Glancing down, I realized that I had trampled Rellik’s dirty clothing. I picked up his jeans and slid my hand into the bulging back pocket, pulling out a brown snakeskin wallet. I glanced toward the open bathroom door before flipping it open. There were quite a few bills in the money slot, as well as a business card for Silver Lake Psychiatric Facility. It was well-worn, as if it had been in his wallet for years. Why the hell would he have a card like this? The smaller pockets held movie stubs, a hotel key card, and a picture of a girl who looked startlingly like me. I glanced up at my face in the mirror and back at the picture.
I slid the picture back in and pulled out his driver’s license. My eyes danced over the information typed beside his picture.
“Ryder Bentley,” I whispered under my breath as my heart felt like it was going to explode from my chest. How was it possible? Of all the people to run into? It was chance. It had to be. The warnings from Phantom began to make sense. I dropped the wallet onto the ground, and it made a loud clapping sound as it hit the tile. My hand was over my mouth now, and I struggled to keep my composure. Who the hell did I just sleep with?
I fell against the doorframe, my eyes struggling to adjust to the darkness of the room. I pulled clothing from my bag and struggled to get dressed in a pair of jeans and fitted T-shirt before Rellik woke.
I didn’t have a plan, but I knew it was now or never if I wanted answers.
Crazy
Chapter 16—Rellik
Crazy: a mentally deranged person
“Where is she?”
I wiped the sleep from my eyes as I sat up, yawning from exhaustion. The voice grew louder from down the hall. I made my way to the front door to see who was yelling. The woman looked exhausted, still wearing pajamas. Her eyes locked on to mine. “Tell me where Katie is right now!”
“She’s not here, Janel.”
“I know about you liking my daughter! Bryce told me all about it,” she spat angrily, my mother stepping in front of her. “Tell me where she is, or I’m calling the police!”
“He told you he doesn’t know.” Mr. Thomas stepped in front of me, folding his arms over his chest. I was thankful someone was finally taking my side.
“How long has she been missing?” I stepped around Mr. Thomas, my concern for Katie growing.
“Like you don’t know.”
“I don’t. I haven’t been able to talk to her since…” I shook my head as I placed my hand on my mother’s shoulder. “My phone. Where is it?”
My mother looked down the hallway behind me before pushing by and heading for the kitchen. She returned a moment later with my phone in hand. As it turned on, it began to beep as messages came through. I snatched the phone from her hands, my eyes dancing over the rapid-fire texts. Katie was desperate to see me, and I knew exactly where she had gone to meet me. I shoved by her mother, practically knocking her down the front steps as I took off into the dark just as the rain began to fall.
I reached the woods, breathless and terrified. Pulling my phone from my pocket, I dialed her number as I made my way through the trees. Approaching our spot, I could hear the faint ringing of her phone, but she wasn’t answering. I yelled her name, shoving the phone into my pocket as I made my way into the small clearing. I stopped short when I saw Katie, lying on the ground, partially submerged in a puddle of blood and rain.
* *
“Get up! Get up now,” a frantic voice called from what sounded like a tunnel. I blinked open blurry eyes and focused on the beautiful brunette in front of me. Her eyes were pleading with me, but I wasn’t sure what it was she wanted. “Get up! Get the hell up!”
“Katie,” I groaned, each word melting into the next like liquid as I struggled to stop the room from spinning, thankful I wasn’t in the woods on the day my world came crashing down.
She grabbed my arm with her hand, her nails digging into the flesh of my bicep.
“Ouch! Fuck!” I sat up and ran my hand over my eyes. “Ella? What the fuck happened? Are you all right?” Her other hand shook as she gripped a small silver gun. “Whoa! Where did you get that?”
“I told you I had a gun in my purse.” Her voice was shaky as she spoke, but her finger was on the trigger. She was looking at me now, the real me. I could feel it like a coldness that crept down to my bones.
“So you did.” I sat up slowly, my open palm toward her so she knew I wasn’t going to hurt her. “Why is it pointed at me?”
“You tell me, Ryder.”
“You went through my things?” I took a deep breath and tried to swallow back my anger. “Why did you do that? Were you stealing from me?”