Page 121 of Darkened Promises

Nate scowls, looking over the sofa at him. “Thought she was with you. Why the fuck isn’t she? Where’d she go?”

Noah walks up to the back of the sofa I’m on and leans his palms to rest on it. “She was, then she said she had to pop next door to retrieve something for me. But she’s been a little while, and I wasn’t sure what the holdup was. I’ll go check.”

“Nope!” I exclaim, jumping over the back of the sofa. I throw an arm out to halt his movement. “She said it was something for you. So, you can’t go in case you ruin the birthday surprise.” I start walking backwards. “Ooh, do you think it’s sexy lingerie? Fuck, I hope it is; I want to see it.”

I turn quickly, running out before any of them can protest and steal away the opportunity to see my honeybee. Knocking loudly, I fidget as I wait for her to open the door. It might take her a few minutes if she has to get dressed, so I step back and lean against the wall. I jolt, before my head thuds against the wall. Why are her keys still in the door?

I reach out and twist them, pushing my way into her flat. “You can’t go leaving these in the door, cutestuff.”

Fuck, I sound like Nate.

I stop in the hallway, waiting for… “Honeybee? Are you naked somewhere?”

Striding down to her closed bedroom door, I lift my hand and knock. “Please, please, be naked,” I whisper, bouncing on the balls of my feet.

The silence creeps in, and my neck prickles. I grip the door handle and push it open. “Rosy?”

Ducking into her room, I find it…empty. Sweat starts to surface as I hurry over to the bathroom and open it too.

Fuck. Also, empty.

Standing in the middle of her empty flat, I look around, but I can’t think or concentrate. My heart thunders in my chest as I fight to not panic. She…she has to be here.

She can’t not.

Not again.

“Rosy?” I croak as I spin a full circle and jam my hands into my curls, pulling hard.

Something snaps, and I jolt forward, needing to get out. My feet are loud and heavy as I run and slam back through our front door.

“She’s. Not. There,” I pant, head lightening as the words echo loudly inside it.

Sharp pain smacks into me as Nate charges past, shoving me out of the way. My knees buckle, and I slide down the wall. Pain spasms up my back as I hit the floor.

Heated hands cup my shoulders, or maybe I’m just too cold? It feels cold. I think I’m vibrating.

“Maxi?” Noah murmurs softly. “Talk to us. What happened?”

A loud roar reaches through the wall, pained and angry, and I flinch. Because I know what that means. It means that she really isn’t in there.

“I…don’t know. Her keys were still in the door. I went in and looked for her. And she’s not there,” I choke out, hating the words and that I have to say them.

It’s fucking déjà vu. Except worse, because we know what happened the first time. What the fuck is even happening? Things like this don’t happen twice, so I must be dreaming. Somehow, I fell asleep, and it’s a really, shockingly immersive dream.

I still have nightmares from the night we found her. I’m a grown man, and I have terrifying nightmares that I don’t make it to Rosy in time. Or that I’m a bystander, watching that piece of shit hurt her, over and over again, and I’m frozen in place. They don’t come every night now, so there is that. Though they’ve never felt this real.

Nate stomps back in, and the door slams behind him, loud enough that I jump.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” he rages. “Going to fucking kill him this time. He best not fucking touch her.”

“Rosy can’t be with him. She won’t survive it,” Bry whispers, voice cracking as his palm covers his mouth.

“I’ll call Logan,” Noah snaps, striding away to get his phone.

I…don’t think this is a bad dream anymore. It’s actually happening.

Rosy’s…gone.