<b>Chapter </b><b>130 </b>
-HUNTER’S POV-
The Sunset Lodge looked like something pulled from a fever dream…cracked asphalt parking in littered with cigarette butts, neon slen nickering weakly against the darkening sky, paint peeling from every surface like old skin..
This was where my family had been hiding? This dump was where Celine had brought my son!
I sat in Vincent’s Ferrari for a moment, gripping the steering wheel until my knuckles went white.
My phone buzzed against my leg.
“Tell me you’re not sitting in that parking lot overthinking,” Vincent’s voice cut through the static when’t answered.
“I’m here.” I said, my voice hoarse from the drive and the weight of everything unsaid. “Vincent, what if they’re not here? What if this is just another dead end?”
“Then we keep looking. But Hunter, you need to prepare yourself for whatever you’re about to find in there. That ambnce call… it could mean anything.”
The line went dead, leaving me alone with my spiraling thoughts.
An ambnce.
Someone had been hurt badly enough to require emergency medical attention.
And I hadn’t been there. I had been too broken, too wounded, too fucking stupid to care about them<b>, </b>when they needed men
<b>mos</b><b>. </b>
I forced myself out of the car, legs shaky as I approached the
motel office.
The bell above the door chimed weakly as I entered<b>, </b>the sound like a death knell in the stuffy air.
The ce reeked of musty cigarettes and disinfectant.
Behind a scratched stic barrier sat a man who looked like he hadn’t seen sunlight in months….pale, greasy hair falling into his eyes, a bag of chips bnced on his protruding belly
He waspletely absorbed in some reality show ying on a small television mounted in the corner.
“Wee,” he mumbled without looking up, shoving another handful of chips into his mouth.
I looked around the shabby reception area with disgust.
Water stains decorated the ceiling, the carpet was worn through to the backing in several ces<b>, </b>and the air felt thick with decades of
neglect,
This was where Celine had brought Caesar? My son had slept in this ce?
I mmed my palm against the desk, the sharp sound making the clerk jump and nearly drop his chips.
“<b>Jesus</b>!” He wiped his greasy fingers on an already stained shirt and finally looked at me
His eyes widened slightly….probably at my expression, which I imagined looked murderous. “Uh, sorry about that. Wee to Sunset Lodge. You need a room?”
<b>1/5 </b>
I <b>pulled </b>out the photograph of Celine and Caesar, my hands trembling as i pped it down on the sncky surface of the naik
“I’m not here for a room. I’m looking for these two people. Have you seen them?”
The clerk picked up the photo, squinting at it under the harsh fluorescent lighting He nced up at me, then back at the picture, a slow recognition dawning in his bloodshot eyes.
“Why are you looking for them?” he asked, setting the photo down and crossing his arms defensively
1 felt my jaw clench so hard it ached. After everything…the drive, the fear, the desperate searching….this asshole wanted to y gamest
“That’s none of your damn business,” Isnapped,
He shrugged, settling back in his chair with a ticking off. “Then I don’t know anything, Guy’s gotta know what he’s getting into before he opens his mouth, you know?”
I stared at him, my vision actually starting to blur around the edges with rage. The silence stretched between us until he began to twitch ufortably under my re.
“She’s my wife,” I finally said, the lie slipping out easily. “He’s my son. They ran away from home.”
The clerk picked up the photo again, studying Caesar’s face more <b>carefully</b>. “Yeah, I can see it now. Kid does look a lot like you–same eyes,
same stubborn <b>chin</b>.”
“Stop wasting my time and tell me what you know,” I growled.
His eyes twinkled with something that made my skin crawl. “What’s in it for me if I talk? Information’s valuable, you know.”
I muttered a curse under my breath. This piece of shit wanted to be paid for information <b>about </b>my own family.
“A
guy’s gotta survive somehow,” he added with a shrug that made me want to reach across the desk and shake him.
I dug into my pocket, pulling out my wallet with more force than necessary.
I took out several hundred dor bills and mmed them down on the desk, but when he reached for them, I snatched them back.
“Talk first, or forget it.”
His tongue darted out to wet his lips as he stared at the money with obvious hunger.
“Alright, alright. Yeah, thedy and the kid checked in yesterday. Real pretty thing, looked like she’d been crying though, Kid was cube, kept asking when they were going home.”
Relief flooded through me so suddenly that I had to grip the edge of the desk to stay upright. They had been here.
This <b>wasn’t </b>another dead end.
“Where are they now?” I demanded. “<b>What </b>room?”
The clerk’s face shifted, bing more serious. “That’s the thing, man. Thedy she was rushed to the hospital this morning. Found her unconscious in her room around dawn.”
