Read Online Evil Without a Face by Jordan Dane - Free Book Online Page A

time. If something happens to Nikki—”
    “Don’t borrow trouble, Payton.”
    “Hell, who needs to borrow it?” He pinched the bridge of his nose to fend off a welling headache, then raked a hand through the blond hair that had fallen into his eyes. “Trouble gets off on kicking me in the ass. I got no say.”
    Joe fortified him with a hand on his shoulder. Susannah opened the front door wearing a bathrobe and a nightgown. She waited for him to come inside, her face red and puffy, glistening with tears. But as Payton got out of the truck, any resolve he’d had drained from him like sand through his fingers.
    When he crossed the threshold, Susannah collapsed into his arms. He held her tight, soothing her with whatever came to mind, whispering lame reassurances in her ear.
    “This can’t be happening, Payton. I think I’ve lost her this time.” His sister sobbed harder now, her body trembling. “Maybe I lost her a long time ago. I just don’t know anymore.”
    Joe caught his eye. And he understood the man, without so much as a word spoken between them. Getting his sister to focus might make all the difference.
    “Catch us up to speed, sis. What happened?”
    She pulled away, wiping her nose with a tissue. That’s when he smelled the liquor on her breath. Alcohol had become the weapon of choice in his family, when self-flagellation beat the alternative of facing the truth. His friend must have smelled the liquor too.
    “I’ll make us some coffee.” Joe nudged his head toward the sofa, directing Payton to get Susannah off her feet.
    With his arm around her shoulder, Payton walked her to the living room as she talked, rehashing it all in her head.
    “You don’t know how it’s been with that girl. Communicating with her these days is like talking to a stone. If I get any conversation at all, it comes in one-word mumbles with that annoying roll of her eyes. But you wanna know the worst thing? Whenever I saw her resentment, I’d blow a gasket.” She gulped air, taking a breath hindered by a sob. “I’d see myself lose control and I couldn’t stop it from happening, Payton.”
    The bitterness in her voice had melted away, transformed by a wave of prevailing doubt as he helped her to the couch and eased her down.
    “It’s been playing over and over in my head like some continuous loop that I can’t stop. Damn it, how did it come to this? You don’t know how much it hurts to know your daughter hates you, to be rejected by your own kid. God, I suck as a mother.”
    “She doesn’t hate you, Susannah.” Kneeling at her feet, he wiped the tears from her cheeks. With his voice steady and calm, he added, “The double shot of raging hormones and the strong Archer stubborn streak are hard to overcome. But Nikki loves you. I know she does.”
    In the way he always preferred to remember it—in hindsight filtered through love and loss—he and his sister never went through the teen war zone with their parents. A part of him wished they had. That would’ve meant his mom and dad hadn’t died in that blasted plane crash just as they’d hit those difficult times. Teen angst and the drama of rebellion seemed like such a small price to pay to have them longer. The stark reality of their death forced him to grow up waytoo fast. And after the shambles he made of his life, he was pretty damned sure he never got it right.
    “When did you notice her missing?” he asked.
    “This morning.” Fresh tears mixed with a powerful guilt. “But her bed wasn’t slept in and she took clothes with her, more than she did the last time. And a duffel bag is missing too. I think she left last night.” She looked into his eyes. “I’m scared, Payton. Really scared.”
    “Stay with me, honey. For Nikki’s sake.” He gripped her by the shoulders. “You said she left a note. What did it say? Do the state troopers have it?”
    She nodded. “Yeah, they’ve got it, but it didn’t say much. Only that she left on purpose. Said