Gardiner, Meg - Phantom Instinct by Gardiner Meg
Author:Gardiner, Meg [Gardiner, Meg]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Suspense
ISBN: 9780698157132
Publisher: Penguin USA
Published: 2014-05-15T04:00:00+00:00
The sun had sunk behind the trees in the west, glaring gold, a firefly sunset through the leaves. Harper stood at Aidenâs living room window, fist pressed to her mouth. On the driveway, he paced, phone to his ear. She heard snatches of his conversation with Erika Sorenstam. She felt as though electric worms were crawling beneath her skin.
Aiden ended his call and came inside. He closed the door softly. âI told her youâd phoned me. That you heard the news report, that you knew the victim back in China Lake and were afraid thereâs a connection to Azerov. I said I hadnât seen you.â
âDid she believe you?â
âAt this point, I donât know. But I donât think sheâs sending SWAT here to arrest you.â
Harper pressed her fingers against her eyes. âJasmine. Oh, my God.â
She hadnât seen Jasmine Hay since before going down for the jewelry store robbery. She remembered a thin thirteen-year-old with intimidating physical bravado, who kept a Beanie Baby bear in her school backpack.
Aiden said, âHowâs Oscar?â
She looked out the back door. He was sitting at the picnic table, head in his hands. He knew Jasmine better than she did.
âAre you kidding? Heâs devastated. And scared. So am I.â She ran her hands over her face. She was close to shivering. âA sledgehammer. Aiden, thatâs Zero. Itâs the robbery all over again, but a hundred times worse. Itâs . . .â
Her stomach coiled. âExcuse me.â
She hurried to the bathroom, hot and nauseated, pressing her hand to the wall to steady herself. Inside, she grabbed the toilet, but nothing came up. She leaned on the sink and splashed water on her face. Her hands were shaking.
In the mirror, she saw Aiden appear in the doorway. He took a towel from the rack and held it out. She accepted it and buried her face in it, hiding hot tears that welled out of abject fear.
âHey.â
His arm went around her shoulder. She hupped a breath into the towel. He gently took it from her, tossed it aside, and wrapped both arms around her. When he pulled her in, she pressed her face to his chest. She felt completely clenched. Donât cry. Cry and youâll weaken. Weaken and you wonât be ready for whateverâs coming.
He held her close. âI gotcha.â
She nodded tightly. She couldnât even breathe. His arms seemed all that were keeping her from screaming. She squeezed her eyes shut and felt his chest rise and fall. He rocked her, just rocked her.
âYouâre not alone,â he said. âYouâre not.â
She raised her face. His eyes, weary and bruised, had a look in them like iron. Want, and gratitude, and overwhelming need poured through her. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out.
He put his cheek against hers and murmured in her ear. âYou. Are not. Alone.â
He kissed her neck. She nodded and tightened her arms around him. For a second, she felt safe. She knew that he had her back. He believed her. He was in, all the way.
The wind had risen, black and hissing, and was bearing down on her.
Download
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.
The Fine Print (Dreamland Billionaires Book 1) by Lauren Asher(2400)
Fury of Magnus by Graham McNeill(2363)
The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward(2184)
The Rose Code by Kate Quinn(2077)
Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid(1810)
Luster by Raven Leilani(1800)
Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi(1771)
A Little Life: A Novel by Hanya Yanagihara(1752)
Moonflower Murders by Anthony Horowitz(1724)
The God of the Woods by Liz Moore(1569)
The Lost Book of the White (The Eldest Curses) by Cassandra Clare & Wesley Chu(1514)
This Changes Everything by Unknown(1421)
The Midwife Murders by James Patterson & Richard Dilallo(1379)
The Lying Life of Adults by Elena Ferrante(1349)
The New Wilderness by Diane Cook(1334)
Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur(1320)
Wandering in Strange Lands by Morgan Jerkins(1282)
Ambition and Desire: The Dangerous Life of Josephine Bonaparte by Kate Williams(1279)
The Lying Life of Adults by Elena Ferrante;(1233)