The world wobbled sideways. Unconscious. Celine had been unconscious, alone, probably <b>scared</b><b>, </b>and I hadn’t
“Which hospital?” The words came out as barely more than a whisper.
“Don’t know exactly, but there’s only one hospital close enough. Metro General, about een minutes from Bere found <b>her </b>and took her in his can”.
Another man
Some stranger had found Celine unconscious and taken her to the hospital
The thought of another man’s hands on her, even in a medical emergency, made my vision goed
ine try
The guy told me to keep their room,” the clerk continued. “Left his stuff here too. Said they’d probably be back!
I threw the money at him without another word and pulled out my phone. Vincent answered on the first ring
“Vincent, I found them.”
“Fucking thank God,” Vincent’s voice was thick with relief. “I was already nning on how to talk
this turned into another dead end.”
“They were here.” I said, pacing in front of the motel office. “But Celine was rushed to the hor
s morning
There was a moment of silence. “Shit, Hunter. Is she okay? Is Caesar with her!”
“I don’t know. Some guy took her to Metro General. I’m trying to decide if I should storm the hospital or wait here for them toe back
“Hunter, breathe,” Vincent’s voice was calm, steady. “Celine’s going to be fine. She’s a strong woman….beautiful, stubi nails. Whatever happened, she’ll pull through,”
stubborn, and tough
Despite everything, I found myself smiling <b>at </b>his description, Vincent was right.
Celine was stronger than she looked, more resilient than she knew.
“I’m going to wait for them here,” I decided. “If they kept the room, maybe they’re nning toe back.”
I got the room number and key from the clerk, who was busy counting his money with obvious satisfaction.
Room 247, second floor, overlooking the parking lot.
I stood outside the door for a long moment, key in <b>hand</b>, heart hammering against my r without me<b>? </b>Proof that they were better off running?
y ribs. What would fin
Evidence of their life
The lock clicked open, and I stepped inside,
The scent hit me immediately–Celine’s shampoo, that slight vani fragrance that had haunted my dreams for days.
Their belongings were scattered around the small space: Caesar’s clothes folded neatly on one bed, Celine’s suitcase open on the dresser. Caesar’s toys sitting guard on the nightstand.
Bus ticketsy on the small table near the window
I picked them up with shaking hands…two tickets for the 7:30 AM departure, just like the woman at the station had said.
But they were unused, the perforated edge’s still intact.
I moved through their things like a man in a trance, trying to piece together their story from the evidence they had left behind.
<b>Caesar’s </b>favorite books were stacked carefully on the dresser.
Celine’s art supplies tucked into a corner of her suitcase
I picked up one of her shirts, bringing it to my face and inhaling deeply, tod, had missed her son, missed everything about bar
That’s when swit <fn3ca6> For original chapters go to f?ndnovel</fn3ca6>
A folded piece of paper had fallen from between her clothes when I moved them. I bent to pick it up, and my blood to unfolded it
A check
Two million dors. My mother’s signature was scrawled across the
across the bottom in her unique handwriting
My legs gave out, and I copsed onto the bed, staring at the check in my hands. She had taken the money
After everything, after all her protests about not being a charity case, she had taken my mother’s b
The betrayal hit me like a physical blow
I had been ready to apologize, to gravel, to do whatever it took to win her back. But she had taken the damn money. She had put a price on our rtionship and found it eptable.
I clenched the check in my fist, the paper crinkling as rage and heartbreak warred in my chest.
That’s when I heard them.
Footsteps in the hallway outside, apanied byughter, Caesar’s high, bright giggle that I would recognize anywhere.
Celine’s voice, softer but unmistakably hers.
And another voice–deeper, masculine, unfamiliar.
My heart stopped. They were back.
I stood up, the crumpled check still clutched in my hand, and moved toward the door
The footsteps were getting closer, the voices clearer. Caesar was chattering excitedly about something, and the man was responding with warmth that made my jaw clench.
anto turn.
The doorknob began
I took a step back, my entire body twisted like a spring, ready for whatever was about to happen.
Ready to face the woman who had taken my mother’s money and the man who had apparently taken my ce.
The door swung open, and Celine stepped inside, her key still in her hand<b>. </b>
ar eyes met across the small room, and I watched all the color drain from her face. Her lips parted in shock, and for a moment, neither of us
moved.
Our
Behind her, I could see Caesar bouncing excitedly and <b>a </b><b>tall </b>man with sandy hair and concerned green eyes.
“Hello, Celine<b>,</b>” I said, my voice deadly calm <b>as </b>i held up the crumpled check.
“Surprise to see me