennox is intimidating. His harsh demeanour. Acid tongue. Propensity for violence. Inability to forgive. But I’m starting to realise this isn’t the real Lennox at all. Like Xander and Raine, he played a role.

We all did.

It’s how we survived.

This is the real Lennox. Kissing me so softly, I almost wonder if the man who knocked me unconscious and left me for dead in a flooding pool ever really existed. Back then, I was just another threat.

The kiss ends, and I gulp down air.

“Now I’m ready.” He plants a final kiss on my forehead. “Let’s go see what these fuckers want from us for their stupid protection.”

“You don’t have to sound so thrilled.”

“I’m struggling to contain my enthusiasm, really.”

“I can tell.”

Fingers interlinked, we turn to face the others. Xander’s holding Raine upright to relieve his bad ankle, while Warner’s team is pouring over a map pulled up on Theodore’s laptop.

Enzo glares around with his thick arms folded. The hard-faced grump can’t fool me. I saw that smile earlier and all it entailed. He’s a fucking teddy bear.

We walk over to Xander and Raine. Standing as one united front, even in our pathetically dishevelled state, I’ve never felt so powerful. Perhaps we can do this. Face the evil hunting us and end it, once and for all.

I want the future I became the stooge for.

And I want it with them.