Midnight Daffodil (Poisonous Petals #1)

Chapter 9Luke

nine

LUKE

I walked into the house after a long ass day. My body was sore from lack of sleep, and my shift hadn’t even started yet.

Whistling for Rev, I fastened my ballistic vest in place, ready to head out for another tiresome night. Rev’s paws slid across the floor in the mudroom as he barreled into my arms.

“I missed you too, buddy,” I said as he assaulted me with licks and kibble breath.

The Kevlar vest weighed heavily on my shoulders, its life-saving bulk anchoring me to the ground until my muscles throbbed with fatigue. I buttoned the sleeve to my uniform top around my wrist; the material felt scratchy.

Fuck, I’m exhausted.

Checking one last time that my Glock was fully loaded, I got in the truck and headed out. Sleep burned my eyes, threatening my body.

Should’ve gone home. Should’ve gone to bed, but no.

I followed her.

I tracked down the cherry red SUV and followed them, led by the pop music that bled out into the streets.

As I strolled into the high-rise, my body seemed to have a mind of its own. I flashed my badge to the doorman and explained I was conducting a wellness check. When I described Olivia, he immediately recognized who I’d inferred about. After some persuasion, he finally revealed that she lived on the thirty-seventh floor.

You’re fucking weird and obsessed, Ryder.

Knowing she was okay became the sole reason my body moved each day. Matt had been bringing food and gifts for weeks, but there was no trace of Olivia. And she hadn’t messaged or called me either. Caught in treacherous waters, I drowned in a desire for her I knew I shouldn’t have.

So I did what any lovesick freak would do best; followed her around like a shadow in the night. Forever would never be enough time when it came to Olivia. My senses came alive once I saw her beautiful face and heard her laugh float through the wind. After weeks of the unknown, it revived my soul.

She’d been covered head to toe when she emerged from the highrise. Not an inch of skin visible beneath the layers. The civilian in me knew it was cold this time of year. Tons of people wore leggings and sweatshirts. But the part of me dripping with obsession for her was tormented by what lay beneath. I worried it was more of Matt’s mark defacing her beautiful skin.

Olivia took root in my brain and consumed me. Craving her like an addict, I spiraled into hopelessness without my fix.

Take her. Make her yours. Mark her with your own hands in a way that’ll leave her dripping and begging for more.

Fuck.

My truck sat idly outside the station, its engine long cooled, while my thoughts spiraled, all centered on her in a chaotic whirl.

“Bossman, you ready to go?” Aidan knocked on the window, his brow furrowed in question. He smiled wide and held up two big chugs from the gas station. “I got one for you! Figured a soda might make you sweeter." He laughed and blew kisses at me.

For a twenty-three year old, he sure acted like a fucking child. Every single shift with him felt like babysitting a teenage boy with a shit load of deadly weapons.

“In.” I pointed to the cruiser, and Rev patiently waited for the hatch to open before hopping up and plopping down next to the window.

“You look like a hot pile of Rev’s shit,” Aidan lovingly told me. “I think I’ll drive tonight.”

“Fine with me.” Exhaustion cascaded over me. Something had to give, or I was going to have a fucking stroke. No doubt, my soul would wander endlessly to make sure she was still in this world, safe and sound.

The night dragged on. The minutes ticked painstakingly as garbage and debris floated down the empty Seattle streets.

My body was a canvas of exhaustion; every muscle screamed in protest, begging for the sweet release of sleep. No matter how I shifted, I couldn’t find a shred of comfort. My weary flesh cried for respite from the relentless fatigue that had taken hold, refusing to let me go.

“So,” I heard Aidan’s voice from beside me. “It’s about to get personal, but you can’t shut down on me.” He faced me in the parked vehicle as the engine hummed.

“I’m not having a heart to heart with you like we’re girlfriends,” I muttered.

“I just gotta know what's going on with you and the girl. You’ve been distracted ever since last year. And since we saw her again, you’re spacey as fuck.”

What the fuck was he on about?

He wasn’t wrong, but I wouldn’t admit that. “I don’t know.”

