Wretched (Never After Series)

The motel on the outskirts of Kinland is a shithole, but it’s the most inconspicuous place for Seth to set up shop without me having to travel two hours out of town.

The only source of light in the dark parking lot is from a flickering streetlight and the dim yellow bulbs illuminating the walkways. Parking my car, I glance around to make sure no one else is here before getting out and making my way to the last door on the left, knocking twice.

There’s a faint smell of garbage from the large dumpster a few feet away that makes my nose scrunch, and an owl hoots from a tree in the distance. Other than that, and the steady hum of cars on the street, there’s silence, but it doesn’t stop my stomach from flipping as I whip my gaze behind me one more time, just to make sure I haven’t been followed.

The door creaks open, Seth’s tired and worn face greeting me. He’s a welcome sight and he steps to the side for me to enter before closing the door again behind me. The room itself is nothing special, a full bed in the center, a small dark-maroon couch on the other, and tables set up throughout with computer monitors and recording equipment; enough to let me know that he hasn’t been doing surveillance here alone.

There’s empty coffee cups strewn across the countertops, and white to-go containers filing the room with the smell of Chinese takeout.

While I’ve been spying, they’ve been receiving.

“Anyone else here?” I ask, looking around before moving to the couch and sitting down.

Seth shakes his head, running a hand over his beard, but he doesn’t speak, and his stature catches me off guard, sending anxiety prickling through my insides. I brush it off, figuring he’s just tired, the same way I am.

“There’s a drop happening tomorrow night.”

Seth grabs his mug off the end of the table and moves to sit on the other side of the couch, quirking a brow. “Of what?”

I shrug. “No clue. They didn’t say what it was, just that we should be there to pick it up.”

He nods, taking a sip from his cup. “You didn’t think to ask?”

His tone is accusing, and it soars across the small space between us and hits me in the center of my chest. My hackles rise. “I’m not really in a position to ask a lot of questions, Seth. I may be in, but I’m still a fucking nobody, you know? Questions get people killed.”

He bobs his head again, his eyes searing into mine. “Sure.”

Irritation lights up my insides. “Everything okay?”

“You tell me.” He lifts a shoulder.

I throw my hands up. “Okay, well, I don’t have time for this. If you listen to the audio from yesterday, you’ll hear about the drop for yourself.”

Slapping my hands on my knees, I start to stand, but pause when he speaks again.

 “Oh, I heard the audio. Too bad it’s gone now.”

The breath whooshes from my lungs. “What the fuck do you mean, it’s gone?”

Chuckling, he places his mug down on the coffee table, jabbing two fingers into his temple. “Think for a second, Nick. What could possibly have happened that made me feel like it was necessary to ‘lose’ evidence?”

“I told you not to call me that,” I snap.

Immediately after saying it, a pang hits my chest, realizing how much I sound like Eveline.

Groaning, I run my hands over my face. “This what we do now, Seth? We talk in riddles?”

He frowns. “Bro. I know you’re not stupid.”

“What?” I repeat, getting irritated.

“Let me lay some shit out for you,” he says. “This morning I came here and looked over everything transmitted from your wire last night.” He points to the silver chain around my neck. “And there was some good shit, man. The best we’ve gotten so far. Eveline Westerly? She’s fucking scum.”

My stomach twists.

“And then I had to fucking delete half of it because you can’t keep your dick in your pants.”

Every muscle in my body freezes, embarrassment surging through my insides, because how could I be so stupid?

Seth runs his hand over his mouth and down his short beard. “So after I ran through all the situations in my head, I decided there’s no chance Galen will see that and not think you’re in too deep. So I wiped it. For you. To cover your fuckup.”

I breathe deeply, trying to stem the nausea that’s brewing in my gut. “Listen, Seth…”

He shakes his head. “I need you to tell me, honestly, that you know what you’re doing.”

My brows shoot to my hairline and a wall of defense slams down inside of me, because regardless of whether I’m fucking Eveline or not, I damn sure don’t need him questioning my abilities. “You saying I’m not doing my job, Seth?”

“I’m saying that you fucking the daughter of Farrell Westerly on top of a pile of dirty money isn’t exactly making me have confidence you know what the hell you’re doing, yeah.”

I clear my throat, my mind racing on how to fix this. “When have you ever known me to hold back on a case?” I ask.

“Never, but—”

I hold up a hand, cutting him off. “Right, never. And now suddenly, you think I’m losing it within a few weeks? Give me some fucking credit, dude.”

“You’re putting both of us on the line with this shit. You know how much trouble I’d be in if they knew I wiped evidence?”

“I didn’t ask you to do that,” I reply carefully. “She’s involved, clearly, as you can see. And we got the information we needed, did we not? We have coercion and money laundering cases stacking up quicker than we can blink.”

Seth purses his lips. “We both know that’s not the goal here. It’s not enough. We want the supplier.”

I move forward, placing my hand on his shoulder and meeting his eyes. “She’s our in, Seth. It’s her who can get us the information. And if I have to fuck her so she trusts me, then that’s what I’ll do.”

He’s quiet, and with every second he is, guilt spreads through my chest, layer upon layer until it’s heavy and thick.

Finally, he cracks a grin. “You’re a heartless bastard, man.”

I shrug, forcing a weak smile.

That wasn’t why I fucked her. But I’m not lying now. At the end of the day, Eveline is the enemy.

Not my friend.

Not my lover.

Not my anything.