Neither of us said anything more as the long drive continued. I wanted so badly to be wrong, but I wasn’t.
In the end, I was either going to live or die.
How was still a mystery, but I knew one thing for sure.
Whoever Caroline sent to kill me I would never see them coming.
When we arrived at the facility, I didn’t know what to expect, but it wasn’t a sprawling three-story white brick building with beautiful landscaping and gardens all around. I knew looks could be deceiving. The outside might look inviting, but it was on the inside that counted. Saying nothing as Savage parked the rental vehicle, I exited and quickly stretched.
The drive from the airport took us over three hours, and though it was a beautiful drive, I was happy to finally be out of the car.
“There’s Toxic,” Savage said, making me turn to see a tall, muscular man dressed in leather walking towards us. The man looked hardened when we spoke on the computer, but he was something more in person. More dangerous.
Next to him were two brothers, each dressed in their colors as they kept back a few steps, letting Toxic take the lead. I knew he would be bringing brothers with him. I just thought he’d have more than two.
I said nothing as the man extended his hand to shake Savage’s while his eyes never left my face. When he fully turned to me, he said, “You look just like him.”
“Who?”
“Your father.”
“I’m not Shane Keller’s daughter.”
“I wasn’t talking about Keller. Your biological father.”
“Oh.”
“Are you sure about this? Because once we go in there, there’s no going back.”
“Is he my brother?”
“Yes.”
“And you have the paperwork to prove that?”
“Blaze does,” he said as the man in question stepped forward and handed me a file. Quickly skimming through the folder, I nodded as I verified all the paperwork. Now all I had to do was go in there and get my brother out, hopefully without any problems.
The second we stepped into the facility, I knew this wasn’t just someplace for the mentally unstable. No. This place was where family members sent their relatives to and forgot about them. I was right when I looked at the place from the outside. Looks were deceiving. Though the welcome center was sterile, white, and clean, the god-awful sounds from the patients within the facility sent shivers down my spine.
Quickly looking at Savage, I knew he, too, wasn’t happy with what he was seeing or hearing. It sounded as if several someone’s were being tortured.
Making my way to the counter, I tried to smile at the older woman sitting behind the counter, but I just couldn’t. What I wanted to do was scream at the woman to do something. To get off her ass and go help whoever was screaming. Instead, I did nothing, and it killed me to keep quiet.
“How may I help you?” the old woman said without looking up from her crossword puzzle.
“I’m here to see a patient.”
“Visiting hours are between 1 and 2, every other Thursday. Come back then.”
Oh no, this bitch didn’t!
“Kitty,” Savage whispered. “Don’t.”
Smiling brightly, I looked up at my brother and sweetly said, “I promise to be an angel.”
“Yeah,” Savage sighed, stepping back, taking Toxic and the two other brothers with him. “The Angel of Death.”
The second my brother was out of the way, I whipped around and jumped over the reception desk, taking the old woman with me. Landing hard on the floor, the woman’s shrieks of fear were damn near busting my eardrums. Slapping her hard, I placed my hand over her mouth as I straddled her. “Listen to me very clearly bitch. I’ve had a shitty couple of days. I’ve just flown in from Louisiana and drove over three mother fucking hours to get to this facility. Now, you will be a good little bitch and let me see my fucking brother, or I will let those men over there talk to you. Do you get what I am saying?”