“We’ve seen worse DV cases than hers. She’ll leave eventually,” Aidan said. “Move on, don’t worry yourself sick over it.”

Ignorant mindsets like that got people killed every day.

Eventually, they’ll go. Eventually, they’ll realize the drugs are killing them. Eventually, she’ll leave. Eventually, the kids’ll grow up and get out of that horrible, abusive home. Eventually.

I fucking hated that word.

“Yeah? And what if eventually he kills her?”

Aidan sat back at that question, fidgeting with his pepper spray. “Yeah, you have a point.”

“It goes both ways.” Annoyance laced my tone.

We sat in silence for another forty minutes. The dispatcher roared over the radio. Most nights, I could ignore it, but the sheer volume of our dispatcher's voice was like a cheese grate to my nerves. My hand was in midair, ready to turn it down, when something caught my attention. A doorman placed a call at a highrise apartment building in the city.

The same one Olivia lived in.

My voice shook violently as I barked orders at Aidan to drive. And fast.

“You aren’t supposed to respond to calls for service,” he argued as he obediently drove.

I ignored him.

The dispatch continued protocol, airing details over the radio to us. Aidan faded into the background, and every word of the report was a stake through my sternum.

A possible suicide.

Someone jumped or was pushed out of one of the top floors to a gruesome death. I don’t know what Aidan saw in my expression, but one glance had him flicking on the sirens, weaving through traffic. We skidded to a stop along with several other emergency vehicles, a fire truck, and an ambulance. The doorman who tipped me off stood off to the side, talking to another officer.

Red, white, and blue lights painted every surface as neighbors gathered around the yellow tape. It felt like déjà vu; I’d lived this moment before. As the car was still coming to a stop, I flung open the door, leaping out, my feet hitting the pavement with a thud.

A white sheet draped over a motionless body on the sidewalk, cordoning off a scene of carnage, with bits of brain and tissue scattered around it like macabre confetti. The thundering of my heartbeat raged like Storm of the Century in my ears as Aidan and Rev caught up to me.

“Is it–” Aidan didn’t dare finish that sentence.

I took a deep breath and spoke over my heartbeat. “Do we have an ID on the victim?” I tried my hardest to sound detached, but the shake in my voice was evident.

“Yeah, we have a brunette female, white, middle aged. Married, living on the 28th floor.” He rattled off more detail, but I heard nothing. Relief rumbled through me in thick waves.

That might’ve made me a bad person, but relief flooded through me for it to be anyone but Olivia. Aidan and I were turning to leave when cursing and muffled cries floated through the night. Rev lurched towards the sounds as we entered a quieter part of the street away from the commotion.

“Shut up and go back upstairs.” A voice I knew all too well demanded. “You should’ve never interrupted my work like that. Over some mentally unstable tenant.”

A small whimper could be heard as the voices in question materialized before us.

It was her.

Olivia wiped tears on the sleeve of her sweatshirt.

Her gaze met mine, and time stood still.

Always a sight to take in, she walked with her blonde hair falling in loose waves around her shoulders and down her back, gently swaying in the breeze. My lungs burned in protest. I forgot to even breathe.

Matt’s cold glare pierced through us, a chill ran down my spine, erasing any warmth I felt moments before.

“Gentleman,” he said as he attempted to shoulder past us.

Rev lurched for him, snapping and snarling.

“Care to get your mutt?” Matt bit out.

“Heel.”

Immediately, Rev sat unblinking, staring at Matt, still growling. His hackles rose in protest, ready to strike once permission was given.

“Even the dog listens better than you, Livie,” Matt smirked as he placed his hand on the back of her neck, guiding her towards the door. “Should send you where they train their canines. Learn some respect for your owner.”

He meant for her ears to be the only ones that caught the last part of his sentence. He made me sick, and there was nothing I could do to stop her from going with him. I watched them disappear into the building, unable to tear my eyes away. My heart shuddered in my chest painfully.

The one thing that truly mattered to me in this world seemed on the verge of being destroyed, and I was paralyzed by my inability to stop it.